202503 – Li – Competency Management in the Australian Railway Signalling Industry

Having a robust Competency Management System (CMS) is crucial for assuring the RAMS (Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety) of rail networks. A CMS should achieve a series of administration functions, namely recording existing competencies, identifying skill gaps, developing and implementing training plans and assessing employee performance.

Due to Australia’s diverse rail environment, managing the nation’s rail industry workforce has always been a challenging task. A more streamlined and cohesive CMS is needed more than ever to address the nation’s rail infrastructure boom and skilled labour shortage. This paper conducts a dissection on the topic of competency management in railway signalling. By researching the definition of competency and comparing development pathways and management approaches, the author identified three main management challenges within the signalling industry: standardisation, fulfilling demands and system integration. Overcoming those challenges will require extensive collaboration between the public and private sectors. Nevertheless, it is a crucial step in facilitating the harmonisation of the rail industry and preparing the workforce for the soon-to-come national high-speed rail network.