Life at MinRes

Tapi finds purpose and a new home

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 04:00:00 +0000

For Tapiwa Padera, the road to Mineral Resources (MinRes) was a lot longer than most.

Few have travelled more than 10,500km to be part of our team, but that’s the reality for Tapi – who farewelled his native Zimbabwe for a new life in Australia and joined the MinRes family.

In doing so, he made the tough decision to leave behind his wife and two girls – the youngest just a few months old at the time – to pursue his next career chapter by putting his skills and experience to good use where they’re needed.

Arriving in Western Australia on a short-term visa, Tapi held several roles with mining companies before a recommendation to join MinRes presented not only an opportunity to further his career but the chance to build a new future for his family.

Putting his skills to good use

Now a Leading Hand supporting MinRes' Asset Management team in the Pilbara, Tapi brings to the role over 10 years’ experience in mechanical service and repairs and joins a dedicated team ensuring some of our biggest and most impressive mining equipment performs at its best.

Area Manager James Tomalin said despite some early delays getting him on site due to COVID-19 lockdowns and administrative delays, Tapi has hit the ground running and is now a valued member of the team.

“Tapi has been great from day one and his skills, experience, and strong work ethic are welcomed additions to our business.” James said.

“With many mining companies facing a skill shortage, mainly due to COVID-19, it’s been important for MinRes to keep thinking differently about opportunities to bring quality talent into our business.”

Tapi said the warm welcome he received from the start of his employment and our strong sense of team offered immediate reassurance he’d made the right call choosing MinRes.

“Working in this industry often comes with pressure, but at MinRes I never really feel it because there’s always someone asking if I’m OK or if I need more time, and making sure everything is safe,” he said.

“Working here is not like some other places – you’re looked after and everyone is working as a team.”

The importance of family

While thankful for the opportunity to support the continuing growth of our business as a valued member of the MinRes family – Tapi also dealt with the uncertainty of his visa status and a burning desire for his family to join him in Australia.

It was through ongoing chats with Tapi about his career path, and desire to build a new future with his family, that led to discussions about the prospect of applying for permanent residency.

MinRes supported Tapi throughout the entire process and, just weeks after submitting his paperwork, he was delighted to receive confirmation the family’s application was successful – sparking joy and relief for his wife, JoJo.

Having spent over a year looking after their girls and longing to be reunited with Tapi, JoJo and their children recently touched down in WA and are now settling into Australian life together.

“It was difficult with me and the kids back in Zimbabwe – especially with our littlest one always asking ‘when is daddy coming back?’ or ‘when will we get to see daddy again?,’” JoJo said.

“We’re here now and I’m just super excited – we’re so glad to be here and the future is bright,” JoJo said.

Pave your road to success with MinRes

Our people are key to achieving our vision to be recognised as one of the great Australian companies – and we’re always keen to hear from talented people keen to progress their career.

When you join MinRes, you join a company continuing to grow on the back of its entrepreneurial spirit and willingness to empower people to challenge the status quo and explore new opportunities.

Your road to MinRes could be a permanent, project, or fixed-term opportunity across our various operations – with plenty of support available to get you on board.

View our full list of open roles on our Job Search page.

Ryan makes his move

Thu, 05 Aug 2021 04:00:00 +0000

The opportunity to join Mineral Resources (MinRes) was too good to pass up for Senior Project Manager Ryan Davies.

After 11 years at his previous role on site in the Pilbara it was time for a fresh start, and MinRes presented the perfect opportunity to be part of a company on the rise.

While it’s still early days, Ryan is looking forward to getting stuck into his new role which will involve delivering civil construction and earthworks for a major iron ore project.

“MinRes has a great business model and the attraction for me at MinRes is the build, own, operate approach. It’s a role with a lot of potential, which is really exciting,” he said.

For this project, our own operations are our client, it’s all in-house and we’re all on the same team. There’s an opportunity here to own your results – from the start of a project through to completion. Living in Perth’s Northern suburbs, our move to a new, state-of-the-art head office in Osborne Park also holds significant appeal.

