CEO Survey: Companies from R to Z

The survey’s R to Z companies, alphabetically, respond.

The Australian’s CEO Survey. Artwork by Tom Jellett

The Australian’s CEO Survey: Companies from R to Z

Owen Wilson, REA

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

The Australian property market has been very strong this year despite the restrictions associated with the pandemic. While it is not over yet, I am confident that Australia’s high vaccination rate will support a strong recovery.

In terms of risks, the re-introduction of strict lockdowns which impede the operation of the property market will cause temporary volatility. We know lockdowns impact confidence and vendors are less likely to take their property to market, but we have also seen the market bounce back strongly after each lockdown.

 

As a digital business it can be a challenge to access the skilled workforce we need. We operate in a highly competitive talent marketplace and there is a clear tech skills gap in Australia. The return of skilled migration as soon as possible will help address this.

 

History shows that the lead-up to a federal election can slow the property market. Vendors do not like the uncertainty surrounding elections and not many vendors are willing to have an auction on election day. While there are currently no major property-related policies on the agenda, the market may ease as the election approaches, particularly if the result looks uncertain.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

We’re seeing strong inflation elsewhere in the world and while there are some current spikes in inflation in Australia, it may be transitory and should ease as global supply chains continue to re-open. Natural disasters around the world and throughout Australia are adding to some of the supply chain pressures but again, they should ease over time.

 

The RBA hasn’t been achieving its inflation mandate for many years, so it is right to be cautious about a sustained pick-up in inflation. I am comfortable with the forecasts and the current macro-policy setting. It appears to be striking the right balance for Australia’s needs as we re-open after restrictions. If it proves to be too stimulatory the RBA is pragmatic enough to adjust the settings as required.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Like most sectors, the property sector was greatly impacted through Covid-19 and operated under restrictive conditions. As a digital business REA was able to pivot quickly and introduce new tools, features and support measures to help our customers continue to engage with potential buyers, renters and sellers.

 

Virtual property tours, on-line auctions and covid safe inspection bookings became the normal way of operating and have continued beyond the covid restrictions.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Climate change is a critical issue and businesses should be leading the way to effect positive change.

 

REA released its first climate change policy in 2020 and through this we made a commitment to reduce and offset our carbon emissions annually. We achieved carbon neutral certification earlier this year.

 

In FY21 REA established a carbon emissions reduction plan. Working groups were formed with key stakeholders across the business to focus on ongoing efforts to reduce our environmental impact.

 

We have set science based aligned carbon emissions reduction targets to reduce our absolute scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 42 per cent and scope 3 emissions by 25 per cent by 2030 from an FY20 base year. In FY21 we reduced our overall carbon emissions by 20 per cent, or 3 per cent including our newly acquired REA India business.

 

In 2022 we are planning to install a solar power system on our head office in Melbourne which will accelerate the reduction in our carbon footprint.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

Businesses will continue to be on the hunt for tech talent in 2022 and Australia will benefit from borders re-opening and skilled migration re-commencing. The significant need for more technology-based employees has accelerated with the rapid digitisation of many sectors throughout the pandemic. We need to find new and innovative ways to bring more talent into the tech workforce. The re-introduction of skilled migration will help, but we also need to disrupt the traditional tech career pathway and encourage more people to move into the sector.

 

REA is a hybrid workplace where our people work from both the physical office and virtually. It was a model designed by our people for our people and is based on the moments that matter for our business, our teams and our employees. We won’t be mandating a return to the office and we’ve recently introduced increased optionality around ‘location change’, but we have found since coming out of lockdown that a large percentage of our people are very excited to return to the office.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

All levels of government have done a reasonable job given the very difficult conditions this year. While there are aspects of their performance that could have been better, the reality is Australia has emerged from the pandemic in good shape and without the diabolical health outcomes of other countries.

 

The vaccine roll out may have started slowly but the outcomes we have achieved are now among the best in the world. The state governments must now stop the disruptive border closures. The inconsistency between state restrictions is mind boggling.

 

The NSW government seemed to adopt the most common sense, commercial approach to lockdowns. I was also pleased to see the NSW Government take the lead on stamp duty reform earlier in the year, but the impacts of Covid-19 in that state seem to have slowed the progress.

 

Business has coped with rapid change well with digitisation and remote working widely adopted.

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Jakob Stausholm, Rio Tinto

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

I don’t quite look at it in those terms. We are extremely grateful for the support and co-operation we’ve received from all levels of government that has enabled our operations to keep running safely and contributing to the economy during these challenging times. We are committed to working with Federal, State and Territory government to help the economy reopen and grow.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

We are positive on the Australian economy in 2022, with high vaccination rates and supportive fiscal and monetary conditions expected to enable the economy to reopen and grow.

 

Looking globally, there are impacts from bottlenecks in the logistics systems of the world, which is a contributor to inflationary pressure and from which we have experienced delays in Western Australia.

 

We will overcome this but it will take time. 

 

For the mining sector, Australian federal, state and territory governments have done a great job supporting the industry and helping ensure Australian mining operations have been able to run safely and keep contributing to the economy.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

We have set new targets to reduce our Scope 1 & 2 carbon emissions and we expect to spend $US7.5bn ($10.5bn) between now and 2030 to meet them. We are targeting a 50 per cent reduction in scope 1&2 emissions by 2030, which is more than triple our previous target, and a 15 per cent reduction by 2025.

 

Key to meeting our targets will be renewable power for our Pilbara iron ore operations and our Tomago and Boyne aluminium smelters on the east coast.

 

We are also introducing an internal carbon price of $75 a tonne, which will provide the incentive to accelerate the delivery of abatement projects. We are also developing technologies to help our customers decarbonise and are progressing key R&D projects and partnerships with governments, suppliers, customers and other stakeholders to establish greener supply chains.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022?

 

In WA, where the bulk of our people are, we continue to see a tight market, as all of the major iron ore miners, including Rio Tinto, are building and completing new projects.

 

We would like to be able to access more labour from other states, but, at the same time, the last thing we want to see is COVID cases in our mines, so there is obviously balance needed.

 

What are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

As a global business, many of our employees travelled frequently before Covid-19, so we have long been set up for remote working.

 

Our policy is to help employees balance work commitments and personal needs so they can be at their best. This can include flexibility around location and when work is done.

 

The time people spend between the office and home is agreed between individual employees and their manager, taking into account both personal and business needs.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

We think the federal and state and territory governments where we operate have managed the Covid-19 crisis very well.

