Lend Lease

Lend Lease is one of the world’s leading fully integrated property solutions providers. Founded in Australia, Lend Lease now operate in around 30 countries and employ 9,000 people worldwide.

Overview

Lend Lease Foundation is an internal business unit set up for the development and benefit of all employees. Its mandate is to provide local and global programmes in three key focus areas: Health & Wellbeing, Personal Development and Involvement in Community. The Springboard programme is the Foundation’s flagship global training programme that brings colleagues together in a facilitated real-world experience.

Since the launch of Springboard in 1998, the Foundation has regularly updated the event to continue to meet current business, economic and social needs and to maximise participant engagement. In 2008, Impact Australia was asked to redesign Springboard to bring real community engagement to the heart of the programme.

Objective

• To redevelop a much-loved global programme and to incorporate health & wellbeing, personal development and community involvement
• To create a sustainable and enriching personal development experience with real activities and consequences
• To support community partners’ sustainable development by building their skills, knowledge and confidence and to leave a positive legacy in a community.

Solution

Springboard participants work with one community partner over the course of a year. Impact source a community partner who will benefit from interaction with the programme and have the capacity to welcome 300 participants throughout the year. Real, sustainable projects (often focusing on self-sufficiency) are designed to fulfill community partner needs whilst being meaningful and engaging for Lend Lease participants. Each project group must handover between programmes to ensure consistency throughout the year and completion on schedule.

Being mindful of the global nature of the participants, Impact Australia included a variety of development session styles to appeal to all cultural backgrounds and learning preferences. Participants benefit from evidence supported strengths based development and time for personal reflection to support health and wellbeing.

Impact help Lend Lease to integrate learning opportunities for participants with sustainable outcomes for the community. We also ensure that every final detail, from venue choice to recycled notebooks, complement Springboard’s sustainable development core.

Result

For the Community Partner:

'We've noticed positive changes in the local people who have participated, as well as a renewed sense of connection in the community and tangible results on all of the projects. The program has also benefited us personally. We've developed confidence and increased our passion for our roles and the Community Centre.'
Jill Bradley (Community Development Officer) and Michelle Philp (Community Counsellor)
Mossman Community Centre

Project results:

• The outcomes of the ongoing projects provide meaningful results for the community partners. Eg local people in need now have access to fresh produce grown in the garden, non-perishable food items donated and collected in a food drive and a hot lunch provided weekly in the newly refitted kitchen.
• Developing people: Community staff enjoy development opportunities by working on diverse projects with skilled people from around the world.
• Building community: Our partner has increased their network of volunteers, their visibility, enthusiasm, energy and the extent to which they can connect to the community as a result of these projects.

For the Community participants:

'This is the best day I have had in 2 years!'

'It’s been the pick-me-up I needed. I’m thinking of starting a TAFE course in Community Services now.'
Community Participant

• Connection: Created an opportunity for Community Participants of diverse backgrounds such as students, locals who are disadvantaged, under-privileged or unemployed, and retired people who want to connect with their local community.
• Competence: Building skills, knowledge, expertise in relation to new and interesting tasks.
• Autonomy: Has helped participants to develop confidence, resilience and the ability to cope with change as a result of meeting and working with new people on meaningful real life projects.
• Community participants have been overwhelmingly grateful and energised by the experience and have in turn inspired Lend Lease Delegates with their commitment.

For the Lend Lease participants:

'I was able to reaffirm my view of my skills and abilities, learn more about how others value my input and be part of a community so different to my own. The personal and public journey was made fun, positive and rewarding by wonderful facilitators who encouraged open and honest communication.'
Lend Lease participant

• Appreciation: Delegates learn to slow down, appreciate the smaller things and cultivate gratitude. They begin to notice and appreciate their own and other people’s strengths.
• Reflection and restoration: By focusing on what’s important to them delegates develop renewed commitment to varying aspects of their lives. Many have referred to the program as being an affirming or life-changing experience.
• Confidence and progress on goal attainment: Delegates reported significant confidence post-program that they would attain the development goal they set for themselves. 96.4% of participants were moderately to completely confident they would make progress in the timeframe they allocated and 70% had already made moderate to maximum progress just 2-3 weeks post programme.
• Relationships: Participants forged strong connections with global colleagues and the community partner as a result of the project work
• There has been an increased commitment and desire to get involved in their own local community, with 82.7% of participants planning to get more involved in their local community post programme, up from 47.8% pre-programme.

For the Lend Lease Foundation:

'The best thing about Springboard is that it delivers benefits on many fronts. It builds confidence and leadership, enhances collaboration and team building skills, helps delegates deal with change, and develops greater self awareness.'
Adrien Meredith
Head of Foundation, Diversity and Inclusion

There has been a successful integration of the Foundation’s three key focus areas, encouraging participation in other Foundation programmes back at respective offices. The following positive and consistent shifts in perceptions about the organisation have been recorded post programme:

Note: Statistics based on survey results collated 2-3 weeks after each programme. Total respondents = 331.