Finding out about work opportunities
Before leaving the UK you should do some research about the archive profession in Australia and potential employers.
A good way of keeping up to date with current issues in the archive world 'down under' is to join the Aus-Archivists listserve. To subscribe send an e-mail to majordomo@asap.unimelb.edu.au with the message `subscribe aus-archivists'. The listserve is frequently used to advertise new jobs. One roving UK archivist used the list to post an `employment sought' notice, which resulted in her getting a job with a state organisation.
You can find a lot of information on the Internet. A couple of useful sites are http://www.naa.gov.au (National Archives of Australia or NAA) and http://www.archivists.org.au (Australian Society of Archivists or ASA). The NAA is responsible for the care of central government records in Australia and is based in Canberra, with regional offices in each of the states and the Northern Territory. As with the PRO in the UK, it has taken a leading role in the development of best practice and policy in the archive and records management profession in Australia, particularly in the electronic field. Its website is well produced and easy to navigate. The Australian Society of Archivists (ASA) is the Australian equivalent of the UK's Society of Archivists. Its website gives details about the organisation and has contacts for local branches of the Society. It has a useful link to the Directory of Australian Archives, which provides a list of the major archives in Australia, with web links where available. You can also access a number of online publications (position papers, ASA conference papers) which give an interesting insight into some of the current issues facing the profession in Australia.
It is well worth going along to a meeting of the local ASA branch when you arrive in Australia. Australian archivists are a very friendly bunch and love to welcome visitors! It is also a useful opportunity to make some contacts in the local archive community. This has proved a very fruitful way of finding employment in the past!
Another useful organisation to contact is the Records Management Association of Australia (RMAA). Details of local contacts can be found at their website, http://www.octa4.net.au. One UK archivist made contact with a private consultancy firm which offered her longer term employment prospects in Australia.
A likely place to find short term work is through an agency. There are a growing number of private consultancies specialising in records management and archives in Australia. However, many of the larger agencies in the major cities also have a consultant dealing with this area. The more agencies you register with the better your chances of employment. Below is a list of some of the agencies which have offered people work in the past:
Provenance Consultant Services Pty Ltd, 121 Bilga Crescent, Malabar, NSW 2036
Contact: Kerry Gordon
Tel/Fax: (02) 9311 4099
E-mail: kerrygordon@bigpond.com
Zenith Management Services Group
Suite 301, 10 Help Street, Chatswood, Sydney, NSW 1515 http://www.zemnan.com.au
One Umbrella Information Recruitment Specialists
http://www.oneumbrella.com.au This company offers an online recruitment service for the following three agencies which specialise in the field of information/records management:
• Library Locums
• Qualified Records People
• Knowledge People
The website gives details and contacts for each of the agencies, which operate in Sydney and Melbourne and in one or two other cities. It also has current job ads.
Archival Systems
http://www.archivalsystems.com.au e-mail: info@archivalsystems.com.au or recruitment@archivalsystems.com.au Head office is in Melbourne, but they also have an office in the Northern Territory
Information Enterprises
Tel: (08) 9335 2533 Contact: Gayle Murphy Based in Perth, WA. Specialise in information/records management and offer contract work with State organisations.
Last modified 07/09/2004
