A former Wing Commander heeds a creative calling

By Nicola Field

 

When Chris Huet AFIML promises to help his clients speak with the precision of a fighter pilot and the passion of a poet, he’s not joking. This former Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) pilot, award-winning poet, and now communications coach, has a career path that can rightly be summed up as ‘Top Gun meets the Bard’.

Huet kickstarted his career in the RAAF, completing a Bachelor of Arts through the Australian Defence Force Academy. It wasn’t long before Huet found his wings, climbing through the ranks to become a fighter pilot. It’s a role Huet describes as “lots of fun and very rewarding – it was an opportunity to fly and visit different places around the world.”

In a near-20-year career with the RAAF, Huet reached the distinguished rank of Wing Commander. In his final role, as a squadron Commanding Officer, he was responsible for a fighter training school, overseeing 200 personnel and 14 F/A-18 Hornet jets. Under Huet’s leadership, the squadron was officially recognised as the RAAF’s first Learning Centred Organisation.

Huet’s experience in the RAAF reinforced two critical leadership skills: the ability to galvanise a team, and the need for outstanding communication. He explains, “You may be flying alone in a single seater F/A-18 but you’re always part of a team. And across the Air Force you deal with a multitude of diverse people, each responsible for different roles. It makes good communication skills essential.”

Fast forward to 2006, and Huet was ready to hang up his wings. Having completed a Master of Management, he was keen to use his management skills in a broader sphere.

Huet gradually transitioned out of the military, initially consulting to the defence forces and later taking on the role of Business Development Manager at Lockheed Martin. It was here that he harnessed his communication skills to negotiate a A$1.2 billion contract for the Project AIR 5428 Pilot Training System.

 

FROM THE SKY TO THE STAGE

Behind the scenes, the right side of Huet’s brain was bubbling away. He had always been interested in poetry and creative writing, and a little over 10 years ago Huet’s alter ego, CJ Bowerbird, took to the stage.

Under the moniker of CJ Bowerbird, Huet has performed poetry at folk and writer’s festivals across Australia, Asia and the United States. He is a former Australian Poetry Slam champion (slams are competitive poetry readings), and a member of Canberra’s Sound and Fury Ensemble as well as a two-time TEDx presenter.

 

THE COMMUNICATIONS COACH TAKES OFF

Several years ago, Huet had a moment of epiphany – one that would see him fuse his management experience with his talent for the spoken word.

“I was writing my CV and trying to find the real story behind who I am,” explains Huet. “I realised that what I really enjoy most is communicating with others, and I wanted to combine my creative pursuits with my technical and business work.”

Although uncertain about the market for a communications coach, in 2017 Huet opened the doors of Understood Consulting Services. He reports being “pleasantly surprised” by the level of demand for his services.

Describing his role, Huet says, “It’s not solely public speaking that I teach. Often it’s one-on-one verbal communication skills that my clients are looking for.” Huet says his services are in particular demand among professionals such as engineers, whose career strength to date has centred on technical rather than communication skills.

Huet’s passion for poetry has proven a tremendous asset in teaching the art of communication: “Effective communication has energy and emotion. This lets you connect with the people you’re talking to. And poetry connects emotion with concrete images, motivating and exciting us.”

 

THE POWER OF FACE TO FACE

While Huet claims he hasn’t yet met anyone who couldn’t improve their communication skills, he has observed “the bland language used by some leaders – be it in politics or business.” Despite the growth of digital communication, Huet is a firm believer that there is no substitute for face-to-face contact.

“Communicating face to face is extremely powerful,” he explains. We communicate through tone, volume, pacing – and our entire body. Anything other than face to face is less effective and is more likely to be ignored.

“If you really want to motivate and inspire people to change, you have to do it face to face. Sending an ‘all-stations’ email is nowhere near as effective.”

Huet acknowledges that speaking, especially in front of large groups, is a common fear. “It’s perfectly normal to be nervous about speaking in front of others. I think it’s probably an innate thing – a fear of being rejected by the tribe. Even the best public speakers get nervous. The difference is that they direct that energy outwards, towards their audience and into the way they’re speaking.”

 

FINDING A PURPOSE

Whether it’s piloting military hardware at 30,000 feet or helping professionals find their inner voice, Huet has certainly notched up a high-flying career as a manager and leader. “I’ve been lucky to bring everything I enjoy into the work I do,” he acknowledges.

But luck has played only a small role in Huet’s career path. It’s been more a case of harnessing all of his skills and talents, and he encourages other managers and leaders to tap into their creative side.

“It’s important to find a purpose in the work you do,” he says. “Creativity isn’t just about poetry. It’s about solving problems and being able to see things from a fresh perspective. Being able to channel my creative side has been very beneficial in my work and in my life.”

