Growing Capabilities and Supporting Success at Alinta Energy
Alinta Energy is one of Australia’s largest energy retailers, generators, investors and developers. In the last decade they have grown from being the largest residential gas retailer in Western Australia to the preferred electricity and gas provider for more than 1.5 million homes and businesses Australia-wide.
The Challenge
With Australia’s energy system undergoing the biggest transformation in its history, Alinta Energy’s HR team of 35 practitioners plays an integral role in the company’s success. It’s their job to ensure 1200 employees have the skills and support they need to drive positive change for people and the planet.
Compounding industry challenges are the evolution of the HR function itself, and the composition of Alinta Energy’s HR team, which includes several early career professionals.
The Solution – an AHRI organisation membership and strategic use of member resources
The very first of Alinta Energy’s corporate values is “people matter” and they explicitly recognise their people as the company’s greatest asset. In line with this commitment, the Chief People Officer prioritises the ongoing professional development of the HR team.
An AHRI membership was seen as the ideal vehicle for growing capabilities, supporting the team for day-to-day success and enhancing strategic business partnering.
Growing Capabilities via the Australian HR Capability Framework
The starting point for growing the team’s capabilities at Alinta Energy, is the Australian HR Capability Framework (AHRCF), which was developed by AHRI. “We’ve used the Australian HR Capability Framework as a guideline in building our development framework and plans, and are linking our development plans to that,” said Felicity Gillard, Acting Executive Director, People and Culture.
With the AHRCF defining the capabilities, skills, knowledge and behaviours required of HR practitioners at every career stage, it serves as the ideal basis for development conversations and plans, allowing the HR leadership to feel confident that their team is performing to their full potential.
AHRI membership also gives the team access to the AHRCF Capability Assessment Tool, which they can use to measure their capabilities against the AHRCF’s standards and gain a detailed report identifying strengths and areas for growth, along with targeted development recommendations. “We’re really pushing the Capability Assessment Tool for those who want to progress their career,” said Gillard.
“We’ve used the Australian HR Capability Framework as a guideline in building our development framework and plans and are linking our development plans to that.” – Felicity Gillard, Acting Executive Director, People and Culture.
Formal development of her team over the past year has included enrolment in AHRI short courses, attendance at AHRI conferences and network forum events, and participating in member-only webinars, including the popular DEI Week series.
Gillard sees access to these development opportunities as a significant employee benefit for her team to ensure that they have access to the latest research and resources through AHRI to support them in their roles at Alinta.
Supporting day-to-day success with AHRI Assist
The HR team at Alinta Energy makes extensive use of the AHRI Assist repository of professional resources, from guidelines and information sheets to checklists and policy templates.
Gillard leads by example, with AHRI being the first place she turns to when she needs a template that she can then customise to suit her specific purpose.
“I always say to the team, ‘Jump onto AHRI and take a look’”, she added. Felicity Gillard, Acting Executive Director, People and Culture.
“I’ve personally used AHRI templates for redundancy, performance management and a disclosure… I go in there around every two months and my team are using it even more,” she said.
Gillard is also a big fan of the HRM online news site and HRM magazine, which is available in print format for AHRI members.
“The articles are a little different to some of the other publications we get. Innovation, AI… it’s just nice to be able to pause and reflect on that. You get some interesting, robust contributors that give a different view on relevant topics,” she said.
Enhancing Strategic Business Partnering
AHRI was also able to assist Alinta Energy when they implemented their HR structure, using a Centre of Excellence (CoE) model to centralise deep expertise and provide standardised high-quality HR services across the company.
Being able to invoke AHRI in promoting the model to non-HR leadership was crucial to its acceptance. “It’s been really good that it’s not just us telling people… The AHRI model has helped people realise that what we have set up is a best-practice way of operating in a mature HR function,” Gillard explained.
She added that it was a great first step for them to start moving the dial and having a strategic partnership with the business.
Looking to the Future with AHRI
Gillard is keenly aware that the future holds both challenges and opportunities for her team, but she is confident that AHRI membership will provide the support they need.
“It’s a tool and a resource that I leverage to help me think differently, it’s a wealth of knowledge and where there’s a big strategic initiative, it’s the right membership to have,” she said.
“AHRI membership should be an expectation to have as an HR professional.”
