Helping organisations and individuals to succeed for the past four decades, IPA Personnel continues to see extensive company growth upheld by its purpose driven labour hire, and diversity and inclusion recruitment services.
Established in 1984 in Melbourne, Victoria as Independent Personnel Associates, IPA Personnel (IPA) started from humble beginnings offering recruitment services provided by a small team of mobile consultants. Today, the company has cemented itself as an estimable national recruitment agency supporting employers and candidates across Australia.
The company’s expansion has seen it open 13 offices across Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia, supported by approximately 140 experienced staff.
Client engagement manager James Muskett has been with IPA for four years, and says
the agency services a range of sectors and industries including construction, engineering, administration, office support and manufacturing.
“One of IPA’s core industry sectors is construction and as a result, we have built an incredibly strong reputation in the market for providing expert recruitment services, quality customer service and in-depth knowledge of the industry,” says Muskett.
“When looking at the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics – Labour Force Survey, Detailed, August 2022 – we can see that more than 1.2 million people are working in construction, making up more than nine per cent of Australia’s workforce and exceeding pre-Covid levels.”
Infrastructure Australia identified that by mid-2023 the construction industry is predicted to experience a shortfall of 105,000 workers across Australia. The pipeline of construction projects is ever-increasing, and so too the competition for skilled labour.
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IPA Senior Business Manager, Brigid Fleming, says the tight labour market is leading existing and new clients to IPA for its deep networks and industry track record.
“With a client base spanning across Tier 1, 2 and 3 construction companies, as well as subcontractors and other organisations within the supply chain, we are well versed and even better networked,” she says.
“We supply labour hire and permanent recruitment across all roles in the industry including both commercial and civil.”
With the labour shortage being one of its biggest challenges in the past year, Muskett adds that the candidate-short market has pushed the IPA team to look at innovative ways to attract talent. As a labour hire company that relies on a transient workforce and people coming into Australia looking for work, the team have had to rethink their strategy, and have started looking at new digital advertising platforms such as social media.
“We have been using social media to find talent more than ever,” he says. “In fact, we’ve successfully used Instagram and TikTok to find talent in recent months – something we would never have done pre-Covid.”
In regional Queensland for example, IPA has civil construction clients that require employees to work in remote areas. Angela Olsen, Senior Business Manager – Regional Queensland at IPA says it’s challenging to attract candidates to these areas given their remote location, but IPA has had success due to their commitment to getting it right.
“We’re always looking for ways we can provide a candidate with value in potential roles,” says Olsen. “We innovate to entice people from all over Australia to apply for these roles, and we make sure the employment opportunity waiting for them is of amazing value.”
From there, Olsen says they support candidates through IPA’s Candidate Care Program, aimed at keeping them in employment; and ensuring they’re enjoying it, working safely, and that all parties are happy.
As part of the Candidate Care Program, the IPA team contacts each candidate fortnightly to check in, ask how they’re going and provide support. Wherever the candidate is working, no matter how remote, IPA team members also visit the worksite once a month and conduct a toolbox safety talk with their staff – safety is a number one priority at IPA and the team are dedicated to being ‘All Safe, All the Time’.
In addition, IPA celebrates candidate birthdays and anniversaries with morning and afternoon teas and has developed a Safety Employee of the Quarter campaign to acknowledge safe workers.
“We are constantly receiving feedback from our staff that they’ve never worked for a company as supportive as IPA,” Olsen says. “When we’re on site, we have other employees asking to transition across to us, so that to me says a lot.”
IPA also has a dedicated Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) division providing personalised support to first nations people, youth, people living with disability and all genders. Led by Janelle Dorrington, Senior Business Manager at IPA, the D&I team ensures that the people they place into work can achieve long-term outcomes.
“We do this by preparing organisations through inclusion programs, education and workshops,” she says. “We assist employers to identify gaps in their cultural knowledge, processes and practices, and advise them on what they can do to improve and make their workplaces more inclusive.”
“The goal is to remove any barriers – we do post placement mentoring and ensure that our candidates have the support they need, feel comfortable and feel confident to have a voice in the workplace.”
Further, IPA is one of Australia’s only national recruitment agencies committing 100 per cent of its profits towards the community, supported by parent company and not-for- profit organisation genU. As a certified social enterprise, all IPA profits are reinvested in services that support people living with disability and that promote community inclusion.
IPA Social Impact Manager Alison Carter says IPA’s purpose and profit commitment presents ideal opportunities for members of industries, such as construction, to count their labour hire spend towards social procurement targets.
First-of-its-kind research commissioned by IPA and published in 2021 shows construction activity in Australia and New Zealand accounts for nearly half (44 per cent) of goods and services purchased in support of social outcomes. “Social procurement is mostly aimed at delivering local employment and jobs for people experiencing disadvantage and exclusion,” says Carter.
“IPA is therefore engaging more clients within the civil and mainstream construction sectors, seeking IPA’s expert recruitment services in support of corporate responsibility, supplier diversity and workforce diversity commitments.”
At a time of historically low unemployment and high competition for talent, IPA is succeeding through its expertise and personal support, as well as the choice of jobs it offers. Carter says these aspects are attracting more candidates to IPA and away from online job portals.
“This is where the recruitment agency model stands out for delivering workforce solutions for clients,” she says.
“IPA candidates tell us our customer service and knowledge about roles and particular employers is a big factor in building a quality candidate pool.
“Further, candidates say the ability to return for more work through IPA once their job assignment is over is another plus.”
Carter says IPA’s 100 per cent profit commitment to community services is also a drawcard, reflecting the growing expectation that companies and government show responsible business practices.
“More than three quarters of IPA candidates say our reinvestment back into community inclusion could or would positively influence their decision to use our services again,” she says. “That sentiment is even stronger across the general population (87 per cent).”
On top of their passion for providing quality services to their candidates and organisations alike, the IPA team has a positive outlook on the future of recruitment in the Australian construction industry.
It’s an industry that is a priority for every part of Australia, Olsen says. “No matter where you live, construction is a requirement,” she adds. “As a country, we need to put more of our attention into upskilling our young people and making sure that we have access to trades.”
“Employers need to value their staff, listen to what they have to say and care.
“That’s exactly what we do at IPA – we put people first.”