Overview Of Training & Development System Of Atal Engineering Group

The group chairman and founder of ATAL Engineering Group, Dr. Ir Otto Poon, proudly stated to the staff, “Being a leading E&M engineering company, nurturing of young engineers is one of our key corporate social responsibilities to prepare them for the professional career of their choice. It does not matter even if they leave us and join other companies after completing the training programs and acquiring professional status. This just demonstrates our programs are comprehensive and robust, producing engineers of the right caliber for the industry at large.”

The strategic decision of the management to establish a dedicated training and development team (TnD) in April 2020 is an important move to demonstrate its commitment to cultivating a continuous learning culture and professionalism among the staff of all levels for the overall benefits and strengths of ATAL.

"Genuine diversity increases the social capital of everyone in ATAL, enriches individuals, and lets it grow in new ways"

Since its establishment, led by the director of training & development, TnD has determined to create a suitable and sustainable environment conducive to a smooth transformation to a new learning and digital generation, including the invention of a new ATAL training and development (T&D) model, the establishment of a documented T&D System, creation of an on-line user-friendly information system ATALent for T&D promotion and recruitment, formation of the T&D advisory committee, development of specific training series and tailor-made development programs, enrichment of the graduate trainee and apprenticeship programs, betterment of the staff training sponsorship scheme, etc.

Figure 1 shows the expected targets and frameworks of the four tailor-made Development Programmes for advancing professionalism, i.e., Young Engineers Scheme (YES), Total Operation Management (TOM), Leaders Executives Accelerating Programme (LEAP), and Synergy, Holisticity, Innovation, Networking, Excellence (SHINE), for distinct groups of young talent with increasing work experience and therefore development needs.

Based on the training needs identification, the training courses are categorized into 12 series for clear classification, sharing, storage, and retrieval as follows:

• ATAL Familiarisation

• BIM • Compliance

• Contract Management

 • Corporate Functions (Finance, HR, Innovation)

• ERP, IT

• Management Sharing

• People Management

• Project Management

• Quality, Safety, Environment and Sustainability

• Soft Skills

• Technical skills

Colleagues may also join any training courses under the 12 training series at their own discretion under the management of TnD. They may also be nominated to join the four tailor-made Development Programmes at ATAL (i.e., YES, TOM, LEAP, and SHINE) at different stages of their career.

To encourage colleagues to acquire new knowledge through external courses to strengthen their capacities in discharging daily duties, ATAL allows training sponsorship for all relevant colleagues.

ATAL supports aspiring engineering staff to pursue parttime engineering degree programs to upgrade themselves academically to become future professional engineers.

ATAL recognizes the professional development of staff. Each staff member is entitled to an annual subsidy of the paid subscription for corporate membership of one recognized professional institution.

ATAL encourages colleagues to excel in their area of expertise and designs many awards to recognize their contribution in discharging their duties, including:

• Outstanding Employee Award

• Best Technician Trainee Award

• Service Star Award

• Innovation Award

ATAL establishes clear and guided career planning for all engineering staff, from graduate trainees to project managers and so on, as well as from apprentices to foremen and so on.

Figure 2 shows the career paths for engineers and technicians (in Chinese), respectively.

There are plentiful success stories at ATAL where colleagues started their careers as graduate trainees or apprentices and climbed up the career ladder to senior management

The ATAL Recreation and Welfare Affairs (ARWA) Club was established to train young talent in organizing leisure activities for colleagues. Each member of the ARWA Club is assigned designated positions responsible for general administration, sports, volunteering services, and staff benefits. All the past ARWA Club members are already leaders in ATAL or in the industry.

We offer regular career talks at schools, universities, and other vocational training colleges with the assistance of our young engineers to attract new blood. ATAL also offers substantial scholarships annually to outstanding students in the Vocational Training Council (VTC) and universities.

ATAL joins the HKGCC Business School Partnership Programme initiated by the Education Bureau. We have partnered with different schools with an aim to enhance the student’s knowledge, business exposure, and relevant job skills in the E&M industry

We believe in the power of diversity, which brings fresh ideas that can both challenge the status quo and the orthodoxy of the leaders themselves. Genuine diversity increases the social capital of everyone in ATAL, enriches individuals, and lets it grow in new ways.

The above philosophy triggers us to commit to exchange programs with various consultancy firms, including ARUP and WSP, to allow our graduate trainees to appreciate the meaning of work diversity and to have more training opportunities in engineering consultancy works.

To allow our graduate trainees to appreciate the operations of our workshops and offices in Macau and the mainland (including Beijing, Guangzhou, Nanjing, and Shanghai), they are given opportunities to practice and learn there. Our recent overseas businesses established in the United Kingdom and the United States will be the destinations for young talent

ATAL has been running the approved Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE) Scheme, A graduate trainee, and VTC apprenticeship programs for over 30 years. Over one thousand colleagues have successfully completed the Programmes, and many of them are now taking up senior positions in ATAL and in the industry. The training elements within the Programmes have been enriched to include more management and soft skills to develop more all-round engineers and technicians in ATAL to serve the customers with confidence and pride. The characteristics include engineering expertise, a positive company image, a caring culture, guided career planning, and a continuous learning atmosphere.