Timaru company Harding Construction won the award for best company culture at the recent prestigious Asia Pacific Business Excellence Awards.
The award was presented at a two-day business forum held in Surfers Paradise and was attended by 90 businesses from Vietnam, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. Companies ranged in size from small business with under 10 employees, to large, multi-franchise businesses operating across multiple states of Australia. The forum’s theme was ‘Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants’.
Harding Construction owners, Simon and Heather Harding were delighted to win the award, saying it affirmed their commitment to operating a values-based business.
“It’s encouraging to have business experts recognise our company as worthy of the award: that we are doing great things, have a great team, and offer employees a great place to work.
“It’s a terrific way to start 2017,” said Heather Harding.
“We assumed the thrust of the forum would be learning from the successes of business greats but the opening speech made it clear that our people are our giants. That really appealed to us,” said Harding.
“The judges commented on our effective systems, policies and procedures. These include looking after and developing our staff and work environment, plus ensuring we deliver consistently high quality service to our clients. It was really gratifying,” said Harding.
She said the Harding Construction company culture is based on three simple goals: On time, On budget, No surprises. Its clear values base incorporates accountability, integrity, growth and a focus on people. All company activity is measured against those goals and values. This ensures successful project management and delivery as well as effective in-house operations and a positive work environment.
The Business Excellence Forum is run by ActionCOACH business consulting and hosts 5 multi-national forums around the world each year. ActionCOACH is used by 1600 businesses in the Asia Pacific region, and 20,000 businesses globally.
Harding Construction won two awards at the 2016 NZ Master Builders Commercial Project Awards and was a finalist in the Emerging Business category at the 2016 South Canterbury Business Excellence Awards.
“We’re now not only multi-award winning builders, but we’re international award winning builders. That’s something to be proud of.” - said Simon Harding.
