Grow Your Future Program: Cultivating careers for new recruits

By Youna Angevin-Castro

Launched in in early 2023, Grow Your Future is an NGIV initiative, supported by the Victorian Government through Jobs Victoria. The program aims to attract new job-ready workers to the horticulture industry, by combining paid training, work experience, horticulture education and mentoring support to set candidates up for long term success within the nursery and green life sector.

According to Program Lead, Rachna Horn, the program has on-boarded close to 90 candidates, with many workers now permanently employed in the sector across a variety of roles.

“The program has been well received by the industry, with a number of nurseries and other allied businesses using the program to actively recruit staff into their businesses. The pre-screening of candidates means that they can save time in filling roles, with the added benefit of knowing that the candidates receive ongoing support from the program to grow and thrive in their jobs.”

As part of the recruitment process, candidates receive three days of paid pre-vocational training, designed to build confidence, as well as an additional three days of introductory horticultural training, exposing them to the diversity of the industry. Incoming workers also have access to a structured mentoring program in the first six months of their engagement, which sets them up for success as they find their feet in their new roles.

“The whole intent of the program is to make the transition into the horticulture industry as supportive as possible, so that it’s a win-win for workers and employers alike,” Rachna said.

Nurturing a diverse and inclusive workforce

Yarra View Bushland Nursery is the largest social enterprise nursery in Australia, employing approximately 85 nursery workers living with disabilities. They produce over three million plants annually, predominantly for commercial landscaping and infrastructure projects.

Helping workers with disabilities to realise their full potential requires a supporting workforce with diverse skills and backgrounds – a task which has become increasingly challenging, says Yarra View’s General Manager, Scott Buckland.

“For many years now, it's been difficult to attract people to the nursery sector and get them to stay and make a career of it. It can be quite a transient workforce, and over time we’ve found that we’re losing quite a lot of the skill and experience required to grow and develop our industry,” Scott said.

“The Grow Your Future program has really helped us attract people that really want to make horticulture a career. It’s bringing different types of people to the industry, who also see horticulture as a potential long-term career. The beauty of the program is that it works through some of the initial challenges of recruiting someone new to the sector by providing initial training and setting them up for success in the early stages of their horticulture career. Our hope is that once someone has spent a couple years in the industry, they’ll want to stay.”

One of Yarra View’s success stories is Shaun, who joined the nursery through the program six months ago.

“Shaun has settled in well. He initially started with us part time, and then transitioned to full time, and now has been promoted to a supervisory role – it’s been an amazing outcome for him.”

It pays to keep an open mind during the recruitment process, said Peta Featherstone, General Manager – Business Operations at Sevron Environmental Contractors.

“Historically, finding people who are looking for long-term work has been a challenge, which is why being part of the Grow Your Future has been a positive initiative for our business. Through the program, we’ve found workers who probably wouldn’t have been on our radar – people with more of an office or corporate background who were looking for a career change,” she said.

“Knowing that they had come through the program and that they understood the nature of the work, meant that we were able consider candidates that wouldn’t necessarily have captured our attention through normal channels. It’s definitely opened our eyes.”

Shaun, Yarra View Nursery

Six months ago, Shaun Hardy was looking for a career to align with his interests, when he came across the Grow Your Future program.

“I love working in the outdoors, working with the earth and I was holding out to find something that was attractive to me,” he explained.

Initially joining the team at Yarra View Bushland Nursery as a nursery hand, Shaun’s natural leadership skills saw him quickly promoted to a supervisor role, where he now leads a team of 4–6 people. He believes the program has played a pivotal role his development, offering both a comprehensive introduction to horticulture and valuable leadership training.

Despite the rapid pace, the program “piqued my interest,” Shaun reflects, especially appreciating the insights into team leadership and people management.

For Shaun, the benefits of working in a nursery are multifaceted – it’s the camaraderie with his team, the refreshing outdoor environment, and the hands-on experience with plants. While he lives by the philosophy of taking “one day at a time,” Shaun sees himself happily rooted in his current position for the foreseeable future.

“I’m pretty happy doing what I’m doing at the minute, so we'll see where it leads,” he said.

To those considering a similar path, Shaun’s advice is unequivocal – jump in. “The environments are supportive… it really helps,” he encourages, seeing the potential in the evolving program and its ability to cultivate passion in the horticulture industry.

Andrew, Sevron Environmental Contractors

Meet Andrew, a 30-year IT veteran who turned a new leaf by swapping computers for plants through the Grow Your Future program.

After a corporate career, which included working at in organisations such as IBM, NAB and Victoria Police, the shift to horticulture was a breath of fresh air for him, quite literally.

“I like getting my hands dirty,” he confessed, contrasting his new active role with the sedentary desk work of his past. “What attracted me in the first place to get this position was I'm looking to grow my education in this area. I’ve always loved plants and greenery and hearing the initiative that the government's put forward about the improving the tree canopy is an important thing that I'd like to be a part of and to help that happen.”

As part of his new role, Andrew maintains over 2000 garden beds throughout the Fitzroy and Richmond regions. Every morning at seven, Andrew and his team meet at the depot, loading up trucks and discussing the day’s activities.

"We do cover a lot of ground, and it’s enjoyable work. You also get to bounce ideas off the team – you’re not just working alone," he said.

With a passion for the environment, Andrew found the three-day horticultural training valuable, providing foundational knowledge that has been useful in the field.

Looking to the future, Andrew sees a long-term future for himself in the industry, with plans to obtain a horticultural certificate and potentially teach or consult.

"I do see myself working here for the foreseeable future, but eventually I’d like to pass on the knowledge that I’ve learned,” he said.

Across Melbourne, at Ball Australia, HR Manager Sharon White has been pleased with the quality of the candidates she has employed through the program.

“It’s hard for the nursery industry to attract good candidates at the best of times. It’s not the most highly paid sector, and the work can be repetitive, so it’s not necessarily high on the list of desirable careers. That said, once we find the right people – those who are interested in plants and green life – we don’t tend to have a problem with retention, which is why Grow Your Future has been a positive for us,” Sharon said.

Sharon believes that the pre-placement training means that candidates are more likely to come to work with realistic expectations of the nature of the work. She also believes that the opportunities for upskilling and further training this sets the scene for participants to experience professional, and personal, growth.

“We have a lovely lady, Xing, who is from China, who has positively bloomed throughout the program. She came to us with very little English, but a passion for plants, and she’s been a real delight. In a short time, we’ve not only seen a huge improvement in her English, but her confidence has grown too. She’s now a lot more independent, she’s learned to drive a car, and she’s comes to work every day beaming from ear to ear.”

More information

Industry partners who are interested learning more about becoming involved in the Grow Your Future Program can contact Project Lead, Rachna Horn at rachna@ngiv.com.au