This article originally appeared in the September 2019 edition of Leadership Matters, IML ANZ’s quarterly magazine. For editorial suggestions and enquiries, please contact karyl.estrella@managersandleaders.com.au.

Career Doctor: How can personal resilience help with stress management?

By Peter Cullen FIML

Resilience has become increasingly important in the workplace due to the positive impact it can have on an individual’s wellbeing and performance. The Oxford English Dictionary definition of resilience is “the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties”.

Although some of us are more resilient than others, all of us become more susceptible to pressure and stress when our resilience is low. Everyone can benefit from activities that promote physiological, mental and emotional wellbeing.

 

STRESS ERODES RESILIENCE

Stress is the body’s natural response to pressure or alarming situations – those that make us uncertain whether or not we can cope. The factor or situation causing our stress either positively or negatively is called a stressor. Unfamiliar situations challenge or threaten us and increase our level of stress. A stress response may require higher energy levels to help us cope.

Occupational stress can be defined as the physiological, mental and emotional responses that occur when workers perceive an imbalance between their work demands, their capability, their access to resources and their level of control. Importantly, stress responses occur when the imbalance is such that the employee perceives they are not coping in crucial situations.

On the other hand, positive stress is beneficial and can improve performance. A natural and automatic function of the body is to provide extra energy to help us tackle a stressful situation. It will then naturally return to its former balanced state. This return to balance ensures ongoing health and wellbeing. Some of the body’s beneficial reactions to a stressful situation include: mental alertness, sugar release for energy, increased muscle responsiveness, faster heart rate, increased adrenaline and cortisol, increased blood pressure and faster breathing.

All these reactions occur automatically as the mind and body react to a stressful situation. It is necessary to remember that everybody copes differently with stress and everybody’s stress barrier is different.

 

BE SELF-AWARE, IMPROVE RESILIENCE

To improve how we manage our stress and be more resilient, we need to build our self-awareness to better understand where we are physiologically, mentally and emotionally at any point in time. A simple method to use when you are in the moment is:

  • Identify how you are feeling and what you are thinking.
  • Ask yourself what effect these feelings and thoughts are having upon you.
  • Consider whether these feelings and thoughts are helpful or not.
  • Take action to address these feelings and thoughts if they are unhelpful, or simply continue as is, if they are helpful.

 

Reflect upon a previous stressful event that tested your resilience and follow the above method in your mind. This will help you gain a greater understanding of how this may be useful for you the next time a stressful situation arises.

We can also build and strengthen our resilience by engaging in a variety of activities as part of our normal way of life. Here are some suggestions:

PHYSIOLOGICAL: Aerobic exercise, strength and conditioning, yoga or stretching, healthy nutritious eating, hydration, breath work, appropriate sleep.

MENTAL: Meditation, self-reflection to build self-awareness, relaxation techniques, reframe your thinking, establish boundaries, set achievable goals.

EMOTIONAL: Strengthen constructive relationships, be appropriately honest with yourself and others, respect yourself, talk openly with trusted friends, know and live your personal values, seek support when necessary, learn techniques to manage your emotions.

 

We all can improve our level of resilience and maintain a strong physiological, mental and emotional state. When are you going to start improving your resilience and be the role model for others to follow?

This article originally appeared in the June 2019 edition of Leadership Matters, IML ANZ’s quarterly magazine. For editorial suggestions and enquiries, please contact karyl.estrella@managersandleaders.com.au.

Other Life: Volunteering as a willing sounding board

By Lisa Calautti

 

Volunteering for less fortunate people is important to Barbara Brown, the general manager of people and culture at St.Lukes Health Insurance.

An IML ANZ Corporate Member, Brown has dedicated much of her life to volunteering, offering a helping hand to various organisations including menopause clinics, cancer support services and youth mentoring programs. As a result of her husband’s encouragement and his belief that her compassionate nature would benefit clients at Missiondale Recovery Centre, Brown has most recently pushed herself out of her comfort zone to come alongside drug and alcohol rehabilitation patients.

“I knew from volunteering in the past that most people just want someone to listen to them, and in that environment, people are there because they have already made the decision to change and are quite happy to talk about where they are and where they want to get to,” she explains. “The basis of anything I put my hand up for is looking beyond myself and my circumstances and seeing what I can do to help someone else.

“It’s always about what word of encouragement can I share, what cup of tea can I get? What hug can I give to make a person feel better about what they are going through? The motivation is never about me and I say to my family it’s about what you can do for others.”

Helping those less fortunate has given Brown an innate ability as a manager to relate to people and be more tolerant of their circumstances. Most of all, it has taught her not to take people at face value. “You realise there is a story behind every person. I absolutely believe that everyone has some sort of shadow. It is different for every single person,” she explains.

