News
Job Seekers Gain Insight into Call Centre Industry
Posted on Monday, 14 December 2009 | Permalink
Photo caption (left to right)
Course participants - Juliette Walsh, Stacey-Lee Mills, Colleen Lazzarin, Penelope Birtles, Lauren Wells and Jessica Hennesy
NGT Tasmania and Choose Employment recently collaborated on a joint project to introduce a number of Burnie job seekers to the Call Centre industry.
Choose Employment staff approached local call centre operator Excelior to identify exactly what skills they were looking for in a new employee. They then worked with NGT Tasmania staff to design the course content to meet this need.
Ten local job seekers participated in the four day course which provided an induction into the industry and links directly to Excelior.
The course included information on key aspects of the industry including customer service and time management. One of the course highlights was a site visit to the Excelior Call Centre to see exactly what happens on the ground.
As a result of their participation in this course, two of the participants now have positions with Excelior.
NGT Tasmania offers flexible and customised training solutions for a wide range of business and industry sectors. Call us now on (03) 6235 5648 to discuss training needs and opportunities for your business.
Parent Company O Group named as Employer of Choice in Tasmania
Posted on Wednesday, 11 November 2009 | Permalink
Tasmania’s O group Inc. was added to the Honour roll of Employer’s of Choice in a ceremony lead by Hon. Lisa Singh, MP Minister for Workplace Relations in Hobart Nov 9 2009.
O group is the first Not for Profit (NFP) organisation to receive this award and they join past winners - Vodafone Hutchison Australia Pty Ltd, SEMF Pty Ltd, Hazell Bros Group Pty Ltd, WHK Group-Tasmania, Fairbrother Group and for 2009 Austal Shipping, Launceston City Council and Sinclair Knight Merz P/L.
O group Inc. is the collaboration of a range of well known, prolific Tasmania NFP businesses and companies including Business & Employment, NGT, Findstaff.biz, Developing Potential Aust, Business Mentor Services Tasmania and Choose Employment. O group has some 160 direct employees and more than a dozen locations across the State providing employment, recruitment, training and business help services. They also provide training to a diverse range of clients on mainland Australia.
CEO Andrew Billing places his staff squarely as the reason the organisation has been well recognised.
“It started as a journey in 2003 when we had chronic staff turnover – from that date to now we have “put our ears on” and listened to staff and even pushed them for feedback, comments, suggestions and engagement. “We do not implement everything but we try to give everything a fair hearing. We also treat staff as individuals when it comes to being able to address their work/life balance needs, which seems at odds with a large employer but clearly, it works for us”. Billing went on to say that the organisation got a signpost result they were on the right track in 2007 when they won a National Work & Family Award in Sydney. “The State EOC award is a tremendous boost to our staff and organisation that strives to achieve more for Tasmanian jobseekers, employers and businesses said Mr Billing.
Enquiries
Exec Manager Corporate Services - Gail Wilson
gail.wilson@ogroup.org.au
For more information on work life balance, visit Balancing Australia www.balancingaustralia.com.au
Parent Company - O Group Successful in Job Funds Application
Posted on Thursday, 3 September 2009 | Permalink
.JPG)
From left to right: Ian Fawkner, Manager Community Solutions, Senator Nick Sherry, Sid Sidebottom MP and the O Group Executive Finance Manager Charlie Emmerton after the announcement was made in Devonport.
O Group representatives joined with Tasmanian upper house member Senator Nick Sherry and local member for Braddon, Sid Sidebottom to publicly announce success in our Federal Jobs Fund application. The O Group of companies have been granted $1 million to implement their “Community Infrastructure Development Group” project as part of the national Get Communities Working Fund.
This project is collaboration with a range of community Not-for-profits including Youth and Family Focus and the Westbury Community Health Centre. O group will establish four community infrastructure development teams, and offer casual employment over a five day fortnight to improve community infrastructure in Northern Tasmania.
