What is TPP?

How do you get 18 per cent of your staff to stay with your company for five years or more?

To answer that question, here’s another – how would you describe your workplace culture in one word?

If your answer isn’t ‘family’, it’s time to take a lesson from the women behind ICD’s The People Project (TPP).

Family is the word used by TPP HR Coordinator Laura Burgess to describe ICD’s culture. Laura and People Development Manager, Hayley Randall, continue to uphold the legacy of the family culture that has been nurtured at ICD by Samantha Pearce, who recently stepped into the Chief Culture Officer role of ICD’s parent company – Mai Group.

Samantha passed the baton over to Hayley and Laura, and together the pair have made it their mission to continue the growth of ICD’s work culture.

Far from being the HR fun police, hall monitors or the naughty corner, TPP has become a central cog of the ICD team.

Together, the dynamic duo are continuing the vision of a company culture that is inclusive, progressive, compassionate, fruitful and focused.

And it’s paying off.

As of March 2019, a confident 45 per cent of ICDians have been with the company for two years or more, and five per cent for 10 years or more.

Counter to the age-old perception of a grouchy HR department working solely to protect the company and its interests, the success of TPP is largely due to their commitment to the individual.

Yes, really. Here’s just one example.

Laura and Hayley sit down with each ICDian and help them map their career ambitions for the following three years. They talk about what motivates them, where their passions are, their areas in need of development and ideal remuneration.

But the real magic happens when they speak with employees’ about their out-of-work lives and goals.

Planning on getting married? Having kids? Packing their bags for that big European family holiday? Buying a house on their own?

That’s fine! Great, in fact. The TPP model incorporates personal milestones with work ones, leading to a much more satisfying work-life balance.

It’s with that attitude that TPP helps their people plan for the future; alongside, not in spite of, their personal goals.

“Seeing our staff go for and achieve their goals is truly a proud moment for me. And given ICD has such good tenure, many of the staff are growing up with the company, so to see them achieve their life milestones is pretty special as well,” said Hayley.

With this attitude, ICD has become an extension of home for its staff. In the last few years they’ve added health and wellbeing programs that are agile and meet the personal needs of employees; offered company sponsored staff cultural tours to China to celebrate the heritage of ICD; and, among other initiatives, developed an onboarding buddy system for the first six months of a new staff member’s life with the company.

The TPP key values – leadership, loyalty and relationships – are the building blocks for everything they do.

“I truly care about our people and am passionate about making the workplace the most positive, exciting and high performing place it can be,” Hayley said.

For the TPP team, their work is an extension of their own experience at ICD.

“I am inspired by everyone at ICD to push myself to be the best that I can in my role and constantly push boundaries. I see everyone around me doing that every day and it makes me want to be part of it,” Laura said.

TPP. Engage. Produce. Grow.