Great Team Work Environment. Meet Our People
Kelly Griffin, Employment Konektions Development Manager
Q. Describe your career with Konekt
A. I commenced in June 2007 as an EKC with the Sydney Office and it has been a challenging role every day since! I have been apart of some exciting pilots and seen many changes to the EK Service line which have improved performance and efficiency. I have now moved into a Senior EKC role and have been involved with the training of new consultants around the country and mentoring duties to assist with development. I am still at the Sydney office and am very lucky to be working with such a hardworking and dedicated team!
Q. Describe the type of work you do and the projects you work on
A. I assist clients who are unable to return to their pre-injury roles, to locate and sustain new employment. I try to provide as much support and encouragement to clients as they need, as looking for a new occupation is often a difficult time for them. I conduct cold calling to employers to organize work trials and offer employer incentives, as well as job seeking with the clients and running workshops on interview skills, motivation and goal setting. I have been involved in the EAS Pilot Program which saw many tail claims referred to Konekt for job seeking. This has been one of the most challenging projects I have worked on over the last 18 months.
Q. Can you tell us what a day in the life of an EKC is like…
A. A day in the life of an EKC is very fast paced and dynamic. I am constantly running from the job seeking room to talk with employers, insurers and doctors, then out of the office canvassing with clients to local employers, then back to the job seeking room for one-on-ones with EAS clients. I am very lucky to work with such a supportive team in Sydney and there is a lot of debriefing and case reviews on clients within the team (usually with chocolate!). As a Senior EKC, I am engaged in mentoring and training new EKC’s throughout Australia. I really enjoy this aspect of my role as I can see what’s happening in the EK service line throughout Australia and assist with the development of new EKC’s.
Q. What has been the most interesting project you have worked on and why?
A. The most interesting project I have worked on has been the EAS Pilot Program with CGU. I have been involved in this from the beginning, presenting our ideas to CGU and being involved in feedback sessions on the progress of the program. I have really enjoyed being apart of an exciting new job seeking program and believe that Konekt can succeed in this pilot to ensure successful continued EK business with CGU. Like any new pilot, there have been some challenges along the way, but this has assisted Konekt in developing stronger business relationships with case managers and improved services.
Q. What would you say to someone who would like to work at Konekt?
A. I would let them know about the great team environment within Konekt and the support and encouragement of not only your Managers, but also peers and all levels senior management. I have made lots of great friends at Konekt and would tell people that the social aspect of the role is also very rewarding and important. There are also many opportunities to be involved in interesting projects and the chance to climb further to senior and leadership roles. I would definitely recommend Konekt as a great place to work!
Q. How would you describe the culture of Konekt?
A. Konekt has a very team orientated culture and this allows consultants to work and achieve great results together. I believe that Konekt provides a supportive, open environment and allows for the development and progression of all Konekt staff.
Q. What don’t we know about you?
A. That while I was a poor struggling uni student, I used to line dance while working as a waitress at LoneStar, and still cringe when I hear country and western music!!!
Gemma Tully, Physiotherapist
Q. Describe your career with Konekt
A. I commenced working with Konekt as a consultant in April, 2008 after four years as a public sector Physiotherapist. I then became a Senior Consultant in April 2009, and then a Team Leader in September 2009.
Q. Describe the type of work you do and the projects you work on
A. My workload is really mixed between consultant work and management activities. I case manage a variety of Return To Work cases for clients such as QBE, Departments of Defence and Education, Telstra, National Australia Bank. I also do a significant amount of project work, mostly manual handling training and occasionally ergonomic training. I have been lucky to conduct manual handling training with heaps of really interesting companies across many sectors e.g. health, mining, construction, commercial. My management tasks are also really interesting, involving employee training and development, management of team KPIs and some involvement in strategic planning of the Perth branch.
Q. Can you tell us what a day in the life of Gemma is like…
A. No day is ever the same! I usually start around 8:15am with the obligatory cup of coffee and email check. Then we often have team meetings or in-services where we cover heaps of topics that help us in our case management. The rest of my day varies a lot depending on my cases. I’d spend approximately 50% of my time out on the road, visiting clients and conducting services such as case conferences with doctors, worksite assessments, workplace visits, training etc. The other 50% of my time is spent back in the office, working on reports, making contacts with all my case stakeholders, training and development activities for the Perth branch and admiring the array of pink Smiggle stationery on my desk. My day usually ends around 5pm, however sometimes earlier if I’ve been efficient!
