On the Green for a Good Cause

HITTING THE GREEN FOR A GOOD CAUSE: AMA Projects Raise Funds for OzHelp with Charity Golf Tournament

On Thursday 17 March 2022, AMA Projects hosted its 2021 Charity Golf Tournament, raising over $17,000 for the OzHelp Foundation (OzHelp). OzHelp is a leading provider of health and wellbeing programs for hard-to-reach workers in high-risk industries.

AMA Projects was pleased to host 80 players at the Federal Golf Club in Red Hill, in a four-person Ambrose competition. The event was a welcomed celebration for all attendees after the tournament was postponed in October 2021 due to COVID-19 restrictions.

AMA Projects Director, Andrew Peereboom, said he was excited to be able to host this long-awaited event saying, “It’s great to see so many of our trusted subcontractors and corporate partners get on board to support such an important cause. The work that OzHelp does directly affects all of us as employers and workers in the construction industry.” OzHelp run several valuable programs and initiatives including a 24/7 support line, onsite tradie tune-ups, toolbox talks, planning and advisory services and training focused on health and wellbeing.

OzHelp spokesperson Darren Black says these events are extremely valuable for supporting OzHelp’s ongoing initiatives commenting, “Initiatives such as the Charity Golf Tournament by AMA Projects and the ongoing partnership, assist OzHelp in providing lifesaving mental health and suicide prevention training, health screens, support, and counselling services to Australia’s most at-risk workers.”

Facts about Construction from OzHelp:

> Construction is one of the largest employer sectors throughout Australia and one of the highest risk sectors for issues related to mental health

> Workers in the construction industry are six times more likely to die by suicide than a workplace accident > In the past 12 months 21% of workers nationally have taken time off work due to mental-ill health.

AMA Projects showed outstanding Corporate Social Responsibility by taking active steps to reduce stigma surrounding mental health and raise money to support valuable wellbeing services. OzHelp believes AMA Projects’ effort can’t be underestimated saying, “We would like to extend a big thank you to the AMA Projects team, sponsors, and participants of the Charity Golf Tournament. In an industry where mental health can be highly stigmatised, it is great to see so many people passionately supporting our cause.”

The charity partnership allows OzHelp to get more boots on the ground, right where the resources are needed the most, whilst also raising awareness of the risk of suicide and impact of mental health in the construction industry. AMA Projects has also pledged to promote the benefits of health and wellbeing in its workplace and encourage employees to look out for each other and access support if needed.

Tournament Winners

> 1st Place - Proact Security > 2nd Place - BMAC Window Furnishings > 3rd Place - Australian Smart Group

HOW KINDNESS IS KEY FOR BUSINESS

with Kath Koschel from The Kindness Factory

I think that my job is to demonstrate the strength of kindness and to show that there is a difference between kindness and niceness.

The Kindness Factory is a global not-for-profit organisation that operates with the goal of making kindness commonplace in all areas of life. Kath Koschel founded the Kindness Factory in 2015, and her appreciation for kindness was exemplified by the simple acts of kindness she experienced after she broke her back twice. Kath has gone on to win the Pride of Australia medal in 2016, the Young Australian Medal and the People’s Choice of Australia Award, both in 2017.

We sat down with Kath to find out how to harness kindness in your business to achieve the best results from staff.

Q. HOW DID IT ALL START?

K. It was a culmination of experience, adversity, hurdles and triumph over those hurdles that really made me feel the power of kindness. In a hospital bed recovering from a pretty significant injury I came up with the concept of teaching others to be kind to one another. That all started back in 2015 and it’s now in three countries, soon to be four and it’s all an accidental success.

Q. IN BUSINESS IT CAN BE A DOG-EAT-DOG MENTALITY SO WHERE DOES KINDNESS FIT INTO ALL OF THAT?

K. That’s become almost like this secret mission, to redefine what kindness is. It’s funny I get booked for appearances by these tough, corporate executives and they’re like what are you doing here and I’ll share my story with them and it’s almost like I get adopted into these places.

