Hi all,

I’m moving to Australia in January and am really excited about the next chapter! That said, I could use some advice as I navigate my career options.

I’ve been an HR Advisor in the UK railway industry for the past year, and before that, I worked as an HR Project Coordinator (2020-2023) and HR Admin/Coordinator (2019-2020). I also have experience as an Operations Support Officer in the retail security industry (2017-2019), and I studied law (LLB, LLM) from 2016-2019.

I’ve confirmed I can convert my CIPD to a Professional MAHRI, which is great, but I’m a bit concerned about my lack of local knowledge in Australian legislation and best practices. Given the sudden nature of the move, things are tight financially, so I won’t be able to afford formal courses to bridge those gaps, although I’m open to self-study to fill in some knowledge.

In HR, my interests are:

• Employee Relations: I enjoy handling grievances, disciplinaries, and capability cases. I like that I can explain the processes in a human language, support staff and managers through difficult times, and help people achieve positive outcomes. I like helping, supporting, and coaching people.

• Recruitment: I like posting jobs, evaluating CVs, and "selling" the right roles to the right candidates. However, I have done this ad hoc in my roles, not as main job function.

• L&D: While I haven’t worked formally in this area, I’ve done basic (TNA) Training Needs Analysis, developed training materials and delivered training related to ER processes, which I found really rewarding. Linking back to coaching and helping people. But again, limited exposure.

I’ve noticed ER roles in Australia might be harder to land without local experience and knowledge, recruitment seems promising but I have limited hands-on experience, and L&D positions seem few and far between (and require a Cert IV, which I don’t have). I do appreciate that I might be using wrong search terms or the jobs are different compared to the UK market, hence why I get few relevant hits on SEEK.

Given my background, I’m trying to figure out the best path forward. I am not limiting myself to a career in HR. I did highlight my HR experience and interests to enable you kind folks to give me your best advice knowing a bit more about my background and assumed skillset. Therefore, do you have: Any advice on realistic career options I should explore? Am I underestimating my skills and situation? I’d love to hear any tips or thoughts you might have that can be of help!

Thanks in advance!

P.S. I am 30 years old in case that is relevant in any capacity.

Kind Regards,

Bobby