With a motto of 'you do good, you get good', Star Property Maintenance owner Steven Khalil and his brother Fathi Khalil have built up a strong, high-performing family business in NSW over the last almost-20 years. 

Steven and his brother Fathi started the business back in 2003 with a lawn mower and a whipper snipper. Enas, Steven's wife, joined the company in 2015 and through hard work and an amazing commitment to delivering whatever their clients need they now have a business that supports over 60 employees.

Star Property Maintenance is a key supplier to Ventia, delivering services including grounds maintenance, waste management and cleaning to our social housing contract in Sydney's west. 

As part of Ventia's sustainability strategy, supporting small and medium enterprises to grow their business and develop the skills and capability to bid on larger contracts is something Project Director Ian Ryles is very proud of. 

"Ventia is one of Australia and New Zealand's largest infrastructure services providers," Ian says. "That comes with an obligation to the communities in which we operate, to ensure we're helping build the capacity of smaller businesses and also to support social enterprises, Indigenous businesses and give opportunity to marginalised groups."

Steven says that Ian and his team have done a great job of helping businesses like his.

The way Ventia helps mum and dad companies to grow, you don't really see elsewhere.

"I am a big believer in giving others opportunity. Ventia has done that for us, and I like to do it for others," Steve says.

Steven says his belief in giving people opportunity grew out of his own experiences as a migrant to Australia back in 1997. He recalls being turned down for jobs when he was younger, and not having much of a support system around him to progress. 

"Now I have a strong business of my own, I want to give back," Steven says. "I like to tell my team that I wasn't always a boss. You can be anything you want if you're prepared to work hard at it."

"Sometimes though, people might need some help to get there, whether it's mental health support or training or other assistance."

^{Pictured: Steve and Enas Khanli and their family.}

Enas says she's really proud of the way they support their employees to learn and develop their own skills. She also leads by example, undertaking training to grow and develop as a leader.

"I was school captain, so I had leadership skills from a young age," Enas says. "But I also recognise I have things I can learn. I did a Diploma of Business and a Certificate 3 in cleaning, and a number of other shorter courses to upskill myself." 

Enas also says she loves working with her husband as she gets to see the ways he supports the whole team to achieve more. 

The culture of our business is something I think we're both really proud of. We have amazing employees, and we want to make sure they are happy working for us and feel supported. 

Over the past 11 years, Star Property Maintenance have increased the volume of work they perform for Ventia on our Land and Housing contract and hope to continue that growth into the future. 

"We're planning to add renovations to our offering next year," Steve says. "I never want us to get stuck in our comfort zone. We will continue to learn and grow." 

Ian says that with their focus on working hard, coming up with solutions to problems, and delivering outstanding results to their clients, Steven, Enas and Fathi are bound to take their company far. 

"We're excited to be part of their journey here at Ventia." 

^{Pictured: The Star Property team now has a business that supports over 60 employees.}