Building Progress Through People
Brianna Burns’ Leadership in Safety and Innovation at Holcim
For Brianna Burns, every day at Humes is an opportunity to build something meaningful. Not just concrete solutions, but stronger teams and safer, smarter ways of working.
Starting as a Quality Assurance (QA) Administrator in 2017, Brianna has steadily taken on new challenges, from QA Officer to Production Manager, Acting National Manager, and now Area Manager for Humes in Darwin. “I love that no two days are ever the same,” she says.
Click on the link to watch a 2-minute interview with Brianna Burns.
“The challenges keep me learning, the people make it rewarding, and seeing ideas turn into action is really exciting.”
During her Tamworth secondment, Brianna built on her leadership journey while supporting Humes through a key regional role.
Nurturing growth and innovation
Brianna is passionate about giving her team opportunities to develop new skills and explore fresh ideas, just as she has throughout her own career. Whether it’s supporting team members through training plans and certificates, or on-the-job experience, she believes in creating space for people to grow.
Her role also involves preparing the Darwin site for the future, including plans to digitalise automated processes for pipe production. “There’s an opportunity to make our operations safer and more efficient while keeping up with demand in a growing region,” she explains.
As Area Manager for Humes Darwin, Brianna is driving local success while embracing a broader ‘One Holcim’ mindset: working as part of a unified, customer-focused team across Australia. This collaborative approach underpins innovation, efficiency, and strong customer outcomes.
People at the heart
Progress starts with people. Brianna fosters an open, collaborative culture where ideas are valued and safety comes first. “We start every week with a whole-site pre-start, music, and stretching. It sets a positive tone,” she says. “We want everyone to go home safe every day, and that means listening to each other, challenging how things are done, and finding better ways together.”
Building for a brighter future
Sustainability also drives Brianna’s work. From recycling rejected products into aggregate, to recycling water on-site, she sees opportunities to expand circular practices in Darwin. But what inspires her most is the bigger picture: “It’s about creating a safer, more sustainable world for our kids. They’re the ones who’ll inherit what we leave behind.”
From concrete pipes to prestressed concrete girders and everything in between, Humes precast concrete products are a vital part of Australian infrastructure.
