She was recognised for her commitment to wellbeing and her work leading “Franky”, a digital initiative that sought to address burnout. “Franky” is a digital wellbeing coach which aims to uplift engagement, retention and overall wellbeing.
Mel is a highly skilled and experienced leader who is committed to building and fostering relationships and partnerships with stakeholders. She speaks at industry events, mentors and promotes women networking events aimed at connecting and sharing experiences and building relationships for future collaboration.
She was also celebrated as a champion of diversity in all its forms. In her first year in her role, she increased the number of women in her IT team by 89%. To drive this increase, she modernised recruitment practices by using particular wording in advertising and interviewed using a diverse panel rather than one individual. This attracted a more diverse selection of candidates to the roles. She is the Executive Sponsor of and leads the Rainbow Employee Network Community and Working Group supporting Ventia’s LGBTQIA+ community.
In addition to the accolades of a CIO50 individual, her team was also named winner of the Team of the Year - Talent award.
Led by her personal belief that “People are at the heart of our success” and that by investing in people, business outcomes will naturally follow, she focuses on fostering a culture of collaboration, inclusivity, and integrity.
She appointed a Digital Wellbeing and Innovation Manager to support her drive towards a successful and thriving team culture, and an environment where her team can flourish. She developed an employee program built on the framework of "Fittest Team, Smartest Team, Energised Leadership and Inclusion Inspires Innovation" with the explicit goal to improve employee health, engagement, and retention.
Melanie says, “By combining collaboration, communication, inclusivity and delivering on promises with a focus on well-being – I aim to deliver value across Ventia's diverse sectors alongside my high-performing digital team”
Congratulations to Melanie and her team!