Skills Active Aotearoa shares Cardrona Alpine Resort’s workforce development practices

May 15, 2019

Skills Active Aotearoa, the industry training organisation for snowsport in New Zealand, recently spoke with Cardrona’s People and Performance Manager Laura Hedley, about on-job training in an alpine environment.

With skiers and snowboarders eagerly anticipating the start of the season, Cardrona Alpine Resort has produced a new video in which it shares some of the workforce development practices it uses to build a world-class team on the mountain.

“We are one of New Zealand’s biggest ski resorts,” Hedley says.

“Thousands of people come up here every year to ski and snowboard.”

These visitors are looked after by a crew of more than 700 staffers during the winter ski season, she adds. It’s the talent, hard work and professionalism of this team that ensures guests come off the mountain each day having had a fantastic experience whatever the weather.

Hedley says Cardrona has teamed up with Skills Active for several years now to deliver a wide range of qualifications to its team. These include technical certificates for skilled professionals in departments such as bootfitting, rentals, snowschool and lift operations.

About 350 people also went through the Alpine Resort Operations qualification in 2018 – this is an introduction for new starters on the mountain, which gives them a grounding in Cardrona’s operations, its values and health and safety systems.

“Everyone comes to Cardrona for a different reason, some of that is career development and some of that is to become better in a certain skill. If we can offer some of these on-job qualifications to them, we’re going to be able to keep this really good team that we have here.”

3rd April 2019 - Treble Cone introduces early morning First Tracks tickets

22nd March 2019 - Skills Active Aotearoa launches new qualification entertainment and event technicians

8th November 2018 - New qualification framework to develop New Zealand’s professional mountain bike workforce

5th November 2018 - Marking its best ever season, Mt Hutt announces 2019 developments

6th August 2018 - Skills Active streamlines sign-ups with electronic enrolments

25th July 2018 - Cardrona Alpine Resort set to double in size

26th June 2018 - New qualifications equip entertainment, recreation and sport managers with front line skills

19th July 2018 - Coronet Peak opens New Zealand’s first ever Ice Castles experience

6th March 2018 - New Zealand ski areas report record visitation during 2017 winter season

19th November 2017 - Canterbury’s Mt Hutt once again named New Zealand’s best ski resort

28th March 2015 - New management guides return of Race to the Sky motorsport event

23rd March 2015 - New biking event at Cardrona Alpine Resort

Asking a small favour
We hope that you value the news that we publish so while you're here can we ask for your support?

The news we publish at www.ausleisure.com.au is independent, credible (we hope) and free for you to access, with no pay walls and no annoying pop-up ads.

However, as an independent publisher, can we ask for you to support us by subscribing to the printed Australasian Leisure Management magazine - if you don't already do so.

Published bi-monthly since 1997, the printed Australasian Leisure Management differs from this website in that it publishes longer, in-depth and analytical features covering aquatics, attractions, entertainment, events, fitness, parks, recreation, sport, tourism and venues management.

Subscriptions cost just $90 a year.

Click here to subscribe.