Blu Ripples – Career Counselling, Career Consulting and Resume Writing Services
Career Counselling, Career Consulting, Planning and Resume Writing Services
CAREER CHANGE – ABC RADIO (HOBART) INTERVIEW
Did you miss Katherine’s first radio interview with Louise Saunders of ABC Radio (Hobart) on Monday 18th May 2020 at 7.10pm?
If you would like to listen to this 10-12 minute segment click on the link below:-
Career Change – ABC Radio (Hobart) Interview
then from the commencement of the program fast forward to about 7 minutes and 30 seconds to hear the commencement of segement; it goes for about 13 mintues in totality.
Enjoy.
Federal Career Counselling and Career Development Initiatives
As you may recall in the Federal Budget this year (2019) the government announced that it will be launching a National Skills Commission as part of a federally funded skills package.
As a Professional Member of the Career Development Association of Australia (CDAA) I was extended an invitation to participate in the Sydney Co-Design workshop for the Commission and Skills package.
Over a two day period industry professional shared their perceptions and experiences with the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business with regards to our expectations and the objectives of the National Career Institute, National Skills Commission and Skills Organisation through a variety of brainstorming activities.
In addition to the above, insight was gained into key vocational employment growth sectors over next 5 years been:-
with the other top 7 sectors ranging from 10.5% to 18.8% growth.
As a result of attending the workshop, key career knowledge was obtained that will be invaluable helping clients in exploring Vocational Education Pathways over the short to medium term.
The Co-Design workshop also provided a golden opportunity for me, as a qualified Career Development Specialist whom lives and works in a regional area; for instance it enabled me to share information in relation to the specific challenges and needs not only for industry but regional community areas and members.
Indeed it will be interesting in due course to hear the findings and recommendations from the national workshops and how we as participating professionals and individuals contributed to the shaping and molding of the National Careers Institute, National Skills Commission and Skills Organisation.
In conclusion, Blu Ripples was proud to participate in the event and also be able to provide meaningful career guidance, insight and perspective to our clients.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Katherine is the Founder of Blu Ripples a specialist Career Counselling and Consulting practice located in Port Stephens NSW. Katherine is a nationally registered Career Development Specialist and Counsellor; is a Professional Member of the Career Development Association of Australia, Member of the Australian Counselling Association of Australia and Australian Association for Psychological Type. Katherine has worked in private practice since 2003 and prior to that worked in the corporate sector for a period of 12 years predominantly in Human Resources and Administration.
CAREER COUNSELLING AND PLANNING
A couple of months ago, one was exploring Master programs offered at a variety of Australian universities. During this process, one spoke with Continue reading “Career Counselling and Planning – What is going on in our universities? The need to understand self”
As a Career Development Specialist and Counsellor whom lives and works in Port Stephens, a regional area on the NSW North Coast, one has facilitated numerous regional and rural clients since 2012 to identify and explore career options and pathways and as such understands the challenges and opportunities that come from living in areas outside of major CBD locations.
Whilst it is true that the volume of opportunities is not the same as a major CBD location such as Sydney; it does not mean that opportunities do not exist. It simply means that regional and rural community members need to dig a little deeper, explore labour market statistics in more detail, identify and respond to opportunities and possibly make a few more compromises in relation to their desired outcome(s) for example embracing portfolio careers (having several part time or casual positions) rather than traditional full time 9 to 5 positions.
Like their major city counterparts regional and rural community members need to: –
Just like each individual, each regional and rural area across Australia has its strengths, areas of growth and opportunities for community members.
In the 7+ years one has lived in Port Stephens NSW with ones’ husband; over this timeframe we have noticed a lot of change and growth in our suburb and surrounding area; in fact, we have seen the area progress with: –
All of this within a 10 or so minute drive of our home; thus, when reading the above information – what does this tell you about this particular region?
From ones’ perspective, when analysing these changes in terms of employment industries the obvious industry that is booming in the area at the moment is Construction; which just so happens to be a top 3 industry across Australia and within Port Stephens (based on latest labour market statistic information).
Occupations that fall within the construction industry include Electrician, Painter, Tiler, Project Manager, Construction – Site Manager, Labourer, Excavator Operator, Fencer, Surveyor, Plumber, Building Estimator, Building Inspector, Pest Inspector, Carpenter and Joiner.
However, just like any other industry there is a myriad of occupations and industries that complement and/or support the Construction industry both during the planning and construction phase and post construction (in terms of providing products and services to residents and the border community) for example: –
Sometimes we become so stuck in our particular mindset of I want to be this, I want to earn so much per week, I don’t want to work in that location and/or even that we are above a particular position or industry that we fail to see the opportunities right in front of us.
