Julie Bishop (AMP 151, 1996) was 18 years into a successful legal career at a law firm in Perth, Western Australia, when she came to HBS. Bishop, who describes the AMP program as a time of “reflection, learning, and inspiration” graduated with a newfound focus: to seek public office. Two years later she defeated a seasoned incumbent to win a seat in parliament. Her experience led to cabinet positions including Minister for Ageing, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women’s Issues, and Minister for Education, Science and Training. In 2007, she became deputy leader of the Liberal Party, and in September 2013 was named Australia’s first female Minister for Foreign Affairs, both positions she continued to hold after a sudden leadership shift in September 2015. Bishop’s diplomacy and savviness in negotiating this change was widely noted and admired by colleagues and the media, where some speculated on her own potential to gain the nation’s highest office—a fact she acknowledges without making predictions, not surprisingly.

Life-changing case discussion: “Australia in the 1990s: Lucky or Broke?” by George C. Lodge. “I’ve always had an interest in Australia’s place in the world. Richard Vietor’s course Business, Government, and the International Economy put many things in context.”

Number of state visits since taking office: 57 trips to 49 countries, including Iraq, Iran, Indonesia, Ukraine, Afghanistan, and 12 trips to the United States.

Keeping time: “I set my watch to my destination when I’m traveling overseas. And even if I arrive late at night I still get up at 6 a.m. for a run.”

Australia’s closest neighbor: Papua New Guinea, “a country of about 7 million people with 800 different languages. It’s a truly remarkable place.”

Steady as she goes: “The House of Representatives is renowned for its robust level of parliamentary debate, which is a polite way of saying that it can be very noisy and rowdy. I focus by imagining I’m speaking to people watching TV at home.”

Seeding next-gen diplomats: The New Colombo Plan. “We are sending Australian undergraduates to live, study, and work in 38 countries in our region. It’s the first time we’ve had such an overseas study program run out of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.”

Group effort: The innovationXchange, an international advisory group formed by Bishop to develop creative, effective ways of delivering foreign aid that includes Michael Bloomberg (MBA 1966).

Futures market: “Australia is in its 24th year of consecutive economic growth; over the next 10 years I believe the country will achieve even more due not only to our mining and energy assets, but also to our capacity to harness the talents and skills of our very innovative and creative people.”

Deep roots: “I am the fifth generation of my family to grow up on a farm in the Adelaide Hills. We grew apples and cherries, and raised sheep.”

Role model: Her mother, who died in 2005. “She was my closest friend—a very engaging, bright, outgoing person who married when she was 21 and raised four children. In her 40s she entered local politics. I was very accustomed to constituents visiting our home at all hours.”

Favorite morning routine: “When I’m home, soft-sand running along Cottesloe Beach [west of Perth, on the Indian Ocean] is a great way to start the day.”

Spirit animal: Monkey. “It’s my Chinese horoscope. They’re nimble, agile, a bit mischievous—but a lot of fun.”

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