Defence

Defence Personnel Executive

Trans-Tasman talks

By Kathryn Fitch

Left to Right: LTCOL Clare Bennett, WGCDR Rory Paddock, Mr Nesa Djorovic, CMDR Scott Rennie, LCDR Andrew Cowen, Mr Robert McIver, MAJ Jason Markham.

During the first half of the 19th Century, author Margaret Fuller suggested that if you have knowledge you should let others light their candles at it. Two centuries on, wattage has gone up, but the principle that lies at the centre of the relationship being built between Australian Defence Force (ADF) and New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) workforce planning specialists is the same.

Seven workforce planning specialists from the NZDF visited the Defence workforce planning specialists in Canberra in August, to gain a better understanding of the ADF's approach to strategic workforce planning.

It was the latest in a series of meetings aimed at developing the trans-Tasman relationship, which began through The Technical Cooperation Program (TTCP) Working Group on Workforce Modelling, held in Ottawa, Canada in 2003.

According to the ADF and NZDF representatives, sharing information on workforce planning, recruitment and retention makes sense as it is a growing concern for both forces. The cultural similarities and comparative size of each force provides a natural linkage between the two countries.

Director Strategic Personnel Planning for the Royal New Zealand Navy, Commander Scott Rennie, says workforce planning is an area that requires specialist skills and finding the people who have those skills is no easy task.

"There's no mortgage on good ideas, therefore it's important, where possible, to share those resources. The visit provided an opportunity for us to share ideas," he says. "I think we have learned a lot by examining issues and talking with our Australian counterparts about their experiences," Director of Air Force Personnel Policy, Wing Commander Rory Paddock says.

"I guess for me, it's just confirmed that people are willing to share ideas and exchange opinions in this specialised area," Army General Staff - Strategic Personnel, Major Jason Markham says.

Over four days the team met with senior officers from the Defence Personnel Executive (DPE) to gain a comprehensive understanding of the Defence Workforce Plan and Defence People Plan, as well as the planning tools and workforce models used by the ADF.

Commander Rennie feels that the information gleaned would prove to be very useful in tackling existing and future challenges in the personnel arena of the NZDF.

"We currently do our workforce planning primarily in the single services, with some more generic workforce planning at Personnel Branch level. We're keen to enhance our capability in that area and the relationships we've had with the ADF workforce planners in the past has been great in terms of looking at similarities in models and approaches," he says.

New and upgraded technology is a big driver for the New Zealand Defence Force. The Navy has seven new vessels arriving in the 2006-2008 period, which will increase the demand for people.

Commander Rennie says it's a case of 'recover first and then grow', given that the Royal New Zealand Navy is currently short of personnel. Both the New Zealand Army and Royal New Zealand Air Force report similar stories, having recently received new or updated equipment which has resulted in the need to grow their forces and update skill levels.

Mr Anthony Klenthis, Director Defence Workforce and People Plans within DPE, who organised the visit, says a lot of work has been done in the Defence Workforce Plan 2006 to focus on workforce risk identification and management, and he is keen to pass the lessons learned throughout this process onto his NZDF counterparts.

"The workforce planning problems that western military forces face are common - particularly demographic trends, demand pressures and resource constraints," he says.

"In Australia, it's a confluence of a number of factors. The first is rising separation rates in some areas balanced against the fact that we need to grow as a force towards our end-strength of around 53,000 by 2010. Indicators from the labour market and wider Australian demography suggest that competition among employers will remain high. At the same time the key demographic that we recruit from - 17-24 year olds - will start to decline in terms of the overall population from 2015."

Lieutenant Colonel Clare Bennett, NZDF's Director of Strategic Human Resource Requirements, agrees that there is commonality in the workforce issues being faced. Although the NZDF has a longer predicted lead time before numbers in the traditional recruit pool will begin to decline, competition for this pool is set to increase. In the short term, the NZDF's focus is on growing personnel capability to address existing shortfalls.

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