The Medibank customer and brands leadership team joined 140 other leaders in Melbourne to sleep outside to raise awareness of homelessness in Australia.
The Vinnies CEO sleepout seeks to raise funds for beds, support, meals, and food vans for the growing number of people who do not have a safe place to call home.
Participants were given a sheet of cardboard to cushion themselves from the concrete that was their bed for the night.
"It was cold, uncomfortable and strange even though we had sleeping bags, access to toilets and the knowledge we were safe – privileges that people sleeping rough simply do not have," said senior executive Sally Haydon.
"While the experience may not be ‘real’, the impact it has had on me very much is," she said.
"Throughout the evening, people who have been homeless shared their very real and deeply personal stories. Hearing about their experience brought home the hard reality that this can happen to anyone. Be prepared to have any preconceived notions, biases and stereotypes well and truly challenged p it's frighteningly easy for people living in this lucky country to find themselves homeless.
"For me, it really hit home when I got home. When I got to tuck my kids into a safe bed in a safe bedroom, have a hot shower, open the fridge, and hop into a warm bed at the end of the day. I have never been as grateful that I get to feel safe and warm, and that I have choices."
The Medibank team raised over $30,000 for St Vincent de Paul Society.