Telstra is currently Australia’s largest telecoms operator in terms of revenue. In FY 2022 (ending June 2022), the telco had revenues of US$ 15.8 billion while bracing a decline of 4.9% YOY.

Telstra is organised into 6 business segments, viz.,:

• Mobile
• Consumer and Small Business
• Enterprise
• Wholesale
• International
• Infrastructure.

At the end of FY22, Telstra achieved 5G coverage to 80% of the population. Moreover, Telstra connected 1.6 million+ devices to the network and significantly expanded to more than 200+ cities and towns across Australia. In May 2022, Telstra launched their new 5G service, clocking in at 250 Mbps, the fastest in Australia.

Although revenue declined in FY22, Telstra leaps forward by expanding its 5G consumer base and fortifying digital capabilities to deliver the penultimate customer experience.

Drive for CX

We’ve also introduced organisation-wide principles for providing a high care approach to customers in vulnerable circumstances… and we’ve reduced by 35% the number of customers who can’t meet their plan commitments and are ultimately disconnected by ensuring they are on the right plan for their needs and budget

Andrew R Penn, MD and CEO

twimbit conducted a detailed study to identify the top 10 telcos in APAC to ace customer experience, benchmarking them across four pillars: digital experience, service experience, employee experience and brand experience.

Telstra achieved the 9th rank amongst all Asia Pacific telcos to ace CX. The telco equipped its frontline employees with adequate resources and capabilities, and adapted to the pandemic’s challenges to create a superior customer experience. To cement its vision into reality, Telstra trains and guides its employees to achieve this.

Key Initiative

Helping organisations create a digital workplace

Companies worldwide are slowly seeing a return to the office for their teams. Therefore, Telstra engineered the ‘myWorkplace’ application to assist employees in this transition safely and cost-effectively. Employees can now book and customise their utility choices such as desks, car parks or even plan a site visit to the office. The results garnered significant traction, with over 56,000 employees utilising ‘myWorkplace’ to support their transition.

Providing a 24/7 support forum for customers

Crowdsupport, a new and modern customer support forum by Telstra, aims to improve its service and customer experience. It highlights customer questions, support requirements, and recommends appropriate product and service improvements. Besides the support team, other users can respond to the statements or problems on the forum. The telco also gamified Crowdsupport by including account levels with specific nicknames. There are-

• 693,434+ members
• 522,557+ community posts
• 15,916+ solutions for the issues posted on the platform

Empowering frontline workers with customer-focused resources

Telstra deployed numerous initiatives to provide resources to ensure customer and employee safety. Some of the training initiatives included:

1. Customers in vulnerable circumstances
2. Introduction to Indigenous cultural capability

In conjunction with guides, the training teaches employees the “how-to’s” when asking their customers about the affordability of their purchases, avoiding in-debt customers as a result-

• 26,000+ employees completed ‘Customers in vulnerable circumstances’ training
• 24,000+ employees completed “Responsible Business and sales practice 2021′ training
• 35% drop in customers who are unable to meet the plan commitments

Helping seniors develop digital skills

Businesses and individuals pushed themselves to succeed and adapt to the changing world of technology. Yet, senior citizens were affected as a result of this drastic push. Thus, Telstra deployed the ‘Social Seniors’ program to aid them, teaching senior citizens how to use computers, tablets and smartphones. The program is sectioned into 3 segments:

1. Face-to-face training: Sessions are provided in collaboration with the government at 3 locations across Australia.
2. Learn in your language: Introduction to devices, email, social media and the internet in 14 languages.
3. Telstra how-to-guides: Instructions on how to download and use ‘My Telstra app’ and how to pay online.

• 9,247 face-to-face and virtual digital literacy training held in FY21
• $6.64 expected social return for each $1 on investment

How you can match up with/to Telstra

Telstra delivers a jaw-dropping customer experience through employee empowerment, prepping them with the necessary skills, training, and empathy to accommodate and better serve customers affected by the pandemic. Based on the condition of Australia, the telco has established platforms to accommodate their customers’ needs to strengthen their digital and service experience through 5G. In short, Telstra aims to;

• Solve customers’ real problems to build trust
• Implement ethical sales as a business strategy
• Build new opportunities by acknowledging ignored customer segments

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