Empower invests in young talent

June 2008

Back to newsletter

Empower Masterpay’s Systems Architect James Galdes scored an outstanding academic achievement at his recent graduation from Adelaide’s Flinders University.

James, who graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Engineering) degree with Honours (First Class), was awarded a University Medal, which recognised his grades among the university top nine per cent. This outstanding achievement also secured him entry to the prestigious Golden Key Honours Society, an international organisation that accepts only the top 15 per cent of university students.

Demonstrating its ability to pick young talent early, Empower hired James two years ago, while he was still undertaking his studies. James is responsible for designing, deploying and maintaining Empower’s technology infrastructure, ranging form its storage area network to its networking and communication systems.

Empower Masterpay has a track record of investing in young talent, for example, through its sponsorship of the iCarnegie program, presented by Adelaide Institute of TAFE from 2002 and backed by the top-ranked School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon university in the US.

Empower’s Senior Technical Consultant John Saunders was a 2003 graduate of the iCarnegie program, having attended through gaining the Premier’s Carnegie Technology Education Scholarship. In May 2004, John won the gold medal for SA in the Worldskills Australia IT programming competition. After three years with Empower’s development team, he moved to the technical services group 

Another example of Empower’s commitment to youth is its corporate support of young performing and visual artists through the Helpmann Academy’s Ashington Mentorship Scheme. Formed in 1994, the Helpmann Academy is a unique partnership of the major tertiary arts training establishments in South Australia offering award courses for people seeking professional careers in the arts. The Academy unifies the skills and resources of South Australia's universities and TafeSA, bringing together courses in music, dance, drama, directing, visual arts, technical theatre production and design.

Empower CEO Alan Greig said the company’s staff were keen to support young talent. “At a recent fundraising dinner, several of us ended up going home with new artwork after the event’s auction,” he said.

“We hope their development is as remarkable as James’ has been. He has demonstrated his ability and application as strongly in the workplace as he did in his academic scores. We are all very proud of his achievement in winning the University Medal and gaining acceptance into the Golden Key Honours Society.”

According to James, the appreciation is mutual. “Empower is a great place to work,” he said. “We have exposure to some bleeding-edge technologies and many opportunities to grow – both in terms of technical skills and as a person. During my time here, I have become a Novell Certified Linux Professional, predominantly thanks to real-world experience working daily on Empower servers.

“The hours can be long, but the outcome is always rewarding. Also, being a relatively small company, the ability to function well in a team (especially under pressure) is essential, and something I have come to value greatly.”

You can congratulate James Galdes by calling Empower on 08 8332 6988 or emailing him at james.galdez@empower.com.au.

Click here for printable version of this eNews edition