I think that my job is to demonstrate the strength of kindness and to show that there is a difference between kindness and niceness. It’s important to be nice but it’s more important to be kind. So, kindness means having a tough conversation with someone in a situation where you know it might hurt their feelings, but you know that it’s the best thing for them. Niceness would to be just to ignore the issue and just say everything’s okay and you’re going really well, meanwhile kindness is about having the integrity and the strength to have a conversation with them and deliver it in a kind way but knowing that’s the best thing for that individual and in leadership and the corporate world that’s how I would differentiate the two. I think emotional intelligence has become vitally important in the workplace because we’ve become so burnt out, overstimulated and overworked.

Throughout COVID I was doing a lot of research about the top ten employability traits and in 2019 python coding and techy things took pride of place but in 2021 kindness and compassion made the top 10. 10 years ago I don’t think these qualities would have been in the top 100 and I think as we’ve evolved technologically we’ve forgotten about the most important things we can be as individuals which is kind and to show compassion and empathy.

Q. IS THERE A ROLE FOR EVERYONE TO PLAY IN AN ORGANISATION IN TERMS OF ACTS OF KINDNESS?

K. Absolutely, no act of kindness is ever wasted. The crane operator smiling at the person who walks past them or vice versa and the CEO who says g’day to their employees, I don’t think kindness needs to be grand gestures all the time either, sometimes it’s the smallest things that make the biggest difference. We’ve had 3.6 million people reach out to share an act of kindness. We’ve found that it’s sometimes the smallest action that has gone on to save a life. If we consider how quickly a virus spreads — starting with one person who infects another, who infects another two and so on, it’s not long before it spreads throughout the company. Well, kindness works in the same way, particularly when spreading from the top. When kindness becomes part of our daily lives, toxic cultures are squashed by default, and you don’t even have to talk about it.

From a scientific standpoint when we’re in a kind state, giving or receiving kindness by a compliment or smile or whatever it is, we’re in the most oxytocin state that we can be so there’s nothing that can put you in a more feel good mood than what kindness will.

KATH KOSCHEL SPEAKING AT THE MBA WOMEN IN CONSTRUCTION INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY LUNCHEON

WHERE ARE THEY NOW:

Tom Argaet

FROM TWO-TIME APPRENTICE AWARD WINNER TO DIRECTOR OF PICHELMANN CUSTOM BUILDING SERVICES Tom Argaet, a two-time MBA Award winning Apprentice, commenced his apprenticeship with Pichelmann Custom Building Services and his carpentry training with MBA Group Training in 2011. Tom started his own company ‘On Targaet Building’ at the age of 21 and following four years of owning his own business he returned to Pichelmann Custom Building Services, this time as a Director of the company.

It was evident from a young age that Tom would pursue a career in the construction industry, his father was a stonemason who frequently worked on construction sites. At school he enjoyed Wood Technology where he saw ideas come to life with his finished projects.

Tom spent four years as a business owner while continuing to work with Pichelmann Custom Building Services as a Carpenter. “When the opportunity arose to become a

Director of the company the decision was a no brainer”, Tom acknowledges and commends the culture that Pichelmann Custom Building Services provides. He describes working for them as “a big family with a positive work environment, you have each other’s back and the work is not rushed completing quality projects to a high standard”.

Numerous homes that Tom has project managed with Pichelmann have been winners and finalists in the Master Builders and Asset Construction Hire Excellence Awards. One particularly memorable winning project for Tom was the Renovation/ Extension $450,000 - $1million project, which went on to be a finalist in the MBA National Building Excellence Awards.

Tom looks back fondly on his enriching experience with MBA Group Training saying, “The training provided by the MBA is superior to any other training facility and has an incredible culture”. Not only did MBA Group Training provide quality training from industry current trainers, it also provided Tom with people skills that enabled him to form fantastic working relationships within the Canberra construction industry.

The next steps for Tom in his career are to continue growing Pichelmann Custom Building Services, with a strong emphasis on maintaining client relationships. Their company ethos is that a job is not complete once the house is built. They strive to continue working with their clients to maintain the quality of their homes.

Tom’s biggest advice for an up-and-coming apprentice in the construction industry is to take time to create positive working relationships with your fellow apprentices and co-workers. Tom believes if you put in the time and effort to foster great relationships, “when push comes to shove you will always have people you can rely on,” Tom said.