The Principal's Perspective

How do school leaders cross the bridge from high-level strategic vision to everyday classroom and operational reality?

In the 2026 finale of The Principal’s Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm is joined by Amrita Ahuja, Director of Strategic Initiatives at Westbourne Grammar School. Moving beyond static five-year strategy, Amrita describes the leadership practices, systems, structures, and cultural conditions needed to keep strategy alive.

Together, they dive into:

• Knowing when to adapt, pivot, or let deliverables go.

• How to mobilise and influence without traditional top-down authority.

• Balancing accountability and autonomy.

• Achieving staff alignment across 170 projects and deliverables.

• Leaving an organisation better than you found it.

If you’re designing a new strategic plan or struggling to operationalise your existing one, this episode is a conversation worth listening to.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Amrita Ahuja: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amrita-ahuja-5508938a/

Show Notes

Melbourne BusinessSchool

GrowthCoaching International - www.growthcoaching.com.au

Dr. Jordan Nguyen

What does the step from deputy principal to the principal’s office look like in practice?

In this episode, Dr Adrian Camm is joined by Ellen Moffatt, Deputy Principal and Head of Truganina Campus, to explore the realities of stepping up into executive leadership. After joining Westbourne while pregnant and taking maternity leave two weeks into the role, Ellen returned to lead a campus of more than 2,000 students. She is now preparing to serve as Acting Principal for ten weeks while Adrian is away.

They explore the mechanics of distributed leadership, why managing priorities feels more like navigating a 'to-do pool' than a to-do list, demystifying governance, and how intentional visibility builds community trust."

Topics include:

• Flexibility, parental leave, and backing women in leadership

• From "whack-a-mole" to strategic latitude

• De-escalating conversations and leading with empathy

• Ellen’s 2:1 approach to positive reinforcement

• Preparing for the Acting Principal role

• Why ambition isn't a dirty word

This episode offers practical insights for anyone navigating their first executive role or considering their next step in leadership.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Ellen Moffatt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellen-moffatt-b93654123/

The first conversation with Westbourne Grammar EA Danni Archer changed how a lot of people think about the Executive Assistant role. This one gets into the mechanics of how her partnership with the principal operates day to day.

In this episode of The Principal's Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm and Danni move past the big ideas and into the specifics - inbox systems, calendar politics, communication drafting, interpersonal tension, and the emotional labour that comes with a role at the centre of a complex organisation.

This episode covers:

• The principal's sent folder as a source of intel

• The art of saying no without saying no

• Writing in someone else's voice

• Putting on your armour - what the hard days look like

• When you disagree with the decision, and back it anyway

Part one asked whether you were underutilising your EA and this episode shows you just how valuable the partnership can be - when you get it right.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Danielle Archer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannielle-archer-99205255/

Show notes:

What Got You Here Won't Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith

What does it really look like when the principal and director of business get their relationship right? In this episode, Dr Adrian Camm and Nicole Lockwood, Director of Business at Westbourne Grammar School, go behind the scenes on one of school leadership's most important, and underexplored, partnerships.

Nicole shares the reality of a portfolio that spans finance, ICT, capital works, property, risk, compliance, and board governance, and explains why physical proximity to the principal's office was a non-negotiable before she signed her contract. She and Dr Camm also unpack the financial complexity behind Westbourne's greenfield campus development, the difference between governance and management reporting, and what aspiring principals should be doing in their very first conversations with a director of business.

Practical, and full of insight - this is the episode for any leader who wants to understand the partnership that influences how a school runs.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Nicole Lockwood: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-lockwood-6154ba97/

What if your Executive Assistant was also your chief of staff, your communications lead, your culture guardian, and your coaching partner?

In this episode, Dr Adrian Camm and his EA Danni Archer explore the rapidly evolving world of the executive assistant role in schools. Drawing on Danni's experience across corporate giants like Australia Post and Cotton On, they unpack the partnership they've built at Westbourne - the trust, the tension, the watershed moments, and the professional growth that has redefined what an EA can be. From inbox access to imposter syndrome, from coaching qualifications to an MBA at Melbourne Business School, this conversation goes well beyond the job description.

Topics covered include:

• From secretary to executive partnership.

• Letting your EA in.

• The challenges of shifting culture.

• Why initiative is everything.

This episode reveals what high-performance executive support really looks like and how the right EA can help unlock the full potential of an executive team.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Danielle Archer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannielle-archer-99205255/

What does it really cost to have it all?

