Defending Australia and its national interests

This Case Study looks at the role of different personnel within the ADF, the ADF's overall mission statement and the recruitment process and media used. It focuses on the ADF's need to overcome skills shortages and highlights professional similarities between the ADF and private employment.

As a result of reading this Case Study, students should be able to:

• Explain the concept of skills shortages and how these can be addressed
• Understand the different career paths available in the ADF
• Outline the ADF's recruitment path

Introduction

The mission of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) is to defend Australia and its national interests both at home and overseas, protecting Australia’s borders and undertaking humanitarian operations in areas such as Iraq, East Timor, and the Solomon Islands.

The ADF recruitment process

Robust, effective recruitment processes are crucial to the ADF.

Addressing a skills shortage

Like many industries within Australia, some career paths within the ADF are subject to skills shortages.

Conclusion

The ADF has developed a robust recruitment process designed to attract and identify the highest-quality candidates. It is addressing existing skills shortages with specialist education and recruitment campaigns designed to fill vacancies within the trades, health and engineering sectors.