Macquarie Telecom (part of Macquarie Telecom Group, ASX: MAQ), has been recognised as one of the top places to work in
Australia in the annual Best Places to Work List. The company was awarded in particular for fostering an inclusive workforce and its Heartbeat customer service program.
Managed by Australian behavioural science consultancy Inventium and published in the Australian Financial Review (AFR)
and BOSS Magazine, the prestigious annual awards are based on a rigorous assessment of Australia’s leading companies,
recognising those that stand out as truly brilliant workplaces.
The assessment is made up of a staff survey and written submission, underpinned by Inventium’s Workplaces of the Future framework.
Macquarie’s submission highlighted how it has leveraged a combination of organisational analytics and advisory company
Gallup’s Q12 engagement survey and CliftonStrengths assessment. These initiatives focus on building individuals’ and
teams’ strengths, rather than focusing on weaknesses.
“The delusion that coaching and review processes should focus on highlighting and fixing weaknesses is sadly alive and
well. We accept that we’ve all got different skillsets, and we focus on taking strengths to the next level,” said Luke
Clifton, Group Executive, Macquarie Telecom.
He believes the company’s culture of collaboration and Net Promoter Score (NPS)-backed customer service – built up over
nearly 30 years – proved vital during COVID-19 lockdowns.
“We were able to draw on the connectedness that became so important during lockdowns, and particularly during the
extended lockdown in Melbourne, to keep going,” added Clifton.
“But the impact on staff morale from this isolation and the uncertainty and fear from COVID generally have been
unavoidable, so we’re reinvesting in our culture again. We have ‘UnTelco Tuesdays’ where we get together across each
office and discuss and remediate issues we’re having. We’ve also been able to bring staff and customers back together
again with in-person events.”
The Australian telco also highlighted its Heartbeat Club, a program that encourages the entire team to delight
customers, promote colleagues’ customer service excellence, and ‘literally’ do the exact opposite of industry
counterparts.
“The Macquarie Telecom story is a compelling tale of passionate people with the drive to make a difference and innovate.
The more engaged our employees are the more empowered they are to do a better job for the customer,” said Clifton.
The win follows Macquarie Telecom Group’s Australian-first recognition – up against 450 telcos worldwide – for providing
the Best Customer Experience (CX) of the Year at the World Communication Awards. The Group’s Co-Founder and CEO David Tudehope was also recognised as CEO of the Year.