As one highlighted through the above summary, opportunities do exist in regional and rural areas; it may be that we just need to take a step back and clearly look at our marketplace (what is happening in our region) in greater detail – to do a little more digging (research) and analysis to find out what the opportunities are in order to ascertain where you fit – be it marketing yourself and your unique skill base as an employee or independent worker to capture the market or better yet the niche in the market.
As previously discussed, opportunities do exist in rural and regional areas however a little more digging maybe required to find out where you fit in the grand scheme of things.
One way to start, digging a little deeper, is to research your regions labour – employment market statistics; there is a wealth of free and paid information on the internet.
In fact, in researching data for this article, one found (online) a letter dated 10th March 2017 from Port Stephens Council to Senate Finance and Public Administration Committee – Parliament House Canberra; supporting the relocation of government bodies to regional areas.
In the aforementioned correspondence the author (Mr. Wayne Wallis) stated that “the Hunter Region has been experiencing economic restructuring with a shift away from traditional goods-producing sectors like mining and manufacturing to high value added knowledge based service sectors”.
Ones’ interpretation of this commentary is that councils in the Hunter region are strategizing and actioning change management plans to shift the employment market, of their respective areas, to a high quality knowledge base sectors such as Information Technology, Accounting, Counselling, Business Management, Medical and Allied Health, Education and Training and moving away from sectors such as Manufacturing, Mining, Electricity and Gas.
Thus, whilst the current labour market in this region maybe goods-producing at present; those considering their career options and pathways would be wise to take this commentary on board and plan for the future rather making decisions based on todays’ (current) needs.
Remember it takes time to study and gain experience and when you have completed any training it is important that the jobs are available in your region, a region close by or that you can develop online services to target the wider community in order to support yourself in your preferred residential location – community.
In closing, as one has clearly articulated throughout this article; each regional and rural area in Australia is different. However, if you are prepared to do some research and analysis, observe the current services and industries in your area, identify the shortfalls and develop a service or product to meet these needs as an independent worker; or conversely if you can tailor your training and employment documentation (Resume-CV) to the needs of employers through the clear representation of your key transferable skills, knowledge and experiences you will be in front of the competition.
Katherine is the Founder of Blu Ripples a specialist Career Counselling and Consulting practice located in Port Stephens NSW. Katherine is a nationally registered Career Development Specialist and Counsellor; is a Professional Member of the Career Development Association of Australia, Member of the Australian Counselling Association of Australia and Australian Association for Psychological Type. Katherine has worked in private practice since 2003 and prior to that worked in the corporate sector for a period of 12 years predominantly in Human Resources and Administration.
In early 2017, one proposed as a then sitting member of the CDAA NSW Committee a webinar entitled Mental Health in Career Development.
Drawing on ones’ experiences and qualifications as a nationally registered Counsellor, as well as conducting extensive research with individuals with diagnosed mental health conditions in ones’ local region, together with research from various journals and articles one developed a comprehensive and meaningful webinar outlining: –
As a Career Development Practitioner, it is not our job to diagnose a client with a mental health condition, that is the role of the clients’ doctor, specialists and/or mental health practitioners. However, as Career Development Practitioners we do have a duty of care to all clients to ensure that no additional harm is done to our clients whilst they are utilising our services; and to ensure that we act ethically with respect to the administration of psychometric instrumentation.
Thus, it is ones’ opinion that it is important for all individuals in the Career Development industry to understand the fundamentals of Mental Health in order to effectively facilitate our clients, identify signs and symptoms of Mental Health Conditions, to know when and how to refer clients to ensure due diligence is carried out and that career strategies engaged are effective, meaningful and ethical in accordance with the needs of the client, industry guidelines and regulations.
In fact, one would go so far as to state that tertiary providers should incorporate fundamental Mental Health modules into their Career Development courses to ensure that all graduating practitioners have a basic understanding prior to entering the workforce or commencing their own private practice.
Well Katherine, that’s a very interesting perspective but it doesn’t affect me or my organisation!
Well, one is here to challenge you and to say Think Again!
The Medical Journal of Australia (Aug 09), Mindframes and the Black Dog Institute identifies the Top 3 Mental Health Conditions in Australia to be:- Continue reading “Mental Health In Career Development – Guidance for Career Development Practitioners”
Career Development is a large umbrella or net that draws together a myriad of Career Services occupations and brands them together in one category with the purposes of facilitating and empowering a client in the exploration, development and management of their career over the course of their career life cycle.
There are a multitude of Career Service occupations that fall under the Career Development banner including: –
As illustrated above, there are many occupations that fall under the umbrella of Career Development; which in ones’ opinion can potentially cause clients a great deal of stress trying to determine who is the appropriate service provider for me.
Continue reading “Career Development Professionals – Sorting the Chaff from the Wheat”
Blu Ripples is proud to announce that Continue reading “CDAA – NSW Committee Member; Katherine Foster – Blu Ripples”