Learn @ Work case studies (2004): ActewAGL
 |
ActewAGL - a leading light in vocational training (media release)
Wednesday 21 April 2004
Today (Thursday 22 April) ActewAGL Chief Executive Officer John Mackay will welcome the organisation's latest intake of apprentices, trainees and graduates at an informal morning tea at ActewAGL's Greenway depot at 9.30am.
"Every year ActewAGL demonstrates its commitment to vocational training by providing a significant number of training opportunities and programs for locals from Canberra and the region," Mr Mackay said.
"I am proud to say that this year our intake of 20 people pushes our total pool of apprentices, trainees and graduates to over 50, which demonstrates just how seriously we take our training responsibilities."
Lyn Lalas, a systems electrician, and one of the first females to be accepted in a non-traditional trade, completed her trade qualifications in 1987 and this year celebrates 20 years with the company.
Delivering a few words of encouragement to the new intake Ms Lalas said, "While you have a few years of hard work and many hours of study and classroom work ahead of you, you can be assured that you will have access to quality on the job training that is not only practical but relevant.
"When you have completed your qualifications, you will be able to look back on your years of training with satisfaction, knowing that it has been a rewarding experience that will hold you in good stead for the future."
Over the past 40 years the high standard of vocational training offered by ActewAGL and its predecessors has delivered a number of award-winning apprentices, including several Apprentice of the Year awards and two Outstanding Woman in a Non-Traditional Vocation awards.
"As history has shown ActewAGL is committed to training and professional development and we will continue to build on our reputation as a leader in vocational training," Mr Mackay said.
Adult Learners' Week - Partner Submission
ActewAGL is an electricity, natural gas, water and sewerage services utility that is based in the Australian Capital Territory. Within and outside its home base, ActewAGL sells electricity in the south-east Australian contestable market and is also an Internet service provider. Formed in late 2000 as a joint venture between the original utility ACTEW and The Australian Gas Light Company, it was Australia's first essential services partnership between a major private sector group and a government instrumentality.
The ActewAGL Business Plan 2004 - 2007 nominates staff as one of the most significant stakeholders in the business, with an emphasis on training and development, including to;
'Look after our staff so that they feel committed to ActewAGL, are given opportunity to expand their skills and have a safe and healthy workplace'
ActewAGL is committed to its Registered Training Organisation status, which it has retained until 2007 following a recent audit. This commitment supports undertakings in the ActewAGL and Combined Unions Enterprise Agreement 2002 to provide competency based development for a large part of the organisation, and to provide national qualifications under the Australian Qualifications Training Framework.
Each business unit, with its diverse safety, environmental, technical and industry focus, manages its training and development activities with strategic support and advice from the Human Resources Department.
Employees training needs are established through:
- Individual development plans
- Workplace consultative mechanisms as established in the enterprise agreement
- Long term capital and maintenance planning activities
Approximately 20% of training is nationally recognised.
Our strategic training and development framework includes on-the-job and internal training, off-the-job courses and seminars and external studies. Training is undertaken in all aspects of our business operations, including information technology, safety, management and leadership, team building, environment, technical skills and customer service.
Training and Development Initiatives
Competency Based Training: ActewAGL (and its predecessors ACTEW) have been supporting competency based development programs since 1993. These programs are designed to address five specific objectives
- facilitate work reorganisation and job design;
- assist in the development of appropriate and relevant training;
- facilitate and encourage work place change and skill development;
- provide the mechanism for appropriately classifying and remunerating employees; and
- provide the basis for nationally recognised qualifications.
The following competency programs are currently in place at ActewAGL:
- Water Industry Operator/s
- Electrical Worker
- Plant & Transport
- Area Coordinators
- Warehousing
- Network Operator
Networks Division has a dedicated Work Practices Group unit of 7 staff who oversight the development of the electrical field workforce. This unit develops competency based training programs and safety programs, and conducts external training in Confined Space Awareness, Network Awareness, Working at Heights and Fall Prevention. The Work Practices Group also has responsibility for electrical and line-worker apprentice development, and works closely with other branches of the Division to ensure the Field Services work-force has the relevant and appropriate skills to meet the divisions objectives.
