In this edition of New Energy Expert Insights, we sat down with William Ryan, Chief Executive Officer of Project Management Planet, to discuss the state of renewable energy project management and training in Australia.
Project Management Planet is Australia and New Zealand’s leading project management education and training provider. They provide project, programme and portfolio management training for professionals in the renewable, construction, IT, healthcare and professional services sectors. In addition to supporting experienced project managers to enhance their skills and achieve industry-recognised certification, Project Management Planet also provides training and placement pathways for those career-changing into project management.
William Ryan is the Chief Executive Officer at Project Management Planet. He brings experience from both government and private sector project teams across Australia’s renewable energy, construction, and transport industries.
How does project management in the renewable energy sector differ from other sectors?
Project management in the renewable energy sector differs from other sectors in several key ways. Firstly, renewable energy projects often operate at the intersection of multiple disciplines – engineering, construction, environmental science, community engagement, and finance. This makes project management inherently more cross-functional than in other sectors. Project managers must coordinate diverse technical teams and manage interfaces between civil, electrical, environmental, and digital systems – all while ensuring compliance with stringent safety and regulatory standards.
Secondly, project managers in the renewable energy sector must navigate rapidly evolving technologies and policy frameworks. From grid-scale batteries and green hydrogen to offshore wind and transmission upgrades, project timelines must adapt to shifting government incentives, changing regulatory settings, and emerging sustainability requirements. This requires strong adaptive planning and agile management approaches, rather than rigid linear methodologies commonly used in construction and traditional energy projects.
Finally, the sector’s urgency – driven by Australia’s net-zero targets – means project managers are under pressure to deliver faster, at greater scale, and in new locations. This demands a future-focused skill set: digital literacy (for example, data-driven project control and understanding), sustainability reporting, and a deep understanding of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles.
How do project managers secure social licence for renewable energy projects?
The renewable energy sector has a unique stakeholder landscape. Unlike traditional infrastructure or construction projects, renewable energy developments are often situated in regional or rural communities and depend heavily on community support to proceed.
Project managers play a vital role in securing social licence for renewable energy projects by ensuring genuine, transparent, and long-term engagement with local communities. Successful project managers in this sector are not just delivery specialists – they are also negotiators, communicators, and trust-builders. This makes social licence management and transparent communication a central part of the project manager’s role.
There is also a significant opportunity to share benefits through project management training. While renewable energy developers increasingly provide trade-based training to secure social license, this could be expanded to include upskilling community members in project management. These skills are transferable to other sectors, allowing locals to not only contribute to project delivery but also lead initiatives such as small businesses or social programs, long after the project is completed.
Is Australia ready — from a project management skills and training perspective — for the renewable energy revolution?
Project management training in Australia’s renewable energy transition is emerging but underdeveloped. Key challenges include limited scale, slow rollout, regional access issues, and shortages of trainers and facilities.
Excluding rooftop solar, the renewable energy transition is largely happening in regional areas, but most training centres are located in major cities. We can’t expect workers interested in retraining or upskilling as project managers to take time away from their work and families to travel to these training centres. To address this challenge, one of Project Management Planet’s key offerings is online and self-paced professional certificates for mid-career professionals. Self-paced training can be undertaken remotely and so it addresses regional and trainer shortages while maintaining the same quality (and certification outcomes) as in-person programs.
Another challenge in Australia’s renewable energy transition is that it relies heavily on workers moving from the construction and traditional energy sectors. However, these sectors are also facing a critical shortage of project managers. For example, since 2021, Jobs and Skills Australia has reported a severe shortage of construction project managers in every state and territory. It is difficult to encourage these professionals to upskill for renewable energy projects when attractive opportunities remain in their current sectors.
Of course, the project management skills shortage also reflects broader renewable energy skills shortages. In September this year, Powering Skills Organisation predicted a 42,000 shortfall of renewable energy trade workers by 2030, citing training bottlenecks and a 40% decline in training over the past decade. Without rapid expansion of training – particularly retraining – initiatives, workforce bottlenecks could slow renewable deployment and net-zero progress. This is a significant challenge for industry and government (and a great opportunity for certified professionals!).
Is the government doing enough to support retraining and upskilling of renewable energy project managers?
Australia’s government has made meaningful progress in supporting renewable energy workforce development, but is not doing enough to address the specific retraining and upskilling needs of project managers.
Federal initiatives such as the $91 million ‘Skilling the Clean Energy Workforce’ program (2024-25 Budget) demonstrate recognition of the renewable energy transition’s workforce demands. State programs, such as Victoria’s Renewable Hydrogen Worker Training Centre and the Wind Worker Training Centre, will also play an important role in building the renewable energy workforce. However, funding and policy focus prioritises trades, apprenticeships, and technical roles – not project managers who are responsible for overall project delivery.
Government funding for project management is mostly limited to foundational level training (for example, financial support for diplomas and Cert IVs in project management). This training is suitable if you have just finished school, but is too basic for mid-career project professionals who will deliver large-scale wind, solar, and BESS projects. There’s a real need for government support to incentivise mid-career project professionals to transition from construction and traditional energy into renewable energy. Government subsidisation of professional certificates (PRINCE2, Agile, Project Management Institute courses), which are more advanced and teach practical, day-to-day project management skills, is necessary for Australia to meet the 2030 and 2050 renewable energy targets.
What excites you about the future of renewable energy project management?
What excites me most is the pace of innovation and the opportunity for project managers to redefine how complex infrastructure is delivered. We’re entering a period where digital transformation, sustainability, and community outcomes are no longer separate objectives – they’re integrated into every phase of a project. Project managers are at the centre of this shift. We’re seeing rapid adoption of digital project controls, the emergence of AI-driven scheduling, and real-time data analytics that can predict risks and optimise performance. These tools don’t just make projects more efficient; they create transparency and accountability across stakeholders – from financiers to local communities.
I’m also inspired by the new generation of project professionals coming through. Many are purpose-driven and deeply motivated by climate impact. They’re not just managing budgets and timelines; they’re helping to build Australia’s renewable energy future. At Project Management Planet, we’re proud to help lower some of the barriers to entering the project management profession and to support this next generation as they lead the renewable energy revolution.
