Heritage Bank

Today is Wear it Purple Day, a date on our Inclusion Calendar that we have proudly supported for many years. We strongly believe in Wear it Purple's mission to create safe, empowering, and inclusive environments for rainbow young people, which is why we have lined up our August Positive Impact Day fundraiser to raise funds for the Wear it Purple Foundation.    As part of our Include Program and our long-term commitment to LGBTQIA inclusion, People First Bank employees around the country now have the option to proudly wear ally badges all year-round as a visible display of allyship and a signal of acceptance and safety for our LGBTQIA people, members and community. #WearitPurpleDay #LGBTQIA

We recently hosted another insightful session of "The Couch," our panel discussion series created by our people, for our people. This session, led by Sharma Haller, Area Branch Manager, and Jodie Fry, Program Director of IMO Strategy Delivery, featured valuable perspectives from Steve Laidlaw, CEO, Carolyn Lovi, Head of Service Management and Susan Rohde, Head of Operations Delivery and Sharma Haller herself.   The discussion centred on overcoming challenges in both professional and personal lives, with a strong emphasis on resilience, hard work, and perseverance. Our team had the opportunity to engage with these leaders, asking questions and drawing inspiration from their lived experience. A common theme across all the stories was the acceptance of past experiences and the unwavering attitude that drives success.   We hope everyone left feeling empowered by the shared stories and motivated to push their own boundaries.  

The People First Bank Photographic Awards are now open for entries! Originally known as the Heritage Bank Photographic Awards, the newly named People First Bank Photographic Awards are open to professional and amateur photographers. The People First Bank Photographic Awards, established by Heritage Bank in 1988, aims to encourage and celebrate the art of Australian photography. We understand our responsibility to assist the communities we serve grow and prosper, not just economically but culturally and socially as well. These awards continue to help foster creativity in the photographic arts. Learn more and enter here >> https://lnkd.in/gn6huUBS Know someone with a passion for photography?Tag them in the comments below!

We are thrilled to announce our latest milestone, the first of our rebranded branches at 50 Flinders Street, Adelaide. Our fresh new look showcases the exciting People First Bank brand and our dedication to improving the member experience. CEO Steve Laidlaw shared, “Moving to a single new name was a commitment we made as part of our merger and we’re very excited to now be launching our new brand firmly into the Australian banking market.” The new People First Bank branches will be rolled out across the country over the next 18 months, starting with our People’s Choice branches and then moving on to our Heritage Bank branches. We look forward to sharing our journey over the next couple of months.

At People First Bank, our values guide how we show up for one another and our commitment to always to do the right thing. This Pride Month, we're focusing on the power of allyship and what it means to be an LGBTQIA Ally. Allies uplift others, educate themselves, and champion progress by supporting and amplifying underrepresented voices in the workplace. We spoke with Wayne Atkinson, Head of Member Experience, Retail, and Ann-Maree Givney, Senior Member Experience Officer, about the importance of LGBTQIA allyship, what it means to be an ally, and how they support the community. We are committed to building and maintaining our inclusive culture where every individual has the opportunity to contribute and thrive.

The city of Toowoomba’s skyline has a fresh new look with "People First Bank" signs now adorning our Ruthven Street head office that’s been home to Heritage Bank since 1983. We’re thrilled to have launched our new People First Bank name and brand into the Australian marketplace, and it’s now showing loud and proud on our rooftop in Toowoomba. We’re proud of our Heritage legacy and excited about our future under the People First Bank banner, creating a compelling national alternative to the big banks. Despite the new corporate name, we still continue to trade under our existing retail brands—Heritage Bank and People’s Choice—during the merger integration process. For our Toowoomba members, daily banking remains unchanged, with branches still branded as Heritage Bank for now. Stay tuned as we continue on our exciting journey, with the Adelaide office to follow at a later date.

We have some exciting news today, in line with our announcements at the time of our merger last year. Steve Laidlaw, our Deputy CEO, will succeed Peter Lock as CEO of People First Bank on 1 July. Steve was previously CEO of People's Choice Credit Union before our merger, so is perfectly placed to lead the bank into our bright future. Peter will retire from People First Bank on 31 August, after nearly nine years as CEO, initially with Heritage Bank. He will leave with the bank in fantastic shape, with deposit and lending growth that is outperforming the market, high customer satisfaction, and a clear plan for the future. We’ve gone from strength to strength under his leadership to create the strong, national customer-owned banking alternative Australia needs. We can also announce changes at Board level. Deputy Chairman Kerry Betros and Director Georgina Williams will retire at this year’s AGM on 14 November. Kerry’s name is synonymous with our organisation, after serving as a Director since 1991, including 11 years as Chairman of Heritage Bank. His commitment to championing the interests of our members has been evident throughout that period. Georgina has been a Board member since 2021 and has also played a valuable role in the company’s success. Thanks Peter, Kerry and Georgina for your service, and welcome to Steve as our new CEO. 

We are thrilled to announce that our foundation is changing its name to reflect our new brand and will now be known as the People First Bank Foundation. The People First Bank Foundation was created to become a force for good in Australia’s philanthropic community. With our new name, our goal is to build on our bank’s legacy of exceptional community support by providing grants and assistance to deserving charitable organisations.    Learn more about the Foundation and discover the incredible community support we offer through grants and assistance to deserving charities >> https://lnkd.in/gDPeM6en