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Tuesday, 17 May 2016

The peak body representing Australia’s oil and gas industry has partnered with the UWA Business School to give MBA students the opportunity to engage in a real-life consulting project.

APPEA, the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association, recently posed a challenge to one team of MBA Full Time Intensive students: to recommend ways in which APPEA could strengthen its membership base, in order to enhance its role as an advocate for the sector and influence policies that impact the industry.

APPEA’s Adam Welch said the organisation was pleased to support the UWA MBA Full Time Intensive capstone project.

“We were keen to tap into the skills and knowledge of WA’s future leaders and provide them with a real-world project that would deliver value to the association and our members,” Mr Welch said.

“The output from the project was viewed positively by APPEA’s Board with the students’ recommendations forming the basis of an enhanced strategy of engagement with our members.”

Elizabeth Fells, who completed her MBA last year, was a member of the project team.

“APPEA is operating in a fast-changing environment - Australia’s oil and gas sector is moving from project development to operational phase, the nation’s economy is transitioning, and companies are facing new challenges,” Elizabeth said.

“We conducted in-depth interviews with APPEA’s members, as well as some Board members and non-members, to gain insights and recommend ways APPEA can continue to represent its members, and the industry, effectively.”

Elizabeth, who is now an Associate Director of Deloitte Access Economics, said the project was an exciting opportunity to apply the skills learnt during her MBA.

“The project was an opportunity to apply the skills I developed through the MBA to a real-life industry challenge, and to have a client focus to every aspect of our work. It was a great stepping stone back into the workforce, an excellent way to end the MBA year,” she said.

“We presented members of APPEA’s Board and executive team with findings from our research and analysis, and evidence-based recommendations that would make a difference to APPEA and its members in 2016. And it was very satisfying that the client found the project highly valuable – the most important KPI!”

UWA MBA students have also completed projects for a range of other organisations, including government departments and private companies.

Media references

Karen Della Torre (UWA Business School)                                          (+61 8) 6488 8538
Verity Chia (UWA Business School)                                                    (+61 8) 6488 1346

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