Access to broad expertise
Consultants in our Albury / Wodonga office have access to strong mentorship to nurture their career progression, both within the local team and the wider business.
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The close-knit team in our Albury / Wodonga office gain exposure to multiple aspects of land development projects. By drawing on specialist knowledge and support from across the Spiire network, including the experience of respected local staff, they can add new skills to their professional toolkits and deliver projects effectively.
For civil engineer Paul McLachlan, thinking through challenges and finding resourceful ways to develop solutions first attracted him to a career in engineering. Originally from Canberra, Paul started his professional journey in Melbourne at a small engineering manufacturing business. His introduction to civil engineering came through working as a tax consultant at KPMG, which exposed him to engineering companies from various sectors around the country.
After settling in Beechworth with his young family, Paul hasn’t looked back from the regional Victorian lifestyle. “It was a really good move,” he says. “I might have to drive 45 minutes to work, but it’s through beautiful countryside.”
Following an 11-year stint working in local government, Paul was ready to take on a role that would present fresh challenges to learn and expand his technical repertoire.
“I saw Spiire as a good opportunity to achieve my chartered engineering credential and become a better engineer,” he says. “I’m still being challenged every day to learn new things and taking on new responsibilities.”
This includes passing on his own knowledge to others in the Albury / Wodonga Civil Engineering team, in keeping with Spiire’s commitment to developing each other.
“It’s a pretty friendly team, where everyone is willing to look out for each other and help each other out. There’s no one up here you wouldn’t feel comfortable asking for a hand,” Paul says.
Developing well-rounded knowledge
This mentality supports local civil engineers like Ali Khurshid to continue building their technical capabilities.
Ali made the move to Albury in 2020 to join Spiire as a graduate engineer. “Everyone is just so welcoming in Albury. If you live within the city, everything is a five or 10-minute bike ride away and it’s very outdoor-friendly, with lots of walking paths, bike trails and hiking trails,” he says.
Through a family connection, Ali had heard positive things about our Graduate Program. He was pleased to find this validated in the reality of the program, with its clear expectations for progression and access to interdisciplinary knowledge.
“I’ve genuinely experienced the ‘one team’ approach at Spiire,” he says. “Especially in the regions, I feel like you get a lot of trust in you, and if you develop good relationships, people want to mentor you and give you opportunities to grow.”
Ali has appreciated guidance from senior Albury / Wodonga staff, including Business Manager, Brett Mugridge, since the start of his Spiire journey.
“When I was a graduate, I didn’t have to do a lot of planning because that was indirectly done through the modules. When I completed the program, that’s when Brett really got into career planning and setting goals with me. He was really good with setting up those opportunities for things I wanted to try,” Ali says.
To facilitate his interest in learning about Water Engineering, Brett and Ali worked together to map a plan for building connections in the Water team and taking up opportunities to learn practically through local projects and through working with other Spiire offices.
“Getting exposure has been really good for my career growth so far,” Ali says. “It’s really broadened my knowledge. In Albury, it’s beneficial to be aware of all aspects of land development – which isn’t just civil engineering, it’s a bit of everything. It increases your value as an engineer; you can make those high-level decisions for your clients and be more efficient with your project outcomes.”