Q. What has been the most interesting project you have worked on and why?
A. I was involved in analyzing results from a company wide health screen for a large mining company. We screened functional capacity, plus physiological assessments such as BP, cholesterol, blood tests, spirometry and audiometry. It was fascinating to look at the health trends across different ages, genders and occupations and provide a detailed report to the client.
Q. What would you say to someone who would like to work at Konekt?
A. If you want to learn heaps of new skills in the areas of case management of injured/unwell workers, communication, reporting, task analysis and professionalism, then Konekt is for you. If you also like variety and challenges, and also like to work in a team environment, then Konekt is definitely for you!
Q. How would you describe the culture of Konekt?
A. Fantastic! Konekt is honestly one of the most positive, happy and motivating companies I’ve ever worked with. Your efforts and hard work are truly appreciated and recognised, and the team environment is great. Konekt has a youthful, vibrant team who support learning and career development.
Q. What don’t we know about you?
A. I’m a country girl at heart and really enjoy the regional trips to the middle of nowhere! I love Jimmy Barnes, going out for dinner, traveling and reading and pretty much dislike all sports (which is really weird for a physio, I know!).
Kate Monaghan, WA Business Manager
Q. Describe your career with Konekt
A. I commenced work with Konekt as a Consultant in June 2004 in the Perth office. I had worked in the industry for 5 years prior to this in an Injury Management consulting role for a small boutique provider. Following my move to Konekt, I had the opportunity to provide numerous service offerings but focused on my strengths in return to work assistance in both Perth and the south west of Western Australia (which saw me travel and see more of WA). In July 2005 I was promoted to Acting WA State Manager whereby it was a very steep learning curve. My title then changed to WA Business Manager however my responsibilities remained the same. I was lucky to have a few colleagues that provided me with support to make the transition into management. In August 2007 my role changed to focus more on people management and ensuring that my team was providing quality services to our customers. My biggest achievement in this role was growing a customer from approximately 10% of our work to now being our biggest customer in WA by supporting and mentoring staff to provide quality work and great outcomes and working with that customer very closely. In August 2008 my title changed to WA Regional Manager (which is now WA Business Manager) whereby I managed the business as a whole in WA. I have been provided with great opportunities and have never stopped learning in each of my roles at Konekt.
Q. Describe the type of work you do and the projects you work on
A. My role involves managing the WA business as a whole. This involves ensuring quality and business performance of the state, the financials and strategising how to improve our business for our people, customers and shareholders (through growth, service provision, innovative offerings etc). Tasks include quality assurance, measurement of performance by statistics, audits etc, development of customer relationships and people management. Other tasks consist of the development of the Franchise Plan and Budget each year with input from the team.
Q. Can you tell us what a day in the life of Kate Monaghan is like…
A. No two days are the same as I move between daily reporting or analysis tasks to working with the WA management team (GM, PSM, TL, QM, ABM and BDM) in providing training to the WA staff, people management, recruitment (so that we have the best team!), focusing on financial aspects of the business (expenses or revenue targets etc), analysing the marketplace, business development (building relationships with new and existing customers) and forward business planning. However one aspect that always remains the same…. I always return home to two crazy yet adorable beagles!
Q. What has been the most interesting project you have worked on and why?
A. I have been involved with so many projects so this is a hard question to answer. I was chosen to work at an insurer customer completing an analysis on their long term claims and whether return to work assistance or vocational rehabilitation had or could be provided. This was particularly interesting as I worked from their offices for almost 2 days per week and hence learned a different culture, many aspects of their business and of course got to know their people. I have also developed and delivered a pilot with a customer of an innovative service offering when it was new to WA whereby I had success in obtaining the desired outcomes of the pilot. This service is now offered to other customers in WA. I have also written some training packages and delivered internal and external training on a number of different topics (to many to name)! However I must admit that I do love to play with numbers and hence budget development time of year is a great time of year for me (I know I am a bit odd).
