'We want an unfair share of the best talent in the world working at CHEP,' says people leader
Creative agency CHEP is starting the new year with a focus on DEI and the introduction of a new programme to attract talent and reduce barriers for people from different backgrounds joining the organisation.
It’s changing what’s been known as its graduate programme to instead focus on an entry level and early careers strategy, to better reflect that it values the input not just of those with degrees.
“We always say that we want an unfair share of the best talent in the world working at CHEP,” says Robert Stone, director of people & culture at CHEP Network. “We had a programme in place which embraced diversity of thought from all backgrounds, but I think we need to have a wider lens from a truly DEI perspective.
“We really value creativity and that can come from everywhere in our society, so we’re putting value on making our workforce truly reflective of the people in our society in Australia.”
Stone says it’s no secret that, historically, creative and advertising businesses have been lacking diversity from a talent perspective. “I think that it's been a very privileged industry that people have got into through who they know, or how they know someone.
“We all recognise that businesses with diversity are the ones that succeed for a number of reasons, but especially since we market to the masses for our clients in a creative business, we value and want the views and opinions of everyone within our society.”
In changing its graduate programme, CHEP is partnering with specialists. The decision to seek guidance with transformation, says Stone, has come about following recommendations from mentors and peers regarding their experiences in this space, including those from other industries.
“Removing barriers for minorities and people from under-privileged backgrounds is really important for us,” says Stone, one of those listed in the Global 100 HR for 2023. “So working with specialist partners will help to accelerate change for us.
“We're trying to look at where some of the bottlenecks really are. Historically people assumed that some minority groups would actually want to work for us, but the reality is in some instances that’s not the case as creative industries haven’t been widely known.”
CHEP is also looking to enhance awareness of career opportunities within the industry, including working with schools.
“We’re wanting to get ahead and educate even earlier in the stream, so we’re talking in some of the schools around what a career in marketing and advertising might look like, and what our actual professional services are,” he says.
It’s planned the new programme will really start to take shape over the next few months.
“We're in the strategy phase at the moment, which is really exciting,” says Stone. “It's been a massive learning curve as we start to partner and talk to different organisations that specialise in these areas. It’s ultimately going to change everything, from our selection criteria to onboarding, to the actual development of the framework of what that programme looks like.”
Another significant change at CHEP this year involves the company’s internship roles, which didn’t guarantee jobs at the end; so, the organisation plans to create guaranteed full-time positions for those coming through the new early careers programme.
“That's where we're going see the most traction and attract the most people,” he says.
“We believe we are truly a creative business. Our people are our product. So we definitely know that we need to do this not just because it's the right thing to do in society, but because it unlocks innovation and drives commercial growth.”
To ensure not just talent attraction but also retention, the organisation is focusing on two other key pillars through 2024: opportunities for learning and development and the great potential for internal mobility and development, says Stone.
“We see huge opportunity to do more around moving our people internally and keeping them within the group because we're fortunate enough to be a large global business.
“Internal mobility opportunities really help differentiate us from some of our competitors.”
To achieve this, CHEP’s implemented some new HR systems and performance platforms.
“This allows us to monitor in real-time what people are doing and where they want to go, so we’re trying to have those conversations every six months to really ensure that we're on top of them, rather than it be a reactive conversation,” says Stone.
“We're seeing a bit of success on that already, with some people moving across departments. We want to make sure we're not giving our people a reason to leave and can continue to help support their careers.”
The organisation is finding success in allowing people opportunities to test the water on projects from other disciplines to get a taste before committing permanently. Through this, some have actually realised the grass isn’t always greener and it’s provided opportunities to build skills, he says.
“We're focusing on giving people exposure and different skills,” says Stone. “This helps with retention but is equally as valuable in terms of helping us get very rounded people that are a lot more hybrid in what they can do moving forward.”
