City Indigenous Group
Who we are
As part of today’s rapidly evolving Indigenous business sector, City Indigenous Group is passionate about leading reconciliation initiatives that promote indigenous employment, ensuring staff receive the best possible training and mentorship to excel in their roles.
City Indigenous Group was formed by David Fernando, a descendant of the Gamilaroi tribe of Northern New South Wales and Mike Bell, a descendant of the Birpai tribe of the Camden Haven region of New South Wales. Our company is strongly orientated to contribute to the reconciliation movement, driving indigenous engagement opportunities and promoting supplier diversity values.
Our shared vision centres on becoming one of the largest Indigenous employers in the facilities sector, offering an improved quality of life for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across the country. In addition to direct employment opportunities, we are also proud to have partnered with several related Indigenous supply businesses, to maximise benefit to the wider community. In our own way we hope our resolute commitment and the wider contributions of our company will represent positive momentum in helping to heal the divisions that exist within our society.
Our People
MIKE BELL
Managing Director
Mike Bell has spent most of his career developing investment banking opportunities in Australia, Europe, and Asia, including Bank of America, Citibank, Barclays, Macquarie Bank, and Banque Indosuez.
This has included roles as treasurer and head of financial markets in Sydney and Singapore. Mike has developed several international products, including the 30-day Fed Funds contract which trades on the CME Group Exchanges in the US.
Mike’s focus for the last 20 years has been on developing businesses that result in environmental and ethical change. This included developing climate change derivatives as Global Head of Environmental Products at Prebon Energy in London.
Mike’s grandfather is from the Birpai mob in Camden Haven. Mike’s great-grandmother, Granny Bell, was the nurse and midwife for the Indigenous community in the Camden Haven area.
For the last two years’ Mike has supported the City Indigenous Group in developing facilities management services. This has involved working closely with some of Australia’s leading property management groups.
TONY PODESTA
National Sales Manager
Tony, who is heading up our new division, City Indigenous Supplies brings an abundance of experience & passion to our team at City Indigenous Group.
Tony in his younger days ran many top restaurants, giving Tony the real experience of the needs and expectations of chefs to run a successful kitchen, this enforced Tony from an early age to be available to chefs 7 days a week as most restaurants and catering outlets operate 7 days a week.
Tony knows O.H & S backwards and is always on top of safety to prevent mishaps in the kitchen to the tune that he works with the industrial chemist to make sure that most products are safe to the end user and environment.
Tonys 35 years of experience gives him that title to be a Catering Equipment specialist, from surveying an account to quoting and installing equipment any where around Australia to also be able to do Catering Equipment repairs Australia wide weather it be dishwashers, fridges or combi ovens through his team of 22 technicians around Australia.
With an exceptional focus on customer service and ethical behaviour, Tony always puts the needs of his customers first, which has enabled him to forge strong relationships built on trust and integrity.
If you wish to speak to Tony to discuss your needs you can ring him direct.
on 04 3333 5555 from 6am to 7pm 7 days a week.
RICHARD LEWIS
Operations Manager
Richard is true leader in his field, Richard brings a wealth of experience and expertise to ensure the company’s services run smoothly and efficiently. He has had a long career as an Operation Manager, both here and overseas.
He is responsible for overseeing a team of highly trained professionals, ensuring that they deliver top-notch services to a diverse portfolio of clients, including office buildings, defence department facilities, healthcare facilities, educational institutions, and more. Richard has overseen operations for major international facility managers such as Eurest Support Services (ESS) and Brookfields (“BGIS”) and being responsible for managing large groups of people and projects.
Richard is also an advocate for indigenous employee development, fostering a supportive work environment where his team can thrive. He is responsible for managing ongoing training and encourages professional growth, ensuring that our staff are skilled, motivated, and dedicated to their work.
How do we do it?
Extensive experience in the construction and commercial cleaning industry;
Wide range of property maintenance services;
Understanding and tailoring to the expectations of each individual property requirement;
Cost efficiency whist maintaining quality results;
Careful selection of environmentally friendly products and chemicals;
Competent, experienced, and trustworthy staff;
Complete attention to all Occupation Health & Safety standards;
Full compliance and adherence to all award condition; and
Passion in social responsibility.
Responsible contractor ethics
City Indigenous Group confirms that all pricing that will be provided as part of this or any tender will be derived following the Modern Award and Fair Work requirements. We do not use subcontractors for the delivery of services. All our staff are employees and are all employed under the Modern Cleaning Award and are offered the full spectrum of entitlements that this award offers. All of our future pricing reflects this and allows us to run the contract to meet all legal responsibilities and award payments affording all our customers and partners the comfort of knowing that their brand is protected by our stringent controls in running our business under the Modern Cleaning Award.
City Indigenous Group supports Fair Work Ombudsman in its efforts to ensure that Australian workplaces are compliant, productive and inclusive. In line with other Government initiatives, our vision is that the community values the work that we do. As per the Fair Work Act 2009, City Indigenous Group strives to:
Promote harmonious, productive and cooperative workplace relations;
Honour ALL staff pay to Modern Cleaning Award rates;
Ensure compliance with Australian workplace laws; and
Monitor 417 and 457 subclass visa arrangements.
To be an effective and efficient employer City Indigenous Group remains responsive to the evolving needs and expectations of the Australian Government and the communities we operate in. We proactively support employment participation through addressing the barriers to employment and ensuring we do right by all our employees in terms of their legal rights to pay, opportunity and well-being.
To make a difference we:
Provide practical advice to all employees that is easy to understand and apply;
Encourage and empower employees to resolve issues in their workplace, (facilitating collaboration and leveraging best practice);
Build a culture of compliance with workplace laws; and
Be a high performing, capable and responsive business that delivers exceptional customer service, aligned to the strategic values of our Clients.
City Indigenous Group remains dedicated to staying up to date with all Government employment principals and dictates, particularly as they relate to pay. We note for example that an employee’s minimum pay rate can come from an award, enterprise agreement or other registered agreement or the national minimum wage.
