Kelly, Boris - College of Event Management

Response:

What does industry engagement mean to you?
- Connecting students directly to the industry they aspire to be employed in
- Supporting students in their engagement e.g through volunteering, mentoring and employment pathways
 
How can industry be encouraged to connect with and use the VET system? What does this look like?
- The connection needs to be authentic, direct and mutually beneficial
- Industry associations play a part in the facilitation of connection bur not ownership of t
- Higher level paid apprenticeship programs e.g. the German model

Are there any roles for industry in the VET system that are not covered or outlined in the case for change?
- I'm not convinced that "industry" is clearly defined

Response:

Yes

Response:

What works well and what could be improved? How could it be improved?
- Good will is clearly in evidence. People want to see meaningful change
- The system feels stale, afraid of innovation and collaboration or not quite sure how to do it
- Silos need to be challenged by more cross-sector engagement
- We need more focus on opportunities to develop teaching skills
- The TAE qualification encourages a bureaucratic, box-ticking mindset that has very little to do with teaching
- Industry consultation in our sector is very narrowly defined
- We are trapped in layers of regulation
- Training packages are absurdly complex and create false parameters
- Flexibility is constrained by regulation and a fixed mindset

How well are you (or your organisation) represented by these arrangements?
- Not very well at all
- Industry associations offer limited benefits despite good intentions 

How well do current arrangements allow collaboration across industry sectors on common workforce and skills needs?
- Very limited
- Too many silos and linear thinking
- It all feels very stale and over-complicated for no good reason

Response:

How can workers be equipped with skills that can be applied across different jobs? 
- More focus on mindsets, soft (evergreen) skills
- More focus on methodologies, processes and science of learning
- Less obsession with lumpy, ineffective assessment
- More focus on innovations in teaching
- Cross-sector collaborative projects
- Rebuilding faith and confidence in VET

How can industry support this through the VET system?
- Direct collaboration with RTOs

Response:

Are the different needs of industry and learners effectively considered in designing qualifications in the current system? 
- I'm not convinced by the working definitions of "industry" and "consultation"
- Qualifications on our sector are poorly designed 
- Insufficient focus on mindsets, values and attitudes
- There is still a workplace training assumption underpinning our qualifications. This is divorced from the reality of a majority of our students who train to enter the industry sector workforce.

Response:

Thank you for conducting this project and for the opportunity to contribute. My responses may appear harsh at times but after many years in the industry I am tired and more than a bit cynical about certain aspects of the VET system. It all feels like a circular firing squad. I'm in favour of a major shakeup. The fed/state dichotomy must end. We need fresh eyes and radical thinking.