What does it take to prove competence when the stakes are sky-high? We sit down with ASPEQ’s Hamish Finlay to unpack how a New Zealand–born exam provider became a global engine for regulators, running high-stakes testing for pilots, trades, healthcare, and emergency services across 25 countries while anchoring leadership, IT, and candidate services right here in Canberra.Hamish traces the company’s origins to New Zealand’s regulatory reform, where policy and operations were separated and specialized providers took on exams. That shift allowed ASPEQ, owned by the NZ aviation industry to scale from civil aviation into safety-critical sectors. We explore why Canberra is a strategic base: access to skilled talent, proximity to federal stakeholders, a strong lifestyle that retains teams, and resilience against natural disaster risk thanks to cloud-first systems and operational redundancy. The catch? No direct flights between Wellington and Canberra turn easy day trips into two-day hauls, a real bottleneck for trans-Tasman business.We dig into how ASPEQ adapts to each market: from running full-service exam centers and invigilation in Hong Kong to providing secure booking and delivery platforms where regulators keep their own item banks. Cultural nuance matters; negotiation styles and business norms shift by country and even by Australian state. That complexity shapes growth plans with CASA, ASIC, and beyond, as ASPEQ targets regulated trades and healthcare where competence, safety, and trust are non-negotiable.Technology is the wildcard. Generative AI raises integrity risks if exams test recall instead of judgment, but it also offers powerful analytics and smarter workflows. Hamish shares how secure delivery and applied assessment keep results meaningful while enabling innovation. With an aging workforce and shortages in the trades, we discuss staged certifications that let people work safely on defined tasks as they progress, speeding entry without lowering standards. We close by tackling non-tariff barriers: they may feel protective at home, but they constrain exporters abroad and erode a rules-based trade environment that small, distant economies rely on.Subscribe and share your thoughts: should regulators adopt staged certifications more widely, and how should exams evolve to stay AI-resilient? If you enjoyed this conversation, follow the show, leave a review, and pass it on to a colleague who cares about safety, skills, and smart regulation.

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