The 20 Minute Career

Jane Butler
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Have you ever said "I wish someone had told me what the job was actually like" or "I wish I knew that job existed" If you have or you're trying to avoid thinking it in five years from now this show is for you. The 20 Minute Career gives students, graduates and real professionals the honest conversations about jobs and careers that nobody else is having. Twenty minutes. One real professional. Zero filter. Every episode covers the Path, Pressure, Price and Payoff of careers across every industry. Real people. Real jobs. Honest conversations. Follow now. www.the20minutecareer.com

  1. 1d ago

    Industrial Organisational Psychology - The Psychology job that isn't therapy

    What do psychologists actually do at work if they're not a therapist? Jaymon Kirk is an Industrial Organisational (IO) Psychologist at HireVue, one of the world's leading hiring assessment companies. His job is to apply psychology science to hiring making sure the AI-powered tools companies use to assess candidates are valid, fair, and actually predict who will do well in the role. In this episode Jaymon breaks down what Industrial Organisational psychology is, how he accidentally ended up in the field (he started engineering), and what it looks like to apply psychology inside global organisations across Australia, Asia and the US. What you'll learn: What IO psychology actually is and how it differs from clinical or counselling psychologyHow AI is being used in hiring right now and why the human psychology lens mattersHow Jaymon went from engineering to working with global companiesWhy critical thinking is the skill he thinks matters most for young peopleWhat he wishes he'd known at 20 Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  2. Jul 7

    Prospect Development & Research - The Detective Job Behind Big Donations

    Ever wondered who tracks down the wealthy people who give away millions to universities, charities and causes? This week on The 20 Minute Career, Jane talks to Stephanie Papadopolous who works in Prospect Development/Research at the University of Sydney, uncovering and researching the donors behind major philanthropic gifts a career almost nobody knows exists. Steph's path in was anything but linear. She studied journalism, then made a pivot to veterinary science. Decided to do some travelling and did some marketing in Spain before returning to Sydney and landing ther job in Prospect development where she researches and identifies potential donors for one of Australia's largest university advancement teams. In this episode, Steph breaks down what Prospect Development/Research actually involves, why due diligence is becoming a bigger part of the job, and how AI is already shifting her team's work from generating information to reviewing it. Underneath it all, she's clear that people skills and human judgement are what keep the role from ever being fully automated and that watching a gift finally land, like a recent $100 million donation for STEM scholarships, is what makes the work worth it. What we cover: How Steph landed in a career she'd never heard of, via journalism, vet science and a stint in SpainWhat Prospect Development/Research actually is, and how it fits into the philanthropic funnelWhy due diligence and risk assessment are a growing part of the roleThe difference between fundraiser personalities and prospect development personalitiesHow AI is shifting her team from generating content to reviewing itThe $100 million gift that reminded her why she loves the jobHer honest take on pressure and working in the not-for-profit spaceAdvice on aiming for 70% done, and why she wishes she'd found a mentor sooner Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  3. Jun 30

    Field Marketing - The Job Behind the Brand

    Ever wondered what a career in marketing actually looks like beyond the creative brief? This week I sits down with Rushenka Perera, VP of Marketing at SAP, to find out what B2B marketing really involves — and it's a lot more than you'd expect. Rushenka shares her honest path into marketing emerging from university straight into a recession and grabbing the first opportunity with both hands. From that starting point she's built a career spanning global teams, major events, and some of the biggest enterprise brands in the world. In this episode Rushenka breaks down what field marketing actually is, why pipeline is the number one goal, and how AI is already reshaping the way her team works from predicting which customers are ready to buy, to replacing hours of manual data analysis. But underneath all of it? Her belief that marketing is fundamentally about human connection. And that's the one thing AI can't replicate. What we cover: How Rushenka found her way into marketing and why she stayedWhat field marketing actually is and what it looks like day to dayWhy pipeline, brand and customer advocacy are the three goals that drive everythingRunning 250+ events a year across Australia and New ZealandHow AI is being used right now inside one of the world's biggest tech companiesThe real cost of working in a fast-paced global tech roleWhy human connection is still the most powerful tool in a marketer's arsenalHer advice on networking, being bold and never having regrets Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  4. Jun 23