Q. What would you say to someone who would like to work at Konekt?
A. Of course you do! Be prepared to have fun and work in a peer supported environment with roles that provide many challenges and allows for great professional and personal growth.
Also no day is the same as the last!
Q. How would you describe the culture of Konekt?
A. The Perth team is an energetic bunch of people who like to have some fun everyday. We all participate in weekly morning teas with lots of treats on offer and also enjoy a catch-up outside of the office on a Friday afternoon. The WA branch consists of team players, who utilise each others skills and knowledge (as we have a multi-disciplinary team) and often rely on one another and their Managers for guidance, support and entertainment (often we end up laughing at one another or ourselves)! Our work ethic is high with people often going the extra mile to provide the best service to our customers or to help a colleague out.
Q. What don’t we know about you?
A. I love to buy shoes, handbags and hats especially from other countries around the world. This coincides with a New Years resolution that I made 11 years ago whereby I promised to travel overseas every calendar year…. which I have accomplished thus far with the trips being anywhere between 2 weeks and 8 weeks each year to an array of countries/continents including New Zealand, Indonesia, China, Italy ~ 8 times, Turkey, Croatia, Canada, Switzerland, Singapore, the Netherlands and North America to name a few)! This also fits in well with my partner as he and I both love to sit back with a nice beverage (usually a wine) and watch the city, town or province go about their day/night.
Ceara Warren, Senior Consultant
Q. Describe your career with Konekt
A. I started with Konekt as a Consultant in June 2007 after finishing my degree in Psychology and am one of two Consultants based in the Adelaide office with a background in Psychology.
Q. Describe the type of work you do and the projects you work on
A. Much of my work revolves around return to work services, undertaking case management of individuals who require assistance to return to work following an injury. I also complete a variety of specific services such as Vocational Assessments, Labour Market Analyses, Initial Workplace Conferences and Early Interventions. I usually have a very varied caseload, ranging from people who are more than ready to get back to work and need assistance with career planning and getting themselves that perfect role, to individuals who have severe psychopathology or physical injuries that greatly limit their ability to undertake any activity.
Q. Can you tell us what a day in the life of Ceara Warren is like?
A. My typical day is quite varied. I can schedule my day any way I want so long as I do whatever needs to be done. I try to schedule most of my meetings in the mornings, which could see me in the office assisting job seekers, meeting with doctors or spending hours driving to regional areas. In the afternoon, I usually try to case note everything I have done, and work on any reports or other documentation that may be due.
Q. What has been the most interesting project you have worked on and why?
A. Every project I have worked on has been interesting for different reasons and everything has its own challenges. The most interesting project I have worked on recently has probably been developing a new assessment to be used with injured workers on WorkCover SA as part of a pilot program. I’m really enjoying it because I have the opportunity to use both my training in psychological assessment and my experience in vocational rehabilitation to develop job goals for injured workers that are realistic.
Q. What would you say to someone who would like to work at Konekt?
A. Do it! If you want a role that has both case management and assessments, and want a very positive and supportive team to work with, you’d love working here. The work provides a great deal of diversity and challenge, not to mention a great opportunity for you to develop professionally. You will have the opportunity to work with injured workers from every walk of life ranging from individuals with non-English speaking backgrounds right through to CEO’s.
Q. How would you describe the culture of Konekt?
A. The culture of Konekt is very relaxed, fun-loving and supportive. It never takes long for new colleagues to get to know the team and learn that we all love a laugh and would do just about anything to help out a workmate! Individual strengths are celebrated and everyone in the office is always happy when others achieve. We all work together as a team and the more experienced consultants are always happy to help out anyone who needs it. We have an active social club in the Adelaide office and have friendly competitions on a regular basis.
Q. What don’t we know about you?
A. I’m probably the geekiest person in my office. I love science fiction and fantasy, spend a lot of time reading psychology blogs for fun, and do art in my spare time. I also have pet rats, much to the disgust of some of my colleagues. Don’t panic though I never bring them to the office!
Research has shown that engaged employees are more productive, profitable, safer, create stronger customer relationships and stay longer with their company than less engaged employees. 
