AC3 knows a good thing when it sees one. That includes its talent. In the current market, good talent is hard to come by and in some cases even harder to retain. That’s why there’s a continued focus at AC3 on creating a culture that allows talent to find their own unique path and focus on something that they are passionate about. What’s good for the talent is even better for the company.

Finding the right talent with People and Culture Business Partner, Jeremy Goodwin

When it comes to finding the right recipe for a team of talent, it can be a lot of balancing personalities. Jeremy Goodwin views his role as People and Culture Business Partner as one that looks at not just hiring the right people, but creating systems and initiatives that encourage people to stay. For the five year tenure that Goodwin has held at AC3, he has fostered a culture of upskilling and career development. This was made most relevant when he implemented the traditional Grad Program at AC3 that would be heavily focused on targeting talented and passionate individuals and customising career paths for them.

“We started with four original graduates. It was about us finding the right people and personalities and then moulding a career path that would mean that they stay for the long-term,” Goodwin explains of the goals of the program.

And, it worked.

“Not even twelve months in, two of the grads had already been promoted within the company.”

It’s this framework of development that carries through the rest of the business.

“We are really focused on ensuring that people are constantly growing, developing, and also being productive,” Goodwin says.

The other tactic that keeps good talent is that AC3 urges its employees to look at other roles and teams if they’re feeling stale in their current role.

“We always advertise our available roles internally first. It’s something that we do to give any employee the opportunity to consider if the role is right for them.”

Goodwin received the Employee of the Month accolade for his work in developing the Graduate Program which has seen juniors move up the ranks to become an imperative part of AC3.

Expanding on the Graduate Program with Cody Lovett

For Cody Lovett, the Graduate Program was a unique opportunity to get into a developer role, but it was the team and support that encouraged him to create his own career trajectory.

“When I started in the Grad Program I wasn’t immediately thrown into the deep end like you hear from other ones. I was given time to be trained up, shown the ropes. I did training in theory and the tools that I’d be eventually put on. But, I also did some practical things as well,” says Lovett of the program. It’s this focus on nurturing graduates throughout their program and ensuring that they’re receiving ample support that is what AC3 prides itself on.

“Everyone in my team, and not even limited to my team, was patient. They answered all the questions I had,” Lovett continues.

But besides the support given internally in teams, it’s also the buddy system that AC3 has initiated. Unlike the traditional buddy system, AC3 focuses on putting younger staff members together with people that aren’t in their direct team. This encourages newcomers and more senior leaders to see how other teams function, and the work they undertake. It’s within this system that people gain real visibility on all that AC3 does and where both skill sets and passions lie, allowing them to explore and pursue those paths.

Expanding into new teams with Associate Business Analyst, Benjamin Darbyshire

Keeping talent can be hard to do, but with AC3, acknowledging when it might be time for someone to move in another direction has meant that the retention of employees is high. For Benjamin Darbyshire, when he found a position in another adjacent team more suited to his career trajectory, he wasn’t just encouraged to go for it, but was set up with a pathway to make sure his transition was smooth.

“The transition plan lasts for about a month,” Darbyshire explains. “I was in my previous role for about four years, so there was a lot of knowledge there. But we wanted to make a good point that everything had been documented so that when something like this happens we had processes in place.”

The support from his old team leader to his new team was an essential part in making Darbyshire’s sidestep easy.

“AC3 really sees the benefit of hiring from within. The management here is so supportive. In fact, my old boss was the one who nudged me toward the role that I’m in now that is much more suited to who I am!”

Fostering career development with Head of ServiceNow, Dan Marsh

Finding a way to allow his employees to do meaningful work is a way in which Head of ServiceNow Dan Marsh is able to retain a solid team. This all begins with a learning and development plan tailored to each staff member. But, it’s not just the hard skills learned in a traditional facility that Marsh is attracted to, but also the soft skills that are learned along the way.

“Soft skills are a great representation of the culture we foster here at AC3, but besides that they’re also a great way for us to deliver the experience we want to give to our customers,” Marsh says.

The work doesn’t stop with the development plan put in place. Marsh and his team have regular catch-ups to ensure that these plans are up-to-date and relevant. From these, the teams then participate in knowledge sharing sessions. The sessions are a way to trade experiences, give feedback, and share the learnings that people have picked up along the way.

Alongside the knowledge sharing sessions, Marsh is passionate about learning hubs for high performing teams, leaders and potential leaders.

“For me, I’m very much focused on leadership and mindset,” Marsh explains. “These sessions help us to learn from each other on how to handle difficult customers and also how to handle difficult client relationships.”

These are the sessions that work on the aforementioned soft skills.

“On the platforms we work across, there is so much evolving,” says Marsh when speaking about the importance of regularly meeting.

“The staff can be dealing with difficult customers or dealing with new products. They need to build a level of calm and also resilience. This is about providing them with confidence. And we think it really helps.”