    A Career in Sustainability - From Landfill to Life Changing

    What does it actually look like to build a career around reducing waste and do it inside a major retailer? Pen Turnbull didn't plan a career in sustainability. She started by volunteering five hours a week at a tiny social enterprise salvaging timber from earthquake rubble in Christchurch. That one email changed everything. Now she leads waste minimisation and circular economy programs across a large retail group keeping unsellable product out of landfill, shifting how thousands of employees think about materials, and proving that real change happens inside big organisations, not just small ones. In this episode How a late career pivot led to her most purposeful workWhy she chose corporate over social enterprise and why it was the right callThe emotional weight of caring about the planet as part of your jobWhat circular economy actually means in a retail contextWhy she'd tell her 20-year-old If you're drawn to environmental work, sustainability, or any role where your values and your job need to align this one's for you. Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  5. Jun 16

    Engineer to Entreprenuer - Co-Founder of Reach Robotics

    Engineering is one of those careers that sounds straight forward from the outside. You build things. You solve problems. You apply what you learned at university and get on with it. Mark Sproule started where a lot of engineers start curious, hands-on, and drawn to figuring out how things work. As a kid it was old boats. At university it was biomedical engineering. At ResMed it was prototyping with 3D printers, and the thrill of seeing a design come to life. But after four years inside one of Australia's most recognised medical device companies, Mark realised something - he was a very small cog in a very large machine. And he wanted to know what it felt like to build the machine himself. So he left and joined a University friend and co-founded Reach Robotics a company building underwater robotic arms for underwater drones. Robots sent to disarm underwater mines so humans don't have to. Arms attached to unmanned underwater vehicles monitoring offshore oil rigs for corrosion. Niche, complex, and genuinely important work. What followed was the founder journey in full and Mark doesn't sugarcoat any of it. The pressure doesn't arrive once and stay constant. It arrives in waves. First it's whether you can actually build the product. Then whether anyone will buy it. Then whether you can make it reliably enough that customers don't call you at midnight saying it's failed in the field. And underneath all of it, every single month, can we make payroll? He also talks about the ethics decision - their biggest ever purchase order, a foreign buyer, and an Australian Defence Force disclosure requirement that forced a choice between revenue and integrity. They chose integrity. And he gets honest about the cost. When you're a founder, you never really clock off. The business lives in your head at dinner, at bedtime, and at 2am. That kind of mental load compounds. But Mark also reframes it, if you deeply care about what you're building, is that really a cost? What surprised him most was what the whole experience gave back. Not just professionally but personally. Building something from nothing, selling a product people were willing to pay for, developing systems he was proud of. If you're thinking about engineering, curious about what it actually takes to start something, or just want to hear an honest account of the founder life this one is worth 20 minutes of your time. In this episode: How fixing old boats as a kid led Mark to a career in engineeringWhat it felt like to leave a stable job at ResMed to co-found a startup from scratchWhat Reach Robotics actually built — and why it matteredThe wave of pressures every founder faces — and why they never really stopThe ethics decision when running a businessWhy working with people is harder than any engineering problemWhat building something from nothing did for his confidenceWhat Mark would tell his 20-year-old self Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  6. Jun 9

    Corporate Law - "Suits" the real version

    Law is one of the most popular career choices young people nominate year after year, cohort after cohort. And it’s not hard to see why. For generations, students have grown up watching legal dramas - LA Law, Suits, The Good Wife and wanted that life. The sharp suits. The courtroom wins. The confidence of Harvey Specter walking into a room and owning it. It looks like the perfect career. High stakes, high reward, and never boring. The reality is more complicated than that. Arj Puveendran is a partner at top tier commercial law firm Thomsons leading a team, running his own book of clients, and doing the legal equivalent of building a business within a business. He’s worked across small and large firms to get there. And what he’ll tell you is that the gap between the TV version and the reality is significant. Cases don’t resolve in a week. You don’t walk into court the day after taking a brief. The work is methodical, precise, and unforgiving and the stakes are real. A missing signature or a misplaced clause can unravel months of negotiation and cost a client everything. He also talks about what AI is starting to mean for the profession and it’s significant. Platforms like Legora and Harvey are already in the market, automating the research, the drafting, and the routine work that junior lawyers have always used to learn the craft. The process work that once built foundational skills is being absorbed fast. But AI is not infallible and in a profession where the consequences of an error can be catastrophic, lawyers still need to know enough to interrogate the output, not just accept it. For graduates entering the field right now, the impact of all of this on how they learn, how they work, and what will be expected of them is only just beginning to play out. And he gets honest about the cost. The long hours. The stress that internalises quietly and shows up in your body in ways you don’t always notice until much later. But it’s not all hard. The intellectual engagement that keeps your brain working at its best every single day. The financial trajectory. The ability to do meaningful pro bono work. And a professional credibility that opens doors well beyond the law. If you’ve ever considered law this one is worth 20 minutes of your time. In this episode: Why Arj chose law over a medicine scholarship and why he’s never questioned itWhat lawyers actually do all day and where the Harvey Specter version falls apartHow AI is reshaping the profession and what that means for graduates entering the field right nowWhy in law, getting it wrong is never a small thingThe long hours, the stress, and the cost of building a career in a high stakes professionWhat the career gives back financially, intellectually, and beyondWhat Arj would tell his 20-year-old self Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  7. Jun 3

