Bendelta

Only 14 days until nominations close for the AFR BOSS Best Places to Work. Don’t miss out on your chance to recognised for the ways you’ve created a purpose-driven and humanising experience for your people. Find out more about our assessment methodology, nomination criteria and start your submission now: https://lnkd.in/gVQEahDh

Thanks to Coates for partnering on a global Gold medal-winning frontline leadership program. At Bendelta, we are selective about the awards we enter. One award that we identified as best-in-class are the global Brandon Hall Group Awards. In the leadership development field, nothing can match them for the rigour of the assessment process and the calibre of the organisations that enter. This year, thanks to our collaborating clients and their investment in high-impact development solutions, we saw reason to make three submissions. Imagine our stunned faces when all three won the Gold in their field! We would like to give specific thanks to Coates  for partnering with us on a program that won Gold for Best Development Program for Frontline Leaders. Coates made a strategic decision to invest in this immensely important cohort. In any company, frontline leaders are often people with very demanding roles, a huge need to excel at people management, and are often in an early stage of their career with limited prior professional development. When people in these roles grow in skill and effectiveness, there are multiple wins: their direct reports benefit, the company is stronger (because the large number of employees in the frontline), customer experience improves, and the leaders themselves see more of their potential and go on to do even greater things with the capability and self-efficacy they have gained. It has been wonderful to see the quantitative and qualitative impact of this immersive longitudinal program. Participants have been thrilled to have the opportunity and, following the program, they have blossomed in all sorts of ways – ways that have not only grown them as leaders but also added great value to their colleagues and the business as a whole. It has been an absolute pleasure to work with Coates on this initiative: real partnership, openness to creative approaches, and backing the program up with aligned initiatives across the HR spectrum. Thank you Coates for having the vision and commitment to create and deliver such a high-impact program!

Have you ever dreamed of a leadership development initiative that has measurable positive impacts on every dimension? This time the dream came true… At Bendelta, we are selective about the awards we enter. We choose the ones that have the most global or national merit and which are most relevant for the clients with whom we partner.   One award that we identified as best-in-class are the Brandon Hall Awards (which are based in the USA but contested globally). In the leadership development field, nothing can match them for the rigour of the assessment process and the calibre of the organisations that enter.   This year, we entered two awards categories in partnership with Telstra for their coaching fundamentals program: 1.      Best Development Program for Frontline Leaders 2.      Best Coaching and Mentoring Program In both cases, Telstra and Bendelta won the Gold award (the highest possible). Thank you to everyone at Telstra, especially Jonathan Fripp and Janine Thorburn, who have sponsored or managed the creation and delivery of the programs that have made such a difference to so many people in so many ways.

Why Bendelta won't be amongst AFR BOSS Best Places to Work in 2025... For the last 4 years (2021-24), Bendelta has been recognised by AFR BOSS as one of the Best Places to Work - the only professional services firm in Australia to feature in all 4 years. So, why won’t we be recognised next year? In fact, we won't even submit an application. We’re excited to say that it’s because The Australian Financial Review has selected Bendelta as their partner in running AFR BOSS Best Places to Work 2025. Using our latest research, we have designed a contemporary methodology and, in collaboration with AFR, will run the process from initial submissions through to the determination of finalists and winners. We are thrilled to be chosen. Given our extensive work in organisational culture and employee experience, combined with our track record of 7 best employer awards in the last 4 years alone – including our specific success in the AFR awards – we see this as a perfect match. Not only do we help many of Australia’s leading organisations to be better places to work, but we also directly appreciate the challenges of delivering a great workplace and the keys to success. If you think your organisation could be one of Australasia's best places to work– or you would simply like to learn from the experience, which includes a tailored report on your organisations strengths and improvement areas, based on your results – then get the process started now. You can learn more at AFR’s site: https://lnkd.in/gVQEahDh We very much look forward to the partnership, even if it means we definitely won’t be recognised next year.

