Career skills to make the competition green with envy

The energy transition and the sustainability agenda are changing how we work.

Research from Solas, the further education and training authority, shows that 75 per cent of employment in Ireland now requires some level of sustainability competency.

This is a big shift. At the start of this century, nobody was hiring offshore wind maintenance engineers, carbon accounting specialists or circular economy consultants. Today those roles sit alongside solar panel installers, EV mechanics, corporate sustainability reporting directive (CSRD) reporting managers and climate risk consultants, and the list keeps growing.

Tanya Cawley, country manager at AJ Products Ireland, says the biggest change is one of status, with their sustainability function growing from one individual to a full department.

“Five years ago, sustainability would have been part of the agenda, but it was not part of our day-to-day like it is today.”

The shift has not been confined to specialists.

“The transition to a more circular way of working has naturally involved the wider business, not just the specialist teams,” says Cawley.

“Country managers, project sales and, of course, senior colleagues have had to develop their understanding of CSRD requirements and how these changes will impact our business. We have combined upskilling with specialist hires, building on a workforce that has already delivered a Gold EcoVadis award.”

Cawley says that the biggest gap is data. Companies increasingly depend on information about materials, product origins and emissions, yet many people, Cawley included, were trained to source it for year-end sustainability audits.

Change won’t happen, however, without bold, forward-thinking leadership.

“For too long, sustainability has been part of the rhetoric, but it needs a natural leader with excellent communication skills who will convince the board and lead the business through this transition,” says Cawley.

However, skills alone are not enough for employers. Many businesses see circularity as an expensive uphill battle, Cawley says – and that only changes when the chief executive or board is fully supportive.

But is it easy for workers to move into this area?

“An engineering or design background would be well placed for a sustainability role, as they would possess a very strong understanding of product design and manufacturing, although they would still need to learn about sustainable materials, traceability and reporting,” says Cawley.

Nora Condon, labour market researcher at Solas, says that many established occupations are being reshaped with a mix of technical, transversal and human skills needs.

“An electrical engineer may need expertise in wind energy or high-voltage systems, a facilities manager may need sustainability skills, and an HGV driver may need eco-driving expertise,” she says.

Digital capability runs through it all, Condon adds. Green roles increasingly involve carbon accounting software, data analysis and drone technology.

“These skills are relevant across the economy, not only in jobs traditionally described as ‘green’,” she says.

Provision is expanding. Solas has published the first national Green Skills 2030 strategy and is working with the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) on a national roll-out of green skills programmes. Short, flexible micro-qualifications in areas such as sustainability, digital, AI and leadership are available through its Skills to Advance initiative, and six centres of excellence offer upskilling in near zero energy building, retrofit and modern methods of construction. Courses can be searched at fetchcourses.ie.

Apprenticeships are opening doors too, including the wind turbine maintenance technician programme launched by Kerry ETB in 2023.

Wind Energy Ireland also runs a free wind turbine technician programme that combines technical and safety training with an employer placement and suits people with electrical, mechanical, hydraulic or engineering experience.

Mairead Faherty, now with Siemens Energy in Galway, was a welder when a friend working on offshore wind farms suggested a change.

“The thought hadn’t crossed my mind prior to that, but it was a seed that grew as I looked into it as a career,” says Faherty.

“It seemed so exciting and out of the ordinary and just such an interesting field to get into. And it’s a growing industry in Ireland, with plenty of work. So, job security was a big draw for me.”

Because of the safety standards involved, training comes before setting foot near any turbine. Phase one takes place at Kerry College’s Monavalley campus, beginning with Global Wind Organisation training in working at heights, advanced rescue, fire awareness, manual handling and first aid. Applicants also had to climb a 20-metre tower and be lowered from the top. Only 14 places were available that year.

Classroom and workshop training covers safety, mechanical and electrical skills, inspection, maintenance and fault finding; the rest of the year is on the job.

“Working on machinery 100 metres in the air is like nothing else,” says Faherty, who recently passed the tests to become an authorising technician, the person in charge of putting safety measures in place.

“Don’t be afraid to try something different,” says Faherty. “If you told me five years ago that I would be a turbine technician, I would have laughed. The best thing about an apprenticeship is that you don’t have to have a background in the industry you are aiming for.”