South Australia’s Innovative Cyber Security Kickstart Program for Non-IT Professionals

In an era defined by growing digital complexity and persistent cyber threats, South Australia’s largest electricity distributor, SA Power Networks, has taken a bold step in workforce innovation. The company has launched its first “cyber security kickstart” program, aimed specifically at nurturing cyber security talent among individuals with no prior IT or cyber background. Designed for those seeking a career change or entering the workforce from non-technical domains, this groundbreaking initiative stands as both a creative response to Australia’s well-documented cyber skills shortage and a forward-thinking investment in the nation’s digital security infrastructure.

Rising Demand for Cyber Security Talent​

The necessity for programs like this is underscored by a dramatic surge in cyber-attacks targeting critical infrastructure worldwide. According to a 2024 report by the Australian Cyber Security Centre, there was a 23% year-on-year increase in attacks on utilities and essential service providers. As organisations confront increasingly sophisticated adversaries, the Australian government’s own 2023–2030 Cyber Security Strategy singles out workforce capability as a foundational pillar for national resilience.
Nathan Morelli, SA Power Networks’ Head of Cyber Security and IT Resilience, articulated this industry-wide imperative in an interview with iTNews: “As cyber risks increase, all organisations will need more skilled workers.” This sentiment echoes throughout the sector, where the confluence of digital transformation and persistent threat activity has made cyber skills not only desirable, but mission-critical.

Pathways for Non-Traditional Entrants​

What sets the SA Power Networks kickstart program apart is its explicit focus on non-IT graduates and professionals from unrelated backgrounds. Traditionally, cyber security pathway programs—when available at all—have prioritised candidates already familiar with IT fundamentals. By contrast, this kickstart initiative widens the recruitment aperture, and intentionally eliminates the prerequisite of prior technical training.
“Building a cyber pathway complements [our prior success] by seeking to provide opportunities for non-IT graduates and those looking to make a career change,” Morelli explained. This dovetails with a growing recognition that the best cyber defenders may not always come from traditional computer science pipelines. Attributes such as curiosity, analytical thinking, and problem-solving, present in a diverse range of professions, are increasingly valued by security leaders.

Program Structure: Work, Learning, and Mentorship​

The kickstart program is structured as a two-year, blended pathway. Successful applicants are embedded in SA Power Networks’ cyber security team, working across advisory, security operations, and digital identity. Participants spend three days per week gaining hands-on experience, while the remaining two days are dedicated to a structured education program, delivered and customised by the Australian Computer Society (ACS).
This dual-pronged approach ensures that theory and practice progress in parallel. The ACS’s involvement is especially significant: the society is known for industry-endorsed certifications and up-to-date curriculum, reflecting contemporary threats and technologies in the security field. According to Morelli, the partnership with ACS came about because the organisation “was able to customise the pathway to best fit our team structure and working with us.”
For SA Power Networks, this model serves dual purposes. On one hand, it delivers immediately useful capacity to the in-house cyber team. On the other, it upskills participants to industry standards with a curriculum vetted by one of Australia’s top professional bodies in ICT. The result: program graduates who are both work-ready and steeped in the discipline’s latest knowledge and techniques.

Recruitment: Starting Small, Scaling Ambitiously​

The rollout of the program reflects both pragmatism and ambition. In its inaugural year, SA Power Networks is taking on four kickstart participants: two will commence work in July, with a further two joining in early 2026. Morelli indicated a medium-term goal of onboarding four new recruits per year, with the prospect of having up to eight participants active in the program at any one time.
This careful staging enables thoughtful supervision and mentorship, key factors in the positive assimilation of non-traditional entrants into the world of cyber security. Program participants are positioned to benefit from close contact with seasoned practitioners, gaining exposure to threat detection, vulnerability management, compliance, and digital identity challenges as they arise in real-world contexts.

A Broader Technology Strategy​

Crucially, the kickstart program is not an isolated HR or training project; it is entwined with SA Power Networks’ broader technology strategy. Like most utility companies responsible for critical services—in this case, delivering electricity across South Australia—SA Power Networks invests heavily in securing the operational technology (OT) and IT assets that underpin service reliability and public safety.
“The program fits with the company’s wider technology strategy to underpin delivery of a safe, reliable electricity supply to South Australia,” Morelli pointed out. Having a locally nurtured and expanding cyber security team helps safeguard these vital systems against an evolving threat landscape. It also aligns with the company’s stated commitment to both workforce development and community benefit.

Partnership with the Australian Computer Society​

The choice to work with ACS for the structured learning component is far from incidental. The ACS has a long-standing reputation for maintaining high standards in ICT education, and it is a vocal advocate for competency frameworks that promote both foundational knowledge and practical skills. By collaborating with ACS, SA Power Networks ensures that the program curriculum is current, nationally recognised, and tailored to organisational needs.
For the program participants, this means the credits and certifications earned during the kickstart program will likely be portable across the Australian cyber sector, not just confined to roles within SA Power Networks itself. That portability adds substantial value to the professional prospects of each candidate, boosting confidence in long-term employability.

Addressing the Cyber Talent Shortage: Industry Context​

SA Power Networks’ approach arrives in a context of acute and persistent skill shortages. A 2024 report by the Australian Industry Skills Committee observed that the local cyber security workforce would need to grow by at least 30% over the next five years just to meet baseline national demand. The gap is amplified by rapid technological change, the influx of AI-driven threats, and the high stakes associated with critical infrastructure breaches.
National initiatives such as the Cyber Security National Workforce Growth Program, and efforts by the Department of Home Affairs to uplift tertiary cyber education, are important pieces of the talent pipeline. However, employers note that industry readiness lags academic attainment, particularly when life experience and soft skills are pivotal to team effectiveness. There remains a persistent gap between “book learning” and the capacity to respond calmly to real security incidents.
By locating its kickstart program within a working cyber team, SA Power Networks ensures direct exposure to live issues—and mentors with commercial experience—rather than hypothetical classroom exercises alone.

