“It’s a huge honour to have won two of the three awards for which we were shortlisted,” says Tony Coombe

Stevenson Engineering scored two prestigious awards in the recent Westpac Auckland Central Business Awards 2011. Category winners were announced at a black-tie gala dinner at the Langham Hotel on November 10.

CEO Tony Coombe’s inspiring leadership was acknowledged with the Excellence in Business Leadership Award, sponsored by Marsh. The company won a second award for Excellence in Service Delivery, sponsored by RSM Prince. Stevenson Engineering was also selected as a finalist in the Workplace Safety Award category.

Co-ordinated by the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, these annual business awards honour and showcase local businesses and people who are outstanding in their fields.

“It’s a huge honour to have won two of the three awards for which we were shortlisted,” says Tony Coombe. “This success is due to a magnificent team effort. It is a tribute to the high calibre and expertise of my staff who have worked hard to get us to this point. We strive to set a high benchmark for quality service without compromising on safety or our sustainability standards.”

The judges of the Excellence in Service Delivery award category said in their comments: “Stevenson Engineering showed a clear customer focus and consistent dedication under all circumstances. The company exhibited a strong service ethic, underpinned by visible service policy, staff training and quality standards.”

The global financial crisis hit three months after Tony Coombe began at Stevenson Engineering. During his time at the helm he has taken the company from being one heavily reliant on its parent group into new markets to the extent that external customers now comprise 75 per cent of its business. He has increased both staff numbers and turnover.

“We were looking for the attributes and characteristics of great leaders, looking for someone who had the commercial edge, a proven track record in sustainability and someone who could lead in good times and bad,” said the judge of the Excellence in Leadership award category. “It was great to visit your workshop and see the respect that your staff had for you, not just because you were the boss, but because you were a great leader. You come across as the quintessential kiwi bloke, understated but doing a great job for your team.”

Leading in tough times was ably demonstrated when Tony Coombe guaranteed job security for six months to staff who signed up voluntarily to the nine-day fortnight scheme in late 2009. This saved 10 jobs, reduced annual leave and resulted in significant savings for the business.

“We work in partnership with our customers. We’re part of a team, with the same goals,” says Tony. “We have enhanced our service offering by taking ownership of our customers’ engineering challenges and coming up with answers that better meet their business needs. A prime example was enabling Solid Energy to have its mining equipment serviced locally by us, rather than sending it to workshops in Australia.”