“I’ll be in the gym every morning and drinking all the good coffee!” he said.

In a career that has taken him from South Africa to the UK, Dubai and then Perth, Ryan said there was no place he’d rather be.

“Perth is by far the best place ever – the people, the weather, the lifestyle, everything about it is just perfect.”

Pave your road to success with MinRes

Our people are key to achieving our vision to be recognised as one of the great Australian companies.

When you join MinRes, you join a company that continues to grow on the back of its entrepreneurial spirit with a willingness that encourages people to challenge the status quo and explore new opportunities.

Your road to MinRes could be a permanent, project or fixed-term opportunity across our various operations or customer sites.

View our full list of career opportunities

Meg makes her mark

Thu, 23 Sep 2021 04:00:00 +0000

Since joining MinRes in June 2020 Meg has grown her career, making her mark in our Heritage team.

With a background in Anthropology, Meg joined our team in the role of Heritage Advisor, before quickly moving up the ranks into a Senior Heritage Advisor role.

From her first interactions with the MinRes team before deciding to join us last year, Meg was impressed.

"I saw that there was genuine intent to do positive things with MinRes' engagement with Aboriginal people and to provide opportunities for Aboriginal people", she said.

The chance to be part of building an effective Heritage team in the resources industry from the start proved to be the next exciting step in Meg’s career.

“We’re building things from the ground up, and there’s a lot of learning in that too”, she said.

As part of our Heritage team, Meg gives advice to the business about Aboriginal Heritage legal compliance, ensuring we meet our obligations under our agreements with Traditional Owners. In typical MinRes style, Meg’s workday is dynamic, varied, and exciting.

One day she could be conducting Aboriginal heritage surveys in the field – walking the proposed development area with Aboriginal people to make sure there are no heritage sites. The next, leading engagement with Traditional Owners where there is native title and obtaining their feedback on our proposed projects.

No day is ever the same.

Having autonomy and support for her ideas puts Meg in position to do what she does best.

“What I like most is the people and sense of comradery. Our people are committed to getting good outcomes, and there’s genuine commitment to getting things done the right way, plus we have an awesome team”, she said.

Join our growing Heritage team

As our business continues to go from strength to strength, with significant projects on the horizon across a range of commodities, this presents rare opportunities to achieve meaningful results and contribute to lasting change as part of our growing Heritage team.

Here at MinRes, you don’t get lost in layers of people, your time with us is an opportunity to capitalise on the skills and talent that you’ve been cultivating, in an environment where you’ll be given the trust to do so.

Work to your strengths, own projects, create best practice, and deliver results.

Check out the opportunities in our growing Heritage team.

Clay creates a legacy

Wed, 27 Oct 2021 04:00:00 +0000

With a natural ability for supporting and connecting with people, Clay Greenbank has seized opportunities and achieved significant growth during his 18-years at MinRes, taking his career from the shovel to the boardroom.

Clay joined MinRes back in 2003, making his start in the mining industry to set himself up and support his young family.

Starting as a Trades Assistant with our CSI Mining Services team at Wodgina in the Pilbara, he quickly moved up into roles supervising night and day shifts, running a tight ship while providing training and guidance to his team members.

After six years ‘on the tools’, Clay left Wodgina when the project closed, and started his ‘corporate’ career in the MinRes head office in Perth as a Training and Safety Advisor.

“I was given an entry level opportunity on the shovel, from there I embraced the work in front of me and created other opportunities”, he said.

The next eight years saw Clay direct his own path and grow his career with a company on the rise. Clay found the work that lights him up and was supported along the way.

From delivering training as a Training Coordinator, to building the frameworks and processes to support the needs of the entire business as Group Manager Training and Group Manager Learning and Development, Clay has created a legacy of meaningful progress.

Clay played an integral role in the evolution of MinRes' culture - taking the business on a cultural transformation journey - working with senior leadership and presenting his work to the MRL Board.