As we step into a new financial year, we can anticipate that it will demand rapidly evolving leadership capabilities due to accelerated tech advancement, changing workforce demographics, and the aftermath of the global crisis… More than ever, we need to navigate change, foster thriving cultures, and adapt and flourish despite the “unknown unknowns”. Bendelta invites you and your organisation to experience The Edge Series, where we offer 3 interactive, practical and outcomes focused sessions of 75-minutes each. The series focuses on some of the most challenging issues that leaders face today- change, navigating adaptive challenges and building thriving teams. Each session will host up to 200 people for your organisation only, making it scalable and cost effective.   To register your interest, click the link below or please reach out to your favourite Bendeltan. https://lnkd.in/gZ3ry3a7

Last week in Brisbane we hosted 50+ senior HR leaders and together we explored ‘How to Balance Today’s Needs with Tomorrow’s Possibilities’. This ongoing tension was considered across three focus areas: 1) Dealing with organisational culture issues now vs culture by design for the long term 2) Building capabilities needed now vs mindset and skills for the future 3) Designing for simplification / core market focus vs future possibilities and expansion. Together we identified ways forward that capitalise on the benefits of both the short and long term solutions. Thank you to all who shared their insights and contributed to an energising evening of discovery and connection.

Highlights from a panel event with a difference   While attendance was limited to 100 people, we’d like to share insights from last week’s unique Bendelta breakfast event.   With the help of three of Bendelta’s clients (CBA, Lion, NSW Public Service Commission), we disrupted the typical panel format and zeroed in on critical success factors for strategic culture and leadership interventions. It was a deep dive into the decision-making behind three highly successful initiatives.   There were many insights for anyone about to embark on a major initiative but to pick out a few that recurred through the morning: 1. The importance of developing solutions that are deeply responsive to your organisation’s unique operating context 2. The value of approaches that: - Are very focused on only one or two strategic priorities (not attempting to cover the waterfront) - Are framed around those priorities – they might not even mention the words ‘leadership’ or ‘culture’ (even though they probably integrate both) - Reach the organisation quickly and in a concerted, unmissable fashion - Have obvious senior executive ownership and involvement 3. The criticality of embedment. Even if the focus is on, say, capability development, it should be reinforced by every relevant HR system and process, and throughout the employee lifecycle   Many thanks to the clients who generously offered their time, wisdom and willingness to forensically dissect their decisions.

𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝟕𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝟒 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬   We were incredibly excited last week when we were named in the 2024 AFR BOSS Best Places to Work list – at #5 in Professional Services. We checked the records and discovered that we are the only professional services firm to have consecutively made the Top 10 list in the last four years: 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. In that period, we’ve also won three other best employer awards, including one that was #1 employer in Australia in our size category. We are even more pleased that this has been in tandem with: 1. Being named in the AFR BOSS Most Innovative Companies list for the last four years running – and in the Top 10 professional services firms every time 2. Winning the world’s highest award for leadership development 3 times in the last 5 years 3. Winning other major awards across different service areas including 𝐁𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 We are proud for a few reasons: 1. Realising human potential is our reason for being. And it starts with realising the potential of those who work at Bendelta 2. It’s equally important to us to be a great place to work AND to be an innovative, high-impact provider for our clients. We don’t want to trade off either one for the other 3. We don’t want to achieve these things as a one-off – we know it’s important to always strive to improve ourselves As we grow the impact of our organisation, and so too our team, we are forever mindful of the behaviours, practices and rituals that support an inclusive, thriving, and innovative environment. These awards are the efforts of every Bendeltan to keep improving our culture, creating an environment where we can collectively thrive, grow and create the greatest impact possible. We thank you all for making this possible.

Last week, we had the privilege of partnering once again with Professor Robert Kegan from Harvard for an insightful session on transforming leadership. Delving into the Immunity to Change framework, our team and NSW Public Sector Executives explored the power of surfacing hidden commitments and beliefs which hinder personal, organisation and system level development. To learn more the about the actionable strategies that support positive change and development, access the full article below

Last week, we packed out the Art Gallery of NSW to hear leaders from three valued Bendelta clients (Nine Entertainment, Stantec, and Australian Cricketers' Association) share their insights on long-term thinking, even in tight markets, and the critical role of leadership and culture in doing so. The 100+ attendees also heard valuable findings from Crucible 24, Bendelta’s market outlook survey. For more on both, read https://lnkd.in/gtuTjvMu