Business Resource & Lifestyle Magazine - #Issue 68 - August 2014

GWP M a g a z i n e s

S YD NEY

®

BUS I N E S S

SYDNEY - ISSUE 68 | AUGUST 2014

M A G A Z I N E

S I N C E

2 00 5

THE

SPORTING PASSION

WESTERN SYDNEY ACADEMY OF SPORT Government Delivers on Commitment to Abolish the Carbon Tax

Casualisation of the Workforce: the Good, the Bad and the Uncertain

Page 14

Page 18

Propaganda... Spin, Misinformation, Lies, Deceit Page 32

N E W E X C L U S I V E G R O U P F O R B U S I N E S S O W N E R S – B E L L A V I S TA B U S I N E S S A L L I A N C E : P A G E 6 Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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Editor and Publisher: Dmitry Greku Cover Story: Adrian Payne Contributing Writers: Charlie Lynn Angry Anderson Daniel Moisyeyev Stephen Frost Judy Palmer-Brown Guy Tracey Art Director: Svetlana Greku Executive Officer: Daniel Moisyeyev Director of Public Relations: Angry Anderson Cover Design and Cover Story Layout Xabier Goñi, XDesigns Printing: Pegasus Print Group Business Resource & Lifestyle Magazine® is published by GWP Media® and GWP Magazines® ABN: 82 096 352 064 www.gwpmagazine.com.au Office Address: Unit 31, 7 Hoyle Avenue, Castle Hill, NSW 2154 International Standard Serial Number ISSN 1837-199X Advertising Enquiries p | 1300 889 132 e | info@gwpmagazine.com.au To Subscribe w | www.gwpmagazine.com.au

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The opinions expressed in this journal do not necessarily reflect and are not to be regarded as the official opinion of the editor, publisher or their agents.

All information contained within this journal is provided for general information purposes only and on the understanding that none of the content herein constitutes professional advice. The editor, publisher or their agents accept no responsibility for any claim, loss or damages arising out of or in connection with any materials contained in this journal. Readers should not rely on the publications in the journal and seek appropriate professional advice in respect of their own circumstances.

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

CONTENTS

CONTENTS 16 30 Cover Story

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The Sporting Passion - Western Sydney Academy of Sport Adrian Payne

Regulars

Regulars

BUSINESS NEWS

LEADERSHIP

World’s Largest Financial Conference

Do with Success?

Charlie Lynn

WORKFORCE

BUSINESS ADVICE

16 Sydney to Host

26 What’s Giving Back Got to

Regulars EDITOR’S LETTER

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Bella Vista Business Alliance

Brings Quality Networking Back

Dmitry Greku

BUSINESS NEWS

14 Government Delivers on

Commitment to Abolish the Carbon Tax

Tony Abbott

A Message from the Prime Minister - Boosting Economic Growth

18 Casualisation of the

Workforce: the Good, the Bad… and the Uncertain

Judy Palmer-Brown

20 10 Reasons Businesses

Should Support Work Experience Programs

Stephen Frost

22 Employee Motivation

Guy Tracey

LEADERSHIP

24 XVenture Finds the Secret of

28

Website ROI and Great Ideas

Daniel Moisyeyev

SOCIETY & LIFE

32 Propaganda...

Angry Anderson

Features

30 Discover How Bartercard

Helps Clubs, Associations and Charities

What Makes a Great Team!

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Bella Vista Business Alliance Brings Quality Networking Back Dmitry Greku, M. Sc. - Editor and Publisher - GWP Magazines®

Every business community needs quality networking activities and strong business groups. They help leaders get to know each other, communicate, establish new contacts, reinvigorate old ones and provide stable growth to their enterprises.

The purpose of the establishment of the Bella Vista Business Alliance (“the Alliance”) is precisely this – networking, relationship building and business growth.

Bella Vista Hotel and GWP Media are introducing the Alliance to the Western Sydney and Sydney business communities. These two organisations decided to join forces due to their unique position in the market place.

Bella Vista Hotel is brand new, and probably the best known and most popular venue in the Hills Business District. The Hotel is the place where hundreds, if not thousands of people working in local businesses, along with their guests, visit on a regular basis. Bella Vista Hotel already makes it irresistible for people to meet at their facilities and transact business together. It is the perfect destination for success.

GWP Media is a major media and marketing service provider in the area. Its ownership of Business Resource & Lifestyle Magazine, Norwest Business Directory and Macquarie Business Directory will help the Alliance and its members to promote our strong business group, its members’ products and services and bring the whole region to the wider business community’s attention.

No other such business group exists in Sydney that has its very own publication, with the exception of the NSW Business Chamber. This is a great chance to grow members’ businesses and to attract more new enterprises to the area.

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

There will be some rules which differ from those of the old-fashioned business organisations. The Alliance’s primary policy is to serve its members’ business interests.

Some of those policies I would like to bring to your attention.

There will be no bureaucracy – no board of directors, no costly general managers, and no office to run.

The membership of the Alliance is by invitation only. However, any business can apply to join.

The Alliance will retain the right to reject an application if the applicant does not meet its requirements and policies.

Businesses with an annual income of at least $200,000 will be invited to join. If an applicant is not known to the Alliance, it may be asked to present a letter from its accountant with a clear confirmation that the business has the required minimum turnover in the relevant year.

outside the area, such as golf days, race days, picnics and the like. The Alliance will also have lunch events with special guests for interested members on a monthly or bi-monthly basis.

These events are planned to take place in the Bella Vista Hotel’s Private Boardroom.

The Alliance is set to be a benchmark networking project based on the best values of entrepreneurship and is calculated to foster the private enterprise spirit in the business community. This initiative will quickly develop into a major business networking project in Sydney’s West.

Have a great day. Take care of yourselves and your clients. G Please contact us for more information.

Business owners/MDs or CEOs (final decisionmakers) exclusively will be invited to attend the Alliance’s events. There is no exception to this policy. Employees below that level cannot attend.

The Alliance’s membership fee is not just another expense for its members. Rather, it is a payment that involves the purchase of a particular business product. Different levels of membership are available.

Guest Speakers generally will be Alliance members. However, the Alliance can invite an outsider, and even pay a fee to a guest speaker, if this person is of great interest to the Alliance, is likely to attract more new members and increase the Alliance’s profile in the business community.

The Alliance will run multiple events for its members. These include traditional Business After Fives, breakfasts and other events in and

e | editor@gwpmagazine.com.au

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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PROUDLY PRESENTED BY Triathlon Athletes competing at the 2014 ClubsNSW Academy Games

TH

SPOR M

artin Bullock is the CEO of the Western Sydney Academy of Sport, one of eleven Regional Academies of Sport throughout NSW. The Western Sydney Academy was incorporated in June 2004 as an independent, not-for-profit, community based organisation. Regional Academies are located in major population areas across NSW, including the Illawarra where the first Academy was established some twenty five years ago.

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August August2014 2014

PASS

WESTERN SYDNEY Like the other Academies, the establishment of the Western Sydney Academy, currently based in Penrith, was made possible by the NSW Government providing foundation funding and an ongoing annual grant, which combines with grants received from the ten Local Councils in the area and other revenue sources to fund the Academy’s operations.

