Stories by Byron Connolly

Since becoming an independent company, Australia’s largest and most diverse loyalty program, Flybuys has had a strong emphasis on investing in the business to support new opportunities.

In 2017, the Clubs Australia Digital Services Team (DST) was created as an entirely new business unit. It was established to provide technology-led products, services and thought leadership across the organisation and its 2000 members.

Since its creation in 2010, NextDC has grown into one of Australia’s large data centre providers with 230 staff across nine locations (with two more currently being designed) and a market cap close to $2.2 billion.

From operating a retail-based monopoly to playing in a highly competitive digital market, there has been a significant need to change the way Racing & Wagering Western Australia operates to drive competitiveness.

Andrew Todd’s mandate as chief technology officer at Australian software provider, Iress, can be described in three ways: improving the speed with which the company responds to client needs; working at scale to take advantage of global teams; and improving the quality of the end-to-end experience delivered to clients.

RSL Queensland’s chief information officer Simon Button knows a thing or two about making himself dispensable. In fact, he refers to it as an ‘art.’

“ICT projects are, in fact, complex change management processes with often profound impacts on the business,” says NSW Health’s chief information officer, Dr Zoran Bolevich.

Success is a natural by-product of experiential learning and partnering with people across the organisation and beyond, says Andy Luiskandl, chief information officer at childcare group, Only About Children.

“The biggest lesson learnt during my career as a CIO has been the value of building trusted relationships and the importance of fostering the right culture,” says the Department of Education and Training Victoria’s chief information officer, Elizabeth Wilson.

When Wesfarmers announced its demerger from Coles on March 16 last year, an aggressive transformation timetable was set out almost immediately with a target completion in November 2018.

Michael Grant has held CIO positions at numerous organisations over the past 20 years. His biggest lesson? Take your own counsel when commencing a new role.

Anna Leibel loves to practice the ‘art of resilience.’

The Royal Automobile Club of Queensland (RACQ) has significantly transformed over the past seven years, moving from being a 100-year roadside assistance organisation to a financial services operation encompassing three major pillars. The RACQ insurance company is Australia’s sixth largest, the RACQ Bank is the second fastest growing bank here, both are additions to its traditional motoring division.

“Business is all about people and while I fondly recall the shift from being responsible for myself to leading others, I squirm a little at my steely focus on outcomes. I learnt the hard way that this was not a recipe for success,” says Airservices Australia’s service strategy manager, Michael Snell.

The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) has the highest digital engagement of any bank in Australia by some margin with the latest evolution of the CommBank App, launched in July, increasingly becoming the primary touch point for its customers.