“It’s great recognition of our business philosophy that good practices make great staff which in turn makes a successful business,” Mathew said. “It’s about putting time and effort into your staff, helping them, providing training and also being flexible. It's about the human element of business”.

The technology industry is one that continues to change more rapidly than any other. Mobile phones, telecommunications and data have all changed the way we live, and Mathew and his team have seen it all. Axxis has been around since 1989 in various formats and over the past 30 years Mathew said he has always focused on looking after employees. “If you have the best staff, customers get the best possible service and your business benefits from that. In all my years of business I’ve learnt it’s about doing the little things for employees that make it an enjoyable place to work in and you end up with a great range of staff with little turnover,” he said.

Axxis are no stranger to awards winning nationwide recognition with Telstra, taking out the Gold Rhino previously and were finalists in three Rhino Award categories this year, but Mathew said while claiming an award was nice, he wasn’t in business to win trophies. “I think recognition is the most important part. I treasure the Rhino awards because it’s your local community and your local peers that are saying you’ve done a job well,” he said. “They know they effort you put in and it’s a great pat on the back for the business but also for the staff. It lets the staff know how much they are valued and the external recognition is a sign we are doing a good job”.

Mathew said the list of people he wanted to thank was long including staff, business partners and of course the customers who continue to support Axxis, but he especially wanted to thank his wife Katrina who he said has been a huge part of all their success.