18 November 2024
Pilbara Minerals’ first ever Graduate program was recognised at the Australian Association of Graduate Employers (AAGE) Graduate Recruitment Industry Awards in Melbourne recently, receiving the Outstanding Graduate Program Graduate Intake Under 50 award.
The national awards recognise employers who provide exceptional learning opportunities and an overall experience for graduates through their graduate program.
The Pilbara Minerals Graduate Program is a two-year structured program that includes technical rotations across a number of business areas for maximum exposure and insight in various areas of the business. This includes scheduled professional development days, provision of professional membership, attending a technical conference and industry events to network and develop industry relationships, as well as social activities.
In only our first year of delivering the program, Pilbara Minerals received the highest average ratings from the annual graduate survey, as determined by the graduates themselves.
This award follows Pilbara Minerals being recognised in the top 25 Graduate Employers in the Small Program Category (Graduate intake less than 20) by AAGE earlier this year.
Talent Acquisition Lead, Guliana (Gules) Valenti, said she had set herself a target to become a recognised Top Graduate Employer by building a well-rounded, enjoyable program that provides graduates maximum exposure to the business to accelerate learning, while refining their professional skills.
“When we were developing our formal Graduate program, I set myself a goal that it would be industry-leading and serve the needs of young technical professionals joining our Company to develop into industry experts. We have the best group of enthusiastic and talented graduates at Pilbara Minerals and I am so thrilled they love our program and that its now been recognised on a national scale,” Gules said.
“Our senior leaders and direct line managers have put so much time and effort into our Graduate program through supporting rotations and graduate development from day one, along with our recruitment team who have supported the recruitment, selection and onboarding process.”
Chief Sustainability Officer Sandra McInnes said the whole Pilbara Minerals team should feel proud of this achievement.
“For a Graduate program to be recognised in its first year is truly remarkable. We are so proud of Gules and the whole team who have been passionately leading this program to ensure we deliver a great experience for our graduates,” she said.
The 2023 graduate program had an intake of seven graduates, consisting of Mechanical Engineering, Mining Engineering and Metallurgy disciplines.
Nine graduates joined the program in 2024, consisting of Mining Engineering, Geology, Metallurgy and Environmental disciplines.