Helping people from all walks of life has helped Brown read and understand people’s behaviour. It has given her the ability to step back and have a ‘helicopter view’ of a situation rather than jump right into the problem. “It can just be having the wisdom to direct people in the right way, influencing them or helping them to be confident,” she says.

Trust is something inherent to Brown’s volunteering work and this has translated through to her role as a manager by building trust with staff through listening and allowing them to be free to explore their own ideas and express themselves. “Everyone wants to be heard, that’s what I have found. Everyone wants to have a voice,” she says. For Brown, the person she is as a leader and volunteer are consistent. “Whatever I am in my outside life, I am exactly that at work. I think it’s just about being real and not pretending to be something that you are not,” she reflects.

This article originally appeared in the June 2019 edition of Leadership Matters, IML ANZ’s quarterly magazine. For editorial suggestions and enquiries, please contact karyl.estrella@managersandleaders.com.au.

Meet the Innovator: Christina Delay’s mindful mixology

By Anthony O’Brien

 

Most of us have been there. The dusty feeling that a couple of seemingly harmless alcoholic bevies can leave us with the morning after.

Dr Christina Delay MIML is no different. However, the innovative biotechnology whiz with a Bachelor of Biotechnology from the University of Queensland and a PhD in Plant Biology from the Australian National University decided to address the loathsome issue of hangovers. Along with business partner Alan Tse, Delay officially launched the already successful Altina Drinks on 1 December 2018.

Canberra-based Altina Drinks produces zero-alcohol cocktails that pack a punch. The now teetotal Delay, who joined IML ANZ as a member in January 2019, explains Altina sprouted from her experience of social drinking as a technology consultant. “I’d gone from academia to the consulting industry and soon found myself caught up in the socialising culture where drinking was prominent.”

While Delay enjoyed her new environment, the culture caught up with her health. The curious Delay started talking to her colleagues about their experiences. “I realised there is much pressure around drinking. If you don’t drink, it’s tough and not very inclusive, and it’s quite hard to feel like you’re part of a social occasion.” From this early market research, Delay hatched the idea for Altina, and the value of ‘mindful drinking’ in February 2018. Coincidentally, Altina cofounder and finance expert, Tse, was questioning his drinking habits and ditched the booze.

In May 2018, Delay and Tse sought help for Altina through a social enterprise accelerator program. “We wanted to build the business as a social enterprise. Our North Star, our guiding light, is that we want to have an impact on the Aussie drinking culture.” At the same time, Delay started with IML ANZ’s mentoring program and worked with mentor Amanda Knol MIML. “We had monthly breakfasts, and she was a great sounding board particularly in relation to honing my management style.”

Delay mixed her earliest concoctions in her kitchen using a very structured approach. The PhD reviewed different methods for distilling spirits, brewing beer and wine-making. “Then I tried to understand and tinker with similar methods without using or producing alcohol.” Delay used botanicals, herbs, and spices to replace alcohol. As a result, Altina’s cocktails don’t rely on sugar-heavy fruit juices to create heavy hitting flavours.

Once Delay and Tse settled on some cocktails, they took their ideas to the Canberra community and used a crowdfunding campaign to raise significant finance for the start-up and to get their brews into bottles.

For now, Altina is using several different channels to market its non-alcoholic beverages including workplace functions and online. Delay explains, “We’re passionate about the concept of mindful drinking and helping workplaces introduce healthier drinking cultures.

“We’ve purposely held off getting our product into retailers and venues right now until we can scale up production.”

This article originally appeared in the June 2019 edition of Leadership Matters, IML ANZ’s quarterly magazine. For editorial suggestions and enquiries, please contact karyl.estrella@managersandleaders.com.au.

How to ensure your leaders add real value to your organisation

Success in business rests heavily on getting a good return on your investment. From producing products, to upgrading technological systems to marketing services, business leaders must be meticulous in ensuring they get top results in return for the money spent.

But what about your investment on the people leading your company? Managers and leaders are often overlooked as the most important organisational asset that holds the most potential in determining the business’ success. What value do your managers add to your company?

It’s a vital question to ask. In an era rife with corporate misdeeds at the hands of poor leadership – from Volkswagen’s ‘emissionsgate’, to the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data breach, to the banking royal commission – more than ever, consumers are losing faith in businesses and their leaders.

So, who is leading your business? Do your leaders display the key qualities that drive success in today’s complex business environment? How are they adapting to the fast-changing pace of leadership for the future?

When hiring, assessing and developing managers and leaders in your organisation, ask the following questions:

Are they experienced?