Martin said that “although it’s now ten years old,

our Academy is the most recent. We are charged with identifying, developing and implementing quality opportunities for talented young athletes across a wide range of sports within the Western Sydney region.” Guiding Martin and his staff with policy is an eleven-strong Board of Directors, representing a broad cross section of the region’s key stakeholders including State and Local Government, and sporting and business interests plus members of the wider community.

GREAT AUSTRALIAN PEOPLE

HE

RTING

SION

ACADEMY OF SPORT

by Adrian Payne

The Academy catchment area includes the ten Western Sydney Local Government Areas of Auburn, Bankstown, Blacktown, Blue Mountains, Fairfield, Hawkesbury, Holroyd, Parramatta, Penrith and The Hills Shire, altogether the area is home to a population of around 1.8 million people over eighteen hundred square kilometres.

Martin started operations in humble accommodation at the back of Parramatta

Stadium, later to be given quality office space in Penrith Stadium by the Panthers Group. Initially the Academy operated only three programs for cycling, slalom (canoe/kayak) and softball.

There were around seventy athletes involved.

Today there are over two hundred young aspiring athletes training and learning across nine programs for different sports: AFL, cycling, golf, hockey, netball, rugby league, slalom (canoe/ kayak), softball and triathlon.

The Academy’s high performance training programs have set benchmark standards in the officially recognised pathways for athletes heading for excellence in their chosen sport. The Academy works closely with recognised State Sporting Agencies as well as the NSW Institute of Sport and district sporting associations to ensure its programs are fully endorsed and provide significant ‘added value’ to an athlete’s personal development through high-level coaching,

Business BusinessResource Resource&&Lifestyle Lifestyle | | Issue Issue68 68 | | August 2014

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PROUDLY PRESENTED BY

educational and technical development, and a variety of events and competition opportunities.

As well as engaging high quality coaches for the practical and technical components of their programs, Academy athletes are provided with a grounding in educational seminars across topics such as nutrition, drugs in sport, psychology, physiology, strength and conditioning, and injury management. Martin explains “it’s not a comprehensive education but a significant grounding in issues they may encounter as an aspiring elite athlete”. Other areas include social media, integrity in sport and the responsibilities of an athlete as a role model and as a team member whose actions can have repercussions in the community at large. This is in addition to their sport-specific training.

Across many sports in New South Wales, it is highly recommended that young athletes wishing to pursue a path of excellence in their chosen sport should join a program with their closest Academy of Sport. Other organisations further down the career-line like the NSW Institute of Sport and the Australian Institute of Sport fully support the grounding that young people get from their regional Academy, which have come to be a recognised step in the sporting pathway to success. It’s important that athletes can plan a course that could ultimately bring them to world competition standard.

opportunities for talented young rugby league players. Utilising a strong coaching and training staff structure that’s resourced by both NRL Clubs, two teams are established and train together for a period of twelve weeks from February to May. The Academy Program allows athletes to represent their districts and junior clubs through participation in the elite junior representative competition for Under 16 (Harold Mathews Cup) and Under 18 (SG Ball Competition), which feature all the NRL Club teams. The program is also supported by major sponsor and home ground venue, St Marys League Club and venue partner St Dominic’s College in Kingswood.

To be eligible for the Academy Rugby League Program, athletes must be a registered player with a junior Club affiliated with either the Penrith or Parramatta District Rugby Leagues included in the Academy’s catchment area. Selections are made by the Penrith and Parramatta Clubs based

on their set talent identification processes, taking into consideration the athlete’s past and trialmatch performances.

There are currently four former Academy athletes now playing at NRL 1st Grade level, including Bryce Cartwright (Penrith) and Pauli Pauli (Parramatta).

Another of the Academy’s successful programs is the Netball Program which is conducted from October to the following July. It is conducted in partnership with Netball NSW and provides opportunities for pre-elite netballers. With a strong connection with Netball NSW and the NSW Swifts, the Academy program boasts exceptional young talent, having produced three current ANZ Championship level players. The program teaches technical skills and provides additional educational and personal development in an effort to prepare athletes for the next level of their progress towards elite sport representation.

The Western Sydney Academy’s programs are now identified by the respective State Sporting agencies as a recommended step in athlete development. “There is now an official pathway for the majority of sports and we are growing in reputation and the awareness of the benefits of our programs” Martin explains.

An example of the Academy’s programs is their Rugby League Program. In partnership with the Penrith and Parramatta NRL Clubs, the Rugby League Program provides development Director Alan Whelpton AO presenting the Athlete of the Year Award to Jessica Fox

Opening Ceremony of the 2013 ClubsNSW Academy Games

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August August2014 2014

GREAT AUSTRALIAN PEOPLE

Academy Netball Squad at the ClubsNSW Academy Games Softball Athlete Technical Development

Academy Athletes with the former Minister for Sport at Parliament Reception

To be eligible for the Academy Netball Program, athletes must be aged between 14 and 16 during their year of participation in the Program. They need to show commitment to progressing to higher representation within the sport. They will be a financial member of a netball Club or Association within the Western Sydney region and currently live within the relevant Local Government Areas.

Former Academy netball athlete knocking hard on the doors of world-wide success is Paige Hadley.

A Penrith District Netball Association junior, Paige signed with the NSW Swifts for the 2013 ANZ

Championship following seven appearances in 2012 as an injury-replacement player. After completing her time with WSAS, Paige took up a scholarship with the Australian Institute of Sport in 2012 and in addition to making her ANZ Championship debut for the NSW Swifts, she was named in the Australian under-21 team and represented the Australian Diamonds team in 2013. During her first ANZ Championship season as a contracted player in 2013, Paige was named in the Australian under-21 team for the 2013 World Youth Netball Championship and her 2013 season was capped off with winning the first NSW Swifts

Coach’s Award. Paige comes as a volunteer with the blessing of the Swifts, as a WSAS ambassador helping to guest coach sessions for the athletes of the netball program. Her presence at these sessions is a huge treat for current athletes, allowing them to see first-hand how you can progress from the Academy to achieve the ultimate goal of national representation.

Of course the Western Sydney Academy’s success is not easily achieved, with the focus not just on the standards of its programs operations.

The Academy is reliant on the support of a range

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PROUDLY PRESENTED BY of stakeholders and partners but according to Martin, could do so much more with an increase in financial resources. “Whilst we are provided with grant funds from the NSW and Local Governments, we endeavour to supplement this funding with revenue generated from corporate partnerships and fundraising activities” he explains.

Martin says that it’s a constant struggle to maintain public awareness of the Academy and what it does.

Twin Creeks Golf & Country Club hosts the Academy Golf Program

The Academy works hard to generate information around their athletes, which they provide to local newspapers and other publications, hoping to draw the attention of potential sponsors and parents of prospective participants to make further enquiries.

In tough economic times it’s always difficult to get commercial sponsorships, particularly so for the Sports Academies. Never-the-less they receive a great deal of support in-kind from partners like the sporting associations and clubs, from venues which are provided for training and competition free of charge, and suppliers who give product or services by way of support for the Academy’s programs.

An example of the positive corporate support the Academy receives is Woolworths Limited. For the past four years Woolworths have supported a scholarship program for the highest achieving male and female athletes each year. Each receive a grant to assist meet the costs associated with their sport participation and education to further help progress their sporting ambitions.

