Telkom Indonesia Convenes Culture Agents and Boosters in ‘Unshaken’ Summit to Reinforce Organisational Resilience Amidst Dynamic Business Landscape
Jakarta, Indonesia – PT Telkom Indonesia (Persero) Tbk (Telkom), the nation’s leading telecommunications company, recently culminated its extensive Culture Festival TelkomGroup 2026 with the highly anticipated Culture Agent/Culture Booster Meet & Greet (CAMG) event. Held on July 21, 2026, this pivotal gathering brought together senior leaders, identified as crucial role models, alongside a dedicated network of Culture Agents and Culture Boosters from across the entire TelkomGroup ecosystem. The summit, themed ‘Unshaken: Keeping Culture Relatable When Everything Shifts,’ served as a strategic platform to reinforce the company’s core values and embed them deeply within its operational fabric, a critical imperative for navigating the ever-evolving complexities of the global business environment.
The Strategic Imperative of Corporate Culture in a Dynamic Era
Telkom Indonesia, as a state-owned enterprise, stands at the forefront of Indonesia’s digital transformation, playing a monumental role in shaping the nation’s connectivity and technological landscape. Its vast operations span across various segments, from consumer broadband and mobile services to enterprise solutions and international wholesale. In such a colossal and rapidly changing industry, the cultivation of a robust and adaptable corporate culture is not merely an HR initiative but a fundamental strategic necessity. The digital era, characterised by relentless technological advancements, shifting consumer behaviours, and intense market competition, demands an organisational agility that can only be sustained by a collective mindset rooted in shared values and a unified purpose. The Culture Festival TelkomGroup 2026 and its capstone CAMG event underscore Telkom’s proactive approach to cultural development, recognising it as the bedrock upon which successful transformation is built.
The ‘Unshaken’ theme of this year’s CAMG precisely articulates Telkom’s commitment to internal fortitude amidst external turbulence. It reflects an understanding that while market forces, technological paradigms, and competitive landscapes are in constant flux, the intrinsic values that define an organisation – its integrity, customer focus, innovation drive, and collaborative spirit – must remain steadfast. This cultural anchoring provides a sense of stability and direction for TelkomGroup’s tens of thousands of employees, empowering them to embrace change as an opportunity rather than a threat. The Culture Agents and Culture Boosters, central to this initiative, are the designated torchbearers, tasked with translating abstract corporate values into tangible, daily behaviours across their respective units, acting as catalysts for positive change from the ground up.
A Journey of Cultural Reinforcement: The Culture Festival 2026 Timeline
The CAMG event on July 21, 2026, marked the crescendo of a year-long strategic initiative, the Culture Festival TelkomGroup 2026, designed to systematically evaluate, celebrate, and embed Telkom’s corporate culture. The festival commenced with a comprehensive Culture Assessment, an organisation-wide evaluation involving all business units. This assessment served a dual purpose: to benchmark the current state of cultural implementation across various divisions and to identify areas of strength and opportunities for improvement. The rigorous evaluation process allowed Telkom to gain actionable insights into how its values were being perceived and practiced by its diverse workforce.
Following the assessment, the findings culminated in the prestigious Culture Award: Best Corporate Culture Implementation, which was ceremoniously announced during the celebrations for Telkom Indonesia’s 61st Anniversary. This award recognised units that demonstrated exemplary commitment and effectiveness in integrating Telkom’s values into their daily operations and strategic objectives throughout 2025. The recognition served as a powerful motivator, fostering healthy internal competition and showcasing best practices that could be emulated across the Group. The lead-up to CAMG thus involved a structured approach of assessment, recognition, and continuous engagement, setting the stage for the final meet-and-greet to solidify these efforts.
Collaborative Learning and Expert Insights at CAMG
The CAMG event itself was structured to maximise learning, sharing, and collaborative engagement. It commenced with an engaging panel discussion featuring representative culture champions from various segments of TelkomGroup, including Witel (Regional Telecommunications Areas), Regional divisions, and Operating Companies (OpCo). This diverse representation ensured that perspectives from different operational levels and business lines were shared, offering a holistic view of cultural challenges and successes across the vast organisation. The discussions facilitated peer-to-peer learning, allowing culture drivers to exchange best practices, tackle common obstacles, and collectively brainstorm innovative approaches to cultural propagation.
Further enriching the discourse were presentations by two distinguished external experts: Adjie Santosoputro, a renowned Mindfulness Practitioner from Santosa Indonesia, and Choky Sitohang, the charismatic Founder & CEO of ChoSSI. Both speakers delivered compelling insights crucial for personal and organisational resilience in times of flux. Adjie Santosoputro captivated the audience with his discourse on the inevitability of change in both personal life and professional arenas. He emphasised that while individuals often cannot control external changes, they possess the profound ability to choose their response. This focus on internal locus of control and mindful adaptation resonated deeply with the ‘Unshaken’ theme, equipping participants with mental frameworks to navigate stress and uncertainty more effectively, thereby enhancing their roles as resilient culture agents.
