Published on the 08/07/2026 | Written by Heather Wright

Industry placements aim to sharpen digital training…

TAFE NSW has launched a new program to tackle the issue of lack of business-ready tech skills – by upping educator skills. The new Industry Accelerator program will place teachers inside tech companies as part of an effort to keep vocational training aligned with rapidly evolving industry requirements.

“The program is the first major step in an ambitious program designed to strengthen connection between education and industry.”

The Industry Accelerator – Teachers to Industry Program will see educators undertake professional development and industry immersion with organisations including Adobe, Macquarie Technology Group and Omron Automation and Robotics Australia. It’s designed to give teachers hands on experience and direct exposure to current technologies, workplace practices and employer expectations, before returning those insights to the classroom.

The launch follows a successful pilot involving 34 advanced manufacturing teachers, which drove the program to progress to full implementation last week with an initial cohort of 50 digital and finance teachers beginning their initial professional development phase before beginning industry placements.

TAFE NSW says participating teachers will focus on priority skills areas and then share learnings across the wider organisation to broaden the program’s impact.

The move comes amid ongoing concern across Australia and New Zealand about the availability of digital skills.

In New Zealand, technology industry body TUANZ recently issued another call for ‘urgent, coordinated investment in home-grown digital capability’, including encouraging diverse pathways of training, expanding industry-led reskilling programs with tax credits or subsidies, and mandating technology upskilling in the core curriculum.

While employers are continuing to invest in AI, cybersecurity, automation and data-driven technologies, industry groups on both sides of the Tasman have continued to warn that demand for digital capability is outstripping supply. At the same time, employers on both sides of the Tasman have long complained that graduates often arrive with qualifications but lack exposure to the tools, platforms and technologies being deployed in business environments, with the technical skills learned in education settings often not matching those required in the real world.

In announcing the initiative, TAFE NSW said the program would help educators remain at the forefront of industry practice by providing hands-on experience with ‘leading employers across NSW like Adobe, Macquarie Technology Group and Omron’. The aim is to strengthen expertise in priority skills areas and improve the relevance of training delivered to students, ensuring it better reflects workplace expectations.

The organisation says industry partnerships will play a critical role in ensuring training reflects current workplace requirements and future workforce needs, and representatives from Microsoft, Google, SAS, Adobe, Macquarie Technology Group, Palo Alto Networks and Omron on hand for last week’s launch at the Institute of Applied Technology, Digital at TAFE NSW Meadowbank.

There is, of course, a difference between learning how modern organisations use technology and learning how tech companies would like organisations to use technology. TAFE NSW has framed the program around industry practice and workplace readiness, but it remains to be seen whether educators return with deeper insight into employer needs, vendor ecosystems or a healthy dose of both.

Fiona Watts, TAFE NSW senior manager education standards, says the program is the first major step in an ambitious program designed to strengthen the connection between education and industry while providing direct exposure to emerging technologies and workforce requirements.

Watts, who is leading the initiative, says the program is about creating genuine partnerships to help educators understand where industry is heading so they can prepare learners for careers that may not even exist today.

The new scheme forms part of a broader push by TAFE NSW to strengthen tech capabilities across its training network. Other recent initiatives include the launch of microskills programs covering AI, cybersecurity and data centres, and specialists training facilities and centres of excellence focused on emerging technologies. The Meadowbank facility, into which the Albanese and Minns Labour Governments have invested $11 million, is one on those new centres of excellence and is expected to train more than 50,000 Australians annually, upskilling and reskilling students and workers in cybersecurity, AI, big data, cloud and software.

The launch also follows the New South Wales Government’s announcement of a A$2.7 billion investment in TAFE NSW, including funding for network upgrades, classroom technology modernisation and new devices for staff and students.