Building Better Communities

Bendigo Bank is often lauded for its "social responsibility" because of our work with communities – almost as if we have tacked a social conscience on to our business strategy. In fact, working for the benefit of our Customers and their communities is our business strategy. It makes sense: you cannot run a successful business in an unsuccessful community. Therefore, if we can help them prosper, then we will have strengthened our markets. And if Bendigo Bank is an essential part of the community fabric, then we are more likely to be supported and to build a sustainable business.

Our approach begins with listening. How do local leaders see their community growing? What are their problems? Can Bendigo Bank help them address these threats and opportunities?

Often we can do so by finding ways to secure banking access. But increasingly we are finding other ways to help, too.

We have been able to build a number of successful business models built on simple methods - encourage local people to commit to buying their services through a company committed to retaining at least some of its earnings in their community. For example, all people buy telephony, but probably from a number of different suppliers. But if enough people choose to buy from a locally owned telephone company, then the dynamics change. That company employs locals and retains local earnings. Competitors have to improve services or reduce prices to compete. Both ways, the community wins. And Bendigo Bank wins, too, because there is more money - and therefore more available banking - in the local community.

Telephony is but one example: other communities will have other priorities.

But we add more than just commercial business sense. Through a program we underwrite, called Lead On, we are also helping communities engage better with their young people. Why? Because it provides youngsters with valuable exposure to the workings of community, and because it broadens the skills and participation communities can bring to issues.

Helping communities to address environmental sustainability is another area of interest to us (for obvious reasons ... you can only run a sustainable business in a sustainable community).

In early 2005, we also launched Bendigo Bank's charitable arm, Community Enterprise Foundation. The Foundation will create a pool of money that will be put to work to build stronger Australian communities through funding programs for families, youth, health, education, the environment, the arts and lots more. We will do this by collecting donations in a tax-effective way from individuals, businesses and governments. Bendigo Bank and the Foundation's own trustee, Sandhurst Trustees, are two companies which have already committed to make ongoing donations. The Foundation boasts a unique structure which enables donors to gift within their own community, with the trustees distributing money in consultation with community leaders.

None of these initiatives are easy, but most communities have the capacity to influence them from within and we can help. In the late 1990s, few people thought local communities could influence banks – now they are running successful branches that are contributing many hundreds of thousands of dollars into building better communities. If it can be done for banking, it can be done in other areas and we are developing ways to make it happen. Our efforts are not just concentrated on communities with Community Bank® branches. Towns and suburbs hosting our proprietary branches also participate in our community business models.

Our initiatives are important for communities, and for us, because:

• They have stamped us as a unique bank, increasing public awareness and support.
• They will help strengthen the markets in which we operate (our communities).
• They will help us build Customer loyalty.
• They have every prospect of being strong businesses in their own right.

People will see more of our developing "Community" branding as our initiatives are rolled out. To date, they have included Community Bank® (the most obvious and advanced); Community Sector Banking, to improve services and return on capital for the not-for-profit sector; telecommunications (successfully tested in our home city with Bendigo Community Telco and in Ipswich through Itel); online commerce, with our Community Exchange e-commerce program now piloting in northern NSW; and the Lead On youth development program. Others will follow as products are refined and piloted and we explain them to Customers.

Initiatives will be launched in partnership with publicly owned community companies. Our wholly owned subsidiary, Community Developments Australia, will make them available to larger communities under the banner Community Enterprise and to our Community Bank® towns and suburbs as Community Solutions. Lead On excepted, all these projects involve the Bank in partnership with specialist service providers who bring products and expertise we do not possess. Our expertise is financial services, and that is our focus, but we bring one more strength critical to the success of these ventures – the trust of communities in our ability to deliver solutions to the mutual benefit of both parties.