Meet Hacia Atherton
From a hospital bed to the helm of industry transformation.
Born into a fifth-generation plumbing family that helped build Australia’s foundational trades industry, Hacia Atherton didn’t just inherit legacy she redefined it. As the first female CEO of a plumbing company in Australia, she shattered expectations in one of the world’s most male-dominated sectors. But her greatest leadership lessons weren’t learned in boardrooms they were forged in the fire of personal adversity.
Today, she’s the Founder and Chair of Empowered Women in Trades (EWIT) a groundbreaking movement tackling low female represnetation in the trades head-on. Her work has earned her appointments to advisory roles with Australian Ministers, recognition as one of the Top 100 Women in Construction, and awards from organisations like Telstra and CPA Australia.
As the Principal Consultant at Allstar Consulting, Hacia now helps companies solve the billion-dollar problem no one wants to talk about: toxic workplace culture. With a Master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology and a CPA qualification, she blends scientific rigour with real-world business strategy equipping leaders to build workplaces where people and profits thrive together.
Her keynotes aren’t just speeches. They’re wake-up calls that ignite transformation.
Why Book Hacia?
She’s also the Principal Consultant at Allstar Consulting, where she works with Private Equity, industry bodies, governments, and CEOs to solve one of the most expensive problems in business today: toxic workplace culture.
Whether you’re hosting a leadership summit, industry conference, corporate retreat, or women in business event, Hacia speaks with a rare mix of fire and finesse the kind that moves hearts, shifts minds, and builds high-performance cultures that actually work.What You Get When You Book Hacia:
🧠 Deep Expertise & Real-World Results
Master’s in Applied Positive Psychology. CPA. Global leadership strategist. Every talk is grounded in research and elevated by experience.
🏆 Award-Winning, Values-Driven Leadership
Recognised by Telstra, CPA Australia, and Top 100 Women in Construction for bold leadership and diversity advocacy.
🌎 Global Credibility, Local Relevance
From the U.S. to Australia to Canada Hacia has spoken alongside leaders like Kevin Costner, Jeremy Piven, Tommy Hilfiger, and Elizabeth Hurley. She brings magnetic presence and timeless wisdom to every stage.
No cookie-cutter speeches here. Every keynote is tailored to your audience’s challenges, delivering clear frameworks, actionable insights, and cultural transformation.
If culture is your blind spot, it’s costing you millions.
Book Hacia and build a workplace that wins.
Speaker of Choice
Ready to Ignite Change at Your Next Event?
Poor workplace culture is costing global organisations billions.
Toxic leadership, burnout, and disengagement aren’t just emotional tolls they’re bottom-line risks.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Transformation begins when leaders commit to becoming 1% better every single day.That’s what Hacia Atherton delivers.
With powerful storytelling, proven strategies, and a roadmap rooted in evidence-based psychology, Hacia does more than just speak… she sparks movements. From boardrooms to global stages, she’s equipping leaders with the mindset, tools, and courage to turn burnout into belonging, and breakdown into breakthrough.
Watch the video to experience Hacia’s impact in action.
If culture is your blind spot it’s costing you.
Bring Hacia to your next event and equip your people to lead, live, and thrive at work.
Building Diversity in Skilled Trades through Positive Psychology
Signature Speaking Topics
No Cookie-Cutter Keynotes.
Only Bespoke, High-Impact Experiences
I’m not a one-size-fits-all speaker.
Every audience is different and so is every keynote I deliver. I collaborate with clients to design bespoke presentations that respond to their unique goals, challenges, and culture. Whether it’s a conference for industry disruptors, a leadership summit, or a private C-suite retreat, I tailor every word to resonate deeply and drive measurable impact.
Below are examples of topics I’m often invited to speak on, however, if your event needs something bold, new, or deeply specific, we’ll create it together.
Because truly transformational events aren’t templated. They’re co-designed.
Resilience Rewired
Learn how to reframe personal adversity as your greatest leadership asset and apply that mindset to fuel team-wide transformation.
Discover how to lead from the front during tough times not with burnout, but with courage, clarity, and conviction.
Team Culture Alchemy
Explore how personal resilience translates into psychologically safe, high-performing teams who bounce forward, not just back.
From Rock Bottom to Boardroom: Turning Adversity into a Leadership Advantage
This is more than a comeback story it’s a roadmap for resilient leadership. In this keynote, Hacia Atherton shares her extraordinary transformation from being told she might never walk again to leading multimillion-dollar companies, founding a global movement, and reshaping leadership culture in male-dominated industries.
The Billion Dollar Workplace Issue No One Is Talking About
