Workforce shortages for Surveying and Spatial related occupations have been looming for over a decade. Unless action is taken by the industry, the growing shortfall will continue unabated. While in the recent past various recommendations have been developed through workforce gap analysis reports (ACIL Tasman 2013 1, BIS Schrapnel 2018 2), little coordinated and sustained action has been undertaken to progress associated implementation risks. It is plausible that had a coordinated, structured plan been implemented at the time of the earlier workforce analysis, the current situation may have bee
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Workforce shortages for Surveying and Spatial related occupations have been looming for over a decade. Unless action is taken by the industry, the growing shortfall will continue unabated. While in the recent past various recommendations have been developed through workforce gap analysis reports (ACIL Tasman 2013 1, BIS Schrapnel 2018 2), little coordinated and sustained action has been undertaken to progress associated implementation risks. It is plausible that had a coordinated, structured plan been implemented at the time of the earlier workforce analysis, the current situation may have been avoided. This is not to criticise past decisions but rather to emphasise the time for action is now. In recognising a critical need for action, the Surveyors Trust commissioned work to review and collate research of the Australian surveying and spatial sector workforce to have a better understanding of the landscape, issues therein and opportunities to inform a collective industry approach to address the workforce crisis impacting the surveying and spatial industry in Australia.
The objectives of the work include: (1) A consolidated summary of industry workforce and skills gap analysis for the surveying industry and associated occupations (nation-wide) including: (a) recommendations on how the industry should best address identified productivity risks associated with declining workforce and a narrowing of the skills pipeline; and (b) Terms of Reference for an industry group to address key risks; and (2) The basis for planning for a Workforce Industry Forum to be held in 2022.
This paper advocates for the industry to adopt a sustainable, holistic approach to workforce planning and implementation underpinned by collaboration of a wide range of industry sectors and representative bodies. To fully address workforce capacity and capability needs, it is recommended that planning and program design be informed by long-term workforce development strategies and implementation building on evidence-based decisions relating to policy and regulatory frameworks, education and training pathways, workforce structure and economic development influenced by technology adoption, investment and global competition for talent. This paper recognises and commends previous efforts to address workforce issues and seeks to communicate the value of sustaining the momentum to realise long-term transformation.
Excerpts from publication.
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