In many professions, such as accounting, engineering and law, certain standards are indicated by the designations that these professionals possess. It’s a guarantee of the experience and understanding that they bring to the business. Their accreditations are recognised as an objective benchmark of professional competence and ensures they have the right knowledge, skills and experience to qualify as a practicing professional.

You would never entrust your taxes, construction or legal cases to underqualified professionals. It’s logical to think that you would treat your leadership investment with the same prudence. A professional recognised with an accreditation to manage and lead people and the business is guaranteed to practice management and leadership at the highest quality, ensuring your business is getting the most out of  both the manager and the staff they empower every day.

In Australia and New Zealand, the Chartered Manager accreditation is changing the game for leaders and businesses. As an internationally-recognised professional designation, it provides assurance to organisations that their managers have the necessary skills to lead the business towards success. Recognised by Royal Charter, it is a benchmark of management and leadership professionalism that has transformed organisational leadership around the world. In fact, the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) in the UK found that 96% of Chartered Managers used their designation as proof of their experience in leading people and managing change.

For Intelledox’s Head of Customer Services and APAC Professional Services, Sue Ann McKenzie-Smith CMgr AFIML, becoming a Chartered Manager helps her paint a holistic picture of her stature as an experienced manager and leader. McKenzie-Smith points out, “Being a Chartered Manager has ensured I am leading people with an industry standard recognition of my management skills to date, and throughout my career.”

Are they ethical?

In 2019, consumers know that business success and ethical behaviour are not mutually exclusive. In a decade of ethical leadership failures across organisations in all industries and locations, from Hollywood to governments to FIFA to banks, consumers are demanding businesses deliver results without sacrificing their moral compass.

Corporate ethics is an issue that concerns University of South Australia Business School adjunct professor, organisational psychologist and independent company direct Travis Kemp CMgr FIML. He recognises the importance of ethical behaviour in leaders. “A leader’s impact on society can be incredibly positive when it’s directed in the right way, to the right people, at the right time. And for that reason, we can all get better at doing it”, Kemp says. He believes leaders must guarantee that their actions are grounded on strong decision-making principles. “It keeps coming back to this notion of good people, doing good things, for the right reasons”, he adds.

As a Chartered Manager, Kemp is one of hundreds of professionals who must adhere to a strict code of conduct and practice that certifies that he commits to the highest standards of ethical behaviour whilst managing and leading. This significant pillar underpinning the accreditation is another reason Chartered Manager is transforming the leadership landscape across Australia and New Zealand as businesses begin to focus on corporate ethics as a core element of leadership practice in the workplace post-banking Royal Commission.

Are they impactful?

Managers are tasked with the often complex and difficult role of empowering and enabling people to achieve their full potential, whilst also working to achieve the business’ goals. However, it can sometimes be difficult to quantify if, how, where and what value certain managers are really adding to the business. Calculating whether leaders are providing a high return on investment is difficult to benchmark, assess and analyse. Ensuring leaders in your organisation measure up to an objective and universal standard of professionalism is essential to evaluating business success.

Kate Venables CMgr AFIML, Director of CatholicCare Social Services in Toowoomba described becoming a Chartered Manager as “the start of a journey”. Venables knows that being a manager is all about adding value by enabling those around you. According to Venables, “The importance [of being a leader] is that you empower and engage others to do the best in their job.”

As a Chartered Manager, Venables’ impact as a leader is benchmarked against the global standard of the rigorously-assessed accreditation which requires professionals to provide proof of the effectiveness of their leadership practice. After the accreditation is awarded to successful applicants, they commit to ongoing continuous professional development that guarantees their skills are updated, relevant and of the highest quality.

In their research of Chartered Managers, CMI found that:

  • 91% of Chartered Managers see the designation as proof of their ability to deliver results
  • It is estimated that Chartered Managers, on average, add $AUD626,309 in value to their organisations
  • 64% of Chartered Managers also report making significant cost savings through performance improvements and innovations

These strong statistics not only provide a clear insight into the real results achieved by Chartered Managers, they provide a benchmark of impact and leadership success amongst top managers and leaders.

Who’s leading your business?

If business success is calculated on the checks and balances of investments, then the investment in people – and especially leaders – should be front and centre of the business. Top results are achieved at all levels of the business by ensuring the person who makes decisions and manages people is the most experienced, ethical and impactful leader.

So, who is leading your business? How do you ensure the managers and leaders you hire and develop have, do and will continue to work to the highest possible professional standards? Indeed, what is that professional standard?

Chartered Manager is the global highest status that can be achieved as a manger and leader. It is an international standard of leadership excellence.

