The Aveo CEO spoke to delegates about the operator’s experience under the spotlight of last June’s Four Corners/Fairfax investigation.
Questioned why he did not appear on the program, Geoff Grady revealed that three separate communication agencies advised him against it.
Aveo was aware that the program was being developed but the major issues were not revealed until a list of 23 questions were provided a week before with a deadline to provide answers of the Thursday prior to the show going to air on the Monday.
It was reasoned that most of the show had been developed by that Thursday.
The impact on sales was immediate. The two following weeks had a complete withdrawal of customers and zero sale deposits compared to an average of 29 per week. For the six months to December resales were down 25% or 200 units.
By early August they had developed a new marketing campaign advising customers that Aveo was “listening”, investing $2.5 million. 19 weeks after the program, deposits were back at 29 per week.
Grady had nine major stakeholders, ranging from residents to staff to shareholders to bankers, that as CEO he had to respond to and support.
In quick succession they released a number of product and service initiatives, including a six-month moneyback guarantee for new residents (if they decide they have made the wrong decision in joining the village) and a six-month guaranteed buyback on departure, plus independent mediation in disputes.
They are about to introduce a new contract that has been reduced in size by half.
In particular they have addressed their complaints handling process, investing in new software (Riskman) which gives Grady himself open site to all complaints.
They now also do a quarterly pulse survey of 400 residents to identify any problems early.
Aveo also participated in our National Resident Survey which gives them industry benchmarks across a wide range of criteria to measure each of their villages.
Across 90+ locations Grady reported that the number of critical incidents is now less than five.
Looking forward, Grady was keen to emphasise the significance of their new Newstead Village in Brisbane, a 19-storey inner-city village adjacent to shopping centres and combining medical and other retail services in the complex. It is the ‘model of the future’ and due for completion in May.