 

We are extremely grateful for the support and co-operation we’ve received from all levels of government, and continue to receive, to ensure our operations can continue to safely produce and contribute to the economy.

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Peter Allen, Scentre

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Staying the course on keeping the economy open and removing any remaining restrictions on mobility is critical to us, our business partners and customers.

 

We’ve provided significant cash flow support to our small and medium-sized businesses impacted by Covid-19 lockdowns to ensure that they can participate in the recovery. We have experienced a strong rebound in customer visitation in NSW and Victoria, following the reopening of those states in late October, whilst visitation in other states (less impacted by lockdowns) remains above pre-pandemic levels.

 

Co-ordination between federal, state and territory governments will ensure a stronger, sustainable Australian economic recovery and enable the business community to operate effectively and drive economic growth. We need to get back to operating as one Australia.

 

I’m very confident about the long-term growth prospects for Scentre Group and Australia. Our company’s growth is driven by our ambition to be essential to people, communities and the businesses that interact with them.

 

We’re long-term investors through the cycle. As a country, there is a tremendous opportunity to invest in our productive capacity and innovation to drive real growth. As well as returning to population growth, we need to take a holistic approach by adopting responsible business practices and playing our part in the decarbonisation of the economy.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

There is evidence of pockets of both demand-driven inflation as well as inflation driven by supply-shortages in the economy, however the situation in Australia appears to be lagging other developed economies, like the US. I believe a sustainable level of inflation is healthy for the economy when it is coupled with wage inflation. Macro-policy settings have been appropriate given the economic backdrop induced by Covid-19, but the real test of their success will be how they evolve over the next 12-24 months.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Staying close to our customers and delivering what they want is how we set ourselves apart and deliver through the cycle. During Covid-19, we kept listening to our customers through our Westfield iQ platform. We also launched Westfield Direct, our aggregated click and collect platform and expanded our Westfield Plus membership program, which has more than 2 million members. We’ve balanced the ongoing health and safety protocols and operational needs with our long-term strategy to create value.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Enhanced disclosure on our target and pathway to achieve net zero emissions by 2030.

 

Accelerating engagement with business partners on renewable energy procurement and helping them achieve their environmental objectives.

 

Continued focus on asset energy efficiency initiatives such as LED lighting installation across our portfolio of Westfield Living Centres and energy analytics and building management system enhancements, as well as water and waste initiatives, targeted renewable energy generation and procurement opportunities.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

We think some ‘tough spots’ will remain in areas such as digital but recent government decisions to open up borders will start to alleviate this.

 

All our team have access to flexibility in some way and in 2022 we would expect there will still be a good balance between collaborating in person and working remotely from home. We don’t have a ‘one size fits all’ approach to flex because everyone’s needs are different, and our policy provides guidance on how we can make it work. We are seeing high occupancy rates in our Sydney Support Office which demonstrates people want to be back interacting and collaborating with each other in person as well as using the tech tools available to them. We think we’re at our best when we’re together.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

As a whole, Australia has done really well this year. If I had to hand out some medals, I’d give a gold to business because business has led through the year and kept its people, customers and communities safe whilst providing business continuity. This is reflected in the strong rebound and performance of the economy including a GDP contraction of 1.9 per cent for the September quarter which was considerably less than the -2.7 per cent predicted.

 

I’d give a silver to the states – especially NSW which has been consistent in its proportionate response and driving our strong vaccination rate which is nearing the 95% trigger for easing of further restrictions – and a bronze to the federal government for steering the national vaccination roll-out with 88% of the population over 16 years of age now double vaccinated.

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Ian Narev, Seek

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

1. Covid-19 itself - As we have seen in recent days, the ongoing development of the pandemic remains unpredictable, and we need to be prepared for more twists and turns.
2. Availability of people - we have all-time record job ads and candidate activity on our sites across the world, but there are significant shortages in key areas, especially hospitality, retail and healthcare.
3. Speed of innovation - we have strong global competitors. We can’t be successful by outspending. We need to be better at making choices and executing.

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

That is a job for the experts. Our job as business people is to focus on the long term and prepare for a range of eventualities.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Disruption and innovation have been hallmarks of Seek’s competitive environment for all of our 24 years. Despite the strength of our market positions, we are the small player competing against global tech behemoths. So we need to be the best in the market at anticipating customer needs and reacting quickly. Covid-19 didn’t really change that.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Achieve carbon neutrality for all scope emissions for our ANZ business from this year; do the same for our full global footprint from next year; and commit to net zero across all scope emissions by 2030.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

Flexible working has been part of Seek’s culture for years. Every day, virtual teams collaborate across ANZ, Asia and Latin America. As we continue to live with Covid-19, we will continue to give our teams a lot of discretion as to how they work. Like other tech companies, we are competing hard for scarce talent.

 

Luckily for us we have the opportunity to employ talented people in many different places.

 

Throughout the depths of Covid-19 - and at one point our revenue was down more than 60 per cent - we stayed true to our commitment to look after people. That was not only the right thing to do, it has also strengthened loyalty.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

Governments and many businesses were faced with very difficult choices. As is always the case, with the benefit of hindsight we could probably all have done some things better.

 

But anyone can be a critic, especially when they have no accountability for suggesting and implementing practical alternatives to the matters they are criticising. By and large our leaders worked hard, did their best and made many good and important decisions.

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Graham Kerr, South32

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

We see Covid-19 transmission as a risk as we reopen to the world. Vaccination rates in some countries are still quite low and we have seen the development and spread of new strains of the virus which brings uncertainty.

 

Supply chain disruptions are a challenge for us and global political stability is another key factor. The relationship between Australia and China, and how that progresses, is going to be significant.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

For us, the base case is that inflationary cost pressures are expected to be transitory – but prolonged supply disruptions may feed into structurally higher inflation. We continue to focus on cost and volume efficiencies to offset cyclical inflation in labour, price-linked royalties and raw materials.

 

Australia is in a fortunate position because the economy has been managed well during the COVID-19 pandemic to date.

 

How has disruption/innovation through COVID-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Technology has played a key role in our response to the pandemic, keeping our people safe through the use of thermal cameras, pre-screening tools and contact tracing.

 

When we think about how we apply technology and innovation, it’s always through the lens of how it can help us to be safer, cleaner and more productive.