Today, as General Manager Leadership and Performance, Clay and his team of coaches deliver training programs across the business on behaviours and skills that support high performance for all levels of MinRes' leadership and talented people. He works with individuals and teams to support direction setting, change, competency and capability.

“MinRes' is the land of opportunity for those who can embrace the fast paced, high performing, autonomous nature of the business”, he said.

Our upcoming move to a new state-of-the-art head office in Osborne Park and our camp upgrades that will genuinely rival holiday resorts, serve to further enhance the work Clay’s team does across the business.

“We’re creating physical spaces that support our people to reach their full potential and reinforce the connection we all have to each other”, he said.

At MinRes, job security means working to your strengths, being challenged on each project, and achieving meaningful results so that you choose to stay long term.

Interested in joining a company that offers a career pipeline that can set you up for life? Check out our latest career opportunities

Steph steps up

Wed, 10 Nov 2021 04:00:00 +0000

Steph credits a good work ethic and the right attitude for her impressive career success – at just 30 years old she’s a Production Supervisor overseeing up to 20 people per shift.

A key member of our CSI team in the Pilbara, Steph first joined the mining industry at 18 with no experience, having previously worked in retail.

She got her start as a trainee dump truck operator before progressing up the ranks to her current role, which sees her training and motivating her team as they work together to deliver against targets. Most importantly, she makes sure they all go home safely.

Steph admits she had feelings of uncertainty back in 2010 on her first day in a mining role. With 500 people on-site, she was one of only 10 females. But, it didn’t take long for her mindset to shift – initial apprehension made way to ambition and a motivation to succeed.

Steph says it’s possible for everyone to do well with the right attitude.

“I’ve worked hard to prove that it’s possible for anyone to be successful in mining; a good work ethic really helps if you want to go places,” she says.

“Some people may be concerned that they don’t have the strength, but the reality is we have the tools to do the work; what’s more important is bringing the right attitude and being open-minded to the experience.”

The training, support, incentives and camaraderie within MinRes have kept Steph with the business for the past three years, with her eye firmly on a more senior role in the future.

“MinRes has been great in supporting my career journey,” she says.

“I’ve had many training opportunities, including leadership development programs, which keeps the work interesting and I work with a great bunch of people.”

“All my colleagues have been very supportive.”

Her advice to anyone considering joining the industry?

“There are so many opportunities and career paths available - if something comes your way, give it a go and don’t fear failure.”

Interested in joining our growing team? Check out our latest career opportunities.

Pieter jumps straight in

Mon, 22 Nov 2021 04:00:00 +0000

The road less travelled proved to be the right decision for graduate Accountant Pieter Vermeulen.

As an Accounting and Finance graduate the typical route would see him head to one of the “Big Four” accounting firms for a few years of foundational experience in a specialised area.

But the desire to jump straight in and get involved in a variety of projects from the start led him to MinRes' Graduate Program.

“I was keen to get stuck in and hit the ground running and MinRes' graduate program appealed to me because it was with a growing company that was moving quickly," he said.

MinRes' graduate program provides exciting learning opportunities for Pieter to find his strengths, interests and work on cutting-edge projects. During his two-year graduate program, he’ll undertake five rotations – spending three to six months at a time in MinRes' corporate finance, management accounting, iron ore and lithium teams – with his last rotation one of his own choosing.

Helping Pieter set himself up for success and reach his potential, his program mentor - a Principal Financial Analyst within the MinRes team – regularly offers support and guidance on how he can maximise his opportunities to gain experience and exposure.

Pieters' a busy guy - establishing a successful career in the dynamic corporate world of MinRes, while also working towards his Chartered Accounting (CA) qualification. His three-year journey to become a CA includes a two-year study component and three years of mentored experience. He’s able to apply his learning in the classroom to how different areas of the business apply it in the ‘real world’ at MinRes.

“I was studying a risk and technology unit; I came into work and spoke to the person who’s heavily involved in the risk side of MinRes and asked them questions about how MinRes applies it in a professional setting,” he said.

