Media release

iiNet loves homework

18 November 2013:  iiNet staff love their homework, but customers are the ones experiencing the real benefits of the company’s award-winning work from home program.

As a partner of National Telework Week, iiNet is celebrating the success of its work from home program and helping raising awareness of the benefits of telework as part of its commitment to leadership in customer service and embracing innovation.

iiNet’s work from home program, which sees more than 10 per cent of staff work from the comfort of their homes, was awarded the Best Home/Remote Agent category in the Global Contact Centre World Awards, on the weekend. iiNet’s work from home program also won Best Home/Remote Agent category in the Contact Centre World Awards, APAC division earlier this year. This is the second year in a row iiNet has won this award.

Mathew Conn, GM Customer Service, said the work from home program also had a very positive impact on customer service delivery, led to increased staff satisfaction and reduced absenteeism.

“Over the five years that the option to work from home has been available, we’ve received consistently positive feedback from our staff saying that they feel more productive and are happy to be saving on commuting time and costs,” Mat said.

Regardless of where they work, delivering exceptional customer service remains a priority for staff, and iiNet’s leadership has been recognised this year with industry awards.

iiNet recently picked up a gold medal at the Customer Service Council, Customer Service Excellence Awards and was names Contact Centre of the Year and Virtual/Multi Contact Centre of the Year at the 2013 Australian Teleservices Association Awards.

Customer service staff working from home are able to work almost exactly as they would from the office - taking customer sales, support and billing enquires They have the flexibility to work any shifts within the call centre’s operating hours and as part of the program can fill in during high call demand periods.

The program has been embraced in all of iiNet’s offices across Australia from staff able to work from home in Wollongong rather than commute an hour to the Sydney CBD to CSRs who work in Mandurah instead of iiNet’s head office in Subiaco.

Staff who choose to work from home are supported with a special Work From Home Pack that includes a first aid kit, iiNet blanket, iiNet mug and their own lolly jar so they don’t miss out on office perks.  They are also able to enjoy the flexibility of choosing to work from home one day a week or every day.

iiNet Customer Service Representative Michael Harrison works from home Monday to Friday. “For me, the best thing about working from home is the extra couple of hours I get each day by not having to travel to and from work. It takes me one minute to walk to the laptop and about five minutes to boot up and be ready. It also saves me money, I was spending about $15 a day on food and transport, factoring in home cooked meals and power usage, I save about $200 per month,” he said.

For further information, please contact:

For further information, please contact:
Tina Liptai or Anthony Fisk
Communications - iiNet Group
Ph: +61 8 9214 2210

About iiNet 

 iiNet is Australia’s second largest DSL Internet Service Provider and the leading challenger in the telecommunications market. Publicly listed on the ASX 200, our company is now valued at approximately $1 billion. We employ more than 2000 inquisitive staff across three countries - 80 per cent of whom are employed to directly service  our 900,000 customers. We maintain our own super-fast broadband network and support over 1.7 million broadband, telephony and Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) services nationwide.

We’re committed to making it simple for all Australians to connect across both our own network and on the NBN. Our vision is to lead the market with products that harness the potential of the Internet and then differentiate with award-winning customer service.

A lot has changed since our CEO founded iiNet in a suburban garage back in 1993 and the broadband landscape continues to evolve. What hasn’t changed is our passion for the transformative benefits of the Internet and our commitment to helping Australians connect better