 

Video and conference calling software has really helped us to find different ways of working through the pandemic and enabled us all to stay connected. Despite the physical remoteness experienced during COVID-19, we’ve still been able to connect – that’s been very important.

 

Looking forward, we see technology helping us to continue to drive change and value in our business. We expect technology to play a key role in future mine design, making our work cleaner, even safer and more productive. Technology will also be very important in helping us decarbonise our business.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

We support the objectives of the Paris Agreement and we are committed to achieving net zero operational carbon emissions by 2050.

 

We have set a medium-term target to halve our operational emissions by 2035.

 

Our approach to climate change is aligned with our purpose, integrated with our strategy and is focused on two key objectives – decarbonising our existing business and reshaping our portfolio for a low-carbon future by increasing our exposure to base metals. We will deliver this through decarbonising our existing operations, securing green energy, designing our growth projects to be carbon neutral and supporting the development of low-carbon technology.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

We think relaxed border restrictions will have a positive impact on the labour market. It’s important for our people to be able to move around the world for work and to see their families when it is safe and appropriate to do so.

In a traditionally male-dominated industry like mining, the challenge for us is to ensure we are accessing the full talent pool. A big part of that is continually looking at the roles we offer and asking ourselves if we can redesign the work to make it more accessible.

 

In terms of flexible work, Covid-19 has shown us that there simply isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach – it’s about finding that balance of what works for each individual, their role, and the business.

 

Bringing people together in our offices creates opportunities for growth, learning and collaboration and of course that sense of connectedness is important for our people. But Covid-19 has shown us we can achieve great outcomes remotely too. So, it’s got to be a balance.

 

How would you rate business, dtate and federal government performance this year?

 

Overall, I think business and governments have done a good job managing the challenges and impacts from Covid-19.

 

The challenge in Western Australia, where we have our headquarters, is how do we manage the transition and integration not only back into the nation but into the global economy, in a safe way?

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Matt Bekier, Star Entertainment

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Staff shortages are a significant concern, especially in the hospitality area. The impact on restaurants is a case in point. Despite strong demand, the ability to operate at full capacity has been curtailed by a lack of available servers and chefs. Across the group we have more than 300 open roles that are food, beverage or culinary related. The return of skilled labour and international students will help overcome an issue that has placed a hand

brake on the sector’s attempts to capitalise on momentum being created by easing restrictions.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

The Star has a $4bn development pipeline in progress across Brisbane and Gold Coast.

 

Impact on construction expenses in an environment of rising inflation will be a potential issue we will monitor closely. However, we have de-risked our flagship development at Queen’s Wharf Brisbane with around 90 per cent of total project costs now under lump sum terms.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

The onset of Covid-19 and the shutdowns forced on Australian land-based casinos drove a massive increase in demand for illegal offshore online casinos.

 

A lack of protection around these unregulated sites, including an absence of responsible gambling programs or a danger of not being able to withdraw winnings, creates significant risk for Australian consumers. In terms of innovation, Covid-19 drove acceptance and understanding of QR codes with many people more digitally savvy than they may have been previously.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

We have announced a net zero carbon emission target of 2030 for our wholly owned and operated assets and released our pathway to achieve this. The Star has set interim targets of a 30 per cent reduction for both carbon emissions and water intensity by 2023. We have adopted the TCFD framework and release our Climate-related Disclosures Report annually on how we are managing our physical and transition climate change risks. We conduct physical climate change risk assessments every two years across our managed portfolio.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The Star has long offered flexible working arrangements to corporate and property team members. These include the opportunity to apply to work from home when employees can fulfill their roles outside the office or property environment. Not surprisingly, we have seen an uplift in FWA requests over the past couple of months. In terms of job market challenges, we offer training for our non-skilled workforce, but creating greater awareness around “hospitality as a career” is a story we want to tell.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

Clearly it has been a challenging 12 months. But when governments find that sound balance between protecting people’s health and keeping the economy ticking over, it is always appreciated.

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Tarun Gupta, Stockland

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Skills shortages: the effects of the two year pause in migration and subsequent skills shortages are causing many businesses – particularly small businesses which are the engine of our economy – significant skills shortages and cost increases which is becoming a barrier for growth. For knowledge workers, acceleration in the opening of the global economy means businesses are going to have to do more to keep their people engaged and retain talent.

 

We are continuing to see new Covid-19 variants like omicron create continuing uncertainty. While it is pleasing to see our high vaccination rates, we will need to focus on booster shots and vaccinating our young in 2022 and making sure the nation operates consistently together as state border closures and lockdown measures continue to impact the Australian economy.

 

Global supply chains remain impacted in many areas and as the global economy recovers further in 2022, the stronger growth in demand for goods and services will continue to put pressure on prices and inflation in several areas. The quantum and the rate of easing of some of these transitory inflationary factors will continue to impact growth and sentiment in 2022.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

Inflation in Australia is more constrained than some other parts of the developed world. We are seeing inflation in areas impacted by global supply chains or high demand like steel and timber and while overall wages growth is moderate, we are seeing price growth for trades impacted by skills shortages, due to low immigration.

 

We believe that the nation’s macro policy settings are appropriate and we welcome the recently announced further increase in net overseas migration and international students, as that will not only support our longer-term growth with higher consumption, but also ease some of the skills shortages.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

The pandemic fast-tracked our use of end-to-end digital innovation to better engage with our customers throughout the residential buying cycle. There is enormous opportunity in this space – in FY21 we completed almost $1 billion of end-to-end residential sales virtually, which is something we could not have anticipated two years ago.

 

We plan to take the lead in digitally-enabled customer experience and continue to focus on data intelligence, customer insights and solutions, and innovative, sustainable building design through increased investment in data and technical capability.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Earlier this year we brought forward our net zero carbon target by two years to 2028, and applied the target across our whole portfolio. Environmental sustainability is at the heart of everything we do and we’ll invest in new innovations to support achieving our target, as well as continuing the successful rollout of renewable energy and electrification across our portfolio.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The jobs market will remain tight and we anticipate further decline in the unemployment rate. Talent attraction and retention is going to be a critical focus area for businesses in 2022. We will be focused on consolidating our strong employment brand; we’ve had great success in the market this year attracting talent and engaging our existing team to support our new strategy, and this will remain a priority in the new year.

 

We will resume our ‘Hub & Home’ flexible approach to office work in the new year, where each team agrees a rhythm of in-office days for collaboration, innovation, team building and co-creation. Usually our teams aim for approximately three days in the office and the other days working flexibly from home.

