{"id":69560,"date":"2025-08-15T06:23:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-15T06:23:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/69560\/"},"modified":"2025-08-15T06:23:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-15T06:23:09","slug":"telstra-forces-all-of-its-staff-to-use-ai-in-eerie-new-mandate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/69560\/","title":{"rendered":"Telstra forces ALL of its staff to use AI in eerie new mandate"},"content":{"rendered":"

By NICHOLAS COMINO, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA<\/a> <\/p>\n

Published: 10:36 EDT, 14 August 2025 | Updated: 10:36 EDT, 14 August 2025 <\/p>\n

Telstra staff have been told they will be expected to use artificial intelligence every day in their jobs, while continuing to enjoy the option of working remotely from anywhere.<\/p>\n

‘Flexible working is absolutely a core part of how we operate,’ chief executive Vicki Brady said on Thursday, describing the company’s push to embed AI<\/a> into all roles as part of a broader strategy to ‘radically innovate’ its operations.<\/p>\n

For employees, that means finding ways AI can boost productivity, regardless of whether they work from home or in the office.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ms Brady has been a vocal supporter of hybrid work, breaking ranks with other business leaders calling for a full return to the office.<\/p>\n

‘We’ve got to really radically innovate in the core of our business. And hybrid working, I would say, for me, it’s one of those things,’ she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘That looks different for different teams across our business, but absolutely some time together, face-to-face, is part of that in bringing the best out of teams.’<\/p>\n

Like Commonwealth Bank boss Matt Comyn, Ms Brady is an active user of AI and expects her staff to follow suit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Telstra has become Microsoft’s largest Australian customer for its Copilot AI assistant, securing 21,000 licences, and has launched a data and AI academy to train employees.<\/p>\n

\"Telstra <\/p>\n

Telstra CEO Vicki Brady (pictured) said that staff would be expected to use AI every day (stock)<\/p>\n

‘That’s a big investment, but that’s an investment in our teams to really gain that experience in how to apply AI in every job across our business. And when I say every job, I mean every job,’ she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘That’s the expectation that all of us need to be adopting AI in how we operate.’<\/p>\n

She said practical use was key to unlocking AI’s benefits.<\/p>\n

‘One of our early lessons here was you can learn the theory of it, but you’ve got to have that practical, hands-on ability to try it, to use it, to figure out how it can deliver benefits for you,’ she said.<\/p>\n

Ms Brady pointed to one team that used Copilot to transform a lengthy market analyst report into a 30-minute podcast, making the information far easier to digest.<\/p>\n

‘Some of those tips and tricks are definitely the things that we’re finding is working. And we’re absolutely finding our teams really curious and eager to learn.’<\/p>\n

Her comments came as Telstra posted its slowest mobile growth in four years following the shutdown of its 3G network.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Annual net profit surged 31 per cent to $2.34bn, driven largely by aggressive cost-cutting, including 550 job cuts announced in July on top of nearly 1900 roles shed earlier in 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Telstra <\/p>\n

Telstra is Australia’s largest customer of Microsoft Co-Pilot, with 21,000 licences (stock)<\/p>\n

\"Telstra <\/p>\n

Telstra staff will also be allowed more flexibility to work remotely\u00a0<\/p>\n

Revenue was flat at $23.9bn.<\/p>\n

Despite the soft mobile performance, Telstra will return $1bn to investors through a share buyback and lift its full-year dividend 5.6 per cent to 19 cents.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It follows a $750m buyback just two months earlier.<\/p>\n

‘We are focused on continuing to deliver value for our shareholders \u2026 carefully consider[ing] the balance between investing in the growth of our business and the potential for additional shareholder returns,’ Ms Brady said.<\/p>\n

The announcement comes as the Victorian Government proposes mandating two days a week working from home for eligible staff, a move opposed by major business groups, which say such rules interfere with employer-employee agreements.<\/p>\n

Commonwealth Bank<\/a>Microsoft<\/a><\/p>\n

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