CEO News - May 2013
2013 Federal Election
As we all know, the Federal Election is going ahead on September 14. Some say it is the longest election campaign period ever. Obviously, both the Coalition and the Labour government are doing their best to drumup votes from all over Australia leading up to the election. The one question that business owners are asking is, ‘Are SMEs going to be better off under your government?’ The SMEAA hopes that SMEs will not be an afterthought or a left over portfolio to be tagged on to whichever Minister has a gap in their political Ministerial responsibilities. Everyone is watching – legitimate efforts to support and enable SMEs will be praised, the absence of them will stand out like you know what… . To read the SMEAA’s response to the recently handed down Federal Budget, click here.
SMEAA welcomes Small Business Commissioner Mark Brennan
The SMEAA is very pleased that inaugural Australian Small Business Commissioner Mark Brennan has chosen to contribute a regular column to My Business, our official publication. We look forward to working collaboratively and cooperatively for the S sector of the SME markets.
Committee for Sydney
SMEAA CEO Caroline Hong attended a Committee for Sydney briefing update of the NSW Draft Metropolitan Strategy for Sydney to 2031 on May 10. Still in its planning stage, the plan will impact and shape the future directions of infrastructure and jobs, which in turn would be useful for SMEs in planning where they will be setting up their businesses in order to maximise viability and future growth and success. Community consultation resulted in Transportation being the highest cited issue in planning for the future. More information can be obtained from the NSW Planning and Infrastructure office.
Win a return trip to London
Global Talent Hub Committee for Sydney, which is currently running a survey that could see you win free return flights to London. Sydney as a Global Talent Hub is a joint initiative of the NSW Government and The Committee for Sydney. This initiative aims to discover what it is that makes Sydney attractive – or indeed unattractive – as a destination to live and work? How does it compare to other global cities?
The Committee for Sydney and NSW Trade and Investment have been working together on a project aimed at identifying the attractors, barriers and trade-offs that highly-skilled, talented individuals make when choosing where to locate to. Individuals who fulfil these criteria are invited to participate in a survey aimed at helping the Global Talent Hub Committee for Sydney discover the key interventions that need to be made to ensure Sydney is a magnet for global talent. By completing the survey, which should take you no longer than 15 minutes – you will have the chance to contribute to a discussion that could lead to important policy changes at both a state and federal level.
Completing this brief survey will put you in the running to win either:
- Two return Qantas tickets from Sydney to London on their recently launched route via Dubai; or
- The latest Huawei Ascend Mate smartphone
The survey has to be completed by 0900 AEST Tuesday June 4, so get cracking on it now by clicking here. To ensure you are eligible to win the above mentioned prizes, read the terms and conditions of the competition here.
New entrepreneur summit held in Sydney
SMEAA CEO Caroline Hong was a guest at the first Echelon Ignite event ever held in Sydney. The entrepreneur summit attracted about 280 participants, from investors to start-up a in the technology sector.
A mix of Aussie and Asian tech start-ups pitched to the audience about their ideas and passion, each with amazing energy and vision for the future. It was obvious that there is potential for crowd funding to ignite these ideas to the next stage for global success. The challenge has always been who will believe in the entrepreneur’s dream and who will invest in them to bring their dream to a global platform. Often surprising outcomes eventuate at such events, sometimes months later, just by small contributions in helping these start-ups spread their word.
The opportunities are enormous and emerging for techno start-ups in Southeast Asia. In Jakarta, there are at least eight million Facebook users, presenting opportunities for online commerce every day. Not many people know that Indonesia ranks so high in the use of social media, and particularly Facebook.
Australia-Polish Business Forum
SMEAA CEO Caroline Hong was a guest of the new Polish Ambassador to Australia, H.E. Pawel Milwwski at a recent Australian Polish Business Forum at the Intercontinental Hotel in Sydney. It was an informative forum with presentations on the perspectives for cooperation and business case studies, highlighting business opportunities in Poland. Julian Malnic, CEO of the Sydney Mining Club, facilitated an interactive session on the Mining Sector. The Australian Coal Association Research Program says that the mining sector commits 5c per tonne to research. Some ask if this is enough for our country.
The key take home message was that Poland is the second most attractive country for business investments and opportunities, after Germany, in the next three years.
Ernst and Young Poland Chief Economist Marek Roskrut shared valuable insights on business opportunities that exist for cooperation between Australia and Poland. These included the fact that Poland was the only country in the EU that avoided the recession, and that Poland’s GDP cumulative growth of 18.1 per cent outperformed other EU member states, making it an attractive destination in the EU for investment and business opportunities.
SMEAA’s Charity Partner 2013 – Vinnie’s CEO Sleepout Charity event for homeless services
The SME Association of Australia is once again a National Supporting Sponsor of the Vinnies CEO Sleepout in 2013, a charity event to raise awareness and raise funds for homeless services. Our CEO Caroline Hong is an ambassador for the event, and together with business leaders from Hilton Worldwide, DHL, Beaumont Consulting, Given Imaging, Tactical Solutions, Chequemates, Nudie, Abergeldie, Union NSW, Executive Peak Performance, AAP, and others will be sleeping out rough for one night on June 20. Several of these companies are also either individual or corporate members of the SME Association of Australia, supporting SMEs in this country.
In supporting the CEO Sleepout by sponsoring myself or one of the other participating CEOs, your generosity will help Vinnies homeless services to expand their programs to provide real alternatives to homelessness and to truly offer a hand up, not only a hand out. All every donation will go directly to the Vinnies CEO Sleepout for homeless services.
The SME Association of Australia is a supporting organisation for the 2013 Vinnies CEO Sleepout , encouraging business leaders to register for the event and/or support the charity event, and raising awareness and necessary funds for homeless services. To find out more about the CEO Sleepout, visit www.ceosleepout.org.au/. To register yourself for the CEO Sleepout, click here.
