Giving Australian workplaces the ‘edge’

The nature of work has fundamentally changed – and for those who do not evolve with this seismic shift, business will only become harder. 

To be at the forefront of their industries, organisations need every employee at every level of responsibility to be highly skilled, agile, collaborative and imaginative. 

Swinburne Edge empowers Australian organisations to achieve this by helping them build sustainable workforces and embrace a culture of lifelong learning at work.

The Swinburne Edge story

Established over 25 years ago, the recently re-branded Swinburne Edge is a workplace specialist and long-term educational partner, helping workforces stay up to date with new technologies and ways of working. 

With a team of industry leaders, Swinburne Edge provides organisations with end-to-end, tailored professional learning and development solutions to give their workforce the ‘edge’ it needs in a fast-changing commercial environment. 

Swinburne Edge Executive Director Craig McCallum joined the university at a turbulent time, at the end of 2020, when workplaces had been forced to quickly adopt to remote work.

“We work with organisations to shape their future workforces, with a particular emphasis on linking the strengths of technological advancements and human capability, across people, workforce and workplace,” he says.

“It’s about creating value for business as it manages rapid change, providing professional training and development not just for today, but for the future.”

Powered by the Centre for the New Workforce

All Swinburne Edge products, courses and services are informed by cutting-edge research, expertise and insights from the Centre for the New Workforce.

Led by inaugural director, Dr Sean Gallagher, the Centre for the New Workforce is the only dedicated research facility in Australia focused on the latest and best workforce innovation practice.

“In addition to our professional learning solutions, Swinburne Edge also supports organisational leaders to supercharge their future of work strategy through, for example, our hybrid workplace strategy solution developed by the Centre for the New Workforce – alt_shift_office,” says McCallum. 

“Engaging with leadership teams and stakeholders, alt_shift_office ensures the ideal flexible workplace. Think optimised office space, meaningful connections, and innovation – all backed by world-class research.” 

Industry-leading clients

Swinburne Edge’s enterprise clients are manifold, spanning various industries and sectors.

They include the Department of Health, Victorian Curriculum & Assessment Authority, Carlisle Homes, NHP Electrical Engineering Products, NAB, Telstra, Finsbury Green, and Specsavers – to name a few.

“Our clients have continually increased their workforce productivity with our practical, relevant and contemporary learning and development programs. They receive the most cost and time-efficient mix of learning for the greatest immediate impact on their working environment – all while building an agile workforce ready for success,” says Mr McCallum.

“We are fortunate to have access to a breadth of talent from all levels – from young, rising stars to formidably experienced luminaries, entrepreneurs and CEOs – on the Swinburne Edge Advisory Board too.”

“This exceptional group of industry leaders help define the Edge strategy and provide practical insights about the future of work across the assets, services and knowledge sectors.” 

In the engine room, the Centre for the New Workforce has also developed a track record for research collaboration with a range of industry partners to drive innovation, including the Department of Premier and Cabinet, UAP, Siemens, YouGov, Teachers Health Centre and more.

Australians want flexible working 

Recent research from Swinburne Edge and Deloitte Australia has found that flexible working options and a focus on wellbeing are non-negotiables for Australian workers.

The report – Reset, Restore, Reframe: Making Fair Work FlexWork – explores the industrial impact of hybrid working and the flexible working challenges facing employers today, including the implications of flexibility for our Fair Work System.

Based on a wide-ranging survey of 2,000 Australian workers conducted in late January 2022, the report shows:

• Wellbeing is top of mind – 93 per cent of workers surveyed say their physical, emotional and mental wellbeing is just as important as pay.

• People are working more and different hours – one in three workers are working more hours since the pandemic, and more than half are working outside their ‘standard’ hours at least once a week. Not all these non-standard hours are paid overtime, with more than a quarter (28 per cent) of flexible location workers not compensated.

The report has attracted widespread media coverage since it was released in June and was quoted recently in a ruling by the Fair Work Commission.

Learn more about how Swinburne Edge prepares every employee, at every level of responsibility, for the next-generation workforce.