The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy

Founded in 1893, The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) is a peak body and trusted voice for professionals working in the resources sector. It helps shape the careers of its members, showcasing their leadership and creating a connected and collaborative community between them. Collectively, its activities enable the mining and metallurgy industry to work to the highest possible standards.

Twenty percent of AusIMM’s members are located overseas – in North America, South America, and South Asia – so the website acts as a virtual meeting place and community hub for everyone involved in the industry.

Fittingly, AusIMM was recently named 2024 Association of the Year. The award recognised AusIMM’s impact on the global resources sector through the world-class professional development service it provides, and for connecting this thriving community of mining and metallurgy professionals.

Playing an increasingly important role in facilitating these award-winning services is the customer engagement platform that is managed and continuously optimised by Turbineers.

Partnering with Rohit Tangri, Senior Manager for Technical Programs at AusIMM, the intelligent automation experts at the Turbineers enabled AusIMM to set new standards in member experiences through the seamless integration of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement technology into its website.

Exceptional client experiences are essential to drive membership

Membership of AusIMM is not compulsory. Professionals choose to join for the career benefits it delivers. These include, the professional recognition afforded by membership, the many networking opportunities it offers at the different events held through the year, and the opportunities for continuous education, training and professional development (CPD) it provides.

As such, the quality of the member’s experiences and outcomes, as well as the ease of communications between members and the institute, are key factors in getting people to join and stay engaged through life-time membership.

As the Senior Manager for Technical Programs at AusIMM this is an important challenge for Rohit. He explains: “The times are changing. And the expectations our members have re their member experiences are increasing. Consequently, the experiences we deliver at AusIMM need to be as good, if not better, than the other industry organisations.”

“What it comes down to for us,” he says, “Is delivering experiences to members that result in them deepening their relationship with us and becoming net promoters of our organisation. To achieve this, I need expert advice from people who know our organisation and know how to apply Microsoft’s CRM technology in the most effective way. And this is what I get from the turbineers.”

Five ways Turbineers enable AusIMM to deliver industry-leading member experiences

1. Creates an interface with members

AusIMM’s website is the most important interface with its members. People learn about and register for conferences and events, enrol in career development programs, get involved in AusIMM’s community programs, and download resources.

2. Coordinates services to members

Online education and learning in mining and its various associated practices and operations is one of the most valuable services offered to its members. Because the website is a critical part of AusIMM’s overall portfolio it has to work well with the CMS and third-party platforms.

With over 18,000 members and over half a million visitors having unique interactions with the website from various locations, the CRM plays a crucial role in coordinating these services. The Turbineers work behind the scenes, embedding more and more of the CRM functionality within the website via integrations and APIs.

3. Personalised member engagement and communication

AusIMM can create individualised member dashboards, so members can view their own information when they log on. With the planned integrations with the events platform, members will soon be able to see everything they’re doing with AusIMM, such as membership status and renewal dates.

The CRM ensures that members receive tailored content, event invitations, and updates based on their professional interests, location, and career stage.

It enables targeted email campaigns, ensuring members only get relevant information rather than generic communications.

4. Delivery of seamless membership management and renewals

The platform automates membership registration, renewals, and reminders, making the process hassle-free. Members can easily update their details, track their membership status, and access exclusive benefits through a self-service portal.

“We rely on Tej and his team to put all the workflows in place, so the member experience is seamless,” says Rohit. “All administrative tasks, like bringing people on board and signing on new partnerships with organisations, are now system-based rather than manual.”

5. Access to Professional Development and Continuous Personal Development (CPD) tracking

When members are involved in career development, it logs their progress and provides confirmation of the courses, modules and programmes they’ve signed up for and completed.

Importantly, it gives AusIMM’s Membership Management teams an integrated view on their activities and status, which is important for reporting and assessing the success of events and programmes.

By tracking participation in courses, certifications, and events the website helps members maintain their CPD records. Plus it ensures professionals can easily document and demonstrate their skills for career progression and industry accreditation.

Improved member experiences are matched by improved operational efficiencies

While members are enjoying better online experiences, AusIMM’s management teams are enjoying time-saving benefits.

“It used to take 25 minutes of personal or staff time for one membership application to be completed. But thanks to the CRM integration and the broader uptake of other time-saving automation programs in the organisation, this has now been reduced to six minutes.”

Rohit continues: “Most of our member events and programs are run on different bespoke platforms, so Tej and the team are assisting us in the backend integration of these platforms, so they deliver a unified experience’” explains Rohit.

The Turbineers supports AusIMM’s ‘Roadmap for the Future’

The relationship between AusIMM and Turbineers is now evolving into a partnership that’s the foundation for innovation.

“We have a robust relationship with Tej and Yosef at Turbineers . It’s an open, honest, and transparent forum where ideas can be put forward and openly discussed with confidence,” explains Rohit.

Their trusted advice ensures our Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement, Microsoft Power Pages, and Microsoft SharePoint investments all deliver the outcomes we need. Tej and his team are helping us define the way information is captured, displayed, and managed so our team can use for more effective operations.

Even though AusIMM have developed their own internal roadmap of technology to take them where they need to be in three years, Turbineers will play an important role in bringing this to life.

“What makes their advice so valuable is that they’ve invested the time to understand us,’ says Rohit. “They know what we do, and, importantly, they understand why we do it. This enables Tej, Yosef and the team to be straight-forward and honest with us and I can rely on them for honest answers about what’s possible with Microsoft technology.

We work in a uniquely specialised space, and we lead the industry in application of technology to enhance user experiences. Because the Turbineers are willing to dig a bit deeper into our organisation and understand what’s important to us, they’re able to develop intelligent automation solutions that transform our organisation.