Organisation Categories
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2026 Organisation Award Finalists
Thank you for joining Awards 2026 and we are delighted to congratulate this year’s finalists.
Best Attraction, Recruitment & Retention Strategy
Finalists
Bush Heritage Australia Seeding the Future Program
The Seeding the Future program was selected as a finalist for transforming attraction, recruitment and retention in the conservation sector. By providing paid internships, dedicated mentoring and meaningful career pathways, the initiative has expanded access to conservation careers, increased workforce diversity, and retained 86% of participants in environmental employment or further study.
Farren McRae Workplace Lawyers and Consultants
Farren McRae was nominated for its innovative attraction, recruitment and retention strategy that created a sustainable competitive advantage through people rather than scale. By designing an employment model centred on flexibility, trust, autonomy and transparent rewards, the firm has attracted and retained highly experienced professionals, strengthened organisational capability, enhanced reputation and driven sustainable business growth.
Infinite Care
Infinite Care was nominated for transforming employee referrals into a structured, technology-enabled attraction, recruitment and retention strategy. Through the Care Friends platform, the organisation strengthened candidate attraction, quality hiring, employee engagement and workforce stability, achieving close to 30% of hires through referrals while improving retention, reducing recruitment costs and enhancing continuity of care.
Kestrel Coal, part of Yancoal Australia
Kestrel was nominated for its NEXTGEN: Immersion Program, an innovative long-term attraction, recruitment and retention strategy that engages local students before key education and career decisions. By challenging perceptions of modern mining, strengthening school partnerships and creating a sustainable early careers pipeline, the program is building future workforce capability and supporting regional workforce sustainability
Best Organisational Development and Change Strategy
Finalists
Canterbury-Bankstown Council
Canterbury-Bankstown Council was nominated for its Purpose & Ambition Strategy, which transformed the organisation into a purpose-led culture by connecting employees to community outcomes, strengthening organisational alignment and breaking down silos. Through leadership engagement, organisation-wide participation and practical embedment, the strategy increased employee connection to purpose, collaboration, pride, and readiness for future transformation.
City Renewal Authority
Selected as a finalist for transforming City Renewal Authority from a low-performing organisation marked by cultural and behavioural challenges into one of the ACT public sector’s strongest performers. Through an eight-year, evidence-based organisational development strategy, the initiative delivered sustained improvements in performance, culture, innovation, psychosocial safety, employee belonging, and organisational resilience.
Best Leadership Development Strategy
Sponsored by
Finalists
Baw Baw Shire Council
Baw Baw Shire Council was nominated for its Nexus and Axis Leadership Strategy, which strengthened leadership capability, collaboration and enterprise thinking across all leadership levels. Through adaptive challenges, coaching and leader-led learning, the strategy built a connected leadership community, improved engagement and cross-department collaboration, and helped the organisation successfully navigate significant change and growth.
Power and Water
Power and Water was nominated for its integrated four-tier Leadership Development Strategy, which transformed leadership and succession planning from reactive development to a proactive, evidence-based talent pipeline. By aligning leadership programs with performance, potential and succession needs, the strategy strengthened leadership readiness, increased internal mobility, improved engagement and reduced organisational leadership risk.
Ramsay Health Care
Ramsay Health Care was nominated for its Australia Leadership Academy, a strategic enterprise-wide leadership development initiative that created a consistent leadership framework, strengthened capability and confidence, and built future leadership pipelines. Through experiential learning, coaching, cross-functional collaboration and executive sponsorship, the Academy improved leadership behaviours, supported transformation and embedded a common leadership culture across the organisation.
TMMA
TMMA was nominated for its Manager Blueprint, a leadership development strategy that defined the manager role, embedded consistent people practices and strengthened leadership capability. Through the 5Ps framework, flow-of-work learning and accountability, the program significantly improved manager and employee engagement, leadership confidence, career development conversations, and the overall employee experience.
Victoria State Emergency Services
Victoria State Emergency Service was nominated for its L.E.A.D. Leadership Development Strategy, which transformed an underutilised leadership program into a highly valued, evidence-based leadership pathway. Built on participant feedback and Blanchard’s SLII® framework, L.E.A.D. improved leadership capability, achieved outstanding completion and satisfaction rates, strengthened collaboration, and created a sustainable leadership development model.
Best Learning & Development Strategy
Sponsored by
Finalists
Anglicare Sydney
Anglicare was nominated for its Anglicare Academy, which transformed fragmented, course-based learning into a scalable, role-based development ecosystem. By embedding learning into daily work, aligning development to mission and business priorities, and focusing on measurable behaviour change, the Academy doubled participation, increased leadership engagement, improved capability, and reduced learning costs.
