NTT Data Australia is a global IT services provider, specialising in digital transformation, cloud, automation, consulting services, and SAP-focused transformation. Operating in a mature and highly competitive market, NTT Data Australia (Consulting) faces rapid technological disruption and evolving client expectations. As a professional services firm, most of its workforce is customer-facing, making organisational culture and capability critical to its success.

The Challenge

NTT Data Australia’s immediate challenge was to develop a strategy that could respond to external pressures while engaging the entire workforce. The organisation needed to evolve its service offering and core practices around client engagement, create a workplace that attracts and retains top talent, and maintain a culture of excellence, service ethos, and value creation. Key challenges included sustaining and growing revenue and EBIT, attracting and retaining talent, and improving customer experience (NPS).

The Work

Over three years, NTT Data Australia partnered to deliver a multi-faceted strategic alignment and transformation program:

• Culture Blueprinting & Assessment: Using the PerformX diagnostic tool, NTT assessed its current culture, developed a culture blueprint aligned with strategic objectives and identified priority initiatives for change based on its aspired culture profile.
  
  Annual PerformX pulse surveys were deployed to track and monitor progress around culture priorities.

• Action Planning: Action planning at both group and team levels defined and activated the initiatives required to evolve the culture and address strategic gaps. The action planning sessions were also undertaken annually to ensure that initiatives and interventions were deployed and monitored over time.

• Consultant to Advisor Program:  A blended learning programme focused on uplifting delivery consultants from technical experts to strategic advisors was developed as part of the action planning outcomes. The program aimed to develop the skills for deep client needs analysis, building trust-based relationships, and co-designing value-driven solutions, which in turn aligned with the strategic priorities of the business – revenue growth, client excellence and value creation.

• Growth Mindset & GRIT: The development and delivery of the GRIT program was also defined through the annual Pulse survey and action planning activities and was specifically designed to foster a growth mindset and resilience across the organisation.

Impact Aligned to Key Criteria

Integration Across Culture, Leadership, Capability, and Strategy

The culture assessment, blueprinting, and action planning led directly to strategic capability uplift through the Consultant to Advisor and GRIT programmes. By linking strategic outcomes with the aspired culture defined through the culture Blueprinting and action planning process, NTT identified and addressed gaps that would most impact their strategy.

Scale of Reach

The PerformX culture assessment and action planning activities were deployed organisation-wide, with team leaders trained in assessment results debriefing sessions and action planning. Over time, leaders have embraced the process, and it’s now embedded as a critical element of the annual strategic development cycle, ensuring broad and deep reach across the business.

Measurability of Outcomes

NTT tracks progress annually through the PerformX pulse diagnostic, as well as tracking strategic outcomes such as sales revenue uplift, NPS, and employee engagement. These measures are now part of the reporting suite, enabling holistic measurement and linking culture to strategy and performance.

Specifically over the past three years, NTT have increased completion rates of the PerformX survey from 77% to 93% of staff, and has seen significant improvements across all four culture domains in the range of 10 to 17 percentile points. This reflects not only the work being done within teams to define action plans but also a commitment to ensure these plans and initiatives, such as the Consultant to Advisor and GRIT programs, become a reality.

The impact of these initiatives is visible through the NTT Data NPS score, which reflects a change in customer excellence and focus, and growth in sales revenue through the ability of the teams to increase client value.

Sustained Nature of the Work and Program

The focus on culture pulse checks and ongoing assessment is well embedded, with team leaders actively involved in the process. The sustained nature of the programme is evidenced by its integration into annual cycles and continuous improvement efforts.

This program stands as a benchmark for enterprise-wide impact. NTT Data Australia didn’t just implement change—it embedded a culture-driven strategy that elevated leadership, capability, and client engagement at scale. With measurable outcomes in revenue growth, NPS, and retention, and a sustained cycle of cultural alignment and capability uplift, this transformation exemplifies how strategic intent can translate into enduring organisational performance. It’s a story of integration, reach, and resilience—hallmarks of true transformation.

" Creating an intgerated, data driven program that engages all staff creates not just a tipping point in terms of scale, but also creates a shared sense of purpose and challenge for an orgnabisation. NPA should be commended for their courage and ability to approach the work across all levels."



- Robyn Worthington