Workforce Development

Food and Beverage Development Fund SA Inc Workforce Development Award

Winner: AgriExchange

As one of the largest producers and packers of citrus and table greens in Australia, AgriExchange produces more than 60 million kilograms of citrus fruit and 10 million kilograms of premium table grapes at Renmark. On a workforce development front, AgriExchange’s motto is “we hire for character and train for skill”. With over 300 staff and 700 casuals in the peak packing season, the company invests a substantial amount of expertise, time and resources to training and development to ensure all staff have maximum access to tailored training programs.

Judges Comments

In an industry, which relies heavily on seasonal labour, AgriExchange are rare in their approach to include the seasonal staff in training and development opportunities and in their efforts to include them in their new Character First program, a program that is changing the culture of the entire company. Training and staff development are clearly a key component of their organisations culture, they are flexible in their approach and inclusive of all staff, permanent or otherwise.

Not only is this company 'walking the talk' with its own staff; it is also clearly linked in with its local community at all levels. In an extremely difficult time for this industry facing the ravages of ongoing drought, AgriExchange realise that in order to manage the drought they have to manage their people and that means being more than just an employer to their staff and the local community. They realise that everything they do to has a flow on effect to the local community and they incorporate that into their decision making processes.