1. I N N O VAT I O N S I N
W O R K I N G M E T H O D S
W H Y W E M U S T C O N T I N U E T O C H A N G E

2. • Andy Randell, PGeo
• Strata GeoData Services (SGDS)
• Workshops - education & outreach
• Hive - connecting industry & graduates
• Consult - professional services
I N T R O D U C T I O N

3. The changes we are seeing are
not subtle, and are affecting
all areas of the industry.
• The Finances
• The People
• The Attitudes
• The Required Skills
W H AT I S C H A N G I N G ?
“We are undeniably living through a period of
massive industry adjustment, corporate extinction
and, ultimately, will witness evolutionary leaps to
suit a changed environment”
Andy Randell, the night before this presentation was due.

4. The flow of money is
perhaps the most obvious
change that we are seeing:
Cash flow drops as investors
become ‘risk adverse’
The problem of ‘Zombie
Companies’ and financing
of debt
Loss of faith in markets /
management
Increase in crowdfunding
and other private
placements.
F I N A N C I A L R E A L I G N M E N T

5. Prolonged poor market
conditions and job prospects
have having extreme effects:
individuals leaving for more
stable careers
students deterred from taking
geological sciences; graduates
have no jobs to gain
experience in.
degradation of skills (use it
or lose it!)
professionals retiring
intergenerational demands
in the work environment
T H E G E O - B R A I N D R A I N

6. Attitudes are changing across
the industry, and can be at
odds ‘the way we have always
done it’:
many are more sensitive to
the environment
the ‘macho’ attitude is dying
conflicts between personal
convictions and that of
‘investor pleasing’
wanting equal and non-
discriminatory opportunities
for all
investment in clearly ethical
projects
C H A N G I N G AT T I T U D E S

7. The last time we checked,
geologists are not just
geologists anymore:
often the point of contact for
First Nations / Government
organizing environmental
work such as baseline studies
travel coordinators and other
admin roles etc …
where did the time go to
study the rocks and do the
science?
replacing the jobs of many as
companies reduce spending -
but to what cost in quality?
T H E R E Q U I R E D S K I L L S

8. Don’t fight the
change, fight FOR it!
try to actively engage the
community, especially
graduates
be open to new ideas
collaborate with other
industry sectors to create
opportunity
don’t let a lack of money
defeat you - just get
creative!
S M O O T H I N G T H E T R A N S I T I O N

9. Offer learning experiences
for people, this also increases
engagement whilst decreasing
the industry drain.
invite groups to your offices
to talk about what you do, or
your projects. Ignite your
passion, and theirs!
ask universities “how you can
help”
allow individuals to come in
and use that unused Arc
Licence on a computer and
keep their skills fresh
SGDS Workshops, for example
(Shameless Plug #1)
E X A M P L E 1 : W O R K S H O P S

10. Working with graduates
on your projects to process
work
engaging groups to get
involved in non-
geological aspects, such
as First Nations youth in
environmental research
allowing consultants to
use equipment (field gear,
computing software,
meeting spaces etc) - this
stimulates opportunities!
SGDS Hive, for example
(Shameless Plug #2)
E X A M P L E 2 : C O L L A B O R AT I O N

11. This has been popular in other
industries for some time, but
has recently been introduced
for mining.
‘MineSpace’ in Australia has
successfully set up
collaborative office spaces, set
up with equipment for
geologists.
‘Pay As You Go’ software
through internet portal allows
access anytime, anywhere and
at a hugely reduced cost.
Allows for multidisciplinary
professionals working on a
variety of projects to interact in
one space.
E X A M P L E 3 : C O - W O R K I N G S PA C E

12. Do you want
to be the
dinosaur, or
the mammal?
Thanks for listening!
N O W I T ’ S U P T O Y O U