Full Production with Peter Finn

We all have a responsibility and duty for building a safe workplace around us, so we can get home safe to our families. We all deserve to be safe at work. No matter where you work, your physical and mental wellbeing is everything and is the responsibility of everyone at work - no matter your role.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

On today's episode we have Alan Newey who I have met through James Wood. Alan is the Director of Chat Safety and a speaker for CNB Safe Safety Speakers. He is also a survivor of a workplace accident, having lost his right dominant arm to a conveyor belt, and has spent many years in recovery and rehabilitation. He now presents to groups on the effects of his workplace accident and the impact on him and his family. Alan speaks from the point of view of an injured worker and gives a real insight into what happens to you during and after such a life-changing experience.

Alan goes into detail about the accident that changed his life and what that moment was like, from the time the machine took his arm through to the surgeries and aftermath of the accident. Alan is an incredibly positive guy and his determination and can do approach to life has seen him take a situation that would cripple most people and turn that into finding ways to help others in the workplace.

This episode also covers:

• What Alan's career was like before the accident
• The ways that his accident changed his outlook and career choices
• How his sense of humour has helped him move past the accident
• Why the accident changed his outlook to life
• His advice to employers about safety and issues on the work site
• The brutal truth that management need to listen to workers before incidents occur
• Why mistakes are not the way to develop safe work practises on site
• If you see something that isn't right on site - speak up
• The battle of compensation that Alan had to go through
• Why painkillers can be a dangerous crutch

Links:

Chat Safety - website

CNB Safe Safety Speakers - website

Alan Newey Bionic Man Videos

Alan Newey - LinkedIn

Alan Newey - Facebook

Alan Newey - Twitter

Full Production Episode 48 - James Wood

This is an industry that certainly goes through peaks and troughs. Preparing a safety net outside of the industry, should be an option, should things go south.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

On today's episode of Full Production Sean Lavin joins me as my guest. Unlike so many of us, Sean's career didn't begin with the mining industry, it was the hotel and services sector that initially caught his attention. After leaving the University of Queensland in 2004, he hopped straight into the role of Duty Manager and Human Resources Manager at Mirvac hotel. Suddenly, along came the Australian mining boom, and in 2011 Sean changed tact - leaving hospitality behind him and shifting towards a life as a heavy machinery operator. After obtaining a Master's in HR in early 2017, he transferred internally to the graduate program to work within the corporate Human Resources department.

As of March 2019, Sean has also joined the podcasting clan and started his very own podcast series, Beneath The Surface. His podcast is centred on one-on-one conversational interviews, giving a platform to those at the coal face, so they can tell their stories from within the mining industry.

In this episode, we get to the heart of the mining family, and discuss the inner workings of the strong relationships that develop. We also talk about the other options that lie before us, and how we should all have a nest egg that we can crack into during times of uncertainty.

Also within this episode

• Sean's hospitality background
• How work satisfaction is down to your comrades
• Seeking options outside of mining
• Sean's education and how it has shaped his career
• Why it's important to get support from those closest to you
• Empowering workers to go above and beyond
• The perceptions of mining
• Introducing Sean's podcast Beneath The Surface
• Why we should be sharing our knowledge

Links:

Sean Lavin: LinkedIn

Sean Lavin : Website

Sean Lavin: Instagram

Beneath The Surface Podcast

Discipline is not just something reserved for the military, it is also a key to developing yourself within your career.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

On today's episode of Full Production, I speak with John Barnes the Chief Operating Officer for the Runruno site at Metals Exploration. John embodies the true meaning of a driven person. His good discipline practices developed due to the strict daily chores bestowed on him by his devoted grandmother. However rigorous it was, this practice was a blessing in disguise, and set the foundation for the rest of his life - from his compulsory military service to his current career and fitness regime.

John is a highly knowledgeable mining professional, accruing over 25 years' experience in different aspects of the mining industry. His preference for incorporating practical experience versus just acquiring a piece of paper has put him in good standing as a truly passionate and innovative leader within the mining industry.

Within this episode, we explore his ideas surrounding productivity and increasing standards. Not only that, we get to hear about John's fascinating work and personal background as well as how he ended up in a forest in the Philippines surrounded by orangutans.

Also within this episode:

• Finding discipline at work and within sport
• John's compulsory military service experience
• Growing up in South Africa and staying connected
• The changes John has seen in mining
• Why practical experience is so important
• Learning from the older generation of workers
• Using the diversity of your team members to your advantage
• Having the right management, and the right structure
• Why people in the Philippines have an unquenchable appreciation of opportunities
• John's small expat team and what they bring to the table
• Navigating communication with native governments
• Embracing new mining technology

Links:

LinkedIn - John Barnes Metals Exploration - Website

Being part a community can bring you so many advantages in life, there will always be people to share in your joy and help you through hard times. There are no better people to tell you what being an active part of a community is like than miners, with a lot of mines being in remote locations it is the community that will become your family.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

On today's episode of Full Production I have a chat with Lilliane Brady, the Mayor of Cobar. Lillian has been an active member of the cobar community since her arrival to the town 49 years ago. She recently was awarded a lifetime achievement award for being the longest serving Mayor in New South Wales, an astounding 18 years. Lillian has had a massive impact on Cobar and she has a lot of stories about the town and the incredible people that have lived in it.

