Good As Gold

Workforce South Pacific Director Paul Harris shares the operations and ethos behind the papua new guinean mining business.

- Anastasia Prikhodko

Workforce South Pacific (WFSP) is a labour hire company that services the mining industry. From mine maintenance to mill relining, it is a specialized business that has a large pool of experienced international and Papua New Guinean employees.

Managed by Paul Harris, Nigel Marshall and Bruce Lowth, WFSP has developed a reputation for safety, reliability and service with a point of difference. Paul Harris tells The CEO Magazine that the business has a sense of ease – a culture of mateship rather than the traditional corporate feel. “We’re a family company,” he says. That philosophy has been the backbone of the team’s growth and stability.

“We don’t operate together,” Paul explains, mentioning that some of the senior leadership team is in Laos and others are in Papua New Guinea and Cairns, Australia. “We communicate daily, no matter where we are, no matter what’s going on in the day. We know what hours the boys have worked and whether there have been any mechanical breakdowns, injuries or fires. Communication must remain.”

Paul has been involved in directorships for about 15 years and has been a driving force behind the PNG Institute of Directors. He joined WFSP about four years ago when ExxonMobil had just arrived in PNG.