How does professional development align in the construction workplace when associated with integrated management systems?

The quality, safety, and environment Standards, each respectively referred to as ISO 9001:2015, ISO 45001:2018 and ISO 14001:2015, have been released and for the first time in the world as a united, integrated management system (IMS) that can be applied to organisations. This IMS is the combination of the said ISO Standards for quality, safety, and environment. Organisation’s may address one, two or all three of these Standards. This thesis explores how professional development (PD) in construction workplaces supports workers to have the knowledge, awareness, and competency to deliver IMS. PD is the mechanism used by workplaces to address and prevent issues such as the loss of work because of poor productivity, loss of life, and the lack of preventing pollution. There is a very clear opportunity as this is the ‘first time ever’ in the world that quality, safety, and environment can present a unified delivery for IMS because of the recognition that these three areas are inter-related as an IMS rather than isolated entities. Consequently, PD now must be delivered as a IMS reflecting this IMS model. Workplace learning is essential in understanding the context and the problem in identifying and reducing the gap in aligning PD to IMS. It is within this thesis this gap and need is explored. An IMS ensures that, by delivering on quality, safety and environment, an organisation operates and functions well, ultimately making a profit. An organisation must not only make a profit through providing quality product and services, it will survive only if it also delivers on the social contract to provide for the safety of interested parties both internally and externally. Furthermore, the product and service should be delivered to minimise environmental impact. To meet these IMS Standards, the PD of people in workplaces should be addressed in an integrated and effective way in alignment with the IMS. My motivation in undertaking this research stems from problems I experienced, and what I have seen others experienced, resulting from what I assume is poor alignment between PD and IMS. This problem relates to the phenomenon of learning in the workplace. This research focuses upon the question, “How does professional development in the construction workplace align with integrated management systems?” The research was not a test of a theory and hypotheses of why there is the misalignment of PD with the lack of IMS in the workplace. Instead, the research developed conceptual themes to explain the experiences of workers who participated. The participant cross-section consisted of construction and engineering workers and owners in business, that operate an IMS from 15 construction workplaces in Australia that operated locally, regionally, and nationally. These targeted participants were male and female workers that ranged from their 20’s to 60’s in age that directly have the responsibility of managing the IMS. The data collected came from semi formal interviews (resulting in transcripts of the interview) and reviewed secondary data such as documented information and photos. I then used a qualitative methodology with the tool of thematic analysis. The themes developed can contribute to knowledge about PD, workplace learning, and IMS, and better prepare owners and management with the utilisation of IMS to guide PD that delivers quality, safety, and environmental controls within their workplace.