PASSIONATE BUSINESS PARTNER BUILDS LITERACY PROGRAM
A new literacy program is enriching the lives of frontline team members on our Auckland Council contract in New Zealand. The program is the brainchild of Mike Mulholland, a senior People & Capability business partner who is passionate about social responsibility.
Launched earlier this year, the aim of the program is to upskill and empower our employees to use enhanced communication and to work successfully together. Many of our culturally diverse team are from non-English speaking backgrounds.
The initiative has been rolled out to 20 frontline employees so far and is off to a great start. A further 130 members of the Sanitation and Waste team will also participate in the training over time. One program graduate said their communication skills were moving forward “in leaps and bounds”.
Some of the ways the program is helping employees include:
- improving the oral and written communication skills of frontline
employees - improving customer service skills, to help them ‘go the extra mile’; and
- improving the knowledge and understanding of workplace documentation, which in turn ensures our people are confident in applying our policies and procedures, including importantly around safety.
The success of the program is a real credit to Mike and his commitment to helping our people.
“Mike’s passion in this space is supported by his capabilities and knowledge,” said Carl Rogers, National FM Manager for New Zealand. “He is great at seeing what is possible and pulling together a framework to deliver.”
