Australia’s thoroughbred breeding industry contributes more than $1.6 billion to the economy and supports thousands of jobs across regional Australia.
We’re proud to have partnered with AgriFutures Australia and Thoroughbred Breeders Australia on the development of an industry-wide Workforce Strategy focused on attraction, retention, career pathways and long-term workforce sustainability.
The workforce challenges facing the thoroughbred breeding industry aren’t unique. Whether it’s agriculture, defence, technology, construction or government, organisations across Australia are grappling with the same questions: Where will our future workforce come from? How do we retain critical knowledge and skills? What makes our industry a compelling career choice? How do we build clear pathways for the next generation?
Over the past few months, we’ve worked closely with industry stakeholders across Australia to better understand these challenges and help shape a practical roadmap for the future.
As the industry reviews the findings and recommendations, we’re taking a moment to reflect on the research and why this work matters.
Take a look at what our workforce experts, David Campbell (Project Lead) and Nick Allan (Workforce Specialist) had to say.
Why this research matters
David: I was drawn to this project because it presents a genuine opportunity to move the conversation from short-term fixes to long-term workforce sustainability for the thoroughbred breeding industry. This work is about recognising the value of the people behind the industry, giving them clearer pathways, stronger recognition and a more compelling reason to see thoroughbred breeding as a viable and rewarding career.
Being able to support an industry that contributes so strongly to regional communities, while helping shape a more resilient workforce for the future, is what makes this project meaningful to me.
Nick: This research is important to me because it reflects some of my own experience growing up and working within regional Australia. I have seen the contribution regional industries make to the economy, and importantly the communities they serve, as well as the challenges they face in attracting people, building their skills and sustaining them over time. I have seen how often these challenges become oversimplified and misunderstood and where policy falls flat.
Throughout my career I have worked closely with regional and remote communities and have learned that workforce challenges often exist beyond just the people, but within structural barriers such as visibility of opportunity and a disconnect between policy and on the ground realities. Many of the most rewarding periods of my career have come from solving these regional challenges. From supporting the recruitment of a town’s first GP, through to enabling at home care for a town without medical services.
This project offers the opportunity to continue supporting regional and remote communities and to translate my previous experience into evidence-based change.
Professional motto
David: “Good design starts with empathy, not assumptions.”
For me, this means taking the time to really understand how people experience their work day-to-day. It’s about listening to understand pressures, constraints and motivations, and designing solutions that reflect those realities. When workforce strategies are built on empathy rather than assumptions, they’re far more likely to be practical, trusted and genuinely adopted by the industry.
Nick: “Start with the people closest to the problem”
Workforce challenges in thoroughbred breeding are experienced first by those operating on the ground who understand the realities of shortages, seasonality and regional constraints in ways that data can’t capture.
By engaging those closest to the problem, the research avoids assumptions and ensures findings reflect lived experience rather than theory. This builds credibility and strengthens industry ownership and results in a strategy that is practical and implementable. It also ensures the strategy recognises the diversity of regional contexts to support outcomes that are relevant and capable of driving meaningful change.
What I want the audience to know
David: This project is not about telling the thoroughbred breeding industry what it should be. It is about helping articulate what it already is, and what it can become. The industry offers lifestyle, community connection, transferable skills and global career opportunities, yet these strengths are not always visible to potential workers or policymakers.
The intent of this research is to provide a clear, evidence-based foundation that the industry can use to strengthen attraction, retention and capability over time. By combining data, stakeholder insight and practical implementation planning, the strategy is designed to support industry-led action and build long-term workforce confidence.
Nick: Workforce sustainability is as much a perception challenge as it is a supply challenge. How the thoroughbred breeding industry is seen, understood and talked about directly influences who considers it as a career, who stays and who invests their future within it. Currently, many of the industry’s strengths such as skill development, lifestyle and community connection and global career pathways, aren’t as recognised or appreciated outside the sector.
This project recognises perception as a critical workforce lever. Shifting the narrative is not about promotion alone, it’s about accurately reflecting the reality of modern thoroughbred breeding and the opportunities it offers. Without perception, workforce initiatives struggle to gain traction, but when it’s aligned with clear pathways, skill recognition and real opportunity, it becomes a key enabler of attraction, retention and pride.
Addressing perception is essential if the industry is to compete for talent and build a workforce that is visible, resilient and future-ready
Read the full project overview at AgriFutures Australia.