A clear high achiever, Pieter is hungry to learn and find opportunities to progress. At MinRes, we’re a growing company with new roles and opportunities being created all the time. By getting in now, Pieter is in prime position to take advantage of opportunities moving forward.

“At MinRes there's always big new projects happening and interesting areas of work that I can get involved in,” he said.

Keen to kick-start your career? Learn more about our Graduate program.

Laura finds her fit

Mon, 28 Mar 2022 04:00:00 +0000

A desire to help people and a love of mining has led Laura to Mineral Resources (MinRes), where she applies her skills in a unique role that combines safety, health and wellbeing.

With a background in exercise physiology and occupational health and safety, Laura started her career at MinRes' Iron Valley iron ore mine as a Health and Wellbeing Advisor.

When an opportunity came up to take on a new MinRes role, which combines both wellbeing and injury prevention, Laura jumped at the chance.

“Most roles in my field would require you to choose one or the other, so I feel very fortunate to be in a position that offers such a perfect amalgamation of the two,” Laura said.

With her new position created especially to support MinRes' CSI Mining Services business, Laura has spent the first few weeks visiting the various CSI sites, establishing a rapport with our teams and finding out where the opportunities are.

“My vision is to implement a successful organisational ergonomics program, directly involving our people to implement changes that make our sites safer and decrease the risk of injuries,” Laura said.

“Giving people ownership and using the expert knowledge they have on their roles means we genuinely have the ability to really create some positive change.

“I’m also offering assistance in areas such as nutrition and exercise, which has helped some of our people achieve fantastic improvements to their health so far.”

Having started her career in the Navy straight out of high school, mining might not seem like the obvious progression. However, the opportunity to work with the Navy’s physical training instructors sowed the seeds for a long-term career working with people in a health capacity, and this, combined with a desire to help those navigating the unique challenges associated with a FIFO lifestyle, set Laura on the path she finds herself on today.

Laura has worked with other mining companies in the past but said her current role was giving her the chance to see the industry in a whole new light and she was grateful for the opportunity.

“I love working for MinRes as you don’t get pigeonholed and locked in to one area,” Laura said.

“The business is really dynamic and if you’re the kind of person willing to try new things it’s exciting where you can end up.”

Interested in joining a company that offers better jobs, better future, better life? Check out our latest career opportunities.

Arnie took a chance

Wed, 19 Apr 2023 06:19:10 +0000

For Arnaldo (Arnie), taking a chance on a job 5,000kms away from his home country has been life changing. Fifteen years ago with a young family to support in the Philippines, Arnie came across a job opportunity in Australia that at first he thought was too good to be true.

“Initially I was very hesitant to apply because I thought maybe it wasn’t real because the salary was so good. I showed the job ad to my friends who assured me it was real, so I applied and ended up getting the job at MinRes!”

When Arnie first started at MinRes he didn’t have a full electrical license so worked as an electrician under supervision. It wasn’t long before he obtained his trade recognition certificate and electrical license with the support of MinRes. With a strong work ethic and natural problem solving ability Arnie has quickly grown his career as a valued member of the MinRes family, progressing into a Leading Hand role at our Kwinana Workshop in Perth.

Arnie was successfully able to relocate his family to Australia with the help of MinRes. He also made the change from working on our remote mine sites to working in our Kwinana Workshop in Perth so he could go home to his family each night.

“MinRes helped me get my permanent residency and bring my family to Australia after living away from them for six years”.

“I’m living my best life at MinRes. I’m working as an Electrical Leading Hand at the Kwinana Workshop and go home every night to see my family. I hope to be here until I finish my working life”.

“Getting a job at MinRes has been life changing for me. I came here from the Philippines not expecting to end up in this situation and living the life I am now”.

Ready to take a chance to get your best life? Check out our career opportunities.

