Do you believe small actions can create a positive chain reaction? KordaMentha does, and they’re doing just that through corporate philanthropy and increasing health and engagement for their people by supporting charitable organisations (such as Tour de Office and Chain Reaction). In a Recruitment Marketing Magazine exclusive, we spoke with Director Paul Hewson who shared how these types of activities help their people and organisation achieve success.
Market-leading advisory and investment firm KordaMentha provides specialist consulting, forensic, real estate, restructuring and investment services, helping clients grow, protect and recover value. Not only do they solve their clients’ most difficult problems, but as their Director Paul Hewson shares, they invest in their people too.
“Our people are our number one asset,” said Hewson. “We’re an advisory and investment firm, so we pride ourselves on having the best people in the industry and work hard to keep them happy. A lot of our work is centred around stakeholder engagement, so we’re interacting with people on a day-to-day basis. In particular, the people we meet are often experiencing stress or going through periods of change, so we make sure we engage with compassion and empathy. We’re trusted with other peoples’ finances, so we have to be respectful and prudent to get the best outcomes for them.”
Hewson has been with the firm for ten years, and was initially attracted to the engaging and challenging nature of the work.
“The work we do is more interesting than traditional accounting, and that was very attractive to me. We have the ability to engage with stakeholders and work with their companies to help them solve their problems. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work on a number of large complex restructuring projects.”
The culture at KordaMentha is particularly inclusive and collaborative.
“We give people a high level of responsibility from the day they start. Due to the intensity of the work we do, the firm does an excellent job of looking after staff health and wellbeing so we can achieve work-life balance. For example, we have an in-house organisational psychologist, flexible work policies, community-focused charity events, and opportunities for our people to get active and give back to the community.”
KordaMentha employees enjoy getting involved in different initiatives and value opportunities to give back and support others.
“We support several charities, including Chain Reaction,” said Hewson. “It’s a corporate cycling event, which was founded by the head of our Real Estate practice in 2007. Since then, the event has raised $27 million for various children’s charities. Participants ride from one city in Australia to another, raising money along the way.”
As a keen cyclist, Hewson recently completed a ride for Chain Reaction from Melbourne to Sydney over one week with a group of forty-five other riders.
“It was fun! That event dovetails nicely into Tour de Office, another event that we run in the office which enables us to give back to the community and engage our people.”
KordaMentha has taken part in Tour de Office for five years now.
“We were looking for an event where we could engage both employees and key clients. It really aligned with our values, gave us the opportunity to be active and raise money for charity, and enlivened the competitive spirit that runs through our office.”
“It’s been a particularly great way to interact with one of our key clients, Commonwealth Bank. During the event week, they set up a bike in their offices at the same time we do. We livestream and share our events, and on the final day, we take our bike to their office and go head to head. People get into it and try to beat their own scores and their friends. There’s great friendly rivalry during the week.
KordaMentha has also supported a number of other charities, such as ReachOut.com and Team Sports 4 All.
“Our offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth choose different charities to support that align with our values.”
“Everyone gets excited for the event. Some people even train for it to beat their previous times. It really enlivens the competitive spirit in the office. There are so many positive health benefits. It gets people moving and away from their desks, and it’s been great to get to know and interact with people in other offices in KordaMentha, and also in Commonwealth Bank.”
For Hewson, it’s been a valuable way for him to use his time to give back to the community while engaging the workforce.
“I’ve enjoyed seeing the fun that it brings and the satisfaction people get out of it. When you hand over a cheque to the charity at the end of the event, they’re so grateful and impressed.”
“The event is just one piece of the puzzle. It reinforces our dedication to the wellbeing of our employees. It’s certainly had a positive benefit on our client relationships too. People really enjoy it.”
What small events does your organisation offer to cause positive chain reactions? Share a comment below.