Choky Sitohang, building on this foundation, underscored the transformative power of mutual respect in strengthening interpersonal relationships and fostering superior teamwork. He articulated that a culture of appreciation and understanding acts as a formidable lubricant for collaboration, especially when facing collective challenges. "Change will be easier to navigate when we support each other, respect each other, and grow together as one team," Sitohang stated in a written declaration on Tuesday, July 21, 2026. His message reinforced the idea that cultural values are not just abstract concepts but practical tools that, when consistently applied, can significantly enhance operational efficiency, employee morale, and overall organisational cohesion. The presence of these external thought leaders provided fresh perspectives and validated Telkom’s internal initiatives, demonstrating a commitment to drawing on diverse expertise for its cultural development strategy.
Recognizing Excellence: The Best Culture Agent/Culture Booster Awards
A significant highlight of the CAMG event was the presentation of the Best Culture Agent/Culture Booster awards. This prestigious recognition was bestowed upon individuals who consistently demonstrated exceptional commitment and effectiveness in implementing Telkom’s corporate culture within their respective work units throughout 2025. These awards are a tangible expression of Telkom’s appreciation for the grassroots efforts that underpin its cultural transformation. By publicly acknowledging these champions, Telkom not only celebrates individual contributions but also inspires others to embody and promote the company’s values. The criteria for these awards likely included metrics such as active participation in cultural initiatives, demonstrable impact on team dynamics, and successful integration of values into daily decision-making processes, serving as a powerful incentive for continuous cultural engagement.
The broader Culture Award: Best Corporate Culture Implementation, announced during Telkom’s 61st Anniversary celebrations, also saw several units lauded for their outstanding performance. Witel Suramadu, representing a key regional operational area, was recognised for its exemplary cultural integration. Telkom Regional 2, overseeing a significant geographical segment of Telkom’s operations, also received top honours, underscoring the success of cultural initiatives at a broader regional level. In the enterprise sector, the Enterprise Business Strategy unit and the Divisi Wholesale Service were awarded, highlighting the critical role of culture in driving strategic execution and service delivery in B2B segments. Furthermore, PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia International (Telin), Telkom’s global arm, secured a win, demonstrating the universal applicability and successful implementation of Telkom’s values across diverse international contexts. Beyond the main winners, 1st Runner Up and 2nd Runner Up accolades were also distributed to other deserving units, collectively celebrating the widespread commitment to cultural excellence across the entire TelkomGroup.
Leadership Vision: Culture as the Foundation of Transformation
The event concluded with a powerful affirmation from Willy Saelan, Telkom’s Director of Human Capital Management. His closing remarks underscored the indispensable role of culture in achieving Telkom’s ambitious transformation goals. Saelan emphatically stated that while robust strategies are crucial, their ultimate success hinges on a consistently executed culture across all levels of TelkomGroup. He invoked the timeless adage, "Strategy, no matter how brilliant, will crumble if the organisational culture does not support it. Culture eats strategy for breakfast, because strategy will only remain a plan on paper if it is not realised through daily behaviour."
This profound statement, attributed to management guru Peter Drucker, resonates deeply within Telkom’s context. It highlights a critical understanding within the company’s leadership that organisational change is fundamentally about human behaviour and collective mindset. Without a culture that champions innovation, collaboration, customer-centricity, and adaptability, even the most meticulously crafted strategic blueprints for digital transformation or market expansion are destined to falter. Saelan’s message served as a rallying cry, reinforcing the idea that every employee, from the senior leadership to the frontline staff, is a custodian of Telkom’s culture, and their daily actions collectively determine the company’s trajectory. His emphasis positions human capital and cultural development not as support functions but as central pillars of Telkom’s strategic agenda.
Broader Implications and Future Outlook
The Culture Agent/Culture Booster Meet & Greet, as part of the larger Culture Festival TelkomGroup 2026, holds significant implications for Telkom Indonesia’s future trajectory. Firstly, it signals a sustained, long-term commitment from Telkom’s leadership to fostering an organisational environment where values are not just articulated but actively lived. This commitment is vital for ensuring the sustainability of Telkom’s ongoing "Five Bold Moves" strategy, which aims to transform the company into a leading digital telecommunications provider by focusing on key growth areas. A strong culture acts as an internal compass, guiding employees through complex strategic shifts and ensuring alignment even when faced with ambiguities inherent in large-scale transformation.
Secondly, the emphasis on resilience, mutual respect, and adaptability through the ‘Unshaken’ theme directly addresses the challenges posed by the rapidly evolving digital landscape, including the accelerated adoption of artificial intelligence, automation, and hybrid work models. A culture that encourages continuous learning, psychological safety, and empathy will be crucial for employees to thrive in these new environments, promoting innovation and preventing burnout. The insights shared by experts like Adjie Santosoputro and Choky Sitohang are not merely theoretical but provide practical tools for personal and team effectiveness, enhancing employee well-being and productivity.
Finally, by empowering Culture Agents and Boosters, Telkom is decentralising the responsibility of cultural propagation, making it a grassroots movement rather than a top-down mandate. This distributed leadership model ensures that cultural values are authentically integrated into the daily operations of every unit, fostering a sense of ownership and collective responsibility. This continuous reinforcement of culture is expected to strengthen employee engagement, reduce attrition rates, and enhance Telkom’s reputation as an employer of choice in a competitive talent market. The ripple effect of a strong internal culture also extends outwards, influencing customer experience and stakeholder trust, ultimately solidifying Telkom’s position as a national leader and a key contributor to Indonesia’s digital future. The Culture Festival 2026 and its capstone CAMG event thus stand as a testament to Telkom’s forward-thinking approach, cementing culture as an invaluable strategic asset for enduring success.
