Meet Uniting AgeWell’s 2025 Employee of the Year – Nickie Arthur.

She’s the measured voice of reason and the unflappable Queen of Calm who spends her days connecting with customers, understanding their experiences and looking for resolutions and best outcomes to enhance their journeys.

Nickie, who is Uniting AgeWell’s Customer Experience Coordinator and a member of the Quality team, was also honoured with the Living Our Values Award at the annual AgeWell Awards at The Edge in Melbourne’s iconic Federation Square in November last year.

She was given a standing ovation by hundreds of her colleagues, all keen to pay tribute to a quiet achiever who rolls up her sleeves and gets things done.

“I really believe deeply in Uniting AgeWell, in the journey that we go on with our customers and their families and empowering and supporting our staff to do this as well as we do it,” Nickie told the gathering.

The next day she was back at work at her desk as usual, with her ready smile and a cuppa, as she settled down to business as usual. Nickie doesn’t do fuss or fanfare. She just gets on with things.

It’s International Women’s Day on 8 March and an opportunity to recognise the impact that women, in our Uniting AgeWell family, like Nickie, are continuing to make.

Nickie’s 13 years at UA, combined with her background as a nurse and as an educator, have taught her wisdom and skills not found in textbooks. She is too modest to admit this, but over the years she has made a huge difference – not just to customers but to staff.

Nickie listens with an open heart, empathy and kindness leaving people feeling both heard and validated. She deals with challenging situations with grace and importantly, enables everybody to have a voice, to be heard and to feel respected. Nickie helps her colleagues to remain focused on person-centred care and the needs of customers, building trust, fostering connection and making a lasting difference in our workplace culture and in the lives of our customers.

She admits there is seldom a one-size-fits-all approach and looks for creative ways forward. But one path she never deviates from is keeping the dignity, rights and care of the customer front and centre. That’s how she rolls. Everything Nickie does is shaped by living our values which she says she sees mirrored in staff across the organisation.

An important aspect of Nickie’s role involves collaborating with staff to mentor, guide and empower them by developing their skills to understand and connect with their customers’ experiences. She’s held workshops, staff training and has mentored people.

“I didn’t choose aged care,” says Nickie. “Aged care chose me.”

Find out more about how Uniting AgeWell celebrates excellence.