A Day in the Life of Karyn Manager, Enquiries and Conciliation

Published 16 December 2022

I’m very happy to have wound up where I am, working with a great team and doing useful work.   

Why did you join Anti-Discrimination NSW?

I joined ADNSW as a Conciliation Officer in 2017 before moving into a management role.

As a lawyer, I represented a number of clients in discrimination complaints with ADNSW and I enjoyed the conciliation process. I thought being a Conciliation Officer would be a great role but they don’t come up very often, and so I was really thrilled when an opportunity did arise.

I’ve always had an interest in human rights and find it to be a really engaging area of law. As a lawyer I always preferred to look at ways to resolve an issue rather than litigate, so ADNSW was a good fit for me.

Can you describe your role? 

I am one of two Enquiries and Conciliation Managers. I lead our fabulous Enquiries Team and share responsibility for managing our investigation and complaints processes.

The Enquiries Team is generally the first point of contact for people wanting to find out about our complaints process or the protections under the Anti-Discrimination Act, and handles several thousand enquires each year.

ADNSW is always looking at ways to improve our service and I work closely with the management team to that end.

What do you like most about your job?

Every day is different, and I’m always being challenged and learning new things.  

What keeps you busy outside of work?

I love to get out on my bike for long rides, as long as there’s a good café somewhere along the way. I also have a big garden and find weeding to be a very good mindfulness practice!