Martin comments that there are many opportunities for sponsors to get involved, with the Academy

Golf Program driving range session

Hockey Athletes at the ClubsNSW Academy Games

2014 Rugby League Award Recipient with Penrith Panthers Players

able to provide some valuable and tangible marketing benefits to its partners...from brand association and naming rights to minor donations.

If a potential sponsor was to bring some lateral thinking to the table about how they might benefit from the Academy’s activities, Martin is only too happy to listen to creative ideas.

Woolworths Scholarship winners Daniel Gale and Noemie Fox with former Minister of Sport and Woolworths Facilities Manager Rod Glover

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August August2014 2014

Over the past ten years the Western Sydney Academy of Sport has provided scholarships for over seventeen hundred athletes. In that time over

GREAT AUSTRALIAN PEOPLE Cycling Program session at the Dunc Gray Velodrome

Road Race events for the Cycling Squad

Rugby Lea gue Squad competing against Parramatt a

Bike Fitting session at program supporter Park Bikes’ shop

Slalom Program Athletes at Penrith Whitewater Stadium

Academy road race competitor

seventy programs have been conducted across a range of fourteen different sports. More than five hundred volunteer staff have been involved in coaching, training, educational and administrative roles with many staying involved year after year.

A significant number of athletes who have passed through the Academy have gone on to compete at State level, and sixty-one who have represented in National competitions.

The Academy’s ‘banner girl’ is Olympic slalom canoe Silver Medallist Jessica Fox who continues to support the work of the Academy having begun her journey spending some three years at WSAS. From 2009 Jessica began competing in an array of World Championships, seeing her place and win several events that led to a spot representing Australia at the 2012 London Olympics. At her Olympic debut Jessica went on to win the silver medal in the K-1 event. Jessica’s mother Myriam Fox, is the AIS national coach for slalom and additionally coaches students of the WSAS program in her spare time!

Of course the western Sydney region is particularly fortunate to have the Penrith Whitewater Stadium, a purpose-built facility for the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

This Olympic-standard facility combined with the highest level of coaching means that slalom canoe

athletes in the Academy program have the very best start that Australia can offer.

While he proudly continues to acknowledge the upand-coming stars that have undertaken programs at the Academy, Martin measures their success not by the number of stars that reach the top levels of competition but by the number of young people that feel the Academy has helped fan the flames of their passion during their time there and have moved on to the next level of representation.

There’s no doubt that the sporting passions that can be harnessed in young people have the potential to make them conscious of a healthy lifestyle, of teamwork, the desire to win, to achieve and to grow into good Australian citizens. The Academy has the ability to utilise this passion and assist in developing aspiring young athletes into sporting professionals.

Perhaps they are as much a measure of success as a count of Australian gold medals. It all starts somewhere and the Western Sydney Academy of Sport is one of those ‘somewheres’. G

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BUSINESS NEWS

Government Delivers on Commitment to Abolish the Carbon Tax Tony Abbott, Prime Minister of Australia

The Coalition promised to abolish the Carbon Tax and the Government has delivered on our promise.

Australian families and businesses will no longer be slugged by Labor’s Carbon Tax. Scrapping the Carbon Tax is a foundation of the Government’s Economic Action Strategy.

Scrapping the Carbon Tax will save the average Australian household $550 a year.

Scrapping the Carbon Tax will take a cost burden off Australian businesses. It will make it easier for them to compete and create more jobs.

The Carbon Tax was a $9 billion a year hit on the Australian economy. Australian businesses either had to absorb the costs or pass it on the consumers.

Labor implemented the world’s biggest Carbon Tax and today Bill Shorten confirmed he will campaign for a Carbon Tax at the next election.

Despite what they say, Labor never supported scrapping the Carbon Tax. They voted against its repeal at every single opportunity.

Labor betrayed the Australian people when they introduced the Carbon Tax, and they have continued to betray the Australian people ever since.

Australian consumers and businesses will benefit from the repeal of the Carbon Tax. The Government’s consumer watchdog, the ACCC, has been given the funding and power to ensure that savings are passed on to consumers.

These requirements are in addition to the ACCC’s strong price monitoring powers and will ensure that the Carbon Tax hit on every Australian family and business is removed.

The Government remains committed to taking action to tackle climate change but we’ll do it without Labor’s $9 billion Carbon Tax hit on the economy.

At the election, the Coalition made a pledge: to scrap the Carbon Tax, to stop the boats, to get the Budget back under control and to build the roads of the 21st century.

We are honouring our commitments to the Australian people and building a strong and prosperous economy for a safe and secure Australia. G Source: Licensed from the Commonwealth of Australia under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence. Commonwealth of Australia, Government Delivers on Commitment to Abolish the Carbon Tax <www.pm.gov.au/media/2014-07-17/ government-delivers-commitment-abolish-carbontax> viewed 17 July 2014.

A Message from the Prime Minister - Boosting Economic Growth Later this year, Brisbane will host the leaders of the world’s biggest economies at the G20 summit.

This year’s summit will focus on boosting economic growth – because stronger economic growth is the key to addressing almost every global problem.

The outcome should be more jobs, better infrastructure, freer trade and greater co-operation – because these are the foundations of stronger economies.

As President, Australia is already leading by example.

The Government’s Economic Action Strategy is delivering results.

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Since the end of last year, 110,000 new jobs have been created.

We’ve also held a red tape repeal day to cut 50,000 pages of unnecessary red tape – as part of our plan to save Australians $1 billion in red tape costs every year.

We’re also scrapping bad taxes like the carbon tax and the mining tax – and the Government will keep talking to the new Senate so that this can happen as soon as possible.

And the Government has signed free trade agreements with Korea and Japan.

The agreement with Japan will benefit our farmers and our businesses – 97 per cent of Australia’s exports to Japan will receive preferential access or enter duty-free once the Agreement is fully

implemented.

And consumers here will benefit from less expensive Japanese cars and parts, and from lower prices on household items like white goods and electronics.

This coming week, business leaders from around the world will meet in Sydney.

My message to them is that Australia is open for business. Together, we can foster growth and we can and will create more jobs. G Source: Licensed from the Commonwealth of Australia under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence. Commonwealth of Australia, A message from the Prime Minister - Boosting economic growth <http://www.pm.gov.au/ media/2014-07-13/message-prime-ministerboosting-economic-growth> viewed 13 July 2014.

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BUSINESS NEWS

Sydney to Host World’s Largest Financial Conference Sydney’s position as a global professional services hub and leading destination for international business events has been confirmed after being announced as host of Sibos in 2018, NSW Premier Mike Baird said today.

Mr Baird said Sibos is the largest and most influential financial conference in the world.

“Sydney is home to Australia’s finance sector and we’re delighted to welcome the global leaders of the industry in 2018,” Mr Baird said.

“Hosting Sibos will bring 6,000 delegates to Sydney and is worth an estimated $50 million to the NSW economy.

“Visitors to Sydney for Sibos 2018 will meet in the new $1.1 billion world-class convention facilities at Darling Harbour and be able to explore Sydney’s thriving new financial services district at Barangaroo - both of which are currently under construction.

“Without the new convention, exhibition and entertainment facilities we are building at Darling Harbour, Sydney would not have been able to host Sibos.

