Who we are
15 Times Better (15xB) was founded by Topaz McAuliffe, a Torres Strait Islander woman connected to Moa and Masig Islands, alongside social impact expert Russell James. The business takes its name from research by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras, which found that visionary companies guided by strong values and a purpose beyond profit outperformed the stock market by fifteen times over several decades. The name reflects a core belief: that organisations do not have to choose between social value and commercial performance, and that First Nations impact and business outcomes can strengthen each other.
The business was created in response to a clear problem. Australian organisations were investing heavily in First Nations engagement but often had little measurable evidence of impact. The gap was not a lack of intent, but a lack of honest diagnosis, experienced First Nations voices in decision-making, and a practical path from strategy to delivery. 15xB was built to address all three. It is a registered Supply Nation supplier (a national database of verified Indigenous-owned businesses) and its work has been recognised by Forbes, the United Nations Global Compact, the Australian Human Rights Commission, and the Social Impact Measurement Network Australia.
Topaz and Russell previously led one of Australia's largest First Nations engagement programs at Coles Group, helping the company become the largest private-sector employer of First Nations people and a major supporter of First Nations businesses and community organisations. Together with the 15xB team, they bring more than fifty years of combined experience building First Nations economic participation. More than seventy-five organisations have used the 15xB model across finance, investment, renewable energy, technology, transport, health, retail, professional services, and government.
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What we do
15 Times Better works with organisations to design, strengthen, and scale their First Nations strategies and Reconciliation Action Plans (RAPs, which are structured frameworks through which organisations commit to specific actions to advance reconciliation). Its approach is built around four capabilities: diagnosing barriers honestly, connecting organisations to proven and scalable solutions, providing access to a trusted national network of First Nations partners, and delivering a practical framework for tracking and reporting impact.
15xB offers three levels of advisory partnership, tailored to where an organisation is in its First Nations engagement journey.
Past client work includes helping Microsoft reset its approach to First Nations engagement and governance, supporting IFM Investors to assess and benchmark First Nations activity across its Australian infrastructure assets, integrating Qantas's RAP into a broader First Nations strategy covering cultural learning, procurement, and employment, and supporting Bupa over two years to build a First Nations employment strategy that resulted in a 130% increase in employee representation.
Head office:
- Queensland
Service location(s):
- New South Wales
- Victoria
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- Western Australia
- Northern Territory
- Australian Capital Territory
- Outside Australia
Type(s) of actor:
- Social enterprises
Area(s) of activity:
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