Australian HR Award winners revealed!

The cream of Australia's HR industry gathered at the Australian HR Awards in Sydney on Friday night. HC was there and is proud to announce the winners of an exciting, hotly contested battle of excellence involving the nation's leading HR professionals.

Friday night proved to be an exciting and suspense-filled night at the Australian HR Awards. After weeks of anticipation, the awards were announced to a packed room of over 700 HR professionals at Sydney’s Doltone House, Darling Island.

Popular media personality Julia Morris had the room in stitches throughout the evening, while musical entertainment was provided by the exceptionally talented band, The Diamonds.

2014 saw a record number of nominations from some of the country’s largest and most innovative companies. The high calibre of entries received this year resulted in an impressive list of finalists – and an even finer list of winners.

Highlights included inspirational speechs by HR Rising Star, Matthew Francis of RSPCA Qld, and HR Hall of Fame winner Michaela Healey of National Australia Bank. While all categories were hotly contested, the results of the HR Director of the Year and the HR Team of the Year categories produced an audible buzz of excitment in the ballroom.

HC congratulates all winners and will follow up with more from the awards in coming days. A full list of winners is below.
 
Category Company Individual
Australian HR Champion (CEO) Accenture Australia Jack Percy
Australian HR Director of the Year Diageo Lucinda Gemmell
Australian HR Manager of the Year Bankstown City Council Simone Cook
Australian HR Rising Star of the Year RSPCA Qld Matthew Francis
HR Hall of Fame National Australia Bank Limited Michaela Healey
Australian HR Team of the Year QBE Insurance Australia Limited  
Best Change Management Strategy Merck, Sharp & Dohme  
Best Employee Value Proposition Australian Red Cross Blood Service  
Best Health & Wellbeing Strategy Johnson & Johnson  
Best HR Innovation and Corporate Creativity Suncorp  
Best HR Marketing & Communications Strategy Telstra  
Best HR Strategic Plan Brisbane Airport Corporation  
Best Learning & Development Strategy Fitness First  
Best Recruitment Strategy Campbell Arnott's  
Best Reward & Recognition Strategy Schweppes Australia  
Best Use of Technology Commonwealth Bank of Australia  
Best Workplace Diversity & Inclusion Strategy Deloitte  
Employer of Choice (<1000) Heritage Bank  
Employer of Choice (>1000) Deloitte  
Employer of Choice (Public Sector & NFP) QSuper