“This win shows the NSW Government’s strategy to attract major business events to Sydney is working,” Mr Baird said.

The International Convention Centre Sydney will be Australia’s largest convention and exhibition facility and is expected to be completed in late 2016.

This is the 14th event to be secured for the new ICC Sydney, and brings the combined estimated economic impact of these events to NSW to more than $128 million.

Lyn Lewis-Smith, CEO of Business Events Sydney (BESydney) said ICC Sydney was cementing Sydney’s future as a leading global business event destination.

“The NSW Government has made its commitment to the business event industry very clear and I’m proud to have been part of this amazing win for the city and for the new convention centre. The entire city pulled together for this bid – the local financial industry and our government and private sector partners all played a key part in the win.”

Alain Raes, Chief Executive, APAC & EMEA, SWIFT,

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said Sydney was truly a financial hub in the AsiaPacific region.

“The investment into the financial industry is apparent and Sydney has a global reputation as a city that delivers above and beyond already high expectations.”

Sven Bossu, Head of Sibos at SWIFT added, “Business Events Sydney was instrumental in outlining what Sibos 2018 could achieve in Sydney.

The team presented a highly coordinated city bid involving the government, the financial industry and the local community. We are pleased to bring Sibos back to the harbour city and look forward to working with the local community to deliver another high-quality Sibos event in the region.”

The local banking sector, which actively supported the city’s efforts to secure Sibos, pointed to benefits that the event would bring to Sydney and Australia.

“As a key member bank of SWIFT with significant presence at Sibos both as exhibitors and a speaker over many years, Westpac understands the importance of this event to Australia’s dynamic banking sector and is delighted to welcome Sibos back to Sydney in 2018,” Westpac CEO Gail Kelly said.

“Sydney’s position as a key financial centre in the Asia Pacific continues to grow, spurred by major government investments into key infrastructure, such as the $6 billion Barangaroo development, and the Australian industry’s commitment to retaining one of the world’s most stable banking

sectors.”

Senior Managing Director, ANZ Banking Group Ltd and Chairman, NSW Export Investment Advisory Panel The Hon. Warwick Smith AM added, “Sibos is the world’s most influential financial services event. It’s where the global financial community gathers to debate and collaborate on the future of the industry, so it’s an incredible honour to welcome it back to our shores for the third time.

This is Australia’s opportunity to shine and to play a key part in shaping that future.

“Sydney is well-suited to host Sibos. The city is home to 60 of the 64 banks that operate in Australia as well as the country’s key financial regulatory bodies. Australia’s banking sector is recognised as one of the strongest in the world and our local community stands to benefit greatly from hosting this event. Sibos is unparalleled in its reach of the global financial industry and I think its decision to come to Australia is recognition of our leadership in the region.”

Sibos 2014 takes place in Boston on 29 September – 2 October. Future Sibos venues include Singapore in 2015, Geneva in 2016 and Toronto in 2017. G Source: Licensed from the Commonwealth of Australia under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia Licence. Commonwealth of Australia, Sydney to host world’s largest financial conference <https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases-premier/ sydney-host-world-largest-financial-conference> viewed 15 July 2014.

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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WORKFORCE

Casualisation of the Workforce: the Good, the Bad… and the Uncertain Judy Palmer-Brown - Senior Training Consultant, TAFE NSW - Western Sydney Institute

A casualised workforce is a widely accepted reality of the Australian working population, but is it efficient?

Casualisation has been a feature of employment in Australia for several decades. But what are its long term implications for Australian workplaces and more importantly Australian society as a whole?

In the latter half of last century, employers embraced casualisation as a flexible option for increasing and decreasing manpower depending on the workflow of the business. The concept was somewhat akin to the ‘Just in Time’ business strategy introduced to the US by Henry Ford in the 1920s, and is perhaps in line with that philosophy.

Just in Time (JIT) is about producing goods in response to demand instead of in anticipation of demand. It challenges the idea of maintaining a warehouse full of goods awaiting an order by suggesting that products could be produced and shipped to the client on demand. Likewise, why pay for a permanent workforce in idle times? Why not bring in labour and skills as required, and save the organisation the costs associated with maintaining a permanent workforce?

It would seem that many Australian businesses believe in the efficiencies that a casualised workforce can offer them. Almost a quarter of all employees in Australia (23.9 per cent, or 2.2 million people) reported as casual employees.1 The proportion is even higher after adding more than a million contractors and the hundreds of thousands employed through agencies.

Perhaps we should define the term ‘casual’.

Casual jobs are commonly understood as jobs that attract an hourly rate of pay but very few of the rights and benefits, such as right to notice, the right to severance pay and most forms of paid leave (annual leave, public holidays, sick leave etc.), normally associated with ‘permanent’ (or ‘continuing’) jobs for employees.2 In theory a casual pay rate should include a 20% loading on the hourly rate awarded to a permanent employee undertaking the same role to compensate for not having these conditions.

However, this is open to exploitation with

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employers often engaging a ‘casual’ in a lower grade role, supervised by a permanent staff member.

There are further disadvantages for the casually employed. Often employees do not have the same access to professional development, eligibility for internal career opportunities and for progression. Other personal disadvantages include impaired ability to access bank loans and long term personal budget planning. Such factors have a significant effect on our society given that the opportunity for home ownership is limited and dependence on welfare is increased to support workers during gaps between employment.

On a positive note, employers are more likely to take on a person who is known to them as a ‘casual’ employee rather than risk choosing a permanent employee from a pool of people whose current skills, and work discipline are unknown. This is known as ‘indirect transition’ to permanent employment.

While the ability to increase and decrease staff numbers is appealing for employers, it should be noted that it is not without risk. Most commentary on the ongoing casualisation of Australia’s labour force focuses on the plight of casual workers who have lower job security and less attractive employment conditions. There has been far less analysis of the implications of this trend for business in the long term.

As previously mentioned, casual employees may have less access to professional development opportunities, and are often less skilled than their permanent colleagues. The ‘casual worker’ who perceives their employment as insecure or short lived may have an equally poor commitment to the philosophy and goals of the workplace.

Levels of productivity may be inferior as they know they will be moving on from the business and therefore the level of security offered by the organisation is reciprocated with an equal share of disengagement. This can leave the organisation vulnerable to poor customer service resulting in a negative public perception and a negative impact on the bottom line.

Less engaged employees may have a negative effect on company culture and employee morale, particularly when casual employees out-number permanent employees in an organisation.

Using casual employment options may suit short term interests of cost saving; however it certainly has the potential to depress innovation and dynamic productivity and therefore not be in the medium or long term interests of individual employers.3 A casualised workforce certainly holds advantages for particular classes of enterprise.

The ability to quickly release an inefficient worker or reduce or expand labour costs overnight to meet budget challenges is certainly appealing in the short term; however with a few years of historical data now available, perhaps it would be prudent for the business to analyse how the negative aspects have affected the growth and innovation of the business and the professional maturity of the organisation, particularly when our people can truly be our greatest asset. G

1. Independent Inquiry into Insecure Work (2012), Australian Council of Trade Unions.

2. May, R., Campbell I., & Burgess J., (2005), ‘The rise and rise of casual work in Australia.’ http://www. aeufederal.org.au/Women/Risefall.pdf 3. Hall, R. (2000) ‘Outsourcing, Contracting-Out and Labour Hire: Implications for Human Resources Development in Australian Organizations’, Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources 38 (2), 23-41.

