Making Progress in the “Hapi Isles”

My workdays tend to start early, as I like to be on the road by 7AM to avoid the Honiara traffic.

I live in a suburb of Honiara called Tandai, which is located on the other side of the island to our Head Office.

The main road is currently undergoing an upgrade, so if I leave any later than this – a 20-minute journey can sometimes take one and a half hours!

But I’m lucky to work in the Solomon Islands, affectionately known as the “Hapi Isles”. It is an island state situated in the south-west Pacific Ocean, approximately 2,000 kms to the northeast of Australia.

Its land mass of 28,400 km² extends over nearly 1000 islands comprising nine main island groups. The capital, Honiara, is located on Guadalcanal, the largest island historically the scene of some of the biggest battles of WWII.

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Monday

My work week started with an early morning coffee meeting with a customer. We discussed a number of matters relating to both their own plans, as well as an alternate disaster recovery site for ANZ to utilise.

The Solomon Islands are located within the "Ring of Fire", a region known for high levels of seismic and volcanic activity. This means the islands are prone to earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions.

It’s important for ANZ to have suitable plans in the event of a natural disaster, and we regularly practice our Business Continuity Plans with our staff.

In any event, it’s also nice to catch up with clients and hear about what is happening in their business and beyond, so I try to meet with as many customers as I can during the week.

We hold our Executive Committee (EXCO) meeting on Monday mornings. This is where the senior leaders of ANZ Solomon Islands get together via a Teams meeting (the local leaders gather in our Board Room) and we discuss what’s important to them and to the wider business.

It’s always good to hear from each business division and find out what is happening in their space. This forum is an excellent opportunity to ask questions and share our experiences with each other.

The balance of my day comprises of a number of internal meetings and workshops with various stakeholders about subjects ranging from customers, digital banking and regulatory change.

I close the day by meeting with the Deputy Australian High Commissioner and the Economic Counseller.

We discuss the important work that is being undertaken by Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade (DFAT), particularly through the Solomon Islands Infrastructure Program (SIIP) and the ways in which ANZ can support this work. SIIP is Australia’s 10-year partnership with Solomon Islands to create local economic opportunities through a large pipeline of economic infrastructure projects.

Tuesday

Another early coffee meeting this morning with customers to kickstart Tuesday. There’s a number of popular cafes in Honiara and today was Heritage Park Hotel’s café which has a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere.

It was surprisingly quiet, which gave me the chance to have a good conversation with the client about a number of construction projects that have started or are being planned.

It’s always great to find out what is happening around town, and hearing about these projects directly from customers is a wonderful way to start my day.

We have our Pacific Non-Financial Risk and Controls Committee meeting which includes all the Pacific countries that ANZ operates in, together with other key stakeholders. We discussed existing and emerging risks in our geographies and it’s always interesting to hear from the group.

Our head office at ANZ Haus is in the suburb of Ranadi.

It holds the majority of our staff and is an open plan environment. I regularly wander the floor and have discussions with various staff members about their work and life outside of ANZ.

Wednesday

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A bit of a later start today with a customer meeting at 9AM.

This is more of a general catch up, but yes again over a coffee!

It was good to discuss the retail landscape and hear about how busy it has been to start the year. Despite the cost of living struggles that we all see and hear every day, consumer spending continues to grow. This is great news for the local economy.

I have regular one on one meetings with my direct reports and today I met with our Digital Channel Manager.

Our digital channels in the Solomons are an important service that we offer our clients in a developing economy, and it’s crucial that we continue to educate our customers on what’s available.

In the afternoon, I met with the Auditor General for Solomon Islands before calling

into the branch at Hyundai Mall, Honiara Central. We only have the one branch in Solomon Islands as we focus on commercial clients mostly, so this branch is an important part of our Solomons business.

I like to call in regularly, say hello and answer any questions from the staff that they may have. The staff do a fantastic job in serving our customers as the face of the bank, and I enjoy spending time in the branch seeing this good work firsthand.

Thursday

Office day today mainly catching up on emails, reading various information that I have parked during the week and catching up with the team.

ANZ’s Regional Executive for the Pacific Sarah Stubbings holds regular one on one check in sessions with her direct reports, so today we met via Teams.

It’s always a good discussion with Sarah and an opportunity to give an update on what’s happening in the Solomons, what’s working well and what can be improved.

In the afternoon, I had my fortnightly workflow and a well-managed meeting with the Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) team where we discuss any new deals in the pipeline, as well as upcoming reviews that need to be completed. It’s always an opportunity to see if they have any roadblocks, and if there’s anything I can do to help.

Friday

Today is a public holiday and a chance to unwind from a very busy week. I spend the day relaxing in and around the pool. My wife and 2 youngest children arrive in the afternoon. After unpacking, we all go out for dinner at a local restaurant and enjoy some fresh fish.

My 20-year-old son and I both enjoy fishing, and he has bought some rods with him, so we had a flick from the back yard (I am so lucky to live in a house that has direct access to the ocean).

No luck today other than losing a few hooks and feeding the fish. Maybe next time!

The Rotary Club of Honiara has their annual fun run this week and ANZ supports this worthy fundraiser with a number of staff in attendance. The 5km course takes us from the Tama Lawson Stadium up a hill through the back streets of Honiara and finishes at the same stadium.

The event was well attended with around 6,500 participants and had a real family atmosphere. It was a solid walk with a reasonably steep uphill section that tested the legs! I enjoy breakfast with the family at a local hotel, before heading home to the pool for a relaxing weekend and then preparing for the week ahead.

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Heath Bruns is the Country Head for ANZ Solomon Islands, and has worked at ANZ for 25 years.