 

How would you rate business, State and Federal Government performance this year?

 

Overall, Australia has managed the impacts of the pandemic well. While it’s been a difficult period for many Australians, the measures taken by governments over the past two years to help keep people safe until we reached the required levels of vaccination, and the economic support provided, mean we are now well positioned for recovery and growth.

 

But it’s time to welcome people back to Australia and open up our borders and we commend the recent announcements to support the reopening of immigration. We would like to see Governments and National Cabinet supporting the national plan and Australia’s ongoing growth.

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Steve Johnston, Suncorp

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

I believe it is unlikely we will fully exit the pandemic in 2022, so we must focus on living with Covid-19 rather than trying to eliminate it.

 

A key challenge in the next three to five years will continue to be attracting and retaining top talent, particularly in technology fields. Australia must also continue to get ready for a future of more severe and frequent extreme weather.

 

This further strengthens the case for greater investment in mitigation infrastructure such as flood levees, and more government funding for households to make homes more resilient.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

State and federal debt levels are increasing and in my view we need to prioritise comprehensive tax reform. A system where taxes and charges can add more than 40 per cent to the cost of home insurance is unfair for Australians most at risk. Pushing people out of the insurance market simply transfers the cost to the taxpayer. Of course, this isn’t unique to insurance products and needs to be part of broader structural reform.

 

Inflation has picked up almost everywhere, including here in Australia. The combination of ongoing supply disruptions and the faster than expected rebound in demand is producing widespread cost pressures.

 

With ongoing uncertainty we will need to see what impact border re-openings will have on net migration, consumer confidence and spending, and ultimately inflation. I expect ongoing volatility will be a challenge for governments and businesses in 2022..

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

We have committed to not directly invest in, finance or underwrite new thermal coal mining projects or electricity generation, or new oil and gas projects. Suncorp continues to advocate for greater natural hazard resilience and to reduce the impacts of climate change via building codes, land use planning, and infrastructure investment. We will also continue to regularly disclose our climate risks, opportunities and reduce our own environmental footprint.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The competition for talent remains strong and this looks set to continue as employees seek more purposeful and flexible workplaces. Suncorp has already shown strong productivity in a hybrid setting and expect this model will continue for our employees.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

It has been a very challenging year as we’ve all dealt with the pandemic’s unexpected turns. The differing border restrictions being applied by federal, state and territory governments have significantly increased the challenges for businesses operating across multiple jurisdictions. Despite this our economy has been resilient and high vaccination rates put us in a good position to now focus on living with Covid-19.

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Geoff Culbert, Sydney Airport

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Government policy on state and international borders is first, second and third.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

Inevitable when you combine cheap money, supply chain disruption and labour constraints. There will need to be a response on all three.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Aviation has been absolutely smashed and we’re now in a global competition to attract international airlines back to Australia. The $120m aviation attraction fund we are co-investing in with the NSW government will be crucial in making sure Sydney and NSW stay competitive.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

We’ll achieve net zero by 2030 by reducing electricity use, switching to 100 per cent renewable energy, transitioning vehicles to low or no-emission technology, and phasing out fuel-powered equipment like diesel generators.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

Tight, and flexibility is a differentiator in attracting and retaining talent. We’re fully supportive and we place full trust in our teams to make it work for everyone.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

We all deserve credit for ending the year with some of the highest vaccination rates in the world, and that’s our ticket to recovery. Next year, we need to get back to being one country. The fracturing of the federation has been sad to watch, and our national identity has never been more challenged.

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David Attenborough, Tabcorp

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

While consumer spend on entertainment shifted online during Covid-19 there is no doubt that getting together socially is something Australians value. We saw this in the uptick in the performance of our wagering and gaming services businesses when venues could re-open after lockdown restrictions lifted. So, any major wave of infection and the possibility of further lockdowns is a key risk.

 

Like many businesses, we are also dependent to a degree on the recovery in consumer confidence and spending. Any factors that could derail that are a risk.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

We aren’t seeing evidence at this point of the rises in inflation that we have seen in other major economies. It is something we expect the federal government and the Reserve Bank to monitor closely as the global economy rebalances.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Covid-19 has had a mixed impact on our businesses. Our lotteries network of newsagents, fuel and convenience stores largely traded through the lockdowns, while our wagering and gaming services venues either couldn’t trade or operated with extensive restrictions.

 

Our omni-channel approach served us well going into Covid-19. Our digital channel was already making up almost half of our wagering turnover and more than a quarter of lotteries turnover before the pandemic.

 

We have seen huge digital disruption in our sectors for some time now and we have been actively disrupting ourselves through the integration of Tatts and Tabcorp. Covid-19 helped to accelerate some of the macro trends. In the wagering sector, it also exposed our venue partner distribution network which was unduly affected by lockdowns whereas our online only international competitors were able to continue almost uninterrupted.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Our environmental footprint is relatively light compared with other Australian companies.

 

However, that doesn’t diminish our commitment to minimising our environmental impacts, which were formalised this year through an environment and climate change position statement. As part of this we have adopted greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets in line with the United Nation’s Paris Agreement’s global decarbonisation pathway.

 

We continue to challenge ourselves to assess how we can best achieve a 45 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030 from 2019 levels.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The jobs market is very tight with shortages in key areas including technology and risk management.

 

For several years we have put a lot of emphasis on flexible working and being a great place to work. That positioned our group well heading into Covid-19 given the majority of people were already set up to work remotely.

 

We will maintain hybrid working arrangements going forward.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

Notwithstanding the massive toll Covid-19 has had on Australians and our businesses, Australia has performed very well relative to most countries in terms of managing the impacts of the virus.

 

Our globally high level of vaccination has given Australia the best chance of protection against a re-emergence of Covid-19.

 

That’s important from a health perspective, but also from the perspective of safeguarding the economic recovery and ensuring a sustainable return to the way of life we enjoy.

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Christine Holgate, Toll Global Express

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Without a doubt the biggest risk to recovery and growth is a shortage of labour. There is a real, immediate demand for workers, and with no migrants entering Australia, no working holiday visas, coupled with fewer international students, this problem is likely to get worse.

 

As it stands today, Toll Global Express could employ an additional 1000 people, if only we had access to the labour.

 

The second risk is the changes to border restrictions within Australia, and the different and inconsistent rules that cover multiple jurisdictions across the country. This makes it very difficult for a freight and transport business like ours that operates Australia-wide.