These teams will focus on a number of aged care and civic infrastructure projects already under development. The opportunity to progress up to 100 jobseekers (some of whom may have been recently made redundant), via this subsidised employment opportunity during 2010 is being lauded as an innovative, progressive and exciting prospect for jobseekers across the region. It will also present those jobseekers with a range of “best fit” skills and attributes for other industry sector work such as in construction and allied roles.
TASTA Award Nominee - Commitment the key for Alisha
Posted on Tuesday, 18 August 2009 | Permalink
NGT Tasmania is thrilled once again to announce the nomination of one of their Trainees in the TASTA Training Awards. Alisha Hanuszewicz, currently studying Certificate III in Business Administration at TasPorts was thrilled to hear about her nomination.
NGT Training Consultant, Maggie Nettleship, says Alisha makes her job easy. “She’s always ready for assessments and has done the work. She puts her hand up to come to our workshops too, which has helped boost her understanding and skills in key behaviors required by employers, including customer service skills and dealing with conflict.”
Alisha’s supervisor, Annette Fox of TasPorts, has supported Alisha every step of the way in her studies and in TASTA nomination. “It’s great to see how far Alisha has developed through her training and her overall commitment to the whole process.“
State Manager for NGT Tasmania - Training Services, Jen Britton is very proud of the number of NGT Trainees nominated for the awards this year. “The TASTA Awards are a great way for young, motivated trainees to gain recognition in their workplace and the wider industry. Participation in the awards can only benefit the trainees as they strive towards rewarding careers.”
TASTA Award Nominee - Amy looks to the Future
Posted on Tuesday, 18 August 2009 | Permalink
Amy Clark, a trainee employed by NGT Group Employment Services, has been nominated for 2009 TASTA Trainee of the Year Award. Amy was nominated by her RTO, also NGT Tasmania, and her host employer, the North West Regional Hospital (Burnie Campus).
Employed by NGT Tasmania and her host employer since September 2007 Amy has proven herself to be a committed and capable young woman and a valued, dependable staff member. Training has played a pivotal role in Amy’s development, completing qualifications in both Certificate II and III in Business, and has used this to good effect in the workplace.
Senior NGT Training Consultant, Erin Smith has worked closely with Amy throughout her training. “The quality of work submitted by Amy has always been of the highest standard and she has eagerly taken on every opportunity to learn. She is fully aware of how this will benefit her future.”
Since being nominated for this award Amy has completed her Certificate IV in Business and has gone on to be employed directly by the North West Regional Hospital (Burnie Campus). NGT wish her every success for the future.
Louise Cowan, selected as a finalist in the TASTA Awards
Posted on Tuesday, 18 August 2009 | Permalink
Louise Cowan, Retail Operations Manager for Launceston City Mission, has been selected as a finalist for this year’s TASTA Training Awards.
Currently enrolled in Certificate IV Frontline Management with NGT Training, Louise’s current responsibilities involve supervision of staff, developing successful teams, managing projects and ensuring a safe work environment for the many staff and volunteers of the organisation. The units offered in Certificate IV Frontline Management matched the skills and knowledge required.
“We wanted to give Louise the opportunity to enhance and grow her existing leadership and management skills.” said Albert van Zetten, Chief Executive Officer for Launceston City Mission
Louise embraced the opportunity to learn new skills and has managed to use them in an effective way that is applicable to her workplace.
Nancy Pattison is Louise’s NGT Training Consultant.
“It is part of our role to recognise trainees that represent the real meaning of vocational education and training within Tasmania. Louise Cowan is one such trainee and it was a pleasure to nominate her for the annual Tasmanian Training Awards.”
NGT Tasmania congratulates Louise on being selected as a Finalist for this years awards and wish her every success.
Building Confidence and Professionalism
Posted on Thursday, 30 July 2009 | Permalink
Mariah Freeman, a business trainee with WHK Garrotts in Launceston, was recently nominated for Trainee of the Year in the 2009 TASTA Awards. Mariah elected to join the workforce at the age of 17 and has displayed exceptional maturity in her approach to work and training. She does not discriminate between tasks nor clients, giving equal attention and effort to every task assigned to her.
