The winner of the 2024 Business Excellence – Corporate Medal is John Holland.
This award recognises the outstanding achievements of a business in creating employment or other opportunities that value and promote diversity and inclusion.
From humble beginnings 70 years ago, John Holland has grown to become one of Australia’s leading building, infrastructure, rail and transport companies delivering some of the country’s most iconic infrastructure projects.
John Holland’s core values are more than words – the company’s leaders drive a high-performance culture with a strong sense of heart.
Its leadership team combines big-picture thinking with genuine care and empathy. This is evidenced by the impact of John Holland’s track record of engagement with social enterprises that create life changing employment, training and development opportunities.
“Thanks to a number of key partnerships with social enterprises, John Holland has access to a wide-ranging talent pool. This gives people from diverse backgrounds a chance to work on incredible projects, build meaningful careers, and break down barriers to our industry,” says EGM Infrastructure, Rob Evans.
John Holland has achieved significant milestones in promoting diversity and inclusion in construction, particularly the employment of refugees, asylum seekers, and CALD individuals.
The company’s annual Social Procurement Roadshow highlights the barriers faced by multicultural communities and other disadvantaged groups and provides forums for refugees and asylum seekers to share their personal journeys and the value of employment.
“We’re deeply committed to embracing diversity and inclusion on our projects – and that means making sure our workforce best reflects the communities we’re building in every day,” says EGM Infrastructure, Rob Evans.
For over six years, John Holland has worked with social enterprises, Multicultural Consulting Services (MCS) and CareerSeekers to create life changing employment opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers, young people, people with a disability, and women who have experienced domestic, sexual, and family violence.
Further partnerships in NSW with SydWest Multicultural Services and Western Sydney Community Forum will create further employment and development opportunities.
“We’re actively supporting employment and apprenticeship opportunities for refugees, asylum seekers and people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities. It’s a key priority for us because everyone deserves the chance to contribute to our industry,” says Rob Evans.
John Holland’s ‘ON TRACK’ initiative helps young Indigenous Australians who have been part of the juvenile justice system to turn a corner. Its participants learn valuable work and life skills to build a career in the industry.
Social enterprises are deeply integrated into John Holland’s supply chain, working with specialist advocates who can add social and community benefits.
Since 2019, John Holland invested nearly $50 million in social enterprises such as Veterans in Construction, and in 2021, announced a national partnership with Soldier On. Today 70 veterans work across John Holland project sites, with plans to strengthen this number across the country.
John Holland has not only been a pioneer of the industry but continues to be a trailblazer in the realm of business for good. In 2020, John Holland was honoured with the ‘Big Spender Award’ from Social Traders and have won other industry awards and recognition.
John Holland is immensely proud to be a WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality (2022-2024) and is striving for 40/40/20 gender equality across its talent recruitment and development as set out in its Gender Equality Strategic Plan.
In 2023, women made up nearly 25 per cent of John Holland’s overall employee base, above the industry average. In the same year, John Holland reached a major milestone partnering with the AFLW to bring more women into the construction industry, recruiting an entire squad of players working in diverse roles.
This game-changing partnership allowed players to develop their careers outside of football whilst thriving as AFLW players.
Proud of the impact this partnership achieved in 12 months, John Holland remarked that the women recruited to Workplay, ‘were the faces of what is possible with a purpose and values-led partnership.’
Since its humble beginnings, John Holland has been recognised and awarded for its commitment to social outcomes and inclusive practices, yet its real significance lies in the transformative impact on individuals’ lives.
