Regional Australia: including the whole community

Port Pirie is an icon of South Australia’s mineral history, a stoic, industrial city long renowned for huge silver, lead, gold, copper and zinc smelters processing millions of tonnes of raw ore.

For Kristian Walker, ANZ Business Excellence Manager, growing up in Broken Hill - a similar city to Port Pirie located in outback NSW - meant he often felt different.

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Today though attitudes have changed and Kristian says this feeling of being “different” passed over time. He hopes that change continues – particularly in the workplace.

 “It doesn’t matter what background you come from, what the colour of your skin is or what your sexual preferences are. It’s about you, and what you can bring to the table to help your career progression,” he says.

Amanda Schultz, ANZ District Manager and proud regional community member, says she knows having a diverse, inclusive workforce is vital not only to the achievement of business objectives but as a representation of real people in the community.

 “I love working for ANZ for a number of reasons and inclusion is one of them,” she says.

“We’ve got to employ people who have different experiences, different life skills and have come from different backgrounds because that’s who our community is.

 “It is about including everyone, making people feel valued and really accepting that things are changing. That doesn’t just have to remain in Sydney and the big places around Australia.”