The New Zealand Planning Institute® has in place a planner exchange programme with the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Canadian Planning Institute.
NZPI ® developed this exchange programme to facilitate planner exchanges for individuals to provide planners an opportunity to experience a new planning system without having to resign from their current jobs.
What is a Planner Exchange
The planner exchange programme can be viewed as a mutual secondment where two planners have a transfer to each others jobs. In undertaking an exchange, obviously the parties involved in the exchange should, broadly speaking, have a similar range of skills and experience. As this is an exchange, each party remains in the employment of their current employer. Each planner retains their own salary and it is up to the individual to provide for their own financial means during the exchange period.
How to Set up a Planner Exchange
The first step in this procedure is to get approval in principle from ones employer. Once this has been obtained, you can then proceed to contact the appropriate "target country" planning institute and get that institute to advertise your registration of interest. In asking the planning institute representative to advertise your registration of interest, you should provide at that same time details as to work experience, details of your current employment, the planning and general functions of the employer and relevant personal details.
Relevant personal details would pertain to such matters as
whether you have a partner, children, pets, plus vehicle
available and accommodation to exchange. Once your registration
of interest has been advertised it is then a waiting game to
seek a response from planners in the other country. Any planner
who then sees the registration of interest would then have to
go through the same process with their employer to gain
approval in principle to proceed with the planner exchange.
Details would be swapped with individuals and the respective
employees to see whether each was satisfied with the other
potential partner. Once agreement has been reached that an
exchange is able to take place, the individuals and
organisations would have to go through the necessary
arrangements to put the exchange in place.
The New Zealand Government recognise the planner exchange scheme, but will require a work visa to be obtained
The planning co-ordinator from the respective institutes can provide letters of support in respect of obtaining appropriate work documents.
The majority of exchanges have usually been for a period of one year, but have varied between six months to upwards of two years. It is up to the two parties involved to negotiate about personal matters such as swapping accommodation, use of vehicles and like matters.
Function of NZPI ®
The NZPI
®
, through the planning exchange co-ordinator, acts as
the initial point of contact in this programme. The
co-ordinator will arrange to have the prospective exchangee
register their interest in the programme and have this
registration inserted in
Planning
Quarterly, the official magazine of the New Zealand
Planning Institute
®
.
The planning co-ordinator will also provide information to both
the participants and employers about the process involved,
provide letters of support for visa applications and can
provide useful information about the traps and tips of the
exchange programme. For the New Zealand planner, applications
can be made to the Planning Institute for assistance of up to
NZ$500 towards assisting in the undertaking of this
exchange.
The NZPI
®
does not act as an employment agency, thus the
planner exchange programme is set up to facilitate job
exchanges, not to provide a service to find overseas planners
employment within New Zealand.
Expectations
The exchange programme is about the swapping of jobs for a fixed duration in order to provide the participants with a professional opportunity to experience a new planning system and philosophy. Unless otherwise arranged, the costs in setting up the application fall with the participants, i.e. travel to and from the country of the exchange.
As with any new job there is always a lot of hard work involved in learning that job, but particularly in this instance where new planning law, planning systems and cultures are encountered. The rewards are worth the effort though. A planner exchange system provides an opportunity to make lifelong friends and provide travel opportunities within the host country, without the need to resign from ones current employment.
If you should have an interest in undertaking an exchange, you should first contact your planning institute and obtain further details of the programme. The co-ordinator will always be happy to provide this information and may also put you in contact with other persons who have participated in the programme.
Programme Coordinator: Warren Ulusele
Ph. 04 803 8187
warren.ulusele@wcc.govt.nz
