1. 46 December 2014
Professional Employment
Breaking down the barriers – maximising value from
talent pools in the environmental and community
management sector
by Clint Harrison AAusIMM, Director, Sustaining Tonnes
Introduction
Over the past ten years the
significance of effective environmental
management and community
engagement has been considered
increasingly vital to both the mining
and oil and gas sectors.
The engineering and technology
required for oil and gas projects is
more complex compared with that
of mining and mineral processing.
However, when considering the
environmental and community inputs
needed across an asset’s lifecycle
(for both sectors) it is a more even
playing field.
As the mining sector transitions
from the project development and
expansion phase into sustained
production, the number of employees
required in the industry will decrease
and this talent pool – that has
developed exceptional skills over the
past ten years – will look for other
markets to transition into.
Of the most interest is the growing
oil and gas sector. As an energy
and resources focussed recruitment
firm, Sustaining Tonnes has identified
that the well-paid salaries of mining
professionals are equally achievable
in oil and gas and – similar to mining
– the projects are often in remote
locations. There are both synergies
as well as barriers for mining-based
environment and community
management professionals seeking
to transition into oil and gas.
What are the barriers
and synergies to
industry transition?
The oil and gas and mining sectors
identify as their own independent
industries due to their historic
isolation from one another (offshore
versus onshore).
With a new wave of energy supplies
coming from unconventional onshore
sources, the divide between the two
sectors is narrowing. This is evident
when considering the synergies in
regulatory approvals, native title,
heritage, environmental compliance,
community engagement and site
rehabilitation required across the
project and operational lifecycles.
There is an opportunity for the oil and
gas sector to benefit from a cross-fertilisation
of skills now that the
peak of the latest mining expansion
has passed. Equally, mining should
look to the oil and gas sector for
skills when its next expansion
phase occurs.
Every sector has a preference to hire
from within its own ranks. Companies
understandably want the most aligned
talent for their projects and operations
and seek individuals with direct
industry experience for recruitment or
consultant engagement.
In addition to a difference in regulatory
frameworks – such as The National
Of fshore Petroleum Safety and
Environmental Management Authority
(NOPSEMA) – a key differentiator
between the two sectors is the land
area and corresponding impact level
of the operations.
Oil and gas tends to have limited
impact across a broader area due
to its linear nature that is largely
subsurface, whereas mining focuses
on a smaller land area but has
a much more profound impact.
Professionals will likely have to
engage with a larger number of
stakeholders if they were to transfer
from mining to oil and gas.
Technology and language are different
from sector to sector also, however
with the right support and training
these challenges can be overcome
fairly quickly. A key challenge to
overcome initially is the existing
cultural barriers of entry. These seem
to be more prevalent when trying to
move into the oil and gas market,
but still exist to a lesser extent in the
mining sector.
What are the benefits?
Companies seeking to acquire talent
for their projects will find advantages
in being open to staff from within
and outside their own industr y’s
talent pool.
Critical skills shortages should be
identified early on and targeted
in other industr y sectors where
more mature and larger talent pools
exist. In addition to unear thing
additional skill sets, looking to
other industries can go as far
as reducing total staff costs; by
increasing candidate supply there
will be increased competition for
roles. Individuals will naturally be
more flexible and potentially open to
reducing their salar y expectations
to secure a competitive position.
Both the mining and oil and gas
sectors have been vocal in their
discussion on reducing costs below
recent market peaks to ensure the
Australian market remains globally
competitive. The shortage of available
local talent has ultimately led to
Australian staff being one of the
most expensive internationally across
mining and oil and gas.
By maximising the available talent
pool from the slowdown in mining
and applying it to the growing oil
and gas industry, the supply of

2. December 2014 47
Professional Employment
available talent increases and costs
should decrease. Conversely, when
the mining sector begins to expand
again, miners will benefit from hiring
employees that have advanced their
professional capabilities in the
technically challenging oil and gas
industr y.
Skills transferable to the
oil and gas industry
In the environment and community
market, established mining skills that
could be leveraged by oil and gas
include:
•• community engagement of local
land users and traditional owners/
native title groups
•• development of Indigenous
employment opportunity programs
•• hydrology and ground water
management
•• management of projects with
significant disturbance footprints
•• ear thworks and ground engineering
•• environmental management of land
based impacts such as air quality,
noise, flora and fauna control, etc.
Skills transferable to the
mining industry
Conversely, established oil and gas
skills that could be leveraged by
mining include:
•• offshore marine por t infrastructure
development
•• environmental marine management
of dredging programs
•• environment and stakeholder
management for linear
infrastructure
•• contamination containment and
control techniques
•• decommissioning of complex
industrial facilities
•• contaminated land assessment
and remediation practices.
Conclusion
Competing land use issues and
well-organised opposition have
successfully delayed a number of
mining and oil and gas projects in
recent times, with environmental
and community impacts being at the
centre of issues raised that have
contributed to project delays.
For companies seeking to develop
projects it has never been more
critical to ensure they have the
best environment and community
management talent on their
development teams. By taking a
holistic view of the talent pools from
both within and external to their own
market they can ensure they are
gaining exposure to the strongest
candidates in the industry.
It is imperative that senior executives
and thought leaders within these
industries work towards reducing
some of these cultural barriers in
order to secure exceptional talent
and the best fit, not only for their
business and/or project, but for the
development of the their market
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