Many enterprises find that their workers hold an invaluable understanding of how the business is operating and what steps can be taken to improve work flow. This will be a future topic of discussion in these articles.

TAFE NSW - Western Sydney Institute (WSI) p | 02 9208 9395 e | Judith.Palmer-Brown@tafensw.edu.au w | wsi.tafensw.edu.au

I DEFINE MY DESTINY I work when I work. And with TAFE WSI’s mix+match, I can fit my course around my life. I choose which classes to attend near my house, and do the others online in my own time. My mind, my future.

EDUCATE ON YOUR TERMS CHOOSE HOW, WHEN AND WHERE YOU STUDY

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mix + match TAFE Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

19

WORKFORCE

10 Reasons Businesses Should Support Work Experience Programs Stephen Frost, Managing Director, BREED-Education, Employment, Economic Development

From 1 January 2015, young people aged up to 30 years who are able to work full-time will be encouraged to either earn or learn through tighter payment conditions for Newstart and Youth Allowance. New recipients will need to wait up to six months before they receive these payments, depending on their work history.

This places even more responsibilities on families and schools to ensure that young people develop skills to ensure they are work ready when they leave school.

But how do you develop work ready skills if you have not been exposed to a workplace environment? It is like learning to swim without getting wet.

Whilst there are obvious benefits for young people to gain a workplace experience, these placements also provide many opportunities and benefits to employers. Those most commonly cited by employers are:

1. Influence the quality of future employees:

Employers can help improve the quality and preparedness of young people coming onto the labour market.

2. Development of recruitment channels:

Building links with the community can help attract young people into jobs and can reduce recruitment costs.

3. Influencing career choices:

Many employers have found that work experience placements are the ideal way of raising the profile of career opportunities within their organisation and, in some cases, of dispelling unwarranted stereotyped views.

4. Raising the community profile:

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Many employers attach importance to raising their profile in the community. Work experience placements provide a valuable means of creating a positive image amongst young people, teachers, parents and employees.

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

5. Creation of Management development opportunities:

The process of policy development, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of work experience programs gives scope for employees to develop their management and coaching skills and widen their experience.

6. Low cost skills development of staff:

The student work place supervisors benefit from developing interpersonal, presentation and team working skills. They often gain self-confidence and a sense of worth through their contribution to the development of a young person. Supporting work experience can provide evidence for appraisal systems.

7. Reinforcing good health and safety processes:

employees report they feel better equipped to deal with different and unfamiliar environments and people.

Work experience programs also serve as a reminder to employers to offer remedial and basic skills training that they might not otherwise have offered but that are still required by both frontline and technician workers.

Depending on the regulatory context, young people on work experience placements can make real and immediate contributions to the workplace. G

Stephen Frost is BREED’s Managing Director.

BREED has managed a variety of youth, education and business programs across Western Sydney for more than 20 years with the philosophy that “Education + Employment = Economic Development”.

Having to work through an induction with a young person allows the organisation to review current working practices.

8. Innovation:

Students ask questions and bring a new perspective to routine tasks. They often have fresh solutions, or time to research alternative approaches.

9. Real Outcomes:

If you would like more information on how you can assist our local youth, please contact your local Partnership Broker listed below.

Students can undertake planned projects that staff have not had time to manage.

10. Increased motivation of employees:

Members

Companies participating in education-business link activities have found that such activities increase the motivation of their employees.

Whilst it is difficult to quantify the benefits to employees, employers have frequently cited a number of ‘soft’ benefits, often generated by the responsibility entrusted to staff members in mentoring and managing work experience placements and in retaining staff.

There is evidence that skills levels of employees improve in certain key areas including communication skills; coaching, counselling and training skills; influencing, negotiating and the ability to resolve conflict. It has been noted that

Blacktown www.breed.org..au p | 9853 3200

Parramatta www.aussip.com.au p | 9633 7100

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explore.inspire.engage

Penrith www.schoolsindustry.com.au p | 4725 0310

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($450 + GST per additional flyer) Please contact Daniel

1300 889 132

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

21

WORKFORCE

Employee Motivation Guy Tracey, Consultant – The HR Department

For businesses employing staff owners would agree that their most valuable asset and highest risk are their employees.

Getting the right person for the role is the first hurdle but once the induction is complete the next focus must be on retaining this new employee – after all time, effort and cost has been expended to obtain your new employee.

So how do you keep new employees and existing employees happy, engaged and motivated?

Employee motivation is the combination of fulfilling the employee’s needs and expectations from work and the workplace factors that enable employee motivation.

By working with your employees to keep them motivated and interested in their role, not only are they more likely to stay, but they will perform better, take less time off work and contribute positively to your bottom line.

While every employee will be motivated and engaged by something different, there are five basic areas identified by Managers and staff that can help to develop a culture of motivation within your business and get the best out of your team.

1. Communication Communication is key to the success of any business. Ensuring clear and effective communication with employees will guarantee everyone within the organisation is aware of any relevant changes.

By involving employees in the decision making processes and making them aware of where the business is headed, they are more likely to feel engaged and motivated to work towards your business goals. They will understand how and what they do fits into the bigger picture for your business.

Ensure transparency with all employees. Engage them appropriately in the decision making process and discussions about the business to encourage “buy in” and help employees feel they belong and that their opinion counts.

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2. Rewarding strong performance Employees need to feel valued in their role to ensure high levels of motivation and rewarding achievement will demonstrate your appreciation.

Rewards and recognition don’t always need to be defined in salary, however, offering a competitive salary does go a long way to ensuring you attract and retain the right employees. Paying employees enough so they don’t have to think about salary is an important step in developing high motivation and performance in teams.

Establishing team goals for staff to work towards, with a reward of a team lunch, or activity can help team bonding and boost team morale, ensuring your employees are happy to come to work.

3. Offer training, development and career advancement On top of the list of reasons employees leave is lack of training and career progression. Make sure you communicate clearly with employees around career goals and aspirations. Think about what training programs or opportunities for professional development could be put in place to engage your team and foster high performing employees.

Promote or recognise high performing employees as this will encourage a positive culture that demonstrates to all that there are opportunities available for those motivated to challenge themselves.

4. Ensure work-life balance Work life balance is critical in today’s employment environment. All employees should expect that there will be times when everyone needs to do a few extra hours, however, with this should come flexibility. Would your employees prefer the additional money or perhaps time off in lieu?

Managers taking a genuine interest in the worklife balance of their employees to offer some flexibility in work hours (understanding family commitments, doctors’ appointments, etc.) make the difference between employees feeling valued or used. Small gestures demonstrate to employees that you care. Get to know who

is working for you and what work life balance means for them.

5. Listen This is probably the easiest element for Manager’s to do and is often the most appreciated by employees. Listen thoughtfully to employee’s ideas, areas of improvement, concerns and frustrations. Everyone wants to feel important in their role, and that they bring value to the team and the business.

Apart from making employees feel appreciated and engaged in their role, listening is the key to bring the other actions together. Employees are often the barometer for your business and how it is travelling.

Keeping employees engaged and motivated in different ways, is the basis of managing. It ensures both employees and managers understand that the workplace is a two way street.