 

These two risks outweigh everything else for our business.

 

A third risk is the increase we are seeing in natural disasters across Australia. It is early into the summer season, and we are already seeing flooding in Queensland and NSW that is causing terrible heartache for many people.

 

Natural disasters mean logistics connections between rural and regional communities can become cut-off for prolonged periods, impacting communities both during and after any disaster.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

Inflation is a necessary reality following an extended period with low interest rates. For Global Express, our recovery and returning the company to profit and sustainable growth is made that little bit more challenging in an inflationary environment.

 

Regardless, I am very confident we can lead our people through this transformation and back to a strong, profitable business.

 

We are aiming to safeguard many of our workers from the impacts of high inflation. Recently we worked with the Transport Workers Union to include an inflation clause in our EBA agreement, so that our workers are not disadvantaged as a result of a possible high inflationary period.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Covid-19 has completely transformed the transport and freight sector. People think e-commerce is just for retailers, but many more companies have changed how they trade and use freight companies. During Covid-19, we had to adapt our business to service different parts of the market that we have not traditionally catered for over our 130 year history.

 

The industry has grown exponentialy and as a result has attracted many new competitors.

 

Our industry is becoming more strategically relevant for many organisations. As ecommerce grows as a percentage of their revenue, chief executives need to demonstrate their progress in reducing carbon emissions. Logistics accounts for 17 per cent of the carbon emissions in Australia and if board’s are to secure support from proxy advisers for resolutions or from financial institutions for funding, it is increasingly critical they prove they are using freight and transport more efficiently.

 

Covid-19 has also changed the way we look at long-term planning. For example, we are already thinking about purchasing vehicles now for as far in advance as 2023 and 2024.

 

Given global shortage of stock, many of our decisions have to be brought forward to ensure we don’t get stuck without critical supplies and assets.

 

Overall though – despite various disruptions caused by floods or by lockdowns around the country, we have experienced few freight delays in getting parcels to people on time.

 

Melbourne has been the hardest hit due to their extended lockdown and isolation requirements. We have even onboarded major customers during this period, including Chemist Warehouse who were seeking a reliable delivery partner in the lead up to Christmas.

 

We have also launched our new Express Book and Pay platform, to better serve the needs of anyone (individuals or businesses) looking for an alternative to send parcels quickly and easily.

 

Covid-19 has reminded us all how important our sector is in supporting regional and rural Australia. Global Express is the major logistics provider in many regional communities. We play a very important role in working with major supermarkets and medical supply companies to ensure delivery of essential food and health items to these communities.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

The first and most important way that we are addressing climate change is by reducing our fuel and energy consumption. We are actively talking to our transport, energy and fuel suppliers to help us do that as quickly as possible and in the future, transition to electric vehicles and hydrogen.

 

We are planning to make all of our facilities powered by renewable energy - this will take some time, but we want to ensure that once we are using electric vehicles, we are also using energy to fuel them that comes from renewable sources, preferably from our own sites and our own battery network.

 

Finally, we are attempting to make immediate changes to the fuels that we use, through the use of renewable blended fuels, and a transition to sustainable aviation fuels and renewable fuels for our ships.

 

We are also in the process of signing up to the Australian Packaging Covenant, which would hold us up to highest standards of product stewardship, helping to reduce waste and the environmental impacts of packaging.

 

We are increasing our focus on waste management, as it is critical for our business if we are to reduce our carbon emissions. An example of this includes ensuring we are using recycled products wherever possible and recycling our products where we can, as well. We are working closely with several of our major customers on some of these initiatives, which will really help close the loop for a circular economy.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The jobs market is increasingly stretched – we could employ over 1000 more drivers today if we could find them. This labour shortage in Australia is posing a major risk to our own growth and potentially to the recovery of our country.

 

The significant majority of our employees perform a role which requires them to spend every single day out on the road servicing our customers. As a business of essential workers, our drivers cannot work from home.

 

One of the great things about the changing nature of work caused by Covid-19, is that we can now tap into a much broader talent pool for administration roles, leveraging those people who live remotely, as Covid-19 has taught us that many typical office roles can be performed effectively working from home.

 

Global Express in 2022 is planning to bring a lot of service jobs back home to Australia.

 

Previously the business had offshored a lot of critical customer service roles over the years. However, to support our drive to improve our customer experience, we have pledged to bring these jobs home.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

\Managing a national infrastructure business in a federated nation like Australia is complex, due to multiple layers of policy spanning the various jurisdictions, and oftentimes inconsistent or not harmonised.

 

However, none of us should underestimate how challenging it would have been to be in any part of government in the last two years. All of us may have a view on whether things could have been done differently, but I acknowledge how truly challenging this period has been.

 

I think the combined efforts of the states and federal government in combatting Covid-19 have resulted, on balance, in reasonable outcomes from an economic and public health perspective.

 

Sadly the role of women in society has gone backwards through 2021. There are fewer women in leadership; women have been impacted more badly by stand downs through Covid-19 and concerningly domestic violence rates have increased.

 

My hope is that in 2022, government and businesses work together, to ensure a safer, more equitable and respectful workplace for all employees, including women.

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Tim Ford, Treasury Wine Estates

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Hospitality has really suffered during the pandemic and whilst it’s promising that pubs, restaurants, and bars are now reopening, without the right skills and labour available, many businesses will continue to face an uphill battle to meet the consumer demand.

 

Tourism is vital for our regional areas and we need borders to stay open so travellers can be in confident in booking their next trip, particularly to explore Australia’s incredible wine-making regions.

 

We are also focussing on how we help our team emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic – we can’t expect our people to simply bounce back to normal as we re-open. We are investing the time and effort to make sure our team feels supported during this period so they can bring their whole selves to work and perform at their best.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

Overall, the Australian economy has held up well, supported by strong exports, government spending and low interest rates.

 

From what we’ve seen around the world, inflation is rising, and you would expect that we would start to see something similar here in Australia.

 

We expect there to be a step up in discretionary spending by consumers in the coming year, which will be positive overall.

 

History has shown that after major pandemics, economies often bounce back quickly and consumer confidence jumps – we may yet experience our own 21st century version of the ‘Roaring 20s’.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

A positive to come out of the pandemic has been the shift to eCommerce and digital engagement driven by in-home consumptions and consumers prioritising speed and convenience.

 

Consumers shifted from purchasing wine with their meal in a restaurant to shopping wine online to accompany their home-cooked meals.