Steven delivers spectacular creations

Fri, 23 Sep 2022 02:42:14 +0000

Working as a Chef at MinRes for the past 15 months, Steven has made a noticeable impact on the quality of the food and the employee experience around it, always bringing a fun twist to his work. Using his hidden talent in fruit carving, Steven goes above and beyond to deliver spectacular creations that bring joy to special occasions on site. Check out his Halloween creation!

Steven is what's known as a floater, usually spending only a few swings at each site before moving on. He uses his skills to inspire our talented chefs to think about different ways to make the food experience even better for our employees.

Steven's passion for his work sees him put in a lot of extra hours to get results. On his R&R he is known to ask lots of questions about his next assignment, taking stock of the challenges that lie ahead. What materials will he have available? Will he have access to any spare budget? What special skills will the chefs he'll be working with have?

He doesn't just improve the quality of the food; he improves the whole experience. Through the presentation, he aims to excite, making MinRes’ dining experience better than any other company. This has led to increased staff morale. His American BBQ night at Wonmunna and Halloween night at Phil's Creek are just two examples of this.

We recently sat down with Steven to find out more about the man behind the MinRes Marvel.

Please describe your career journey including companies and places you’ve worked and any career highlights?

I began working in the mining industry almost a decade ago with Sodexo and ISS. I always found myself feeling most at home working in the kitchen and getting the chance to cook. It was this that led me to qualifying as a chef in mid-2017. I haven’t looked back since, and I'm still enjoying the process and the challenge of working in the kitchen. I joined Mineral Resources in May 2021.

Tell me about your current role?

As a MinRes Chef I work in camp kitchens preparing meals for our site-based workforce. My current role sees me spending a limited amount of time at each site before moving on to the next. I enjoy having the opportunity to cook for so many people across different sites.

Why did you join Mineral Resources? What was it that attracted you?

I was working as a chef at another mine when one of the residents told me about the high-quality food this was being offered at Mineral Resources. I was particularly impressed by the Friday night seafood buffet. I couldn’t believe that another mining company had such an impressive offering. From what I had heard it sounded like the best catering in the mining industry. It was at that moment that I decided Mineral Resources was the company for me.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

The things I enjoy most about my work are the fast-paced environment and the creativity I am allowed to apply. I also love getting to work with other passionate chefs who grow from each other. By having healthy competition when cooking and displaying quality food, we inspire each other to do the same or better. It is the residents who win in the end with a delicious meal! It's the pride I get from my work that makes me enjoy it so much.

What has been the highlight of your career to date?

The highlights for me have always been theme nights. I love nothing more than being able to go outside the box when displaying food. There are two nights that stand out for me in particular. For the first American BBQ theme night at Wonmunna, I had the opportunity to work alongside the amazing Chef Mhika. Together we built a large light up menu, which really made the display pop. Halloween at Phil's Creek was another highlight. We built a large pumpkin, pinning it with oranges and kiwi fruits, and made small jack-o’-lanterns to accompany it. The pumpkin and letters were made from the broccoli foam boxes.

Justin always looking out for his family and crew

Fri, 30 Sep 2022 01:36:49 +0000

Based out of our Mt Marion Lithium site in the Goldfields region, Justin has worked as a MinRes LV Fitter for the past five years.

To Justin, family is everything. Whether it’s his teammates on site or his wife and kids back home, he always has their back.

Justin has gained a great reputation at Mt Marion for looking out for his crew and being ready to listen and help - no matter the task. Going above and beyond to make sure all his teammates go home safe and happy, Justin always speaks up about mental health during pre-start meetings - making himself approachable to anyone who needs help.

Recently on nightshift, Justin discovered one of his teammates was having some personal issues. Justin stayed up into the next day to make sure they got access to the help and support they needed - just one of the great things that makes Justin one of our MinRes Marvels.

One of Justin's colleagues, Nathen, said Justin always has a positive attitude and a great approach to safety and concerns for all crews.

“Even if others are down, Justin always makes people smile with his attitude - which goes a long way when you are away from family,” he said.

We recently sat down with Justin to find out more about the man behind the MinRes Marvel.

Please describe your career journey including companies and places you’ve worked and any career highlights?

