Be genuine, bring your best and put people first!
They’re the values that we all live by at Queensland Country Bank. But what does this mean, you ask?
Well for us, it means helping people live better lives through better finances and we apply these three values into all of our actions toward that goal.
One such action is the development of our people so that they are skilled with the right tools to help our Members.
Here, we take a look at one team members development journey with Queensland Country.
Will Brown
Lender, Rockhampton
It was almost two years ago that Will joined Queensland Country as a Personal Banking Consultant in our Canelands branch located in Mackay.
Being open to change and development, in this short time Will firstly took the opportunity to improve his skills and knowledge in the banking industry by learning from the people around him, like his peers in the Mackay team and leaders such as Bill Paton. Most recently Will accepted his new role as Lender at our new Rockhampton branch, where he will continue to use his new skills to support our Members with their lending needs.
Will describes his new role as “…a lot of reading and ensuring I am across policy” but reassures us that he is surrounded by a volume of Queensland Country team members to support him.
“Bill has been an awesome mentor and so has Robyn Brown and Kristy Nielsen. They’re always there to give me advice, guidance and the confidence to ‘trust my gut’.
“If I could give any advice to anyone considering a career in lending, it would be – don’t be scared. At Queensland Country you’ll have a great supportive culture to learn in.”
With ambitious goals for career development and his willingness to learn and grow, the next twelve months will surely be exciting.
“As a Lender at our new Rockhampton branch, I have a journey of learning ahead of me that I’m looking forward to. Over the next 12 months, I’ll be focussing on expanding my lender skills and product knowledge across our home loans and small business products.
“Another focus for me, which I’m particularly excited about is focusing on strengthening my leadership skills – taking on some added responsibilities and learning from other leaders in the organisation through mentorships.”
At Queensland Country we’re proud to see our people like Will gaining more knowledge to bring their best when it comes to supporting our Members.
Whilst taking on his new role, Will has also been working to complete his Diploma of Financial Planning.
“I’ve chosen to do this so I can broaden my knowledge in this area. Already, I have noticed how the information I have learnt could be useful in conversations with our Members, not to mention elsewhere”.
In addition to supporting staff with external training and development opportunities including university sponsorship and study leave, we also encourage our staff to expand their knowledge through our internal course library. The topics available vary from accounting and finance to public speaking, creative writing and compliance.
“As part of my learning pathway I have completed a range of training with our in-house resources, as well as through external providers organised by Queensland Country.
“I was also given the opportunity to put some of my skills on display by providing systems training to our new team in Rockhampton.
“I jumped at the chance to not only be part of a new team, but to be part of the Rocky community. My favorite thing about the whole experience was working with and getting to know the new Rocky team. Seeing how driven and passionate they are about their roles is admirable.
“I was a little hesitant to go along and teach at first, because I was worried I might not be able to answer their questions or be experienced enough to take on any enquiries from Members. But I surprised myself with what I actually know and my ability to take on new challenges. The whole experience has really solidified what I have been learning from Bill, Robyn and Kristy in terms of lending.”
At Queensland Country Will’s story is a great reminder of how investing in our people can benefit many, from our staff, to our Members and communities that we live in.
Will’s story is just one of many we’ll be sharing with you in order to give you an insight into what it’s like to work with us. Visit our about us and careers section to find more.