    Enterprise Sales - Nobody Plans to Work in Sales. Until They Do

    Nobody grows up wanting to be a salesperson. Dan Ridd didn't. He dropped out of university, fell into a business development job at a telecoms company, and made £10,000 in his first month at 21 years old. That was the beginning of a 15 year career at the very top of enterprise sales working with organisations like Atlassian, Canva and HSBC across Australia and the UK, closing deals worth millions. And here's what's interesting none of it required a degree. What got Dan to the top wasn't a qualification. It was a very specific set of skills all based around his ability to form strong honest relationships. Knowing everything about an organisation before you walk in the door. Getting past the gatekeeper. Building the kind of trust that makes a Chief People Officer take your call. Understanding a problem so well that you've already started solving it before the meeting begins. In enterprise sales, these skills are literally worth millions. And in this episode Dan gets specific about what they are, how he developed them, and why in a world where AI is rapidly taking over the research, the admin and the outreach, they've become the only thing that truly separates the good from the exceptional. He also gets honest about what the job costs you the 70 to 90 hour weeks, the targets that never switch off, and why he was away from his husband 80% of the time at the peak of his career. And what it gave him in return. If you've ever written off sales as a career, this one is worth 20 minutes of your time. In this episode: - What enterprise sales actually is and how it differs from other sales roles - How Dan went from university dropout to million-dollar targets - Why finding a mentor early can define the entire trajectory of your career - The skills that matter in sales and why none of them require a degree - The pressures, the sacrifices, and the honest financial reality - Why relationships are the one thing AI will never replace in sales - What Dan would tell his 20-year-old self Subscribe for more honest career conversations, new episodes every Wednesday. 🔗 Everything in one place: https://linktr.ee/the20minutecareer 📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @the20minutecareer 🎙️ The 20 Minute Career — Real People, Real Jobs, Honest Conversations.

  8. May 26

    Philanthropy: The Career Built Around Changing the World

    Most people hear the word philanthropy and think it's someone else's world. The world of billionaires and big cheques. Tori Grimes is here to tell you it's not. Philanthropy and fundraising sit at the intersection of purpose, people and pressure. It's a career where you spend your days building relationships with people who care deeply about changing something in the world and then asking them to put their money behind it. Tori's path here was anything but direct. A gap year in Africa at 18 changed everything. Witnessing real poverty on the ground gave her a clarity about her career that no careers counsellor or job description ever could. She came back knowing she wanted to spend her professional life making a difference. In this episode Tori breaks down what philanthropy actually looks like from the inside. The relationship building, the targets, the pressure of asking someone for money, and why she believes more people could do this job than think they could. She also gets honest about the hard parts the emotional weight of working on problems that can never be fully solved, and the personal cost of a role that follows you outside of working hours. And her advice on the skill she wishes more young people would develop? It might surprise you. Twenty minutes. One person. One real career. No filter.

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About

Have you ever said "I wish someone had told me what the job was actually like" or "I wish I knew that job existed" If you have or you're trying to avoid thinking it in five years from now this show is for you. The 20 Minute Career gives students, graduates and real professionals the honest conversations about jobs and careers that nobody else is having. Twenty minutes. One real professional. Zero filter. Every episode covers the Path, Pressure, Price and Payoff of careers across every industry. Real people. Real jobs. Honest conversations. Follow now. www.the20minutecareer.com

Information

  • Creator
    Jane Butler
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Jane Butler
  • Show Website
    The 20 Minute Career