The business needs employees to perform well in their role in line with the overall objective and employees require a work environment that is supportive, engaging and in line with their own personal requirements. The key is finding the middle ground, and developing mutually beneficial working relationships across the whole of your business. G If you would like to learn more about employee motivation, employee coaching or how to motivate and develop high performing teams, call The HR Department 02 8624 3333. One of our experienced consultants would be happy to assist.

The HR Department p | 02 8624 3333 e | guy@theHRdepartment.com.au w | www.theHRdepartment.com.au

HR Support when you need it most: HR Helpline HR Framework

Education & Training HR Consultation

Whether you are looking to add expertise to your in-house team, need an interim solution or want to outsource your entire HR function The HR Department is your cost effective solution Access to Skills Outsourcing offers your business access to all of our extensively experienced HR professionals at a fraction of the cost of employing one comparable HR trained staff member.

Reduce Costs Getting your HR strategy right is critical to your bottom line. Outsourcing is a proven strategy to maximise effectiveness.

Suite 515, 2-8 Brookhollow Ave, Baulkham Hills NSW 2153 Tel: (02) 8850 6124 www.theHRdepartment.com.au

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

23

FINDS THE SECRET OF WHAT MAKES A GREAT TEAM! There are so many articles with views, commentary, and perceptions on what makes a good team. Rarely though, is there real evidence gathered on why a team performs so much better than others. Such insights are critical for our learning and development. In 2012, the inaugural XVenture Challenge was broadcast on One HD and Sky Business. This World-class experiential learning program aimed to encourage organisations to embrace the concept of people and teams in a holistic way. To acknowledge that no product or service exists without the passion and effort of a group of people, fourteen organisations including; PWC, Hertz, GWS Giants, BUPA, Bank of Queensland, Paul’s Parmalat, Storage King, and CPA Australia took part. The winning team was the team that generated the maximum number of XVenture dollars throughout the program. The program recorded the team’s growth and improvement through film, reflection, and coaching.

The team which created the TV show now provides all types of organisations the opportunity for the ultimate shared learning experience based on the same principles, but accessible and affordable even for small to medium sizes businesses.

At a recent XVenture Challenge held at Sydney Academy for Sports and Recreation at Narrabeen, an extraordinary thing happened. A team of six people who had never met and had no time to prepare for the two days of challenges that lay ahead, won the program by an incredible 20%.

Eight organisations participated in the program so this wasn’t an easy win. All were successful in their own right and had excellent people who

XVenture Challenge, February 2014

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were team players, competitive, and committed to win. There is much to learn from the team that won. This article draws attention to some of the main elements.

A day before the Challenge, two organisations faced a dilemma. Both had three of their six team members unable to attend. Instead of missing out on participating, they agreed to form one team. They called the team ‘Good Institute’ – made up of three members from Good Design Australia and three students from The Australian Institute of Clinical Hypnotherapy. Competing in the Challenge with the “Good Institute” were PWC, GoodLife Health, Davco, Cargo and Logistics Management (Calm Logistics), Nickaz Constructions, The Works, and the National Centre for Indigenous Excellence.

The XVenture Challenge is a World class program, setting the standards for experiential learning.

Built to test every dimension of business life; every decision, every skill, every sense and behaviour needed within a team environment, delivered both indoors and outdoors. Those that experience the program are changed forever and realise that every mistake is learning for the future.

The program has been developed by experts who have developed challenges for the best companies in the World as well as TV productions. The team also includes executives with global business experience, together with accredited business coaches and clinically qualified personnel. The knowledge and skill to apply concepts relating to neuro plasticity and solution-oriented behavioural science is a fundamental and unique aspect of the program.

The belief that when the self is calm and focused much more can be achieved, is also a critical

element presented to the participants by the program leadership team.

In a two day challenge teams undertake nine diverse, fun and dynamic challenges with themes ranging from strategy development, creative thinking, active listening, quality management, marketing, presentation skills, risk taking, decision making under pressure, time management, knowledge sharing and effective communication.

Interspersed with written prompts and audio-visual messaging regarding team work and leadership themes, the team that wins the most XVenture dollars over the two days wins the game.

To win this challenge isn’t easy. As well as the Good Institute team, other winning companies of past Challenges have included Nivea, MGSM and OzHarvest.

What was it about the Good Institute team that was different?

The team was made up of three men and three women: the CEO of Good Design Australia; an engineer, a graphic designer, a dental surgeon, a psychologist, and a life coach/body builder.

At the commencement of the program, the team agreed a joint sense of purpose, to enjoy the experience, to learn from each other, to improve on each challenge completed and follow the XVenture mantra - be the best you can be!

In the first challenge, they had fun but didn’t stand out. Their attitude was one of enjoyment and debate about the mistakes they made rather than directing blame towards any of the individual team members. However, they had identified very quickly the resources that each person had brought to the program in addition to the role that they would take.

This is such an important and fundamental aspect of great teamwork that most forget. Just because someone is an accountant, it doesn’t mean they’re not creative. Knowledge sharing and openness is essential to building a great team. We have a habit of pigeon-holing people in our work place.

From the second challenge on, the Good Institute ensured this didn’t happen. Their listening skills and mutual respect for each other was a joy to behold.

Not to assume for a minute that the cohort of six were similar. They had different backgrounds and were very different people. Their ability to focus on the challenge in front of them without distraction, consider options that were fit for purpose but without over thinking, then all commit to a solution was a fundamental.

For one challenge, they realised an engineering background was important, so they got behind their engineer who led them to success. Again, a significant lesson in teams - Leadership changes depending on the circumstances. CEOs and senior managers in particular need to allow members of their team to lead when they have skills to do so.

The research showed that teams, regardless of their size, function or industry, need to ensure all the eight key activities are completed, however how they do this is up to them, their environment and their goals.

The 6 Good Institute Team Members Individual Profiles

Several things were noticed The Good Institute team’s aggregate score is balanced. Every team preference area is covered effectively. i.e. at least one participant has strength in each critical area. Team member 1 is particularly balanced and hence is likely to be a good “link person” and communicator within the team.

The TMS RIDO scale, or model of interpersonal dynamics, looks at, not only the extroversion/ introversion continuum, but also other critical preferences about how you like to work. It is not a black and white assessment, but takes into

The Team’s Aggregate Profile

account the nuances of human behaviour and, when combined with the Types of Work Wheel as shown above, gives a very clear and holistic picture of individual behaviour.

Whilst there were very different personalities within the team (i.e. Both strong extroverts and introverts), the team’s aggregate scores demonstrated a real sense of balance. Add the commitment and agreement to a set of team rules as described earlier, then this team has got every opportunity to achieve its goals.

By the last challenge they were so far ahead, the race was on for second and third place.

We were so fascinated by their performance; we decided to undertake some more analysis.

The XVenture team is accredited to use both Belbin and Team Management Systems (TMS). On this occasion, a full TMS analysis of the team was completed. Every member in the Good Institute completed a TMS questionnaire, which assessed his or her work preferences. The results support what was observed and captured on video.

TMS is built on the extensive research of Drs. Margerison and McCann, who created the Types of Work Wheel, which describes the critical types of work that all teams have to cover off on, to be effective. See below.

