Supporting Professional Development

At Atlantic LNG, we have several programmes to develop the professional skills and technical knowledge of oursuccess_fmt employees. These include the Personal Development Plan and the Competency Management Assurance System. These employee development systems are designed to:

  • Ensure that we have the necessary skills and training to conduct our operations in a safe, environmentally responsible and efficient manner;
  • Empower employees to identify and pursue their own career paths by taking an active roles in planning and shaping their career development; and
  • Facilitate employee development through appropriate training and professional learning opportunities,
  • In 2008, there were 94 promotions; in 2007, there had been 98.

Personal Development Programme

The Personal Development Programme (PDP) was launched in 2005 and involves personal communication between employees and their line managers. Each year, the employee and manager agree a programme for development of the employee’s skill set to meet the expectations of the employee and the needs of the company. The PDP is an important tool for us to plan employees development within the organization in the short term and in the long term. Results of the PDP process are also used to assess company-wide strengths and areas where we need to invest in additional skills
development. 2008 was the fourth year of the PDP process and we continually look to improve this process and embed professional development in our human resource practices.

An important mechanism in the PDP is our web-based Competency Development Tool (CDT). The CDT provides a framework of skills and associated development opportunities to give employees influence over the speed and direction of their own career development. Employees will be able to assess their skills levels from basic
awareness to mastery, in areas crucial to Atlantic LNG’s business and in specific areas applicable to their professional specialties.

The Competency Development Tool (CDT) is being introduced progressively within the organization for the non-technician positions, with three phases of implementation. The first phase, a pilot programme within Facilities Engineering will be completed in 2009. The next phases will involve the roll-out to other teams in Operations during
the period mid 2009 to 2010, and culminate with full implementation for the rest of the organization by 2011.

Competency Management Assurance System

The second employee development system distinct from CDT is the Competency Management Assurance System (CMAS). This was introduced to Atlantic LNG in 2008. The CMAS is a tool to assess important work processes within the company and determine where we may have skill and knowledge gaps currently or in the future. CMAS is specifically focused on safety-critical job functions. CMAS is an auditable standard and is designed to allow external verification that the necessary skills and training are in place for safe operations.

CMAS is being rolled out to all Operations and Maintenance technicians, through a formal assessment approach. We are currently undertaking a pilot phase covering 16 technicians. We have completed 85% of the pilot phase and our target is to complete this phase in the first quarter of 2009.

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