Chartered Managers demonstrate all the vital business skills and qualities to drive you towards business success. These professionals add value as leaders because they:

  • Have top-level experience: 73% of Chartered Managers have met or exceeded business targets
  • Are committed to ethical behaviour: 95% of Chartered Managers believe the designation shows their integrity
  • Make impactful business contributions: 86% of Chartered Managers made improvements to their business

Is it time for your leaders to make a real difference to your business? Is it time to future-proof your business with Chartered Managers?

If you want to see where Chartered Manager can take your business, click here.

The strength to lift up Special Olympics athletes

By Anthony O’Brien

 

Jo Tarlton MIML is an extremely busy member of IML ANZ. For starters, Jo is the general manager of Eco Maintenance, one of Auckland’s few mid-sized companies dedicated exclusively to the provision of amenities maintenance services.

Away from the office, the indefatigable executive and mother is a successful powerlifter and a dedicated volunteer who supports Special Olympics athletes seeking to participate in powerlifting either recreationally or competitively.

 

POWERING INTO FITNESS

Powerlifting is a sporting activity many of us may associate with eastern European Goliaths or a workout used by the hulking All Blacks to help them mercilessly maul the Wallabies. Yet representative New Zealand powerlifter Tarlton claims she didn’t have a particularly strong pedigree in sports or athletics until five years ago. “I played netball through college, and on and off socially for some years after that,” she says.

The Eco Maintenance GM also dabbled in gym workouts to stay healthy. However, it wasn’t until 2014 Tarlton dived into fitness, boots and all. “I started CrossFit in 2012 after having my second child the previous year and wanting to get back in shape.”

While getting in shape, Tarlton somehow found the time to start volunteering with Adaptive Athletes, a program run by Michael Hynard, founder of Functional Adaptive Movement (FAM). Adaptive Athletes uses functional exercise regimes such as CrossFit, according to Tarlton. “My fitness journey then evolved from CrossFit into powerlifting in 2016 and, as I love the sport so much, I now volunteer with Special Olympics athletes.”

 

THE MOTIVATION TO VOLUNTEER

The compassionate Tarlton says the motivation and inspiration for volunteering stem from the challenges faced by the Adaptive Athletes and Special Olympic weightlifters. “These athletes have a can-do attitude that is a breath of fresh air, and they sometimes think they can do absolutely anything! It can sometimes be a mission to hold them back from going heavier with weights when we are still trying to work on form.”

Tarlton tells of one athlete who is terrified of using a gym bench when undertaking the arduous bench press. Some weeks it takes multiple attempts to encourage this athlete to use the bench, Tarlton explains. “But he never gives up, and I never give up, and every week he does it. Then, the next week he comes back and faces the same fear again.

“A lot of able-bodied athletes would give up and just not do that exercise anymore because it was too hard.”

The massive achievements clocked up by the athletes who face myriad daily challenges motivate Tarlton to help. “Powerlifting is a marathon sport, and it takes much time to improve mobility, build muscle and make strength gains that translate into increased totals on the bar,” she says. “Watching these athletes build on all these aspects and then looking back to compare them from when they first walked in the door is amazing.”

Likewise, Adaptive Athletes demonstrate the same level of determination to improve. Tarlton explains, “From walking in the door with a lot of physical and mental limitations and having little in the way of a sporting or physical activity background, to being able to compete in a CrossFit competition is a massive achievement.”

 

THE VALUE FOR MANAGERS AND LEADERS

Many managers and leaders are accustomed to being in charge and taking the reins, insists Tarlton. “Leading an organisation of 120 staff I am used to directing, creating the vision and making the calls so to speak.

“At the top, you often need to be the one that has all the answers and who drives the business forward while simultaneously dealing with different obstacles and setbacks that all businesses face, which can be mentally very tiring.”

In contrast, volunteering puts Tarlton into a situation where she is working with “someone else’s vision or program”. She adds, “You are just a cog in the machine, albeit a necessary one. This experience enables you, and at times forces you, to step back from a position of being the key decision maker for everything and gives you the opportunity to relax and enjoy being part of the process. It gives you a mental break which is invaluable when dealing with high-powered or pressured day-to-day business roles.”

Tarlton believes volunteering has improved her patience and self-awareness. “I am a pretty empathetic person, but in business, you sometimes need to be quite hard-nosed and take a ‘business is business’ approach, primarily as a woman leader in my industry. “Working with these athletes, you need to take an approach to see life through their eyes to be better connected and give them what they need, which is your reason for being there.”

Finally, for managers and leaders considering volunteering, Tarlton urges, “Just do it! Don’t make excuses, get out there and volunteer and give something back. What you get back from giving is tenfold.”

This article originally appeared in the June 2019 edition of Leadership Matters, IML ANZ’s quarterly magazine. For editorial suggestions and enquiries, please contact karyl.estrella@managersandleaders.com.au.

