How this First Nations-led pilot program with Fujitsu and the Queensland Government has opened new inclusive career pathways for the Cherbourg Aboriginal Shire

Understand the context

Many Aboriginal Communities face barriers to digital literacy and education, especially those in remote areas, which in turn can become a barrier for them to participate in much of Australia's economy. It is also common for these towns to have a history of segregation and systemic racism against First Nations people, as was the case in Cherbourg. They were “gathered onto the mission station” (forcibly removed from their lands) in 1901 to be separated from Europeans. The inhabitants were not allowed to speak their own language, resulting in the destruction of their cultural heritage at a rapid scale. They were forcibly hired out for cheap labour, and living conditions were quite poor. It was only in the 1960s that award wages started to be paid, and a Cherbourg Community Council was elected.

Today, the community boasts local businesses, accommodations, attractions and facilities for education, health, and sports. Cherbourg has grown from an inhumane reserve into a proud, self-determined and forward-thinking shire council. It was important to Fujitsu that, while we were investing in the Digital Service Centre and helping to set it up, we were respectful of the trust that Cherbourg residents had placed in us by allowing us to enter their Country and work with their people. The partners involved with the Service Centre spent 9 months building relationships with the local Community leaders before launching the project, and every Fujitsu employee associated with Cherbourg still undergoes cultural competency training.

Don’t go it alone

Cherbourg Aboriginal Shire Council had decided to lead the way for the town to boost its employment rates and economy by working with Deadly Innovation, an initiative of the Queensland Government, to create jobs and economic wealth for First Nations people. Deadly Innovation was unique in its power to turn “no, but”s into “yes, and”s, navigating the local government and political spheres. Cherbourg Aboriginal Shire Council was also instrumental in building trust with all Community members, including future team members. It was the Council and Deadly Innovation who invited Fujitsu to work on the Digital Service Centre. However, as a multinational, foreign-owned ICT and DX (Digital Transformation) service provider, Fujitsu was not a company that most locals had encountered personally before, so this introduction via trusted local organisations was vital. The Service Centre is hosted on TAFE Queensland’s campus, and the employees are simultaneously working towards their Certificate III in Business.

Finally, the Service Centre needed a customer who shared the same vision for reconciliation, equity, and inclusion as Fujitsu did. Australia Post was quickly identified as the ideal customer for whom Fujitsu could subcontract service desk work to the Cherbourg Community. Fujitsu donated equipment, including laptops, keyboards, monitors and headsets, and provided digital literacy, proprietary training, and onboarding, as well as customer-specific training once Australia Post volunteered to be the pilot customer. Each partner brought unique knowledge and motivations to the table, and each was instrumental in bringing success to the Digital Service Centre – without any one of these organisations, it could not have happened.

Prioritise the Community’s needs

Emma-Jade Turaganivalu was among the first cohort of agents to be employed at the Service Centre and is now the manager.

“It’s very exciting to see the opportunities we have for our mob through the Service Centre. There are flexible working schedules, a salary, opportunities to launch a new career and earn accredited qualifications – all without needing to relocate,” said Emma.

This is also reflected in the way the Service Centre runs. Flexible and part-time hours allow employees to continue their commitments to their families and their mob, and while they currently choose to work onsite, work-from-home arrangements will likely be utilised in the future.

Interviews for Service Centre jobs were conducted by the Cherbourg Aboriginal Shire Council itself, reflecting the commercial/Community-ownership model. This was an exciting opportunity for the previously untapped local talent pool. Place-based inclusion models are fundamental when working with First Nations people, given that so many have had to leave their mob to pursue education and employment opportunities in more urban areas. The camaraderie within and between the Community and partners is vital too, and this is more easily built face-to-face than online. Successful applicants were determined by natural attitude and aptitude first, skills and experience second.

There was wrap-around support available from Fujitsu, Council, TAFE Queensland, and the government, as well as the Community itself, and a full-time mentor for the first 12 months of operation funded by the National Indigenous Australians Agency. The Cherbourg Digital Service Centre now has a female manager and supervisor who have shown exemplary leadership skills. The trust and strong relationships that have been built between employees, partners and councillors have been crucial in the success of the Service Centre.

Importantly, the Service Centre’s profits are channelled back into the Community. This gives the employees another reason to be proud of their achievements – they are helping to boost Cherbourg’s education, employment, and economic participation via Digital Transformation. Staff are meeting SLAs at the same, if not a higher, rate than those at other industry call centres, and it is also expected that they will have longer tenure.

While the Cherbourg Digital Service Centre staff are currently providing Australia Post’s password reset service, due to their success, we will soon start training the staff in other service desk areas, with a new cohort of employees expected to be onboarded in 2023.

Key takeaways

Working with regional and remote First Nations Communities requires an understanding of and respect for their ways of living and interacting with the world. For example, community and connection are paramount, so online training alone would not be preferable – there needs to be support on the ground.

Most non-Indigenous companies, particularly large ones, would need to partner with a local organisation (such as a council) to get a credible introduction to the Community, access networks and talent, and avoid distrust. Diversity without inclusion is meaningless – in this case, Cherbourg locals were consulted and heard at every step of the way, rather than made to follow a Fujitsu-led plan.

There may be costs involved that would not be in other geographies, such as digital literacy pre-employment training, or onboarding outlining what to expect from a full-time job in ICT. Cherbourg also needed to have a new satellite dish for high-speed data transfer, but this also benefitted the wider Community who could now access Wi-Fi. Monetary investment in a place-based, fair working model is significant, but benefits for all will follow if the motivation is right.