Mobile Industry - Australia
A Strong Market Culture is the DNA of Profitable Businesses
TELSTRA CASE STUDY
The CFO leads cultural transformation and acts as a guiding light for the whole organization. “I set out to transform the Finance Group into a support group that would create new value, provide top service and be seen to be valuable by its customers…..and deliver millions of dollars to the bottom line.” John V. Stanhope Chief Financial Officer and Group Managing Director, Finance and Administration, Telstra Corporation
THE CONTEXT
Telstra is a $25 billion Australian telecommunications and media services company. It ranks as 11th largest Telco worldwide in terms of market capitalization. It provides fixed line, mobile and broadband Internet services. Its cable TV, online directory and Yellow Pages books form the basis of its media services. Telstra’s cultural legacy is one of a government owned monopoly that has progressively adapted to an increasingly deregulated, commercial and competitive environment. The Finance and Administration (F&A) Group, a corporate support function of more than 2400 people has operated in a company that has always held strong market positions in all of its Australian markets. The company has undergone many changes over the years to become more customer-focused, but it is still known in several market segments for its poor customer service. The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) wanted to change this, starting within his own group. A “customer service” focused cultural change, known as value service culture (VSC) was initiated in June 2008. This case traces the value service cultural change over its first 24 months to June 2010.1
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The CFO and members of the senior leadership team were interviewed by MarketCulture several times over the course of the 2 year journey. Ongoing discussions took place with the CFO throughout the
TELSTRA CASE STUDY
The CFO leads cultural transformation and acts as a guiding light for the whole organization. “I set out to transform the Finance Group into a support group that would create new value, provide top service and be seen to be valuable by its customers…..and deliver millions of dollars to the bottom line.” John V. Stanhope Chief Financial Officer and Group Managing Director, Finance and Administration, Telstra Corporation
THE CONTEXT
Telstra is a $25 billion Australian telecommunications and media services company. It ranks as 11th largest Telco worldwide in terms of market capitalization. It provides fixed line, mobile and broadband Internet services. Its cable TV, online directory and Yellow Pages books form the basis of its media services. Telstra’s cultural legacy is one of a government owned monopoly that has progressively adapted to an increasingly deregulated, commercial and competitive environment. The Finance and Administration (F&A) Group, a corporate support function of more than 2400 people has operated in a company that has always held strong market positions in all of its Australian markets. The company has undergone many changes over the years to become more customer-focused, but it is still known in several market segments for its poor customer service. The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) wanted to change this, starting within his own group. A “customer service” focused cultural change, known as value service culture (VSC) was initiated in June 2008. This case traces the value service cultural change over its first 24 months to June 2010.1
1
The CFO and members of the senior leadership team were interviewed by MarketCulture several times over the course of the 2 year journey. Ongoing discussions took place with the CFO throughout the