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners was nominated for its Selling Excellence learning and development strategy, which created a consistent, scalable Key Account Management capability framework. Through the “How We Sell at CCEP” methodology, practical workplace application, coaching and leadership support, the program increased capability, confidence and adoption, delivering measurable customer value, commercial growth and global scalability.
Evolve Housing
Evolve Housing was nominated for its Learning and Development Strategy which transformed leadership development into a fully integrated capability ecosystem. Reaching 35% of the workforce, the strategy strengthened leadership confidence, succession readiness, internal mobility and organisational culture. Through leadership pathways, coaching and reflective supervision, it built the capacity required to scale impact and growth.
James Hardie
James Hardie was nominated for its HardieLift Learning & Development Strategy, which transformed frontline capability from informal, experience-based training into a structured, measurable development system. By capturing critical knowledge, standardising onboarding and competency assessment, and integrating technology, HardieLift accelerated time to competence, strengthened workforce capability, and reduced reliance on labour hire.
Best Use of Technology
Sponsored by
Finalists
Experian Australia and New Zealand
Experian was nominated for its technology-enabled integration strategy, which united a workforce that more than doubled following a major acquisition. Through connected digital tools, AI capability-building, employee listening and leadership sponsorship, the initiative strengthened engagement, simplified support, aligned employees to strategy, and delivered stronger business, customer and workforce outcomes overall.
Deloitte Australia
Deloitte was nominated for its Ambr AI initiative, which transformed capability development from learning about skills to practising them. Through realistic AI-powered simulations and personalised feedback, employees built confidence and capability in real-world workplace scenarios, turning learning into practical capability at scale while improving outcomes for clients, teams and leaders.
Jacaranda Finance
Jacaranda Finance was nominated for its Team Engine, which transformed inconsistent, instinct-led recruitment and onboarding into an integrated, technology-enabled and evidence-based system. Combining AI, behavioural insights, structured assessment and human judgement, the initiative improved hiring quality, reduced time to fill, strengthened candidate experience, increased retention and delivered cost savings.
Power and Water Corporation
Power and Water was nominated for its AI Enablement Program, which transformed widespread but unsupported AI use into a governed, organisation-wide capability. By combining AI training, governance, AI Champions, coaches and practical AI Labs, the initiative built workforce confidence, reduced risk, strengthened responsible AI adoption, and enabled sustainable business value.
Best Health & Wellbeing Strategy
Finalists
Capral Aluminium
Capral was nominated for its employee-led Tievember wellbeing movement, which transformed health and wellbeing conversations across a predominantly male, geographically dispersed workforce. By making wellbeing visible, approachable and inclusive, Tievember increased voluntary participation from 84 to 909 employees, strengthened belonging, reduced stigma, and created lasting cultural change through authentic connection.
Flinders University
Marinus Link Pty Ltd
Marinus Link was nominated for its proactive Health & Wellbeing Strategy, which embedded psychosocial risk management, wellbeing leadership and preventative mental health support into core governance. The strategy increased engagement from 76% to 83%, sustained zero psychological injury claims for 30 months, strengthened connection, and created a culture where people leave healthier than they arrived.
Oral Health Victoria
Oral Health Victoria was nominated for its Well and Safe Plan 2025–2027, which transformed a reactive, compliance-driven safety culture into a proactive, evidence-based health and wellbeing strategy. Through psychosocial risk management, early intervention, workforce consultation and strong governance, the initiative reduced injury rates, lowered claim costs, improved wellbeing outcomes and strengthened organisational safety culture.Lifeblood’s Support the Pause strategy transforms menopause support through inclusive design, leadership advocacy, and peer networks – empowering wellbeing, equity, and belonging across all life stages.
Tafe NSW
TAFE NSW was nominated for its enterprise-wide Wellbeing Strategy, which transformed wellbeing from fragmented support into a proactive organisational capability. Through leadership accountability, psychosocial risk management, workforce co-design and evidence-based initiatives, the strategy improved wellbeing outcomes, reduced stress and burnout, strengthened resilience and engagement, and embedded wellbeing into everyday organisational culture and practice.
Best Employee Experience Strategy
Finalists
Adelaide Oval SMA
Adelaide Oval was nominated for its three-year Employee Experience Strategy, which transformed employee feedback into a more connected, supportive and human-centred workplace. Through stronger communication, development, recognition, wellbeing and shared ownership, the strategy increased engagement across permanent and casual employees, strengthened pride and belonging, and reduced voluntary turnover significantly overall.