Lillian shares with us this episode:

• Her early years and how her Grandmother shaped her from a little girl
• What she felt the first time she arrived in Cobar
• How being a strong woman has served her well in her life and career
• The motivation behind the Lilliane Brady Village nursing home
• Her life in Cobar with her husband Dr Alan Brady and her drive to be seen as independent
• The struggles she had when first standing for council in Cobar
• Why a tip gave her a good payout on a horse race
• Her horse she has with the goal of having it in the Melbourne Cup
• Why the changes in mining have changed the town
• The reason Cobar is a great place to bring up kids

Links:

Lilliane Brady - Cobar Shire Council

Lilliane Brady on A Current Affair

Lilliane Brady - LinkedIn

Mining as a career offers fantastic opportunities. And with the right mindset, those opportunities are vast, no matter where you start out. Our newest member of Team FACE, Dave Tomek, proves this in spades.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

Dave has joined us as our new labour coordinator and Cobar branch manager. The beauty of having Dave on board at FACE is that his own mining journey shows just how far you can go in this business, no matter what cards you're dealt. As Dave tells it, in the eyes of the army at least, he's as blind as a bat – a fact that led to some pretty early disappointment. But turning to mining he found he had the mindset to go from strength to strength, right up to shift boss. And the rest, as they say, is history. It's a great lesson in not letting setbacks deny your potential.

Dave's experience working with and managing all types of people in mining, puts him in a great place to really understand where people are coming from, what they've got to offer, and how they can reach their potential in what can be a lucrative and fulfilling career.

Here's what we dig into:

• Dave's journey from supermarket storeman to mining success
• How to take the lessons from the tough times and use them for good
• Rising through the ranks in mining
• An insight into various different mining jobs and what's involved
• Lessons from managing a crew
• Effectively dealing with burnout, redundancy and toxic workplaces
• What drew Dave to FACE and how he became part of the team
• Finding a new home for your skillset
• Why you should never be ashamed to seek outside help, mental, financial, career or otherwise

Links:

Dave Tomek - LinkedIn

Full Production EP#11 - Tony Andrews on A Life In Mining, Miners' Health and The Lessons Of History

It can be easy to let things slip, safety wise, and live under the misconception that compensation is there to pick up the pieces when things go bad. The truth about compensation is very different.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

In this episode, we welcome back a guy who is quickly becoming our resident workplace safety expert, James Wood. James is one Australia's leading advocates and speakers on workplace safety, particularly in the mining industry. And he's a guy who walks his talk. If you haven't heard his story before, it's well worth having a listen to episode 48 of the podcast.

In this one, we get to the truth of injury compensation, and ask the question how effective is it for the worker. Plus we look at changing people's perception of living with a disability. And a bunch more.

Here's what else we dig into:

• Figuring out your 'whys', and bettering your 'hows'
• Making safety a core value
• The concept behind the Woody's Words blog
• Why understanding your 'why' is a big contributor to safety
• Lessons from 20 years of talking about safety
• Psychological processes people go through after an accident
• The role of organisations such as iCare and WorkCover
• The positives and negatives of state-based compensation systems
• Why the system and process disadvantages the injured

Links:

James Wood – Facebook

James Wood – LinkedIn

CNB Safe Safety Speakers

Woody's Words

Full Production episode 48 – James Wood on Surviving Serious Injury and Changing People's Lives Through His Story

The most successful businesses don't just focus solely on chasing the money - they invest their time and resources in surrounding themselves with the right people.

Each Wednesday, join me, Peter Finn, managing director of FACE Contracting, as I navigate the ups and downs of the mining industry with forward-thinking professionals from all walks of life. If you're involved in the mining industry in any way – whether you're a lifer or a high-school student looking to make the leap – Full Production is the podcast for you.

Aaron Teo is a prime example of exactly the type of character we want within the industry. His focus on building up team relations is something to be admired. His philosophy of going the extra mile and treating his peers like family is just part of the reason that his team has such a low turnover rate.

With his background in electrical engineering as well as business administration and management, Aaron began working for Eaton in the gas and oil sector. This paved the way towards his current position at Avid Group as a business development manager.

• Aaron's personal story
• How his engineering career began
• Instigating good planning, and gaining a client's trust
• The benefits of having a flexible cross-trained workforce
• Diversification and not putting all your eggs in one basket
• Ensuring you can deliver upon promises
• The challenge of growth
• Creating the right work environment for your people
• What's making Aaron nervous about the future?
• Changing the perception of mining
• Getting excited about what's to come