Hello friends, it’s that time again to share with you an update on the great initiatives we’ve been working hard on at Telstra since my last blog in August!

In early September, we were lucky enough to be invited to the annual Murri Rugby League Carnival in Ipswich, Queensland, to host an employment stand. The carnival was sponsored by the Arthur Beetson Foundation (ABF), which aims to raise awareness and promote Indigenous health and well being, education and employment. What better way to do this then to hold a Rugby League carnival which has always been a sport that brings our community together. The carnival attracts over 35,000 Indigenous community members from all over Queensland and it was just such a positive vibe to be present and promote Indigenous employment at Telstra. We got to mingle, chat and engage with community elders, families, team participants, youth and children of all ages by handing out our colourful Telstra merchandise and really connect and share the wonderful opportunities that Telstra has to offer.  Face-to-face communications and personal touch is vital when it comes to connecting to our Indigenous community so I was lucky to have Telstra Indigenous employees assist me at the event:

Amanda (Telstra Customer Sales & Service); Alex (Telstra Customer Sales & Service); Kerri (Telstra Operations); Suzi (Telstra Career’s Centre); and John (the Ipswich retail store manager) who kindly donated raffle prizes for the Carnival.  John also made some new customer connections in Ipswich, and was there to serve the many Murri Rugby League visitors who came his way.

I am also excited to share that the Indigenous school-based and full-time traineeship intake for this year is approaching and we have had an overwhelming response from the business.  I hold this program very close to my heart as it’s an opportunity for Telstra to give a young Indigenous student an opportunity to grow, a chance to fulfil their career aspirations, but also a taste of what it’s like to work in a corporate organisation whist studying a Certificate 2 in Retail, Business or IT.  This year, Telstra has confirmed 18 school-based and four full-time traineeship opportunities for 2013. Trainees will be based in Telstra Operations, IT, HR, Marketing, Digital and Telstra Country Wide. I’m so proud to share this news!!!  We’ll be working with the Aboriginal Employment Strategy to source our trainees, so keep an eye out for the opportunities in your area.

This past Monday, we marked a very special milestone for Telstra as Kate McKenzie (GMD, Telstra Innovation, Products and Marketing), officially launched Telstra’s Indigenous Employees’ Network nationally.  It was such an honour to lead this initiative and work in conjunction with fellow Indigenous employees at Telstra to connect across Country and culture. We heard directly from Priscilla (Telstra Business, Service Manager) who’s one of our Indigenous employees based in Brisbane about the inspiring story of her life, family, journey within Telstra and what the official launch of the network meant to her.  What a captivating and powerful story it was! We also heard from our Indigenous guest speaker Lani Blanco-Francis (CEO and Founder, LBF Consulting) who shared with the audience her amazing journey from childhood to employment and where she is today.  It was another captivating and powerful story and great to hear from a successful Indigenous woman working hard in the community to create sustainable employment opportunities for Indigenous people across the country.

During the launch, we unveiled the first look at Telstra’s team of Indigenous Employment Ambassadors who will be the faces of our new Indigenous employment brand. We know it is so important for our Indigenous mob that we have local connection and visibility in the community so we are bringing the stories of Indigenous employees to the front, to inspire others and show the pathway forward. To date we have eight Indigenous ambassadors and they are: Alex (Telstra Customer Sales & Service); Lauren (Corporate Affairs); Lo (Telstra Operations); Elijah (Telstra Customer Sales & Service); Priscilla (Telstra Business); Amanda (Telstra Customer Sales & Service); Kerri (Telstra Operations); and myself. All the ambassadors are really proud to be representing Telstra as we all share a strong view of the purpose of this initiative.  You’ll be able to see the full stories of our Ambassadors on the Telstra Careers website when we launch these early next year.

Until next time, be safe, take care and I look forward to sharing further updates very soon.