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Some secondees saw their careers progress into
leadership roles
following their secondment.
Melanie Evans was working as Director of Customer
and Product for BT Financial when she went on
secondment to Cape York. She is now General
Manager Service Revolution & Transformation at
Westpac and said the Jawun experience played a
key part in her advancing into a leadership role:
My Jawun secondment had a huge impact on
my career. I don’t think I would have been as
effective or progressed in this environment. In my
twenties I was very hard, very black and white.
I thought, ‘As long as we get the right outcome
from a customer, shareholder or an investment
perspective, we can deal with the people impacts
later.’ I think most organisations have worked out
that that culture is not the right culture for big,
complex organisations that want to be service led
and attract talented leaders. Perhaps that ‘hard’
style might still work in certain workplaces …
but I wouldn’t have become a leader in the
Westpac culture.
Jaimes Adlington now leads a larger team at
Westpac following his secondment in 2013. He
reflected: ‘I’ve got a broader portfolio and a bigger
team now and I think part of that transition has
been the positive feedback I’ve received from a
general community involvement and leadership
perspective from having done a secondment.’ He
also believes the Jawun experience influences his
style of leadership: ‘My decision-making is a bit
more considered. You’ve still got to make a call, but
now I think more about, “Where does that person
come from? Why are they acting that way? Why
are they communicating to you in that way?”
and then try to work through it.’
Intercultural competency increases
Growth in intercultural competency is one of the
most commonly reported outcomes of a Jawun
secondment.
17
Intercultural competency is about
our will and actions to build understanding
between people, to be respectful and open to
different cultural perspectives, and work towards
equality in opportunity. Relationship building is
fundamental to cultural competency and is based
on the foundations of understanding each other’s
expectations and attitudes, and building on the
strength of each other’s knowledge to build on
their understandings.
18
While a Jawun secondment takes place within
Australia’s Indigenous community, intercultural
competency is applicable in a global sense.
Cross-cultural experiences are considered essential
to building ‘cultural agility’, which is recognised
as a global leadership competency for business
leaders who can operate successfully in today’s
global environment. In a culturally competent and
inclusive organisation individuals function at full
capacity, feel more valued and feel included in the
organisation’s mission. Interculturally competent
individuals typically demonstrate inclusive
behaviours at work that enable the culture to
shift to a higher-performing organisation where
motivation and morale soar.
19
In 2011–12, a number of Jawun secondees
participated in an intercultural competency
study designed by Winthrop Professor Cristina
Gibson and her team from the University of
Western Australia’s School of Business. The study
measured changes in intercultural experience
for secondees pre- and post-secondment. The
findings of the study indicated that Jawun
secondees had experienced statistically significant
improvements in all three major competency
domains (perceptions management, relationship
management and self-management) necessary for
effective intercultural interaction.
20
The study also
showed that the intercultural development that
occurred in secondees through the six-week Jawun
secondments surpassed the development that
occurred in a two-week intercultural project
or ‘classroom only’ program (see Figure 7).
21
Professor Gibson’s research was borne out in
interviews with secondees, with many testifying
that their intercultural competency had increased
and they behaved more inclusively after their
secondment. Rachel Yang explained that
the experience of working in an Indigenous
organisation highlighted to her the importance
of being culturally aware: ‘The experience taught
me to be more observant, emotionally responsive
and culturally sensitive in different situations
and environments.’
Sara McDonald agreed: ‘You become more aware
of the way you approach people as a result of
the secondment. I travelled through communities
where English was the second, third or fourth
language, and with these cultural and language
differences you become very aware of how you’re
interacting with people. You consider why you are
there and what you’re seeking to achieve.’
Others attested that their improvement in listening
and application of empathy and patience had
contributed to growth in intercultural competency.
CREATING VALUE FOR CORPORATE AND GOVERNMENT PARTNERS 25