Organisational Improvement Through Graduate ProgramEvolution

摘要

Attraction,recruitment and retention of quality mining engineers isrnbecoming increasingly difficult for many mining companies.Part of thernproblem is attracting young professionals,especially given the decline inrngraduating engineer numbers,and the other is balancing the newrnengineer's development with business needs.rnThe evolution of the graduate program at Olympic Dam over the lastrnfive years has resulted in substantial benefits for both the engineer and therncompany.The program has developed to provide structured exposure tornkey areas of the mine enabling new engineers to step into vacated roles asrnthe need arises.The pool of quality engineers generated by the graduaternprogram is a buffer against high industry turnover and helps reduce futurernrecruitment expenditure.rnOlympic Dam 's program goes beyond conventional recruitment ofrngraduate engineers.Innovations designed to improve intake include thernemployment of graduate engineers as well as final year students,rnretraining of existing personnel from other backgrounds and fast trackrnrecruitment for previous vacation students.By employing a cross-sectionrnof professionals to complement the generic university graduate,therncompany takes full advantage of the relevant lifestyle experiencernbelonging to the individual,which is a substantial factor in turnover.rnStudy assistance and a salary paid for final year students and mature agernstudents often creates a loyalty that lasts beyond graduation.Carefulrnselection of vacation students increases the ease of recruitment at a laterrnstage and ensures that full advantage is taken of the relationshiprndeveloped previously between the company and young professional.rnThe evolution of recruitment at Olympic Dam has seen a decline in thernturnover statistics of young mining professionals.