Water Division: An in-house team have developed a competency based training program for jet-rodder operation, which they identified as a high priority need in their workforce. Field Services are currently undergoing a process to map existing enterprise competencies with nationally recognised NWP Water Industry Operator competencies. They have also appointed a full-time Competency Co-ordinator to oversight the development needs of their workforce. Treatment Branch Operators currently assess competence against national standards.
Logistics: Our Warehousing team are trained against, and receive recognition in, national competencies. They have a dedicated position to oversight the team development, including the coordination of 2x1hour weekly sessions where a CIT instructor provides theoretical instruction. This development activity is during work hours.
Studies Assistance: In addition to our trainees and apprentices' 32 employees are in receipt of studies assistance this year in the form of paid leave, financial assistance or both. This form of assistance is open to all employees and is dependant on relevance to organisational objectives. Courses undertaken range from University Degrees, MBA's, CPA's and CIT run courses.
Leadership: Corporately, the Human Resources Department has a dedicated Manager Leadership position, with responsibilities for leadership development strategies and programs, team building, succession and career development activities.
Legal Compliance: ActewAGL's Legal & Secretariat function conducts legal compliance education through workshops and regular staff publication articles, and is currently examining web-based self-paced compliance training modules to provided a blended training option for the workforce.
Induction & Orientation: Each new employee receives comprehensive induction information on commencement, and is scheduled on an orientation day to familiarise themselves with all aspects of the organisation's operations. The orientation program provides exposure to some of the organisations most experienced operators in Electricity and Water operations, senior executives and safety personnel, and is coordinated by the HR team.
Staff profiles
Jessica Guerin
Jess began her two-year Office Traineeship with ActewAGL in January 2001. As part of her traineeship Jess was situated in Water Division whilst studying at the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) where she successfully obtained a Certificate III in Business Office Administration. In March 2002, only 13 months into her traineeship, Jess was successfully appointed within the Business Systems Division performing the role of Support Officer in Mail and IT Systems. Jess has continued to study at CIT with the support of ActewAGL and is now part way through her Certificate IV in Business Administration / Diploma in Human Resources. This drive to succeed has seen Jess be given the opportunity to work in many positions throughout the company including as a Procurement Specialist within the Logistics Branch and she is currently acting in the position of Divisional Administration Officer within the Legal & Secretariat Division.
Ayesha Razzaq - Wholesale Risk Manager
Ayesha is one of the organisations major success stories. Ayesha started with ActewAGL in January 1999 after completing Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) at the Australian National University.
Her first role was Energy Market Analyst, a position that she held until January 2003 when she was appointed to the position of Wholesale Risk Manager, a role which sees her responsible for identifying, assessing and facilitating the mitigation of risks in ActewAGL's wholesale purchasing agreements and service contracts.
In April 2004, Ayesha was promoted to Manager Wholesale, where she leads a team of four staff. In this position, Ayesha is responsible for ActewAGL's electricity, renewable energy and gas purchases. She also manages the wholesale position to ensure that the joint venture's interests and margins are protected within the guidelines set by the General Manager.
Since joining the company Ayesha has undertaken various training courses and has developed a high level of business acumen in the electricity and gas wholesale markets. She was a member of ActewAGL's Leadership Program in 2003 and has also participated on a number of strategic projects including;
- Wholesale Billing Project - Ayesha was responsible for the development, implementation and project management of a system that was able to correctly settle the electricity purchases between ActewAGL and AGL.
- FRC Bundling Taskforce - Working in a small team, Ayesha was responsible for preparing ActewAGL for full retail competition and helped launch the "bundle campaign". Her main focus was in the marketing area where she developed successful campaigns, strategies, and collateral relating to the "bundle" product. v
- Joint Venture transition - Ayesha assisted the Wholesale area through the change over from ACTEW Energy to ActewAGL. She was involved in the valuation of the ACTEW hedge portfolio, developing procedures to handle transfer pricing from AGL and the novation of wholesale contracts.