This week on The Principal's Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm and Teagan Collins sit down for one of their most personal and candid conversations yet - exploring the reality of women in school leadership who are also navigating motherhood, identity, and the weight of modern expectations.

With Teagan weeks away from her second maternity leave, this episode draws on lived experience to surface the tensions that rarely make it into leadership discussions.

Highlights:

• Redefining ambition and why it’s okay to choose family and career

• The invisible cognitive and emotional load that returns to work with you

• Why systemic flexibility needs to be real

• The guilt that exists even in the most privileged and supported circumstances

• Capability versus capacity

• What school leaders and principals can practically do to better support returning parents

This is a conversation for women who lead, women who are about to leave, and the leaders who want to get it right when they come back.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

What's the real cost of that decision?

This week on The Principal's Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm and Teagan Collins explore leadership capital - the invisible resource that underpins every decision a school leader makes, from their first 90 days to navigating crisis and establishing long-term community trust.

Drawing on their own shared leadership experience, Adrian and Teagan talk through real moments where capital was spent too soon, feedback that didn't land because the relationship wasn't there yet, and how decision sequencing supports strategy.

Highlights:

• Building leadership capital deliberately and strategically from day one

• Understanding the true cost of structural, personnel and culture decisions before you make them

• The sequencing framework - how to identify quick wins, protect your reserves, and time your big calls

• What happens when a leader gets it wrong, and the practical steps to recover

• Why authentic responsiveness, not stubbornness, is the mark of a credible leader

• The role of community, board relationships, and visibility in sustaining your capital long term

This is a conversation for principals and senior leaders who want to lead with greater intention and spend their influence wisely.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Show Notes

Books & resources referenced in this episode:

• The Right Hand: Conversations with the Chiefs of Staff to the World's Most Powerful People - Phoebe Saintilan-Stocks

• Harvard Business Review: Leadership That Gets Results - Daniel Goleman

• The First 90 Days - Michael D. Watkins

• Outline of a Theory of Practice - Pierre Bourdieu

Is hiring stars a smart strategy - or risky business?

In this episode of The Principal’s Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm and Teagan Collins explore the hidden trade-offs that come with appointing high achievers. They discuss why high performance isn’t always the same as high impact and how to identify red flags in recruitment. This is a practical episode with tips for leaders around what to do once a high achiever is in the role to ensure they strengthen, not strain the team.

They explore:

• Why some high achievers thrive only in certain systems and contexts.

• How ambition can show up as entitlement and impatience.

• What to listen for in interviews to separate confidence from capability.

• How to set up the guardrails - direction, clear expectations, and coaching structures to support success.

• Why the best staffing profiles are built on balance and not a team of “A listers” only.

A thoughtful conversation for leaders building culture through every recruitment decision.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Show Notes:

The Risky Business of Hiring Stars

Are your workplace promises attracting the staff you need?

This week on The Principal’s Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm and Teagan Collins move beyond the recruitment crisis to discuss the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) and how structural choices like significant workload reduction and professional autonomy create a culture where teachers can thrive.

Highlights:

• EVP fundamentals and why articulating your proposition matters

• Westbourne’s approach to workload and autonomy

• Shifting professional learning inward to amplify staff expertise

• Using onsite resources to create time and support wellbeing

This practical conversation is for principals and senior leaders who want to develop a workplace that people choose and want to stay.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Teagan Collins: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠⁠

Show Notes:

Westbourne's EVP

Are your meetings driving progress - or just filling calendars?

In this episode of The Principal’s Perspective, Dr Adrian Camm and Teagan Collins examine meetings not just as calendar events, but as powerful signals of school culture and leadership practice.

They share the structure of executive meetings at Westbourne and reflect more broadly on meetings that don’t work and how leaders can redesign them with greater purpose.

This fast-paced conversation also covers how to make one-on-one meetings more valuable, and the trade-offs leaders need to consider when creating time efficiencies.

They explore:

• The risk of senior teams getting stuck in the wrong level of discussion.

• Why leaders need clarity about where decisions should be made.

• The tension between efficiency and making people feel seen, heard, and valued.

• How meeting habits across an organisation can either strengthen or weaken culture.

• It' a thoughtful and highly practical episode for school leaders wanting to improve how time gets spent.

Want to learn more about our hosts? Connect with them on LinkedIn:

• Dr Adrian Camm: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriancamm/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

• Teagan Collins:⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/teagan-collins-45699811a/⁠⁠