 

We’ve accelerated our push into eCommerce and are engaging more with our consumers across digital platforms than ever before.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Our business must be resilient in the face of increasing uncertainty, complexity, and change so we’ve committed to net zero emissions (scope 1 and 2) by 2030.

 

Electricity accounts for approximately 70 per cent of our Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions so we’ve made the commitment to switch 100 per cent of our global business to renewable electricity by 2024.

 

Climatic variability also affects our access to water which we rely on to grow and produce our wines, and so we also have a strong focus on uplifting our approach to water stewardship.

 

Our business strategy includes a global and adaptable supply chain, providing the flexibility we need to source the grapes to make the best wine, in the most sustainable way.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

Our teams have embraced a hybrid work environment and they’re empowered to choose how, when and where they work to get the best out of themselves and for the business.

 

In Melbourne, team members have relished the opportunity to return to the office keen to reconnect with team members in-person as well as visit their favourite restaurants and bars – given the response from our team we believe the office will continue to play an important role in our peoples’ employee experience.

 

There’s been a lot of talk about the ‘Great Resignation’ but I like to think more about the ‘Great Attraction’ and what we can do as a business to show future talent why Treasury Wine Estates really is the best place to work.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

Business, government, and not-for-profit leaders have all stepped up to lead through uncertainty and help steer Australia through some difficult times. It’s easy to criticise from the sidelines but on balance, given the breadth and complexity of the issues we faced, governments have done a good job in my view.

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Anthony Sweetman, UBS Australia

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Materially higher global inflation resulting in a sudden change by global central banks to earlier/more aggressive monetary policy tightening. If the US Fed hikes in 2022 it could pressure the RBA (and other central banks) to normalise policy earlier than their existing guidance. This could raise uncertainty over the growth outlook, and appropriate discount rates, and create market volatility for both asset prices and transaction volumes.

 

The emergence of mutations of Covid-19 could lead to a spike in hospitalisations and/or deaths, that see the re-instatement of lockdowns, both domestically or globally. This would negatively impact the broader economy, but specifically the operating environment of business would be disrupted again

 

A further escalation in trade and/or geo-political tensions, which harm the short and long-term growth prospects of the economy, and potentially could raise sovereign and regulatory risk.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

The Australian macroeconomic environment is recovering from lockdown more strongly than expected, and will likely remain supportive for business.

 

This is underpinned by:

1. unprecedented household and business saving buffers
2. easy monetary conditions and low interest rates
3. more fiscal stimulus expected ahead at the upcoming budgets
4. still strong housing, and public capex pipeline
5. signs that capex intentions are turning up strongly

UBS is above-consensus on inflation in the near-term and sees risks skewed to the upside.

 

Businesses are indicating a greater than normal ability and willingness to pass on higher prices to consumers, given the strong demand environment, and ongoing global supply disruptions raising input costs.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

The actions of central banks and governments globally have created very buoyant conditions for most participants in capital markets and financial services, with technology allowing a relatively smooth transition to remote working for most functions. From a purely financial performance perspective the disruption caused by Covid-19, and the resulting policy reactions, has been positive with the most significant challenges being our people needing to manage often increased workloads with family disruptions, including home schooling for those with school aged children.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

UBS has long been on the path to a more sustainable future, as evidenced by our leading sustainability ratings as well as our strong sustainable finance business performance. UBS has committed to net zero emissions by 2050.

 

By 2025, we are targeting net zero direct (scope 1) and energy indirect (scope 2) emissions by purchasing and producing 100 per cent renewable electricity.

 

We are also committed to working toward offsetting our historical emissions back to the year 2000 based on credible and transparent carbon offsets and investments in nature-based solutions.

 

We are committed to working with clients through the energy transition, assisting them in whatever stage of the ESG journey they may be.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The jobs market is recovering strongly. Effectively closed borders and a strong economy tightened the labour market by keeping labour supply constrained. However, pockets of skills shortages and wage pressure have emerged and are set to intensify over the coming year, which could become a material constraint for business.

 

UBS globally has adopted a hybrid working model which is likely to be the norm for most companies in financial services going forwards. In Australia since the latest lockdowns ended we have found that the vast majority of client facing employees prefer to work from the office given the benefits of interacting with colleagues and clients in person.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

From a short term health and economic activity perspective, all of the state and federal governments can be seen as having been successful over the past couple of years despite the significant differences in policies between some states.

 

It’s likely to be several years though before performance can be objectively assessed as settings normalise and the longer term impacts of these policies become clear.

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Jayne Hrdlicka, Virgin Australia

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Among the important things for the economy as we transition to living with Covid-19 in the community is consumer confidence, simplicity in returning to an open Australia and inflation control.

 

After nearly 2 years of closed international borders and significant periods of closed state borders, consumers need to feel confidence in getting back to the office, crossing state lines with their families and investing in rebuilding business relationships that have been largely managed through Zoom during this period. The more confidence they feel in borders staying open with easily understandable and manageable rules, and the more confidence they feel in getting out into the community, the bigger the benefit to the most hard-hit parts of the economy, like tourism.

 

Keeping the rules, processes and definitions simple and easy to understand and manage is also important. Keeping everything simple and easy for business and consumers to manage is critical.

 

And lastly, managing inflation in a period with significant dysfunction in global and local supply chains and labour markets is very important. The impacts of supply chain imbalances are noticeable across most industries and adds to both business and consumer challenges in planning and budgeting investments with confidence. It will no doubt take the travel and tourism industry 12-24 months to get back to some sense of balance and underlying health, managing these risks helps improve the outlook for our industry and many others.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

Right now, we are focused on rebuilding the industry. We know underlying demand is strong – and have seen it improve in international markets as vaccination rates increased as borders opened. But we also know many customers remain hesitant, so we need to do everything we can to stimulate demand – this will include low pricing to entice customers to travel again.

 

We know we will need to work hard to offset underlying inflation and interest rate increases will no doubt create challenges in consumer confidence and spending, but in the immediate term our number one priority is getting the country travelling again.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

There would be few industries in the world more impacted by Covid-19 than aviation. We have used the time during extended Covid-19 lockdowns to focus on both reducing cost and minimising our cash burn while also continuing to invest in our broader transformation agenda to ensure we don’t lose any momentum. We are confident we are in a really good position competitively, and plan on being a fair but very fierce competitor. We are really clear about who we are and the things that really matter to our guests and we will vigorously compete to ensure we are their first choice for travel.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Virgin Australia has committed to Net Zero by 2050. We all have an obligation to do the very best job we can in protecting the environment and protecting the futures of generations to come. We’re very realistic about the challenges associated with getting to net zero by 2050, but we absolutely intend to be successful.