“Perhaps one of the most enjoyable aspects I find of working and training simultaneously, is the fact that you are in a team environment. Being a part of a team is a great way to get to know and study human nature. I believe that working and undertaking training can give you a confidence and professionalism which can be extended to all parts of your life. Communication, teamwork and flexibility are skills that are learnt in your workplace and through your training which can be applied in various social avenues and places outside of your work.”
NGT Training Consultant, Nancy Pattinson, has worked closely with Mariah throughout her traineeship and is greatly impressed by her dedication and work ethic.
“It has been a pleasure to witness first hand Mariah’s growth and development during her training with NGT Tasmania and we wish her every success in the future.”
The Tasmanian Training Awards are conducted annually by Skills Tasmania. The Awards recognise, reward and honour the achievements of apprentices, trainees and vocational students for their endeavours in gaining the highest standards of knowledge and skills within their industry. They also recognise and honour the achievements of employers, small businesses and training organisations for their dedication to providing the highest quality training and enhancing the skills of the workforce in this State
. 
Searoad - Leading the Way
Posted on Thursday, 9 July 2009 | Permalink
Searoad, one of NGT Tasmania’s valued and long standing clients, identified that some of their higher level staff members would benefit from some training aimed at enhancing their communication skills as leaders in the workplace.
NGT Tasmania was able to tailor a workshop for Searoad specifically aimed at addressing the issues that had been identified. These included:
• Customer Service (internal and external)
• Negotiation Skills
• Conflict Resolution Skills
The workshop was delivered on site at Searoad, which was beneficial for participants as it didn’t remove them from their workplace, and the feedback received from participants and Searoad management was all positive.
Ian Birchall, Compliance/HR Manager for Searoad, said participants thought the workshop was of benefit to them and very worthwhile. They were keen to put some of what they learnt into practice.
“It is a workshop I would recommend to anyone in a supervisory role with regular contact with their colleagues and wanting to enhance their communication skills. The practical activities and role playing were beneficial and participants will be able to draw on this information to improve their performance as leaders in the workplace.”
If you think staff in your organisation could benefit from this workshop or you have another training need we could assist you with, please feel free to contact Jen Britton on 0409 142 589. NGT Tasmania will be only too happy to discuss how we can help you improve your business.
Boost to employment opportunities statewide
Posted on Friday, 19 June 2009 | Permalink
Indigenous Year 10 students across Tasmania are being encouraged to apply for ANZ's Indigenous School-Based Traineeship Program for 2010.
The two-year program enables students to undertake paid traineeship in an ANZ Tasmania branch and complete a National qualification while finishing high school.
O Group CEO Andrew Billing said in a Tasmanian first, the O Group and the ANZ had committed to creating 16 employment and training opportunities in ANZ bank branches across the State.
“The agreement is not only good news for young indigenous Tasmanians but also regional employment given the spread of ANZ’s branches throughout the State,” he said.
“It is a good package and good news for our regions providing job opportunities for regional Tasmania, with a national qualification attached, and including pay and a career opportunity.”
Mr Billing said O Group was providing more than 150 direct training and employment opportunities for Tasmanians.
“The ANZ’s plans are a welcome support to employment and training of our indigenous students,” he said.
“Those students selected to participate in the program will not only benefit from working in their local ANZ branch but also from support from an O Group office located nearby.”
Applications for the 2010 intake close on July 31 2009.
For more information contact Kellie Cobern at NGT Tasmania on (03) 6235 5648 or email kellie.cobern@ngt.com.au
Parent Company O Group supports Local Government Conference 2009
Posted on Tuesday, 16 June 2009 | Permalink
The Local Government Conference was held on 10-12th June at Wrest Point in Hobart and saw almost 200 delegates from councils across Tasmania attend. The theme of the conference was Community Conversations: Striving for More and saw the O Group lend its support through showcasing its range of services aimed at engaging and benefiting the local communities. The annual conference is coordinated in association with the Intstitute of Public Works and Engineering Australia and Local Government Managers Australia.
