Achieving the respect and admiration of our community is a key element in achieving our vision of being Australia’s finest financial services organisation.

The Bank has actively supported the Australian community since 1912. Our definition of community includes our people, customers, shareholders and the broader community in which we operate.

OUR PEOPLE
Employees drive a business and make it sustainable over the long term. The Bank engages and motivates its people by involving them directly in the community, through individual and team volunteering opportunities, as well as providing their professional and technical expertise to our community partners.

The Bank’s Staff Community Fund was established in 1917, when a group of Bank employees got together to fund the provision of children’s cots during the First World War.

Nearly 90 years later, the Bank’s staff continue to support a variety of charities that contribute to the well-being of Australian children, including the Humour Foundation’s Clown Doctors’ program, which brings fun and humour into the wards of children’s hospitals around Australia, helping to make a stay in hospital less distressing for young patients.

OUR CUSTOMERS
The Cyclone Larry disaster demonstrates how our peoples’ motivation enabled them to deliver outstanding customer service during a time of adversity.

When Cyclone Larry hit North Queensland in March 2006 it destroyed property, businesses and infrastructure.

The Commonwealth Bank’s donation of $1 million to the Queensland Premier’s Disaster Relief Appeal helped activate a speedy national relief response. In addition, the Commonwealth Bank activated its emergency assistance package for customers and opened its national branch network to collect donations from those willing to give.

Our people demonstrated drive and passion to overcome personal disasters in order to resurrect a banking service for the local communities involved as soon as was physically possible.

Our efforts also enabled the Australian Red Cross to deploy disaster response in the form of material assistance, comfort and care to the survivors. Almost six months on, these contributions continue as ongoing support is made available to the communities impacted by the cyclone.

Most recently, school holiday programs have been established to provide children in the area with activities and entertainment to take their mind off the devastation.

THE BROADER COMMUNITY
The Commonwealth Bank has established rewarding partnerships with many community organisations across metropolitan, regional and remote Australia.

Together, we combine our commitment to financial literacy, cancer research, the arts, social welfare, the environment, and sport to achieve positive sustainable outcomes for the Australian community.

The Commonwealth Bank has supported education for more than 75 years, since the introduction of school banking. In 2003, it strengthened this commitment through the establishment of the Commonwealth Bank Foundation, which encourages developments in financial literacy, to empower individuals to take effective decisions to achieve their financial goals.

The Commonwealth Bank Foundation’s 2005 Australian Financial Literacy Assessment (AFLA) was the first nationwide research undertaken into the level of financial literacy among Australian school children. This landmark assessment, conducted through the University of NSW, provided a comprehensive snapshot of the financial capabilities of over 43,000 students in Year 9 and 10, providing a benchmark against which the success of future financial literacy programs can be measured.

Environmental management is a fundamental aspect of the Bank’s sound business management. We have had a policy in place since 2002 to reduce energy usage in all of our operations. In 2001 we signed the Greenhouse Challenge Cooperative Agreement, a joint voluntary initiative between the Federal Government and industry to abate greenhouse gas emissions.

This commitment facilitates the improvement of energy and greenhouse efficiencies in all our major buildings and branches as well as purchasing and using energy and environmentally friendly office equipment and services. This commitment has seen the Bank reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 22 per cent, against its 1999 baseline.

A recent partnership with the Great Barrier Reef Research Foundation links the Bank’s long-standing investment in education with our commitment to preserving the environment for future generations. By enabling marine science students to study in the best possible classroom – the Reef itself – we are contributing to the sustainability of this iconic yet vulnerable World Heritage site.