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This is Alana Sutherland, a Relationship Consultant in our Waymouth Street branch.
Recently, Alana won our inaugural Changing Lives Champion Award for her commitment to being there for and with her customers.
Alana has been passionately involved in volunteering in the community for many years, both through Beyond Bank’s staff volunteering program, and in her own time.
In the early days of COVID-19, Alana noticed the increased challenges faced by customers who are deaf and hard of hearing because of the mandatory use of masks, making lip-reading impossible for these customers.
Beyond Bank is all about relationships, and Alana lives this every day. She saw a need and swung into action. She began Auslan lessons with the goal of being able to continue to develop relationships with our customers in the deaf and hard of hearing community.
Two years on, Alana has recently completed level 5 of Auslan and has a network of customers in the Deaf Community who come just to see her, even some who drive hundreds of kilometres. They know that she will take the time to understand their needs and advocate on their behalf to fulfil their banking needs.
Alana is passionate about continuing to learn and use Auslan to be able to hold meaningful and life-changing conversations with our customers in the future.
Congratulations Alana! Your dedication to learning Auslan shows your commitment to partnering with our customers in the deaf community to make banking inclusive and meaningful for them. You’ve demonstrated what it is to be there for community and with community.