At the age of 14, after deciding school wasn't for me, I was lucky enough to secure a mechanical apprenticeship at my local Mitsubishi dealer in Rockingham. Once I qualified, I worked at a variety of other local dealers, gaining exposure to different makes and models.

Looking for a change of pace, I went on to work for Ausdrill, where I learnt about maintaining and fixing drill rigs. I then went on to my first ever FIFO position, working on the construction of an onshore pipeline, where I was responsible for maintaining a fleet of light vehicles and small earth-moving equipment.

From here I branched out into offshore construction, working for Saipem on sub-sea pipelines for several years. When my first child was born, I returned to work in Perth, taking up a job doing Roadside Assistance for RAC. During all of this time, the highlight was working offshore. It gave me the opportunity to travel to parts of the world that I might not otherwise have seen.

Tell me about your current role?

It was in 2017 that I began working for Mineral Resources at Mt Marion. As an LV Fitter my role is to service, maintain, and repair a fleet of light vehicles, generators, lighting towers and various other pieces of equipment.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

The thing I enjoy most about my work at Mineral Resources is the amazing people I have met and become really good friends with. I have also enjoyed seeing how much the place has changed for the better over the past five years. When I first started working at Mt Marion our accommodation was offsite at Kambalda. We now get to enjoy the fantastic facilities offered at the Village, a short walk from work. Moving into the new workshop with recent procedural changes, make it a great place to work.

Why did you join Mineral Resources? What was it that attracted you?

I first started working at Mt Marion as a contractor for Mader Group. I enjoyed the work environment and the people I got to work with. When I was offered the opportunity to take on a full-time position, directly employed by Mineral Resources, I jumped at the opportunity.

What keeps you busy outside of work?

Outside of work, it's my wife and two kids who keep me busy. My seven-year-old son is very much into mixed martial arts and footy. This takes up four nights per week plus the weekend. My three-year-old daughter loves doing ballet. On the weekends we spend as much time as possible outdoors, going camping and four-wheel-driving.

Adam goes above and beyond for the welfare of the team

Fri, 07 Oct 2022 02:00:55 +0000

Adam has worked as an Exploration Medic Emergency Services Officer at MinRes for only a few months but is already making a huge impact. He has quickly gained a reputation for making a real difference to our business - while showing care, kindness and authenticity.

As part of our exploration works, Adam regularly moves between sites as activities progress. Currently based out of the Marillana Iron Ore site in the Central Pilbara, his main responsibility is to ensure the health and safety of everyone on site.

With the teams he looks after travelling large distances, when something goes wrong, help is often far away. Confronting this head-on, Adam makes sure the crews have what they need to respond.

Recently during emergency response practice, one of the drilling supervisors expressed interest in installing defibrillators on all their rigs. Adam was the first to put his hand up to help make it happen, walking them through the process.

Instead of waiting for an emergency to arise, Adam is proactive in looking out for his crew.

Throughout summer, he spent hours every day driving out to visit the exploration crews. Using icy poles as both a hydration tool and conversation starter, he makes a point to have a chat with every member of the crew, checking in on their general welfare and making sure they’re staying hydrated.

If someone has an issue, he takes them into the medic's bay and has a talk to them to sort it out, calling for special advice if needed. At the forefront is the question "what can I do to help them?"

Adam was nominated as a MinRes Marvel by Drilling Supervisor Matthew for always going above and beyond to protect the welfare of his crew. Having worked in the industry for the past 21 years, on close to 40 mine sites, Matthew reckons that Adam is by the far the best ESO he has ever met.

“Adam wants to know where you are, he is always onto it, he is always onto the next step," Matthew said. “I've never met someone as good as he is.”

“Every day he checks in on everyone; he makes sure you are all good. If you are not okay, he wants to know why and how he can help. If there's anyone new to site, he takes them under his wing."

We recently sat down with Adam to find out more about the man behind the MinRes Marvel.

Please describe your career journey including companies and places you’ve worked and any career highlights?

