Peak print industry association PIAA has appointed Ben Reale-Cornel as its new industrial accreditation officer, as it ramps up its industrial services to members.
Reale-Cornel has been given a brief to significantly expand the Sustainable Green Print (SGP) programme into a broader good print citizen accreditation, and to develop the vocational education and training VET policy, and to work on the government's skilled migration programme to ensure that skill shortages in print, of which there are many, are on the relevant lists. His role is national, he will be based in WA and SA.
PIAA director Anthony Pittaway said, “Ben joins us with a strong stakeholder management and advocacy background, having worked in both the public and private sectors. He completed a double degree in Western Australia, majoring in education, and is currently completing postgraduate studies in migration law, so is well qualified to deliver the services we have charged him with”.
The association's globally recognised green programme SGP is set to be significantly upgraded, to become an accreditation to what is essentially a good corporate citizen. PIAA CEO Andrew Macaulay said, “Ben's appointment is an opportunity to advance SGP to a best of print accreditation, which printers can use to differentiate themselves in the market. In the era of phoenix businesses for instance how does a print buyer know who he or she is dealing with. The new SGP will be sustainable in the broader sense, indicating a company that is good employer, innovative, committed to staff development, on a sound financial footing.”
Part of the upgraded SGP will also see the roll-out of the PIAA's mediation programme, which was trialled last year. This will mediate in disputes between printers and both suppliers and print buyers. Macaulay said, “We went through both last year in the trial, and came to successful outcomes that both parties were satisfied with in both cases.”
Reale-Cornel will also be responsible for driving the VET policy and associated Skills Migration Programme. At present print suffers fro a disconnect between state and federal policy and funding, in apprenticeships particularly. PIAA is tasking Reale-Cornel with building on its successes last year in the TAFE print programmes for apprentices in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia, looking to him to replicate that in WA, NSW and Queensland.
He will also be working to ensure that all relevant print skills shortages are on both federal and state lists for the Skilled Migration Programme, in order that print businesses have access to the global skilled labour pool when required. Before joining PIAA, Reale-Cornel spent a number of years working for various state and federal MPs and ministers, including the federal minister for employment, and sssistant minister for immigration and border protection.
Printers may also be interested to know that, in addition to his experience and qualifications that the PIAA says makes Reale-Cornel ideal for the position, he is a world class Elvis impersonator.