The Conversation: Speaking the international language of leadership

Photo by Sabrina Hyde

 

Now based in her adopted home of Wellington, Jane Diplock AO FIML is a professional director of some renown. The Australian has chaired and been a member of many boards and committees in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.

As a leader, Diplock’s influence extends far beyond the shores of New Zealand. She is currently Chair of the Regulatory Committee of the Abu Dhabi Global Market, a director of the Singapore Exchange, a director of Australian Financial Services Group, a member of the Public Interest Oversight Board, a member of the International Advisory Committee to the China Securities Regulatory Commission and a member of the International Advisory Board to the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

As if all that weren’t enough, she has also previously chaired the Executive Committee of International Organisation of Securities Commissions and chaired the New Zealand Securities Commission, following an executive career in banking and public service. She was awarded the honour of Officer of the Order of Australia in 2003. Diplock recently found time in her hectic schedule to pause and reflect on management and leadership with IML ANZ chief executive David Pich CMgr FIML.

DAVID PICH: You’ve worked closely with senior business leaders in several countries including Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Spain, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Singapore, China and India. Do leadership styles vary in these different nations?

JANE DIPLOCK: Actually, I think the globalisation of business has given many countries a shared understanding of leadership norms. The exceptional leaders I’ve encountered around the world have all had characteristics that they share. They include talent development, inclusiveness and being able to both lead from ahead and from behind. In other words, in some instances being able to inspire people who work with them and, in other instances, being able to encourage and mentor the people who work with them.


DP: I’m glad you said that because the ability of a leader to inspire people is often overlooked. You’ve been a director and committee member of the Singapore Exchange, the SGX. Singapore is often lauded as a hot spot for innovation. What do you think Australia and New Zealand leaders can learn from places like Singapore?

JD: When I look around the Singapore Exchange, we have board members and staff who come from other countries as well as from Singapore. But the culture there is one of high professionalism and, as you say, entrepreneurship – there’s a great capacity to think outside of the box. I think that those qualities are very important in the business model of Singapore’s Exchange.

But I would be reluctant to somehow say that one nation should be the teacher and another the student. There are plenty of different approaches to innovation out there. Some of those different approaches have to do with culture and history and context. One is not necessarily better than the other.

I often meet New Zealanders and Australians in leadership positions in Singapore, not to mention the UAE, the UK, and the US. Those people bring their own nation’s entrepreneurial flair to bear on their leadership, and they often do it extraordinarily well.


DP: IML ANZ recently collaborated on research called Match Fit, which concluded that many Australian businesses still aren’t ready and able to do business in Asia. You’ve worked in several nations across Asia. What advice would you have for Australian business leaders?

JD: I’d say: be very careful not to generalise. There are so many countries and regions in Asia with unique histories and unique cultures. Each one provides unique challenges and opportunities too. For example, if you’re dealing with a company based in Western China, you will face different issues to those you might come across with a company in Shanghai. You have to go back to what business model you’re working in and what you are trying to achieve there – then align that with the people in the particular country, region or city you are working in.


DP: You have enjoyed a long and distinguished career. Have you had any mentors along the way who were instrumental in your success?

JD: A number of people have been generous enough to take an interest in my professional career. Early on, I worked in the public service for a truly great public servant, the late Gerald Gleeson AC, who headed up the Premier’s Department of New South Wales. He was very constructively critical and positive about my work and gave me highly professional advice about how to refine my leadership skillset. Later, when I worked at Westpac, there were a number of senior women who I looked up to who role modelled what a successful, modern businesswoman could be.

Role models can be very influential. I worked with Dame Quentin Bryce AD CVO who I think most Australians would agree is a fantastic individual. I looked at her career and the leadership she showed. She was a great role model for me. I also admire NZ Prime Minister Helen Clarke who led the country with great ability and took outstanding female Kiwi leadership to the world when she led the UN Development Programme.


DP: You’ve worked extensively in regulatory roles in the financial sector, and as you know in Australia we’ve just had a royal commission into banking. The report was critical of regulators such as ASIC and APRA, suggesting they weren’t strong enough in dealing with misconduct. What did you make of it?

JD: I’ve been both a banker and a regulator so I have seen it from both sides. Unless you’ve been involved in regulation, it’s hard to appreciate the complexities of regulation. There is a balance to be struck between the punitive side and also trying to guide the right behaviour. That said, the misconduct revealed in the royal commission has been quite shocking and was rightly condemned. The client or customer must always come first in banking and financial services.


DP: The royal commission appeared to say that personal greed was overriding any concerns for the customer. It found that workplace culture was an important contributor to that. Now the banks have to put things right. As a leader, what can one do to change a culture like that?