Advising:

Gathering and reporting information

Innovating:

Creating and experimenting with ideas

Promoting:

Exploring and presenting opportunities

Developing:

Assessing and testing the applicability of new approaches

Organising:

Establishing and implementing ways of making things work

Producing:

Conducting and delivering outputs

Inspecting:

Controlling and auditing the working of systems

Maintaining: Upholding and safeguarding standards and procedures

TMS RIDO Scale combined with the Good Institute’s Aggregate Profile above.

Conclusion

No one could have predicted that a team like this would have come together for an XVenture Challenge. That was a fluke! However, what isn’t a fluke is that a successful team needs a strong sense of purpose and commitment to a goal, an agreed culture of working, and a diverse group of people who can be very different and accepted for being so, but can cover all the aspects of what aspects of work make a good team.

By Mike Conway Founder and CEO of XVenture © May 2014 (with thanks to TMS Australia).

The next XVenture Challenge is scheduled for September 19th, with another date in October. Places are limited!

Contact XVenture Phone | 9415 1112 Email | dani@xventure.com.au Website | www.xventure.com.au

www.xventure.com.au Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

25

LEADERSHIP

What’s Giving Back Got to Do with Success?

The Hon. Charlie Lynn - Member of the Legislative Council

After a recent rally to save the heritage of an army unit I served in at Middle Head the now elderly son of a World War I veteran introduced himself. He told me that in the late 1930s his teacher ceaselessly reminded the boys in his class that they must always give back.

As it transpired World War II saw many of them give their lives. Those who survived returned to build one of the greatest egalitarian nations in the world.

He attended the rally because he believed the retention of key symbols of our military heritage must be preserved in perpetuity so that we never forget the price the boys of his era paid for our freedom. He was continuing to give back in a small way through his attendance at the rally.

This caused me to reflect on another person’s greatness when he captured the heart of the nation in 1983 by winning the World’s toughest ultra-marathon between Sydney and Melbourne.

Cliff Young was an unknown 61 year old potato farmer who trained in gumboots and was managed by his 83 year old mother, Mary, when he crossed the finish line at Westfield Doncaster.

Every television network was present when he was presented with the $10,000 winners cheque in front of a packed house. Those who witnessed the presentation were gobsmacked when Cliffy explained that he didn’t run the race to win the money – he just ran to win the race! He then handed the cheque back and asked that it be divided between the other five runners still on the road because they were struggling to finish. He then went back to his farm at Beech Forest and thought nothing more about it.

Unfortunately the Australian public wouldn’t let him return to anonymity. They wanted to know everything about him. How did he train? What did he eat? How could a 61 year old beat a field of younger men in such a gruelling event? There had to be a secret.

Sponsors were knocking on his door and hassling him on the phone. But it was all to no avail. He wasn’t interested in fancy shoes – he had his

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gumboots and a couple of good pairs of runners.

He had long nylon pants with air vents he cut into each leg. He had a good singlet and floppy hat. On the food side his credo was simple – if it didn’t drop out of the sky he didn’t drink it and if it didn’t pop out of the ground he wouldn’t eat it. He wasn’t interested in supplements or fancy cooking.

He was an inspiration to a generation and loved by all. The only thing Cliffy didn’t have was money – he simply made ends meet on his pension and that was all he ever wanted.

There is only one other bloke I have met with the same philosophy as Cliffy and is loved just as much by everybody who knows him and millions

He was an inspiration to a generation and loved by all. The only thing Cliffy didn’t have was money – he simply made ends meet on his pension and that was all he ever wanted.

His secret was simplicity, frugality and hard work.

He was not interested in prizes of any kind. The money he won during his ultra-marathon was immediately donated back and the prizes he won were always given away. He received lots of watches because he never wore one. He always accepted them graciously but gave them away to kids as soon as the show was over. He didn’t need one he said because ‘he knew when it was daylight, he knew when it was dark and he knew when he was hungry!’ He couldn’t see any other reason to have a watch.

I had a privileged opportunity to observe the Cliffy phenomenon during the time I organised the annual Westfield Run between Sydney and Melbourne from 1984-1991. I also finished equal 4th with him in the 85km Wollongong to Sydney Ultra in 1986. It was interesting to observe that the more Cliffy gave away the more people loved him. He was dubbed ‘Ghandi in Gumboots’.

People waited at farmgates for days waiting for him to pass. A funeral in Dandenong came to a halt as mourners rushed out to greet him as he neared the finish. Schools released their students to cheer him on as he ran through their towns.

He never just signed at an autograph – he had to have the name of the person and always added a special note to the signature. When he went to functions he made sure he met everyone personally to thank them for coming.

more who have never met him. His name is Angry Anderson. I had the honour of sharing Angry’s story on Channel 9s ‘This is Your Life’ program a few years ago. During the show I met old time rock legends, big time promoters and television executives who all had a story about Angry. All the stories – many of them outrageous – had the same theme. Angry was more famous for his generosity to people, particularly those down on their luck, than for his singing amongst those who knew him well. A genuine ‘Ghandi with Guitar’ who divests himself of wealth so others can have his time.

It was a indeed a timely reminder from the elderly veteran at the rally - personal success is still more about giving than getting. G

For more topics and to contact Charlie Lynn, please visit www.charlielynn.com.au/blog.

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

27

BUSINESS ADVICE

Website ROI and Great Ideas Daniel Moisyeyev, B. IT - GWP Media

Web design and development is an interesting business. Back during the days of the dot-com bubble, it was a rather simple affair. Web browser capabilities were rudimentary at best, and there was only so much a web developer could implement – there simply weren’t many elements one could work with. Fast forward to today, and websites are far more complex when it comes to features and require much more resources to develop.

However, expectations of both customers and businesses have also changed and some may say, drifted a bit beyond reality.

Back then.. and now If you think back a little to the start of the millennium, you will realise there wasn’t that much that was actually expected from a website at that point in time.

A business website was simply regarded as an online brochure, no different to the presentation folder you might take along when you see your potential client. Originally, websites were never intended to be selling tools - they were simply a source of information. After all, the World Wide Web was born with purely an academic purpose in mind.

you would with any other business - the perception that one can make it big online without an upfront investment is just a myth. Do your research into the capital raised by projects such as The Iconic, Issuu and LivingSocial - the numbers are jaw dropping.

Return On Investment (ROI) on Online Ventures

A well maintained company website with good a SEO strategy will be able to generate leads on an occasional basis - if your business is in a niche industry with little competition, where potential clients search for your services. A website will be able to service clients through e-commerce, assist in closing sales by adding to your company reputation and serve as an information source. If your strategy is good, you will be able to generate additional new business. However as a tool that will make you money on it’s own? Sorry, but there are no get-rich-quick shortcuts or magic tricks here.

False expectations quickly lead to disappointment.

Let’s take a step outside the regular five-page business websites and e-commerce stores. We will assume you are looking to develop a new online venture that will generate income for you.

It is quite difficult to estimate what a complex website with custom functionality will cost to develop – just to do a proper quotation for one of these, you will need to have a detailed project plan that describes each and every feature that is expected to be developed. That’s correct – you will need to invest into a requirements analysis and writing of a project plan before the developer will be able to even give you an estimate.

