SRTOS 2025 Standard 1.2 – Stay Relevant: Industry engagement must be ongoing, not token. Evidence required (minutes, forms, letters)

Standard 1.2 requires RTOs to actively engage with industry so that training and assessment remain relevant and reflect current workplace practices. It ensures that students graduate with skills employers actually need and that RTOs adapt to changes in industry standards, regulations, and technologies.

Consultation must be ongoing, not just once a year or at audit time. Best practice is to:

• Align consultation with TAS reviews, validation cycles, and continuous improvement processes.
• Conduct additional engagement whenever industry regulations, technologies, or practices change.

Industry representatives may include:

• Employers and workplace supervisors
• Professional and industry associations
• Regulators and licensing bodies
• Workplace assessors or mentors

Recent graduates employed in the field
👉 Importantly, ASQA expects input from a range of sources, not just one contact.

Evidence should show both consultation and outcomes. This may include:

• Signed consultation forms or feedback surveys
• Detailed meeting minutes or email summaries
• Reports that compile and analyse industry input

Updates made to TAS, assessment tools, or delivery strategies as a direct result of feedback
👉 Auditors look for the consultation → action → improvement loop.

No. A single consultation, especially with only one person, is not sufficient. RTOs must demonstrate:

• Engagement with multiple stakeholders
• Consultation occurring across time (ongoing, not one-off)
• Evidence that consultation led to continuous improvement

Industry feedback should directly inform:

• TAS updates – sequencing, delivery methods, placement requirements, resources
• Assessment validation – ensuring tasks are realistic, reflect current industry practice, and are fair
• Continuous improvement – evidence that feedback has been reviewed and acted upon

• “Tick-and-flick” consultation forms with yes/no answers and no detail
• Consultation that is not ongoing (done once, then forgotten)
• Consulting only one employer or supervisor
• No evidence that feedback led to improvements
• Missing or poorly managed records (unsigned forms, no minutes, no action logs)

• Create an annual industry consultation calendar linked to validation and TAS review cycles
• Use structured templates for capturing feedback
• Keep an Industry Consultation Register showing who was consulted, when, and what action was taken
• Review consultation outcomes in governance meetings and record decisions in your continuous improvement register

Best practice is to use:

• Structured consultation forms (with sections for stakeholder details, feedback, and suggestions)
• Meeting minutes signed by participants
• An action log that records what changes were made to TAS, tools, or delivery
  👉 Using consistent templates makes evidence easy to present at audit.

Yes. Consultation can be done via surveys, email, video calls, or online forums. However:

• Records must still be detailed and signed/verified.
• Feedback should be specific enough to demonstrate meaningful input (not just “yes, it’s fine”).