Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Duke.
Hi Michelle, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve always been someone who says “yes” to opportunities and figures out the details later.
I started my career with a degree in Science, majoring in Chemistry, I love science, and I love doing the experiments, but I loved talking and writing about them more. I realised I didn’t want to be stuck in a lab. The talking about science to non-sciency people is what I loved most, so I enrolled in a Master of Media and Communications where I did a lot of my work around business, science, gaming, and technology. After this, I landed at Melbourne University’s Science, Innovation and Technology precinct, running their marketing and events. I was involved in organising and running meetups, TEDx talks, hackathons, and lots more. I quickly realised I loved bringing people together, building communities, and helping others learn. I didn’t just organise the events that happened at the venue, I got involved. I learned a lot just from being there. I started running hackathons and other community events. That naturally led me into tech, where I’ve spent the last decade working across developer advocacy, community management, and content creation.
Along the way, I’ve had the privilege of speaking at over 400 events around the world, from technical conferences to major keynotes, writing more than 1,700 articles, producing videos and live streams, and being involved in over 200 hackathons as an organiser, mentor, judge, or participant. I’ve worked with incredible companies like GitHub, Twilio, Microsoft, IBM, and NASA, and I’ve co-founded several businesses along the way too; including an AI company back in 2016 when “AI wasn’t cool”, and an electric scooter company.
A lot of people know me as “MishManners” or the “Hackathon Queen”, but at the heart of everything I do is a love for making technology more approachable and creating spaces where people feel like they belong. Whether I’m on stage, running a workshop, mentoring at a hackathon, or streaming online, my goal is always the same: to help people learn, connect, and realise that they can do amazing things.
My career hasn’t been a straight line, and that’s been the fun part. Every opportunity has opened the door to something new, and I’m still as excited about technology, community, and helping people succeed as I was when I first started.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Definitely not a straight and uneventful path. My career has been incredibly rewarding, but it hasn’t been a smooth road.
A lot of my roles have been global, which means working remotely and asynchronously across multiple time zones. Living in Australia often means early mornings, late nights, and occasionally attending meetings at some pretty unreasonable hours. It can be challenging building relationships and maintaining visibility when your teammates are scattered around the world and you’re often asleep while everyone else is online.
I’ve also faced challenges that many women in technology experience. There have been times when I’ve been underestimated, had to work harder to prove my expertise, or found myself being the only woman in the room. It can be even worse with a lot of women initiatives too, as this becomes a double-edged sword, leaving people accusing you of being in a position just because you are a woman, and not because of merit. It can be difficult to see people who look like you in certain roles when representation is still lacking in parts of the industry.
On top of that, I’ve tended to say “yes” to opportunities because I genuinely love learning and helping communities. While that has opened incredible doors, it has also meant learning the importance of boundaries, prioritisation, and avoiding burnout.
The struggles have definitely shaped me, though. They’ve taught me resilience, adaptability, and empathy. They also reinforced why I care so deeply about community and creating inclusive spaces where people feel welcomed, supported, and empowered to pursue opportunities they might not have otherwise considered.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I wear a lot of hats, which is probably why people often struggle to put me in a single box. I even struggled to put it in a box, until I realiesd I didn’t need do.
At my core, I’m a community builder and developer advocate. Over the past decade, I’ve worked across developer relations, community management, marketing, content creation, event management, and technical education. I specialise in making technology approachable, creating engaging experiences, and helping people feel like they belong in tech communities.
I also have extensive experience building and growing developer programs and ambassador communities, helping connect people with opportunities that can genuinely change their careers.
What I’m most proud of isn’t any particular title or achievement. It’s the impact I’ve had on people. Some of my proudest moments have been hearing from someone who was able to do something because of a tutorial I wrote, or who landed their first job because of a community connection, found the confidence to give their first talk, contributed to open source for the first time, or realised that they belonged in tech after attending one of my sessions.
I think what sets me apart is that I bridge a lot of worlds that don’t traditionally overlap. I can comfortably dive into technical topics, stand on a keynote stage, run a hackathon, host a livestream, write an article, facilitate a workshop, and build meaningful communities around all of it. I also bring a lot of authenticity to everything I do. Whether I’m speaking to a room of thousands or chatting with someone one-on-one, my goal is always the same: to make people feel welcome, excited about technology, and empowered to keep learning.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
My biggest piece of advice is simple: take the reins and go for it.
You don’t get opportunities by sitting back and waiting for them to find you. You get them by putting your hand up, speaking up, and actively stepping into rooms you might not feel 100% ready for yet.
There’s something to be said about the importance of self-advocacy. No one is going to champion your work and your potential quite like you can. That doesn’t mean being loud for the sake of it, but it does mean being clear about your value, your contributions, and what you want next. Be clear about the impact you are making.
And just as importantly: believe you are meant to be in the room.
So often, especially early in your career, it can feel like everyone else knows something you don’t, or that you’re somehow behind. The reality is that most people are figuring it out as they go too. You don’t need to have everything perfectly figured out to belong in the space you’re in.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mishmanners.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/mishmanners
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/mishmanners
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/mishmanners
- Twitter: https://x.com/mishmanners
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/c/mishmanners
- Other: https://mishmanners.info