I started my life in mining at the age of 20, initially doing exploration and pit work. Over the years I've worked for several companies - including Great Central Mines, Reynolds, BHP and South32.

I worked with BHP and South32 for 24 years. Eight of these were spent as a trade assistant, before becoming an emergency services officer. Although I was always committed to emergency response on site, becoming an ESO was not something I had planned. I fell into the role when I was asked to cover for an ESO while they were on holiday. That person never returned, and I was offered the role permanently. The team apparently enjoyed having me around.

Throughout my career I’ve got to visit some spectacular places; Australia is a beautiful place. A highlight would have to be spending a few years working on Groote Eylandt Island in the NT and being out with the communities while on R&R.

Tell me about your current role?

My current role is as an Exploration Medic ESO (Emergency Service Officer) – or just medic for short. My main responsibility within the department is to ensure the health and safety of employees on exploration sites. I am currently based at Marillana in the central Pilbara, which is currently still in the development phase.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

The thing I enjoy most about my role is the people that I get to work with every day. I also like the variety that comes with working in exploration, particularly getting to move from site to site.

Why did you join Mineral Resources? What was it that attracted you?

Before fully joining Mineral Resources I worked as a contactor. It was the group of great people that I was working with at the time that really made me want to make the transition onto the team. The thing that really stood out was the fact that they were always looking out for each other.

What keeps you busy outside of work?

When I’m on my R&R I like to keep myself active. If you don’t find me doing work in the garden, you’ll usually find me on the golf course.

Tzanis goes above and beyond at Wonmunna

Fri, 26 May 2023 04:00:00 +0000

When asked what he considered to be his hidden talent, Senior Mining Surveyor Tzanis Palioudakis paused.

“I’m a problem solver," he answered. "I think that’s my talent.”

Coming up to his eight-year anniversary with MinRes, Tzanis' work ethic and appetite for problem solving led him to be recognised as a MinRes Marvel - nominated by Mine Improvement Technician, Tim Holtfreter. Tim recognised Tzanis for taking on several roles in recent months, including across out fleet management system, hardware installation and repairs, setting up and maintaining site Wi-Fi, and even stepping into a Mine Supervisor role.

Tim says Tzanis' never-give-up attitude and outstanding work ethic has helped improve productivity, while a recent system project sign off resulted in a 100% functionality – a direct reflection of his hard work and willingness to go above and beyond.

Tzanis’ role sees him managing three surveyors, flying a GPS drone, ensuring all procedures are carried out safely, capturing data for site engineers, and monitoring the stability of pit walls. Among many career highlights was his transfer to Wonmunna, where he managed the end-to-end implemented a high precision GPS system.

Tzanis said he enjoyed leading people and helping other departments, but admitted he was shocked to be nominated as a MinRes Marvel.

“As a leader, I don’t really expect to be recognised,” he said.

“I always make sure I thank my team for their role and all the one percenters they do.”

Tzanis has been in the mine surveying game for 14 years, having started his career in South Australia before taking on contracting work in Kalgoorlie, then commencing with MinRes in 2015 at the Iron Valley iron ore project.

“I had only ever heard good things about MinRes, and when I joined we were relatively small,” he said.

“I feel like I have made the right choice – I can see the vision and we have ticked a lot of boxes, particularly in the past two to three years.”

Despite his successes, Tzanis remains incredibly grounded and thanks his parents for their bravery when migrating from Greece.

“My biggest heroes are my Mum and Dad,” he said.

“They got themselves here from Greece with no money to start a new life.”

A lover of the round ball game, Tzanis played for Floreat Athena National Premier Leagues side and still competes at the amateur level while also spending time in the gym. An avid traveler in his younger days, Tzanis has clocked up 25 countries in his passport but admits the most unforgettable destination was his family’s hometown of Chania in Greece.

He credits the bravery of his parents in starting a new life in Australia for his positive outlook on life.

“My biggest fear is not taking risks," Tzanis said. "If you don’t try, you never know.”