Benefits for Participants: Career Change Made Real​

For many aspiring cyber security professionals, the biggest barrier is not interest or aptitude, but the lack of a clear, supportive entry route. Bootcamps and postgraduate training options abound, but they often assume a degree of technical literacy or work experience already acquired. The kickstart program’s willingness to take on complete beginners, then, is both noteworthy and potentially transformative.
Participants will exit with:

• Hands-on experience in a live cyber security environment.
• Industry-recognised education delivered by ACS.
• Mentorship and peer learning from security professionals.
• A network of contacts, including both internal SA Power Networks peers and external ACS alumni.
• A pathway to longer-term employment in one of Australia’s fastest-growing tech sectors.

Empirical research on “work-integrated learning” in cyber security, such as studies commissioned by AustCyber and the National Industry Insights Committee, reinforce the program’s logic: blended approaches produce more resilient, job-ready graduates than theoretical instruction alone.

Organisational Upside: Building the Talent Pipeline in South Australia​

The choice to pilot this program in South Australia has broader economic and social implications. Like many regional Australian economies, South Australia has historically faced “brain drain,” with tech talent relocating eastwards to Sydney, Melbourne, or even overseas. By seeding local pathways into one of the highest-growth IT disciplines, SA Power Networks is actively investing in local capability, keeping cyber skills within state borders.
There is a multiplier effect, as each cohort of graduates has the potential to join other South Australian employers (if not retained by SA Power Networks), or to become cyber security advocates and mentors in their own right.
As Morelli explained: “We saw this as an opportunity to use our brand and our reputation to help South Australia grow its cyber security talent, while giving our team opportunities to mentor and build talent to provide the cyber security community, both in SA and Australia, with more skilled workers.”

Assessing the Strengths of the Program​

Several elements position SA Power Networks’ approach for success:

1. Accessibility​

The barrier to entry is deliberately low, pulling in non-IT professionals and allowing for broader recruitment than programs restricted to STEM graduates. This inclusivity diversifies the talent pool, potentially enriching problem-solving with varied lived experience.

2. Practical Immersion​

Three days a week spent within a functional cyber team is unusually hands-on for an entry-level pathway. Real-world immersion accelerates learning, and is well-evidenced as a predictor of workforce readiness.

3. Customised, Recognised Training​

By leveraging ACS’s curriculum, the program sidesteps the risk of out-of-date or employer-specific technical silos. The customisation for SA Power Networks’ particular needs is a further asset.

4. Clear Progression and Retention Strategy​

With a pipeline target (four to eight participants at a time), and a strong likelihood of direct employment pathway on completion, the program signals serious intent—rather than a disposable or one-off internship.

5. Mentorship Culture​

Internal mentorship ensures that participants can draw on accumulated experience and practical wisdom, not just textbook knowledge.

Potential Risks and Challenges​

No program is without risk. Several points warrant careful attention as the kickstart model unfolds in practice:

1. Absorption Capacity​

With three days a week in a live team environment, the workload and pace may be daunting for some complete beginners. Successful integration will require substantial support and understanding on the part of mentors and colleagues.

2. Scalability​

The program’s small intake offers quality control, but scaling up (to larger intakes or more teams) will require structured frameworks to maintain culture, quality, and outcomes as numbers grow.

3. Alignment to Sector Needs​

While the ACS training is highly regarded, technology and threat landscapes evolve rapidly in cyber security. Keeping curriculum continuously updated, and ensuring alignment between what’s taught and what’s practised on the job, will be critical.

4. Attrition Risk​

Career changers may discover that the demands of cyber security—from shift work in incident response to high-stakes decision making—do not always match initial perceptions. Managing expectations and supporting participant wellbeing is key to long-term retention.

5. Competing for Retention​

With portable qualifications and in-demand experience, program graduates may be highly attractive to rival employers. SA Power Networks will need to think carefully about retention, particularly as participants become proficient.

The National and Global Context: Filling a Wider Gap​

Other Australian critical infrastructure providers—such as energy, water, and transport companies—are likely to watch SA Power Networks’ pathway model closely. Experience from global peers, including UK-based National Grid and some US energy cooperatives, suggests that embedding non-traditional talent in cyber roles can improve both security culture and workforce diversity.
Such initiatives support the national vision outlined in the 2023–2030 Cyber Security Strategy, which foresees a nation “by 2030, the most cyber secure country in the world.” Grassroots programs like SA Power Networks’—linked to national standards but locally tailored—will be essential to realising this ambition.

Conclusion: A Model Worth Watching​

With the launch of its cyber security kickstart program, SA Power Networks is charting a course that others may soon follow. By reaching beyond the conventional talent pool, blending real-world experience with structured learning, and embedding cyber skills development within a mission-critical industry, the company is addressing systemic challenges with creativity and resolve.
If the first cohorts succeed, the model offers a blueprint for other utilities, government agencies, and private employers to tap into latent talent, and to rebuild Australia’s cyber capability from the ground up. It promises not just job creation, but a more resilient, diverse, and future-proof security workforce.
Above all, the program recognises a simple but powerful truth: safeguarding digital infrastructure is not the preserve of technical elites alone. With the right support, and the right opportunities, anyone can become an effective guardian of our critical systems. For South Australia, and for the nation, this is a development worth celebrating—and emulating.

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Source: iTnews SA Power Networks opens first cyber security 'kickstart' program