Training
Bespoke training for building capabilities and growing industries
Success for us means equipping you with the tools and confidence to thrive independently. Our tailored training and mentoring programs impart the knowledge and expertise, and connect you with invaluable networks, empowering both you and your organisation for sustained growth. We are dedicated to enhancing your capabilities, allowing you to uncover the untapped potential within your organisation.
Find out more about the types of programs we have delivered in the following videos.
Case Studies
Navigating planning pathways for diversification
In 2022, the NSW Department of Planning and Environment released agritourism planning reforms designed to make it easier for farmers to use their land for tourism activities. As part of this rollout, Sparrowly Group led a number of agritourism development programs educating industry about the reforms and facilitating product and experience development.
OUR APPROACH
Sparrowly Group delivered the Agritourism Development Program across NSW and are in the process of delivering for Outback Queensland. We began by understanding agritourism in Australia at a regional, state and national level, which included a deep literature review.
Crucial to the success was stakeholder engagement with state and local government representatives, importantly bringing together Tourism, Economic Development and Planning staff to bridge the gap between agritourism and compliance. State and regional agricultural bodies included Department of Planning and Environment, Department of Primary Industries, RDA, Local Land Services and Farmers Federation.
We developed the Agritourism Readiness Indicator (ARI) to map agritourism development opportunities. A criteria was developed to summarise the Indicator results to determine suitability and permissibility for agritourism development in line with the planning reforms. The literature review and ARI results were mapped in an Agritourism Blueprint and Roadmap which outlined development opportunities, pathways for industry development and a long-term action plan.
IMPACT
To date, we have delivered this program across 17 Local Government Areas across the Central West, Southern Highlands and South Coast areas of NSW.
The Program included the delivery of an industry development program, Agritourism Accelerator, for existing operators who are expanding and farmers who are interested or just getting started in agritourism. We delivered Masterclass workshops and attendees had the opportunity to participate in one-to-one and group mentoring sessions on Developing, Promoting and Selling Your Agritourism Experience. Supporting this was the development of factsheets, webinars and resources to help operators along their journey.
Mentoring for Northern NSW’s tourism recovery
The tourism industry, like many, has suffered during the last few years due to COVID-19 related impacts. To combat this razing of one of Australia’s most important economic sectors, in September 2020, the Australian Government announced a $50 million Recovery for Regional Tourism Fund (the Fund). The goal of the Fund was to support the recovery of regions that are heavily reliant on international tourism.
The initiative was part of the $1 billion COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund. Destination North Coast (DNC) received funding to launch their tailored Business Accelerator and Mentoring Program (the Program) to support and transform businesses across the North Coast region of NSW – from Tweed through to the Mid Coast (including Lord Howe Island).
OUR APPROACH
DNC engaged Sparrowly Group to create and deliver the Program to provide business mentoring to up to 100 businesses in the North Coast region of NSW. The goal of the Program was to provide tailored business and mentoring support to local businesses to sustain them through these challenging times and transform and prepare them for the return of the tourism industry.
To support the business mentoring program itself, we also delivered a five-workshop series which was held across the North Coast. These workshops gave mentees and the broader industry a chance to connect with other businesses and test the practical application of their learnings from the mentorship.
IMPACT
Working together with DNC, we envisioned and delivered the Program – a targeted and tailored business mentoring program designed to aid in the North Coast’s recovery and transform the tourism businesses in the region. The Program met these goals by:
Building strong, resilient and sustainable businesses in the North Coast tourism industry.
Supporting and empowering tourism operators to diversify their product, experience and marketing offering.
Increasing the amount of high quality/hero experiences in the region.
Strengthening industry connections and collaboration within the tourism ecosystem.
The Program ultimately aided in the North Coast’s path to recovery by building a stronger and more resilient tourism industry that is better prepared to manage industry shocks both now and in the future.
Image credit: Destination NSW