JD: I’d start with the remuneration policy, because fundamentally if greed is driving out customer consideration, then you start with the greed. So I would focus on the remuneration structure of the bonuses and salary increases. That’s one element.

I think the second element has to be training and the leaders themselves. Because if a person came through a culture for, let’s say, a decade of their career, where the primary motivation was the bottom line – the return for the bank – which is then reflected in their personal remuneration, then it’s very hard to turn that around. There can be a situation where some people have had that culture so ingrained that they find it hard to switch to a more appropriate way of doing business.


DP: Many IML ANZ Members aspire to be board directors in all kinds of sectors and industries. Many moons ago, you made that step from management to board level. What advice do you have for Members seeking to make that same transition?

JD: While in a management role, I recommend getting some exposure to governance in a supportive environment where you can learn from people around the board table. I worked with a number of very senior people in those kinds of roles and I learned an enormous amount about how a board director operates and behaves; including the difference between operational involvement and looking from a more strategic perspective. Watching someone who is a master at that was incredibly helpful for me. The other thing I recommend is to get some formal training. IML ANZ, for instance, does a great job in providing Members with an intellectual framework to operate at a leadership level. I think continuing professional education helps to inform your thinking about what practical approaches you might apply in leadership situations. So I’d encourage Members to seek relevant professional development activities to prepare them for directorships.

This article originally appeared in the June 2019 edition of Leadership Matters, IML ANZ’s quarterly magazine. For editorial suggestions and enquiries, please contact karyl.estrella@managersandleaders.com.au.

Diversity, Inclusion and Performance Under the Spotlight

Contemporary corporate culture in Australia presents managers with many different demands. Of increasing relevance is the challenge to ensure we foster inclusion and contribution from an increasingly diverse workforce.

How are successful organisations tackling this challenge and what can managers and leaders do to make a difference?

To look into this, Australian corporate learning and development specialists, Team Management Systems (TMS), recently hosted a series of forums, assembling leading practitioners in the field of diversity and inclusion (D&I). TMS recognises that organisations must identify a discernible performance improvement from the collaboration teams comprising diverse individuals.

Seven major themes of diversity and inclusion

In distilling the outcomes and content from the forums, TMS identified several key issues and recurring themes that emerged.

  1. Organisations must understand and work with differences

Diverse thinking and different perspectives are needed if organisations are to solve some of today’s most challenging and complex problems of the future. Establishing common ground is a crucial factor in this process – once we achieve this, we can improve connections exponentially. We can build our understanding of diverse perspectives by using different lenses and feedback tools.

  1. A focus on the individual is essential

Every individual needs to feel included and valued, which requires acknowledging the whole person and all that they bring to their workplace.

  1. A top-down approach is needed if these initiatives are to succeed

Senior leaders need to personify diversity, which means doing more than just endorsing a policy. All levels of the organisation need to be involved, with passionate advocates developing and implementing the plans across the broader organisation.

  1. Increased self-awareness is central to addressing unconscious bias

Organisations have many initiatives to improve performance, all of which require dedication and resources. Nevertheless, self-awareness and emotional intelligence training is critical to helping people understand each other and communicate more effectively. A key insight is that leaders’ competencies need to be developed to create greater self-awareness so that conflict can be addressed constructively.

  1. Notions like intersectionality also need to be considered

When we look at multiple elements of diversity in combination – e.g. ethnicity, gender and age – we need to be mindful of the compounding impact on an individual’s experience and identity. Our programmes work best when we consider how complex attitudes towards diversity can impact all areas of an employee’s life.

  1. D&I programmes need to foster compassion in corporate life

We must think about the personal impacts beyond policy and initiative, by encouraging a culture of compassion to develop within organisations. There is no place in any corporate culture for ignorance or discrimination. At the same time, we need to be sensitive to lifestyle factors and how they can impact on some of our more significant initiatives.

  1. D&I initiatives cannot be tokenistic and must deliver a performance gain

Inclusion programmes should work at the grass-roots level and be designed to empower people genuinely. Skills training in areas like hosting effective meetings can encourage people to call-out non-inclusive language and behaviour, which helps to create safe, supportive workspaces.

There is plenty of evidence that organisations with diverse leadership have recorded impressive returns and, without assuming causality, we have to ask, ‘why wouldn’t you foster diversity?’ It’s possible to see a change in the bottom line when people are hired who look, think and make decisions like your customer base.

Diversity and inclusion – moving forward

As the Australian workforce recognises the importance of creating inclusive teams, this topic becomes ever more relevant for managers and leaders. The Institute of Managers and Leaders Australia and New Zealand has a suite of diagnostic and development tools designed to improve the ability, of your leaders, to better communicate with a wide range of unique individuals.  Thus addressing the unconscious bias issue through improving self-awareness. If you would like to like to know more about the range of People Analytics tools available, please call 1300 362 631, email corporate@managersandleaders.com.au or visit managersandleaders.com.au/people-analytics.

