Grant program helped inspire new opportunities in sporting career
Having already used her knowledge from the corporate world to help people get involved in sport, Alicia Nagle was able to take her career to the next level thanks to a Women Leaders in Sport grant.
14 September 2023
Having already used her knowledge from the corporate world to help people get involved in sport, Alicia Nagle was able to take her career to the next level thanks to a Women Leaders in Sport grant.
Alicia Nagle used her WLIS grant to complete a course with the Australian Institute of Company Directors, left, and now has a sport tech company, Zonely.
During Covid, Ms Nagle decided she wanted to make a difference, so she left her corporate job to find a more meaningful path. She joined Empower Golf, opens in a new tab — an affiliate of Golf Australia and Special Olympics Australia dedicated to enabling individuals with disabilities to access, learn, and play golf.
While still working at Empower Golf, Ms Nagle successfully applied for a WLIS Individual Grant and used it to take the next step in her professional development. The WLIS Individual grant program is designed to support women to access professional development opportunities, develop specialist skills and enhance existing skills in areas specific to their stage in the sport leadership journey.
“I chose to do the Australian Institute of Company Directors Foundations of Directorship program, a three-day course covering Governance, Risk and Strategy and Finance for Board Directors.” Ms Nagle said.
“I found the program incredibly useful and insightful … the detailed learning materials, the interesting perspectives, diverse participants and the network I gained from the course were invaluable.”
Today, Ms Nagle is the CEO of her own sport tech company Zonely, opens in a new tab, and said she uses the lessons learned in her directorship course daily. Zonely helps connect people through social golf activities in their area and aims to help communities get active.
Being Kel Nagle's granddaughter, a pioneer in Australian professional golf, Ms Nagle has naturally focused on golf initially, but said she hopes to broaden the range of sports offered in the future.
The Australian Sports Commission (ASC) WLIS initiative has provided leadership and development opportunities for more than 21 years and has supported more than 27,000 women and 800 organisations.
- Applications for the next ground of WLIS grants are now open and close on Sunday 17 September.
