Toll Remote Logistics - TOLL Group

Lex: The program was great in the way we were able to
collaborate with Toll people, not only from australia but
internationally, particularly asia. i think we had eight or nine
Toll businesses together, so sharing ideas with those people
and being able to work on projects going forward was fantastic
and one of the real highlights of the program for me.
3. Was the program what you were expecting – why
and why not?
neil: Certainly working with the people in the program was far
more intense than i thought it would be. it was a great part of it.
Mark: i didn’t go into it with any preconception of what it
would be about.
Lex: it certainly was what i was expecting but of all the courses
i’ve done at Toll, this was the most rewarding. it exceeded my
expectations. i can’t speak highly enough of the openness of
the group and the honesty of the group.
Wendy: i have done a lot of management courses in my career
and to come along to a program like this i had quite high
expectations and high standards. it lived up to all of those.
a lot of innovation and interaction between the parties and it
was done in a way that just made you stop and think a little
bit more about it and look at it in a different way.
4. Why do you think you will be a better manager as
a result of the Leadership @ Toll program?
neil: i think the program makes you reflect on your own
management style. There were parts of it i found quite surprising
about myself. sometimes you don’t see yourself as others do.
i found that very valuable. i’ll take a lot of that on board and
improve myself based on that.
Mark: i have learnt “me” time is quintessential to being a good
leader, using the time to “climb the tree” more often.
Lex: some of the tools i’ve taken from the program like “see,
Hear, speak” have certainly benefited me and those around me.
identifying mind traps and realising you can’t have your finger
in every pie, so empowering and entrusting those around you
to make decisions and being able to guide them and listen to
them was a benefit to me and made me a stronger manager.
Wendy: as a consequence of this program, i now have a bigger
tool set available to me. i have a whole group of managers
that i have now gone through some programs with and we’re
all now working in the same way with the same ideas and
actually working together to improve things.
the second part of this Q&A series will appear in the next
edition of toll today. if this article has made you interested
in the leadership @ program and you’d like to see video
interviews these managers, you’ll find them on the Toll intranet.
Human resources Director,
lesley staples, gives us
an insight into the leadership
@ Toll program, and the role of
Human resources at Toll. The
full interview will be available on the people @ Toll portal,
accessible through the intranet from July 2011.
What is the Lesley Staples story?
Lesley: i started life as a graduate at the anz Bank. Worked
my way through human resources for 15 years. Had a couple
of children whilst i was there. after a restructure i left and spent
a year doing contracting work then joined a global organisation
of consulting psychologists for a couple of years. i was lucky
to get a role at Cadbury schweppes after this where i ended
up head of Human resources for australia and new zealand.
after six years there, paul offered me the role here. i’ve been
here now for two and a half years.
What have been the main differences coming to Toll?
Lesley: some wonderful differences to be honest. it sounds
like a cliché but Toll does have a can-do attitude. We don’t
get slowed down by meetings, presentations and “death by
powerpoint”.
Tell us about the Leadership @ Toll program
Lesley: i could wax lyrical about it. it’s about developing
strong managers. We’ve launched 35 programs, 600 managers
are nominated globally and the program is about managers
taking a look at themselves as leaders. They get feedback
about how others see them, they get to try some new skills in
leading others, and importantly they learn how to listen, see
people differently and have more effective conversations and
relationships.
What goals have you set?
Lesley: We have set five goals. The first goal is to enable
everyone at Toll to be great at their job, deliver on their
accountabilities and excel. secondly, we absolutely have to
continuously develop our talent to fill key roles for the future.
Thirdly, i believe we need strong managers who are equally good
at managing their people as they are at managing their business.
We need people managers who select the right people, who can
coach them and develop them, give them feedback, grow them.
Goal four is to grow our core competencies like operational
excellence, commercial and financial capability, and business
development. in so doing, we can encourage people to grow
their career with Toll. The final goal is to provide access to
these tools, resources and training for all employees.
What else can we expect in the future?
Lesley: a focus on performance and to get the portal up and
running which can be accessed by any employee in the world
to gain information relevant to their career development at Toll.
in that way we can connect everyone within the company. <
TOLL GROup
June–auGusT 2011
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