AWARDS FINALIST: Orion – Ubuntu Programme: Enabling the workforce of tomorrow

Orion is meeting the challenge of building its future workforce for the energy transition head-on with initiatives aimed at getting more people from a wider range of backgrounds interested in the energy industry and ensuring it retains its workforce once it attracts them.

With issues already arising in finding and attracting experienced workers and new entrants in New Zealand and globally, the company says it views workforce diversity and inclusion as essential to meeting the future skills requirements of a reliable, resilient and decarbonised electricity system.

Its Ubuntu diversity and inclusion programme, established in 2023 and refreshed in 2024, prioritises ensuring its workplace welcomes and supports all individuals, and has earned Orion a place in the finals of this year's Energy Excellence Awards.

Orion says it was developed in response to historically low participation by diverse groups - particularly women and some ethnic communities - in the electricity sector.

Ubuntu, a word for the West African concept of "humanity towards others" or "I am because we are", combines talent attraction, inclusion, pay equity and workforce development into a single initiative.

Since its inception, the Christchurch-based distributor's gender pay gap has reduced from 22 per cent to 8.6 per cent and the number of women in leadership roles has increased from 31 per cent to 36 per cent.

Across the business, employee engagement has risen from 63 per cent to 67 per cent, and inclusive culture audit scores have improved from 30 per cent to 65 per cent.

The company also reports that the hiring of females has reached 38 per cent, while employee turnover has fallen to 6.7 per cent.

Building career pathways

A major component of the programme focuses on developing early-career pathways and refreshing intern, graduate and technical engineering programmes.

Orion's initiatives include Power Youth, a two-week work experience programme for people aged 16 to 19.

It has also developed external partnerships, including those with leadership development consultancy The Female Career, innovation and engineering incubator Evolocity, infrastructure training provider Connexis and Aruhiko Power Engineering Excellence Trust, as well as with other electricity distribution businesses.

A key initiative is Orion's partnership with female science, technology, engineering, maths, entrepreneur and leadership platform GirlBoss New Zealand, with the distributor partnering with six other energy companies to sponsor 300 young women to attend the GirlBoss Edge Sustainability career mentoring programme last year.

"At the start of the GirlBoss Edge programme, only 2 per cent of participants knew of the industry, and by the end of the programme 98 per cent could see themselves working in energy," Orion says.

GirlBoss New Zealand chief executive Alexia Hilbertidou says more than 800 young women aged between 15 and 21 graduated from the programme across its 2025 and 2026 cohorts.

The programme has launched more than 600 youth-led energy projects and solutions, she says.

Hilbertidou credits Orion with helping to shape the fully funded, 10-day online programme designed to open doors for young women into the energy sector.

Orion is more than a sponsor, having also "championed" it, she says, bringing along 130 mentors from the wider energy sector.

Internal framework

Delivering the Ubuntu programme required collaboration across the business, its people and culture team, leaders, employee groups, Orion says.

Internally, it established an inclusion council and employee working groups, which fed into its people practices, including innovations such as flexible working. It also developed leave programmes such as parental leave, its wellbeing 'My Days' leave, and two 'Orion Days' of paid leave during the Christmas period.

It also provides wellbeing allowances and has implemented a 'Boost' employee benefits programme.

The Mana Taumata framework has embedded clear, inclusive behaviours across the business.

"This work enabled the obtainment of the Gender Tick and inclusion in the parental leave register," Orion says.

The annual Energy Excellence Awards will be held in Wellington on 19 August. The FutureForce Award is sponsored by Ngākau Hihiko.