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Country Energy lighting up careers in Western NSW

8 November 2010

Operating Australia’s largest energy network, covering 95 per cent of New South Wales, Country Energy’s Apprentice Training Program is no small undertaking.

Since 2001, Country Energy has employed 920 Australian Apprentices, with 413 currently spread across the state working in varied roles, such as distribution powerline workers, distribution cable workers, electricians, plumber/gas fitters, carpenters, boilermakers or communication technicians.

With such a broad range of vocations, providing the
right training is important. It is because of this that Country Energy has become a registered training organisation (RTO). ‘

We couldn’t find an RTO that could provide us with the whole level of service that we required so the decision was made,’ says Nick Blanch, Country Energy’s manager of RTO compliance and learning and development strategy.

‘Being an RTO in our own right not only meets training requirements but delivers a business outcome as well.’

Country Energy’s Apprentice Training Program is closely aligned with the organisation’s business goals, including broadening the network in non-metropolitan areas, and offering employment opportunities across these areas. There’s a strong focus on employing local people.

‘We’ve got employees across 95 per cent of New South Wales, and a similar presence of apprentices. Anywhere we’ve got a field service centre, we’ve got an apprentice,’ Nick says.

Country Energy’s motto is ‘We live here too’ and it aims to be an employer of choice, providing sustainable and rewarding careers and development opportunities.

‘We recruit everyone we can from local regions,’ says apprentice training coordinator David Martin.

‘It’s a strategy that has worked for us. It addresses succession issues that come with an ageing workforce. Recruiting from the local community increases retention in those areas and maintains a regional presence.’

Australian Apprentices also benefit because they can complete their qualifications early, with more than 60 per cent achieving this.

‘We use external providers to deliver some of the training we do but the majority is done by Country Energy. It’s all completed on Country Energy premises, so the Australian Apprentices travel to a centralised town, or another training classroom,’ David says.

‘The training is designed so the apprentices are not pigeonholed. It’s really about creating alternate career paths within the organisation, and that’s a strategy for our succession planning.’

Outside of formal training, there are other support mechanisms for Australian Apprentices.

‘There is quite a healthy mentoring process where people from other areas of the organisation provide support to apprentices—not necessarily their regular supervisors or people in their business units,’ Nick says.

‘Because of our large footprint area, we find we need to use both formal and informal approaches to get outcomes we require. If we wait for a formal report to identify that someone is struggling, that can be counterproductive.’

Lara Rich, training alliance coordinator, agrees.

‘It’s been documented time and time again that for successful apprentices, the main contributing factor is support—that’s where the success comes from,’ Lara says.

Country Energy boasts a 95 per cent completion rate, and between 95 and 98 per cent of those who complete their Australian Apprenticeships stay on with the company.

‘We have an average of $325 000 invested in each apprentice over the course of their training, and we  spend $5 million annually on travel and accommodation,’ Nick says.

Lara says the award is a wonderful acknowledgment for Country Energy.

‘There are a lot of people who put in time and effort and go above what would be considered day-to-day requirements to make sure programs actually achieve the outcomes,’ she says.

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