Mind the Gaps

Abstract

The word “diversity” is well adopted and celebrated by globally successful companies including Google and Apple who claim that diversity inspires innovation. The New Zealand electricity supply industry supports a number of initiatives that aims to address gender diversity, and increase the number of high achieving electrical engineering graduates. However, the desire to enhance workforce capability by encouraging diversity in New Zealand’s electricity industry is not yet fully realised. The gender imbalance is a noticeable issue across all sectors, and anecdotal evidence suggests that there is a void of young engineers to acquire knowledge from experienced senior professionals and smoothly transition into senior roles.

Understanding the demographic profile of electrical engineers derived from census data helps to identify any gaps that need to be addressed. Tertiary enrolment demographic trends for the Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE) degree specialisation can be referred to as a proxy for what the future demographic profile of the electricity industry may look like.

This paper analyses and discusses the demographic trends of professional electrical engineers and tertiary students who have completed electrical and electronic related qualifications at universities and polytechnics. Targeted areas that require attention and investment are identified and discussed.