 

We were the first in Australian aviation to test sustainable aviation fuel and we’re committed to continue to invest in more sustainable fuel sources. But, we have to look at every single lever in the mix of emissions and offsets to try to get as close to Net Zero emissions as early as possible. We’re thinking through operational efficiency, waste, ground activity, supply chain opportunities and offsetting our carbon emissions where that’s practical and feasible to do.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

We want to continue to create an environment that is flexible, while at the same time returning to a strong mix of collaboration and connection that comes from time in the office with colleagues. We are not planning to have a required number of days in the office each week. Instead, leaders are working with our teams on the best approach and ways of working for each team and person, whatever that might be. The vast majority of our traditionally office-based people want to be in the office for the majority of their working time – with the flexibility to work from home when that is personally beneficial for whatever reason.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal Government performance this year?

 

This has been an extraordinarily challenging time for everybody and from our perspective industry and government has worked well together to adapt and adjust to the constantly changing circumstances presented by Covid-19.

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Richard White, WiseTech Global

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

Despite the risks associated with the recent emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, I remain optimistic about the resilience of the Australian economy. We are slowly learning to live with endemic COVID and whilst there are always risks, a fine balance is required between containing hospitalisations and not overreacting in terms of broad based border closures and lockdowns.

 

From WiseTech’s perspective I see opportunity and growth as real potentials, in particular given that the pandemic has accelerated the structural shift to digitalisation and technology solutions.

 

The second risk that I envisage from an Australian economic perspective is geopolitical unrest and the implications that this can have on global trade and Australian exports. 

 

The third risk is that as a nation we miss the opportunity to embrace the technology sector and continue to invest in it as another powerful lever of economic growth. It is important that as a nation we leverage this opportunity by developing and retaining local technology talent.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

We have continued to see a ‘goods-led’ recovery in global trade resulting in tighter capacity, congestion and higher freight rates in global logistics channels.

 

While not directly impacting WiseTech’s cost base, these supply chain disruptions and increased freight rates do impact the wider Australian economy and can act as an inflationary force. I anticipate these challenges will continue in the short term, but there will be some easing as global vaccination levels increase, borders re-open, international passenger flights resume (providing additional belly freight capacity) and shipping lines bring on extra container capacity in the longer term.

 

From WiseTech’s perspective as we have previously indicated we anticipate that the highly competitive war for tech talent will continue to result in inflationary pressure on employee costs.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

As a digital-first company, we have always had the digital skills, expertise and culture to adapt quickly, and to thrive during moments of disruption.

 

The acceleration in the long-term shift to digital transformation initially brought on by Covid-19 lockdowns has continued to gain momentum as a result of the many benefits that digitisation delivers. We are seeing a real urgency among customers to digitise and transform their operations and stay ahead of bottlenecks, labour shortages, competitive processes and customer demand Our CargoWise offering enables our customers (freight forwarders and global logistics providers) to enhance their productivity by identifying and securing efficient use of limited capacity, streamline logistics processes and optimise global route planning by determining the most efficient ways to move freight around the world.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

As a leading software solutions provider, WiseTech is not directly involved in the manufacture or physical transportation of goods, so our environmental footprint is relatively small. That said, we are committed to becoming 100 per cent carbon neutral. As a start, we are currently developing a pathway to net-zero. I personally strongly favour, solar and battery technology as an evolving set of solutions to carbon neutrality. We are working on identifying, selecting and implementing initiatives to reduce our emissions, by replacing our consumption of non-renewables, and building on the work we have already done in optimising the energy efficiency of our data centres, offices, equipment, and logistics industry processes.

 

Recognising that this is a multi-stage, multi-year, technology driven program, we intend as an interim measure to procure high quality carbon offsets in FY22 which will enable us to work towards becoming 100 per cent carbon neutral.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

We are fortunate that as a global business we are able to recruit tech talent from various parts of the world. Over the last three years we have increased the headcount of our CargoWise development teams by 68 per cent through investment in recruitment and integration of talent acquired as part of our strategic acquisitions.

 

Whilst in the short term Australia needs to supplement local employment with international technical talent, via visa programs and immigration, we should also be investing in building our local tech talent pool through longer term training programs and grass roots education in our schools and universities.

 

The tech industry is one of the best and most stable employers in Australia and has growth rates and career opportunities that rival the best of other industries and professions. Giving a technology future to Australians is one of the best employment and economic outcomes we could grant our children and their future.

 

In terms of ‘work from home’, WiseTech has adopted a hybrid working model, which has been embraced by 95 per cent of our global workforce. This model enables our people to work from home for some days a week and come into our offices on other days to collaborate with team members and onboard new staff members. This new way of working is more flexible, productive, and resulting in higher engagement amongst our people who value the choices that this model provides.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

It’s been an incredibly challenging year, but despite that, governments have overall done an excellent job in Australia.

 

We are living in a different world now, and to be fair we cannot shift all responsibility or the requirement to act entirely onto government. We all have a role to play (including business and educators) to help position Australia for a speedy economic recovery post-pandemic. In particular, we should all be focussed on how we can leverage the lessons learnt throughout the pandemic such as the shift to digital and the use of technology to facilitate the way we work, transact, communicate, and how we train our workforce and students for the jobs of the future.

 

We have done incredibly well, despite the drama, now we need to double down and take the advantage of the opportunities that have arisen.

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Meg O'Neill, Woodside

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

 

For Woodside our recent final investment decisions on the Scarborough gas and Pluto LNG Train 2 projects, our proposed merger with BHP Petroleum, our Senegal oil project and the new energy opportunities we are pursuing mean our growth trajectory is very much in our own hands. Our challenge is to build a low cost, lower carbon, profitable, resilient and diversified portfolio.

 

We are aiming to do this by leveraging our world-class Tier 1 portfolio and ensuring we allocate capital to the right opportunities at the right time. Woodside undertakes rigorous market analysis to understand the macro trends impacting our products and model a range of outcomes under different climate scenarios.

 

We assess each opportunity through a disciplined capital allocation framework and based on clear investment criteria, always considering the fit with the emissions reduction targets we have set ourselves and shareholder returns.