How remuneration data is enabling success in the disability sector

As markets change and jobs adapt the pressure on HR decision makers increases. You are the ones relied upon with the complex task of designing jobs correctly to ensure they attract, engage and retain the best person for the role.

This is the tough reality for Australia’s disability sector who’ve seen a major employment shake-up following the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). According to the Australian Disability Workforce Report, turnover rates are trending upwards, and recruitment difficulty is forcing many employers to hire unqualified staff. So while 70% of employers filled their vacancies, it might come at the cost of candidate suitability.

It’s an issue that human resources consultancy, PeopleAdvantage, want to solve. Since 2002, they’ve created job design, performance management and remuneration solutions for a wide range of organisations.

One of the tools of their trade: remuneration surveys, such as the National Salary Survey (NSS). As executive director, Dallas Burgess notes, it’s essential to back their services with useful data. “We’ve been using the NSS for many years, and we know that it is as comprehensive as remuneration surveys go.”Burgess shares key ways that good salary data enabled them to help clients, design jobs correctly, boost recruitment and improve employee retention.

Challenge: Human resources shake-up in the disability sector

With the introduction of the NDIS, Burgess observed the increased importance of understanding individual job roles. “There’s been a move to person-centred care and support. What that means for disability service organisations is that they need to grade jobs more accurately and pay accordingly.”

Burgess explains, “A disability service organisation must understand and capture the complexity level on each of the standard roles. At the same time, they must use relevant language to market each of the positions.”

When disability service organisations get this wrong, they not only run the risk of hiring the wrong person for the job but also presenting clients with inaccurate descriptions of the service their people offer. “So the challenge comes with being able to compare apples with apples as far as roles are concerned,” said Burgess.

Solution: Using job level information from remuneration surveys

PeopleAdvantage turned to a tried and tested methodology. Burgess explains, “We designed a capability framework based on sound job design and work value principles for the disability sector in NSW.”

Organisations across the disability sector now use Their role requirements framework. “The framework is based on our role requirements methodology whereby we use standard levels of complexity of work.”

Burgess uses engineering to explain. “The engineers were the first professional discipline back in the 1970s to identify five to six levels of professional work. What we’ve found over the years is those five to six levels apply to all professions.”

“What we do is we standardise the NSS against our job evaluation points. This allows the client organisation to match the survey data to their roles,” explains Burgess.

He adds, “We then use the NSS to build a comprehensive picture of the market, eliminating outliers and statistically smoothing the data. Our use of the NSS provides an opportunity for our clients to compare apples with apples.”

Results: Good job design creates competitive employers

One organisation that PeopleAdvantage has helped is Cerebral Palsy Alliance (CPA), who also contributes regularly to the NSS. CPA’s general manager, people and culture, Frank Sedmak, recognised that the NDIS significantly changed the HR landscape. “Now, the disability sector has so many roles that didn’t exist prior to the NDIS. It’s become even more imperative to really understand – objectively not subjectively – what role we need, what level of competency is it, and what is the market asking. Or else we can’t compete with other employers.”

However, Sedmak believes that these changes reinforced the importance of good job design. “Everything starts and finishes with the client’s needs. Once you understand client needs, you then start to anticipate what roles will meet those needs. Then you need to learn the level of complexity for that role. Only after fully painting this picture should you go out and start recruiting.”

The result is that CPA is one of the most desirable employers in the industry. Sedmak explains, “We needed to dispel the paradigm that working for a not for profit meant a drop in dollars.”

“What surveys like the NSS tells us time and time again, is that CPA is more than competitive when it comes to pay. Job applicants are regularly surprised at how close the remuneration we’re offering is to what they’re expecting. In some cases, we’re paying more than commercial organisations,” Sedmak added.

Remuneration surveys: A vital tool for HR decision makers

When it comes to employment success, Burgess has a simple mantra: get the jobs right. “Retention starts when you have properly designed jobs and therefore pay people correctly. If the jobs are not suitably designed, it leads to conflict around expectations between managers and staff, which leads to frustration and losing good performers.”

That’s why Burgess relies on only the most reliable information sources. “As far as published remuneration surveys go, the NSS is a robust survey, and certainly it should be on the shelf.”

Sedmak agrees, adding, “Some question the ROI on annual remuneration surveys. People shouldn’t disregard it. Some surveys that cost little or nothing. For these I say as always, you get what you pay for.”

If you want to improve the way you design jobs to increase employee retention, order the National Salary Survey now.