Working with Avondale

The college is historic, but also forward thinking. For example, we are applying for university college status. It's a small institution, but it often punches above its weight."

Brenton Stacey, Public Relationship Office, Avondale College of Higher Education.

Avondale College of Higher Education is a tertiary education provider with its primary campus, the Lake Macquarie campus, location in Cooranbong, New South Wales. Established in 1897, Avondale College offers accredited undergraduate, postgraduate, and vocational courses, and is constantly progressing as a learning institution.

Avondale College have been engaged professionally with Professional Advantage (PA) for over a decade with their use of the CRM solution Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Customer Engagement, but the relationship between the two organisations is far more than merely that of provider and client. 

Established 30 years ago, Professional Advantage was founded by Derek Rippingale and Steve Howcroft, with the former an alumnus of Avondale College. Since then, at least twenty people have progressed from being a student at Avondale College to working for PA, some with tenure exceeding two decades!

This connection to the college has meant that PA has offered more than a partner relationship to Avondale College. 

It is often the case that students have not seen the inner workings of a large organisation until they come to work for one. As such, it was arranged by Avondale to bring a group of students to the PA offices in Sydney for a student excursion. 

This trip allowed for:

• The students to see first-hand what an office environment is like. 
• The students to learn the different departments and roles within an organisation, and talk directly with people in those toles.
• A CV workshop focussed upon improving the student's own resumes. 
• A networking lunch with the opportunity to meet and talk with employees. 

Members of the PA team have also been approached by Avondale to be guest lecturers in classes. 

"Our students get to benefit from the expertise of PA when PA staff members come and give guest lectures in our classes, and our students also benefit from actually getting to see what it is like working with PA." 
Brenton Stacey, Public Relationship Office, Avondale College of Higher Education.

PA presents an award to the business school each year: the Professional Advantage Bachelor of Business prize. This is a $1500 prize that is decided upon by the business school itself, and is presented at the Special Academic Award Ceremony by a senior member of PA. 

The relationship has not at all been one sided though: the Lake Macquarie campus of Avondale College is the location of PA's central coast hub!

It is no surprise that PA employs people from across the country, and they can be working From PA offices, from home, or at client locations. With a collection of staff located in the region of Lake Macquarie, the decision was made to create a hub where they could come together. This hub is now located within the Avondale business school, and sees five PA personnel regularly working from there, and additional visiting staff if they are in the area. 

This hub brings the obvious benefit of saving time on a commute, but also offers:

• Access to a different work environment. A much smaller space contrasts with the larger offices in metropolitan areas. 
• A relationship with those working at the college who the PA team wouldn't otherwise have met. 
• Availability to use the college recreational and fitness facilities, such as the swimming pool and gym. 
• A mixing of different teams. Purely coincidentally, all those regularly in the central coast hub are from different areas within PA, building relationships between teams. 

The PA staff within this office have also been the focus of a small-scale research project completed by the students within the business school. This project culminated in a published paper and focussed upon the personal and professional impact of telecommuting hubs and shared workspaces.