 

In terms of the external environment, we see a strong outlook for LNG over the longer term, especially in Asia where it has an important role in helping customer countries achieve their decarbonisation goals while growing their economies. In the short term, the ongoing pandemic will almost certainly continue to throw up surprises, but we see reasons to be confident in the outlook for the Australian and global economies in coming years.

 

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

 

The rapid recovery we are experiencing after last year’s Covid-induced slump in economic activity has seen pressures emerge in relation to global supply chains, generating a global spike in inflation. We expect these pressures to ease over time.

 

At Woodside over the past year we have tackled costs through an operations transformation program and we use a range of methods to protect against cost escalation in our projects, including lump sum contracts where appropriate.

 

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

 

Our industry is used to dealing with price cycles, but the disruptions to global energy markets last year were extreme and affected the sector broadly. Woodside responded by deferring final investment decisions on our Scarborough and Pluto Train 2 projects, which had been targeted for the first half of 2020.

 

But that deferral presented an opportunity to the project teams, allowing them to extract additional value by increasing the offshore gas capacity and optimising the development schedule, enabling us to eventually take FID last month on what is truly a world-class project. It has an internal rate of return of more than 13.5 per cent and will deliver LNG to north Asia at a globally competitive cost of US$5.8 ($8.10) per MMBtu.

 

Scarborough gas contains only around 0.1% carbon dioxide and will be processed through a highly efficient expanded Pluto LNG facility, making it one of the lowest-carbon sources of gas for our customers in Asia.

 

Woodside’s proposed merger with BHP’s petroleum business, which is targeted for completion in the second quarter of 2022, would create a global top ten independent energy company by production. The merged business would have the scale, diversity and cash flow to better compete and thrive through the energy transition.

 

The increased cash flows the proposed merger would deliver would provide flexibility with how we allocate capital in the future and give us greater capacity to invest in new energy opportunities, supporting our targeted $5 billion new energy investment this decade.

 

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

 

Woodside is planning to thrive in a lower-carbon future. We’ve set clear targets to reduce our net emissions by 15 per cent by 2025 and 30 per cent by 2030, with an aspiration to be net zero aspiration by 2050 or sooner. These targets would apply to the merged portfolio, assuming our proposed transaction with BHP is completed.

 

We are investing in the products and services our customers need as they too decarbonise, including natural gas and new forms of energy such as hydrogen and ammonia.

 

We have set ourselves a new target to invest US$5bn in new energy products and lower-carbon services by 2030. This significant investment will position Woodside as an early mover in the new energy market and help support the decarbonisation goals of our customers.

 

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

 

The strength of the current economic recovery has driven a rapid improvement in employment rates. So far, labour force participation is still lagging a little, but hopefully this will improve as the pandemic recedes.

 

While a large proportion of Woodside’s work is conducted offshore or at LNG facilities that require high degrees of structure, we can offer greater flexibility for our office staff.

 

We value the increased collaboration and innovation that flows when teams are able to work together, so the office will remain important, but Woodside allows employees to work with their leaders and teammates to determine what flexibility is right for them, balancing their work and personal commitments.

 

We also know that each person’s situation is different and can change over the course of their career, and we offer part-time and flexible work options to meet those needs.

 

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

Australia and Western Australia, which is home to most of Woodside’s operations, have so far weathered the pandemic remarkably well. After a slow start, the focus by both state and federal governments on the Covid-19 vaccination roll-out over recent months has been commendable and has made a material difference to Australia’s post-pandemic recovery.

 

Woodside has constructive relationships with all levels of government and continues to work collaboratively with them to remove red tape and other barriers to the approval and execution of major investment projects in Australia.

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Steve Vamos, Xero

Markets are strong, borders are opening. What are the three top risks to recovery and growth of your company and Australia?

• Access to talent - we recognise the impacts of the global skills shortage and are taking proactive steps to attract and retain talented people in different locations across the world.
• Data and cyber security to address the challenge of increasing cyber crime is something we continue to monitor and manage carefully.
• In a fast changing and uncertain environment keeping pace with our customers’ and partners’ changing needs is critical. We continue to invest in product development, strategic acquisitions and partnerships to enable us to address their current and future needs.

How do you view inflation and how do you rate the nation’s macro-policy settings?

• Fiscal policy, at both the federal and state level, and monetary policy has played an important role in supporting businesses and the economy during the pandemic.
• This commitment helped businesses, particularly small businesses, over the last two years and has kept people in jobs.
• Looking ahead, we believe small businesses will continue to be a driver of economic recovery and so it is important we continue to support them in the right way to manage challenges and to thrive.

How has disruption/innovation through Covid-19 affected your sector and how can you stay competitive?

• Small businesses bore the brunt of the pandemic, with conditions especially harsh for industries such as the arts, recreation and hospitality. We’ve seen an incredible amount of innovation and agility across the small business sector, with many examples of businesses quickly adapting and creating new revenue streams and ways to serve their customers.
• The past two years have brought home to many people in small businesses the importance of using digital tools to help serve customers and better understand their financial position in real-time using products like Xero.
• We continue to work hard to support our customers by investing in product development, strategic acquisitions and partnerships that enable us to meet their current and future needs.

What three changes are you making to address climate change?

• We are formalising our emissions reduction plans and setting science-based targets. We have work underway in this area and are focused on ensuring our plans are appropriate and sustainable for the long term.
• We are developing an environmental roadmap aligned to the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, or TCFD standard, to address any risks or opportunities in the short, medium and long term.
• We are also exploring ways to support small businesses in adopting more sustainable ways of working through our sustainability education hub.

How do you see the jobs market for 2022 and what are your plans around working from home for employees?

• Flexibility and choice is important when it comes to where and how our people work. We want to enable Xero employees to be productive and work in a way that best suits them and their teams. Providing our employees with the right tools, training and support is key.
• In the past year, we’ve introduced an inclusive leadership course for our people leaders. This covers issues like ‘proximity bias’ and training on how we can best work as teams across remote, office-based and hybrid settings.
• We created ‘Time Zone Mastery Guidelines’ to help our teams better collaborate and deliver work across our global business.

How would you rate business, state and federal government performance this year?

 

For many, 2021 was more challenging than 2020, with pandemic fatigue taking hold and extended lockdowns impacting a greater number of people and businesses.

 

Governments once again found themselves having to strike a balance between managing virus transmission and health outcomes alongside the economy, minimising the impact on businesses, jobs and livelihoods as much as possible. This is not an easy task and there have been many lessons along the way.

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