0100 - 0130 UTC (30') Rebuilding the Fire Weather Competency program at the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (James Pescott - BoM)

0100 - 0130 UTC (30') Rebuilding the Fire Weather Competency program at the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (James Pescott - BoM)

In this keynote presentation, I will share my experiences in rebuilding the Fire Weather competency program at the Australian Bureau of Meteorology – a Herculean task spurred by significant changes. Faced with the existential challenge of a new national operating model, major shifts in science and service changes, evolving ways of working, and the ongoing natural attrition of experienced meteorologists, my only choice was to innovate. 

To overcome these challenges, I drew on all of my 15 years of experience in training and assessment to comprehensively redesign the competency program to align with the new operational roles and service expectations, while ensuring compatibility with WMO standards and the principles of adult education. In particular, I will champion two essential components of the rebuild that proved critical to its success. First, the arduous task of detailing the performance evidence – a process that, once completed, proved pivotal in designing the assessment tools, including integrating existing resources and incorporating on-the-job learning into a flexible and efficient training program. Second, defining the highest level of competence to establish the top rung of a hierarchical structure, which could then be applied to other service areas and roles.

I will also reflect on reflect on additional lessons learnt from this experience and further validate these approaches though the subsequent application and refinement in rebuilding the Bureau of Meteorology Severe Thunderstorm competency program.

You can find the PPT file by clicking the image below