Where will your career take you?

In rural Victoria in 1949, a young Australian returned soldier began to bring an idea to life. While serving with the Royal Australian Engineers in the Western Desert, Lieutenant Colonel John Holland formed a plan to found a construction company of skilled engineers and others who had shown courage, initiative and other leadership qualities on the field of battle.

Beginning with a £200 contract to build a woolshed in rural Victoria, and a workforce of seven, the company Sir John founded has grown into one of Australia’s largest and most diverse specialist contracting businesses - one that currently employs more than 4800 people and has work in hand exceeding $4.3 billion.

Today, working at John Holland means being part of a team that is shaping Australia for the 21st century. Together, we’re providing roads, railways, hospitals and galleries, transmission lines, telecommunications systems, tunnels, water infrastructure, export facilities, mining services, maintenance services and civil engineering infrastructure for generations to come. Our business consists of regional construction divisions as well as national specialist businesses, creating a depth of capabilities and employment opportunities without equal in Australia.

“Now more than ever I believe our success is inextricably linked with the way we attract, retain, motivate and train our people,” says David Stewart, John Holland’s Group Managing Director. “Whether estimators or project managers, leading hands or riggers, environmental officers, labourers, commercial managers, crane drivers, apprentices or graduates, every member of the John Holland team plays a key role in contributing to our success as an organisation.”

People are central to the culture and success of John Holland. We are committed to being an employer of choice, though this is not a new vision. Ever since our first projects in the late 1940s, employing excellent people and looking after them has been a key part of how we do business.

“My vision was to build a business based on outstanding technical skills, tenacity, innovation and an absolute commitment to our people and their careers,” Sir John Holland says. “Whether it was in 1949 or 1986, whether the role was engineer or builder, quantity surveyor or purchasing officer, accountant or secretary, male or female, great emphasis was always placed on integrity in the selection and training processes.”

As an organisation, we are proud that the ongoing success of our company means that we can provide satisfying, long-term careers for almost 5000 people. Around half of John Holland’s people are employed in metropolitan areas and half in rural and regional Australia. About 54 per cent work in blue-collar jobs and 46 per cent in white-collar roles.

“The growth of John Holland means we can offer exciting and challenging career opportunities for all our people,” Stewart says. “In late 2007, we launched our Talent Exchange Network with the goal of providing our employees with a whole-of-career relationship with the organisation. This means we encourage our employees to apply for new opportunities in different business units and on different projects right across Australia.”

We have always been committed to looking after our people. This means providing a safe workplace and meaningful work, offering training and professional development, career building, and a strong and supportive work culture. All companies must meet statutory requirements when managing staff, but we strive to go well beyond compliance to ensure we attract and retain the best people.

John Holland has evolved over the past 59 years alongside dramatic technological, social and economic changes in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region, but the fundamentals remain the same. Sir John’s vision was of a business that achieved industry leadership by satisfying clients while enhancing the reputation of everyone involved with a project.

Integrity and fairness have always been paramount. Most importantly, caring for people has been at the core of the John Holland ethos since the early days.

Whether you are a graduate looking to enter the industry or a seasoned professional looking for a new challenge, John Holland can provide you with the opportunity to create a career, for life.

For more information on career opportunities at John Holland, visit www.johnholland.com.au