meldCX: Imagine what you could

IoT is disrupting the digital landscape of the world. However, to bring upon true digital transformation, organisations need to address pain points in the applied IOT market. AOPEN Solutions is a leading applied IOT Solutions provider that helps organisations solve and navigate these pain points.

Based in Melbourne and with offices all over the world, AOPEN Solutions, comprises of meldCX (software solutions) and AOPEN Solutions (devices & services focused).

We asked the CEO of AOPEN Solutions and meldCX, Stephen Borg, what makes the company such a fantastic place to work at. His answers reflected in the optimistic work atmosphere at meldCX and AOPEN which helps the company’s workforce thrive.

What is your company’s mission? How far have you reached in fulfilling your mission?

At our core, AOPEN Solutions focuses on providing commercial-grade device solutions for various verticals such as hospitality, enterprise, retail, government and healthcare.

meldCX, the software business of the Group, is a fast growing internationally leading comprehensive enterprise platform for the development of digital transformation (DT), making it simple and cost-effective for organizations to develop, deploy and manage commercial applications for IoT devices and DT initiatives.

Together, we make AOPEN Solutions, and our key mission is to make it easy for organizations to build, deploy and manage their digital transformation initiatives.

We have come a long way! meldCX is currently deployed in 15 countries and service 30 large enterprise clients. It has become a platform of choice for ISV’s (integrated software vendors) servicing enterprise customers. We also have some amazing statistics. An Australian music company has deployed the meldCX platform across Asia Pacific. The company has experienced a 95% reduction in the build and deploy costs of their solution when using meldCX, and complete the deployment process of their device solution remotely with zero touch. 

We have also deployed meldCX and our AOPEN hardware devices across different verticals like emergency services, retail, hospitality, transport, mining, government and many more.

A people-focused organization helps its employees grow to become their best. What is your say on this?

The key to every business is always two-pronged:

• It is about having a can do attitude when providing customer service, ensuring that your work with the customer is detail oriented and of an exceptional standard;
• Elevating team members’ focus, helping them grow and understanding individual/ team drivers.

At the end of the day, we are committed to our passion for delivering great experiences for customers and team members. A great example is when we won our first hospitality client, I had a champion barista brought into the office and arranged for everyone to have training. Firstly to understand the attention to detail needed to make a great coffee, and to involve our team members in social activity. This is now a tradition and all team members have barista training on a regular basis and often compete for the best coffee!

Here at meldCX + AOPEN, we are passionate about ideas  and we really do believe that they will have a positive impact to our way of life.

As such, our firm belief is that no idea is silly and all our staff  are encouraged to voice their ideas and work together to find new ways to tackle issues. At the heart of it, we want to be enablers for growth.

We have a completely flexible approach for remote work, time with family and to enhance learning skills that they can take back to the team. Our team is regularly encouraged to go for courses and training sessions, to participate in external boards, social activities together.

How is your organization the best place to work? Can you give us some instances?

We have a robust employee social event calendar!

From Easter Egg Hunts in April, morning yoga for health junkies in the team to a Game of Thrones Competition to see who would the final victor be, we have a wide range of activites that cater to the interests of the team.

In addition, we are also passionate about celebrating special festivals from all cultures and dominations in order for team members to share aspects of their own background and nationality.

We also give our employees the training and opportunities to speak. All employees have a chance to shine and speak on the main stage. At our latest AOPEN + meldCX Chrome Bootcamp at the Google campus, we had our junior developer give an overview of meldCX and also our newest addition to the meldCX team, our customer success manager Elese, introduced the platform.

Do you believe that a healthy workplace strives to give its employees meaningful work?

Definitely! We fundamentally believe that giving our employees a healthy workplace environment will empower them to learn, grow, develop towards goals of the team and also the business. Here at meldCX + AOPEN, we constantly push our employees to embrace new possibilities. We understand that it also means providing staff with some room to fail and equipping them to understand controlled failure should it happen.

I often see my role as supporting the team in achieving their personal goals while also matching these goals to the objectives of the business. I also feel that a healthy workplace does not shy away from addressing tough questions and make it a point to consult the team on work which may challenge or have potential ethical considerations. Collectively as a management team, we have passed on work before if the team members feel strongly about it. It is important to not bend or challenge team members ethical boundaries especially when delivering projects that involve machine vision, deep analytics and AI.

Do you agree that creating a strong culture of engaged employees is essential for attracting and retaining talent and also enhancing productivity?

Definitely! In our team, we know that customers are more easily attracted to great products and amazing people are more easily attracted to great culture. Culture happens whether or not you plan for it, so it is paramount that every team member participates to create a culture that they love.

We often have partner companies hang out at our office as they love the culture, environment, office fitout and spaces.

One of the things we are most proud of are the comments and recognition we receive from external partners and customers due to our culture and approach to delivery and problem solving.

‘When people are having fun, they work together better and they produce better work.’ How do you interpret this saying?

Happy people are more productive at work. It’s a fact. This is why we’ve made culture a priority. We want to foster an environment that is open and relaxed - where people can speak up and be heard, and feedback given and received.

We aim for employees to be more than just colleagues - but actual work friends. Work is a fundamental pillar and needs to be a place that you look forward to, by being welcomed for you individuality, thoughts and what you can achieve - why wouldn’t you make it fun?

Our busy employee social event calendar lets our staff take a breather from the stress of work. Be birthdays, cultural celebrations, company milestones, or just because - we like to celebrate life together.

Meet the CEO

Stephen Borg, CEO of AOPEN Solutions / Co-Founder of meldCX

He is a solutions-driven strategy development director who specializes in identifying and creating opportunities in Greenfield markets. His key skills in strategy and design have helped multinational companies expand to new markets. His expertise spans technology and digital media, retail environments, customer experience, innovation, and building business partnerships.

“Our key mission is to make it easy for organizations to build, deploy and manage their digital transformation initiatives.”

“Culture happens whether or not you plan for it, so it is paramount that every team member participates to create a culture that they love.”