Case study | QBE Foundation

“The biggest takeaway from our volunteering experience with The Kids’ Cancer Project in 2020 was the ability to make a contribution to an organisation that utilised the specific skills and expertise that we possessed. We were proud of the ability to complete this work while we worked remotely during a pandemic, and to still have the ability to engage and partner with The Kids’ Cancer Project via Zoom sessions.” 

- Claire Sultana, Manager, Employee Relations & Advisory, QBE and Zoe Rowe, HR Consultant, Employee Relations, QBE

About the QBE Foundation

QBE Insurance Group Limited is a general insurance and reinsurance company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange and headquartered in Sydney. The company employs more than 11,700 people in over 27 countries.

The QBE Foundation works to create positive change by partnering with like-minded charities to build strong, sustainable, and inclusive communities.

The activities of the QBE Foundation support communities through large charity partnerships, local grant programs, and initiatives that empower QBE employees to support causes that are important to them.

Why QBE Foundation chooses to support The Kids’ Cancer Project

The QBE Foundation has supported The Kids’ Cancer Project since 2013, contributing more than $500,000 to childhood cancer research.

In that time, QBE has greatly valued the opportunity to engage staff in fundraising events, team-building programs, and volunteering opportunities to further the work of The Kids’ Cancer Project. 

"The QBE Foundation is proud to have partnered with The Kids’ Cancer Project all these years," says Jason Clarke, Australia Pacific QBE Foundation Co-Chair.

"Not only are they making a significant contribution to finding a cure for childhood cancer, but the team at The Kids’ Cancer Project are consistently inspiring our people by allowing us to see the difference our support is making to sick children and their families,” he says.

Key challenge

During the pandemic, volunteering opportunities dissolved as one fundraising event after another was cancelled. QBE wanted to find other ways their people could contribute to the cause while locked down.

“At QBE, we know our people want to be able to make a difference to the communities we live and work in,” says Mr Clarke. “Supporting people before, during and after tough times is as much a part of our organisational culture as providing insurance cover – which is why finding ways for our employees to support this cause has always been important to us,” says Mr Clarke.

The Kids’ Cancer Project solution

Together, The Kids’ Cancer Project and QBE workshopped ways employees could be engaged while in lockdown and took a deep dive into the incredible professional skills and expertise within QBE’s organisation.

The Kids’ Cancer Project highlighted a need for the charity’s HR policies to be updated and collated into one staff handbook, and while this wouldn’t be volunteering for all staff at scale, it would provide a way for key staff members to make valuable contributions and stay engaged with the company’s purpose.

Enter, QBE’s Claire Sultana, Manager, Employee Relations & Advisory, and Zoe Rowe, HR Consultant, Employee Relations who volunteered many hours of brain power to streamline policies and bring them up to date with current times and methods of working. Specifically, their role was to review the policies, guidelines and processes in The Kids’ Cancer Project Employee Handbook, from an Employee Relations perspective.

Outcome and results of partnership with The Kids' Cancer Project

“I have always had a very traditional outlook to volunteering – it being the giving of time or fundraising,” says Zoe.

“But this experience broadened my horizons and I can now see how the skills and experience I possess can make such a valuable contribution to organisations such as The Kids’ Cancer Project. And this was evidenced in their gratitude for the opportunity to engage with Claire and I both from a personal development perspective as well as skills and expertise.”

The Kids’ Cancer Project is grateful for the professional skilled volunteer work of Claire and Zoe from QBE. The charity would not have been able to update the policies without their invaluable input and assistance. During the uncertainty of the pandemic, the new Employee Handbook provided the assurance of professional communication and the continued smooth running of the organisation to fund vital childhood cancer research.