annual report 2011

IOOF | annual report 2011
Working at IOOF
Diversity in the workplace
IOOF recognises the benefits of diversity
where people from different backgrounds
can bring fresh ideas and perceptions
which makes the way work is undertaken
more efficient and effective and our
company’s products and services are
more valued. Throughout the year,
IOOF adopted a diversity policy and
implemented a diversity plan. The plan
focuses on improving the representation
of:
• Women in senior roles.
• Leadership.
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.
• People whose first language was not
English.
• People from lower socio economic
backgrounds.
• Graduates and people with a disability.
With representation in every state of
Australia, IOOF has 984 employees with
female employees representing 53% of
total employees. Of a leadership group of
nine, two are female. IOOF also has one
female at Board level.
In addition, throughout the period a
number of graduates were recruited
with mentoring programs partnering
these appointments. IOOF strives to be
an Employer of Choice by encouraging
workplace diversity, work/life balance
and a satisfying learning environment
to achieve personal and professional
growth.
IOOF is a member of the Diversity Council
of Australia.
Commitment to balance
To assist our people in reaching an
appropriate balance between work and
family we offer a range of programs
and services to all employees. Policies
include Purchased Leave (48/52), flexible
working hours, part-time employment,
community leave, the workplace giving
program, and eight weeks paid parental
leave.
The IOOF iHealth program continues to
receive a positive response and a high
level of attendance by employees. The
program is fully funded by the company
and includes flu vaccinations, skin cancer
checks, healthy heart checks, cholesterol
checks and fitness challenges. Each
program is conducted in the office
during office hours. Therefore, there is
no requirement for employees to take
personal leave or erode their family
time to otherwise attend to a particular
program outside of work hours.
Employee focus groups and
communication surveys encourage the
communication of ideas by employees
to assist in the overall improvement
of the company. The data collected
has provided IOOF with a guideline to
develop and implement HR initiatives
that will further improve our level of
engagement and add to the retention
and attraction strategy of the company.
Ensuring the safety and welfare of our
employees is a commitment we follow
through with Occupational Health and
Safety initiatives and a confidential
employee assistance program.
Development of our
people
Equipping our people with the tools,
knowledge and skills to stay competitive
is an easy investment in our future
success. Promoting career development
and self-learning benefits the company
through increased productivity and
retention of staff. Investment in this area
adds to the value proposition of working
at IOOF.
All employees are encouraged to set
personal development plans with their
managers and to undertake training that
is appropriate for their role and future
career.
IOOF and the environment
The efficient use of resources makes good
business sense, which is why IOOF is
committed to improving our efforts with
the environment.
In 2011, environmental initiatives
undertaken by IOOF included:
• Continued participation in Earth
Hour, which calls on businesses and
individuals to switch off unnecessary
lights.
• IOOF continued to focus on lowering
energy and paper usage.
• Sydney and Melbourne offices
operate a paper and comingled waste
recycling service, with paper recycling
in other state offices.
• Water saving devices installed in
Sydney and Melbourne offices.
Reducing the amount of office space we
require to operate as part of our Business
Simplification Program has the added
benefit of lowering IOOF’s total carbon
footprint and energy use.
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