Deloitte Australia
Deloitte was nominated for its Employee Experience Strategy, which rebuilt confidence, connection and trust during a period of significant organisational change. Through continuous employee listening, co-design, leadership accountability and connected experiences, the strategy increased engagement from 65% to 70%, strengthened confidence in leadership and improved retention, belonging and career development.
Infinity Group Coaching
Infinity was nominated for its “product of the product” Employee Experience Strategy, which ensures employees experience the same growth, development and opportunity they create for clients. Through strong cultural alignment, career progression, employee listening and shared experiences, the strategy achieved 90% engagement, a +71 eNPS, and exceptional employee advocacy, pride and retention.
Most Inclusive Workplace
Finalists
Settlement Service International
Settlement Service International was nominated for creating an inclusive workplace where belonging is embedded in culture, advocacy, leadership and community impact. Through Belonging@SSI, employee co-design, lived-experience leadership, disability inclusion, gender equity and reconciliation, SSI empowers diverse voices, removes barriers and fosters a workplace where people feel respected, valued and able to thrive.
Services Australia
Services Australia was nominated for creating a workplace where inclusion and belonging are embedded in leadership, culture and everyday work. Co-designed with more than 5,000 employees, its approach combines employee voice, anti-racism action, neuroinclusion, accessibility, LGBTQIA+ inclusion and practical supports, creating a workplace where people feel safe, valued and able to thrive.
Best Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Strategy
Finalists
Brisbane Catholic Education
Brisbane Catholic Education was nominated for its Women in Leadership initiative, which addressed barriers to confidence, sponsorship, visibility and progression for women leaders. By providing mentoring, leadership development, networking and system-level support, the program strengthened leadership pipelines, increased women’s representation in Principal roles from 33% to 51.7%, and achieved gender equity targets.
Oral Health Victoria
Oral Health Victoria was nominated for its intersectional Belonging Plan, which transformed diversity, equity and inclusion from separate initiatives into an integrated, systems-based strategy. Through employee-led consultation, Equity Impact Assessments and shared organisational accountability, OHV strengthened inclusion, employee voice and belonging, improving inclusion outcomes and embedding sustainable, organisation-wide change.
Serco Group Asia Pacific
Serco was nominated for its Disability Inclusion Strategy, which transformed disability inclusion from a representation target into a sustainable, organisation-wide culture of trust, safety and support. Through safe disclosure, lived-experience storytelling, allyship and tailored support plans, the strategy increased disability representation from 26% to over 40% while improving inclusion, belonging and employee experience.
Service Stream
Service Stream was nominated for its School Holiday Care Program, an innovative initiative that removes barriers to workforce participation for parents and carers. By providing free, professionally supervised school holiday care, the program improved wellbeing, retention, productivity and belonging, while advancing gender equity by addressing a challenge that disproportionately affects women.
Unitywater
Unitywater was nominated for its evidence-based Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, which transformed fragmented inclusion efforts into a data-driven, organisation-wide approach. Using workforce insights to embed inclusion into governance, leadership and culture, the strategy improved belonging, representation, psychological safety and retention, strengthening workforce sustainability and organisational capability.
Wollongong City Council
Wollongong City Council was nominated for its holistic Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging Framework, which transformed standalone diversity initiatives into an integrated, employee-centred strategy. Through policy reform, leadership accountability, employee co-design and targeted employment pathways, Council removed barriers, strengthened inclusion and belonging, and created greater employment and career opportunities for under-represented groups.
Best Attraction, Recruitment & Retention Strategy
Recognises initiatives or strategies which contribute to the attraction, recruitment…
Best Learning & Development Strategy
Recognises initiatives or strategies which identify and prioritises current and future…
Best Leadership Development Strategy
Recognises initiatives or strategies which identify and prioritise leadership…
Best Organisational Development and Change Strategy
Recognises initiatives or strategies which identify the optimal structure, function…
Best Use
of Technology
Recognises initiatives or strategies which incorporate technology solutions to…
Best Health & Wellbeing Strategy
Recognises initiatives or strategies which prioritise the promotion and support…
Best Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Strategy
Recognises initiatives or strategies which successfully address a workforce challenge…
Most Inclusive Workplace
Recognises exceptional organisations where diversity, equity, and inclusion are…
Best Employee Experience Strategy
Recognises exceptional organisations where optimising employee experience …
Best Learning & Development Strategy
Award Winner 2024
Recognising exceptional HR professionals that are shaping the future
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