Let’s do the estimation in reverse. We will compare investment into development of a new online venture to buying commercial property to lease to a tenant. We will assume you want to generate yourself a nice yearly income of $50,000 P/A. At 7% return, your property would cost in the vicinity of $700,000 (we will omit outgoings, expenses and all the other particulars related to property investment to keep this simple).

Fast forward to 2014, and your typical online business brochure has morphed into something far more advanced. A website today is expected to be interactive, functional and have an answer to every question. With virtually every business having an online presence, you have to go above and beyond to have a presentation that truly stands out and gives you an edge over your competitors.

You may be able to see where this is going. I lost count in regard to how many people come through my office that aimed for this kind of yearly income from their web project with an upfront investment of just $2000. It is absolutely shocking - isn’t it common sense that if this were the case in the real world and one could generate this kind of cash-flow with such a small upfront investment, everybody would be doing it? If you are truly expecting for an online venture to produce the kind of cash-flows mentioned above, you will have to invest significant capital into research and development of a sound business model, development of a functional website that will deliver value to your customers and ongoing maintenance. A website simply does not generate income on it’s own - it does not happen (I have explained how to make money online in more detail in my 2-part article Online Business Models published in previous issues of the Business Resource & Lifestyle Magazine).

One of the most noticeable differences concerns the price paid for web development. Even though

If you came up with a new idea to make money online, you can expect to invest the kind of money

Not every business had an online presence at that point, and the few that did – did not really know what to do with it. A website was not really considered to be a tool to generate new clients (with the exception to some forward-thinking businessmen that were a little ahead of their time); one could remember business owners proudly promulgating their new online brochures and trying with great effort to persuade others to log on and have a look at their presentations.

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websites are becoming increasingly complicated, there is a conflicting expectation of an ever-lower price - it is an odd observation that professional web development is expected to cost much less today than just 10 years ago.

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

I have a great idea...

It is quite common for ideas people to approach developers (this is a specific phenomenon with web and mobile app projects) and offer a 50:50 deal - i.e. the developer completes the project in full at their expense and splits the profit (if there is any) with the ideas man at a later stage.

When you approach a developer with this kind of request, please remember that we have heard this all before - and don’t be surprised by the harsh response. If you have a truly great idea that you believe will succeed in the marketplace, there should be no problem in securing funding the development in full and keeping all the future profits to yourself. G

If you are interested in web design & development, please do not hesitate to get in touch with GWP Media. We do a complete range of websites at reasonable prices - from the smallest company sites to custom projects. We also offer web hosting.

GWP Media p | 1300 889 132 e | daniel@gwpmagazine.com.au w | www.gwpmedia.com.au

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

29

FEATURE

Discover How Bartercard Helps Clubs, Associations and Charities

Continuing on with showcasing different businesses that are members of the Bartercard trading network, this month we feature two charities – the Bartercard Charity Foundation and the Children’s Cancer Institute.

Throughout the Bartercard network in Australia there are over 100 charities that accept Bartercard Trade Dollars. This has created a great opportunity for all members to show their support to charities both locally and nationally. Richard Norris, General Manager of the Bartercard Charity Foundation and Anne Johnston, Head of Fundraising at the Children’s’ Cancer Institute chat to us about how Bartercard partners with charities.

Coming from a corporate banking background, Richard has been instrumental in establishing the foundation for Bartercard. Richard is responsible for all operational aspects of the Foundation including fundraising and grant allocations to assist Australian registered charities deliver new programs across a wide range of worthwhile causes.

Every year 625 Australian children will be diagnosed with cancer. Every week nearly 3 children will die from this devastating disease.

The Children’s Cancer Institute’s mission is to save the lives of these children and eliminate their suffering. As the Institute celebrates 30 years in research this year, Anne is focused on driving a strategy to grow the charity to fund the research planned over the coming three years.

Q. How does Bartercard work for your charity?

A. (Richard) The foundation is different to standard charities as it accepts donations in products and services as well as cash and trade dollars.

We also accept time. As an example, recently, Peddle Thorp Architects donated 100 man hours towards a renovation project we undertook with Matt Rogers and his charity 4ASDKids. Two existing classrooms within an early childhood development centre were refurbished by Condev Construction. We’re now in the planning phrases to renovate a further five centres.

A. (Anne) Bartercard is an important part of our corporate support. They help us in 3 ways. Firstly, by advocating on our behalf and promoting our cause through their extensive network, they assist us to create brand awareness. They have

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Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

a large reach which allows us to speak to a new audience. Secondly, the team at Bartercard help raise Bartercard trade dollars which we use to purchase prizes (for example, holidays, computers etc.) for raffles which we run at our own events. The third way is Bartercard’s own team are really valuable participants at events we run. Recently we ran the inaugural Endure for a Cure cycle ride. This race was over 12 hours and the winning team was the team with the most laps and highest funds raised. The Bartercard team won it! They were really fantastic! We raised about $190,000 including $40,000 Bartercard trade dollars. To have a corporate partner that is willing to ‘walk the talk’ means a lot to us more than just the dollars raised. It’s a long term relationship.

Q. How do you use Bartercard trade dollars within your charity?

A. (Richard) The Trade Dollars either collected or generated from selling donated products and services are then distributed to charities which have applied for grants, based on criteria set by the Foundation’s Board. Grant applications are accepted from charities which are either existing members of Bartercard Australia or who can become a member to facilitate the distribution and spending of the trade dollar grant.

A. (Anne) As previously mentioned we purchase prizes on Bartercard to auction off at our events.

As part of our research we have developed a lifesaving test to families who have recently had their child diagnosed with leukaemia. This test identifies, through DNA analysis, which children are at high risk, medium or low risk of relapse after just 5 weeks of treatment. The results of this test assist us to advise clinicians when more aggressive treatment should be offered to give

a child the best possible chance of surviving their cancer. For us to do this test it costs about $2,600 for each child. So, for example, with the recent fundraiser where $40,000 trade dollars were raised, we’re able to provide this test to 15 children.

Q. When looking for corporate involvement what do you look for?

A. (Richard) We’re looking for organisations who genuinely want to get involved with the charities and organisations we support. Whether they give products or services to on-sell in the Bartercard network or they donate cash or trade dollars, we expect them to have some involvement with the charity.

A. (Anne) What’s important for us with any corporate relationship is the feeling that it is a partnership. We have this with Bartercard. It’s about more than raising funds to sell products at auctions; it’s about genuinely working with us to make a difference. Bartercard has been working with us for such a long period of time (approximately 15 years) that it feels to us that they are really part of our family. Bartercard has joined us on the journey to cure childhood cancer. G Bartercard Australia p | 1300 BARTER (1300 227 837) e | info@au.bartercard.com w | www.bartercard.com.au

Feeling your business can grow but don’t know how?

Bartercard will: • bring you new customers • improve your cash flow • help move stock or fill seats • fill downtime • improve your market share • increase your networks

Bartercard has been helping Australian businesses for over 22 years. With 55,000 cardholders Australia wide, it’s a great way to build value in your business.

1300 BARTER bartercard.com.au Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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SOCIETY & LIFE

Propaganda...

Spin, misinformation, lies, deceit Angry Anderson, AM

The Dictionary defines propaganda as follows:

ideology obsessively championed and endorsed by the Left.

An organised programme of publicity, of selected information used to propagate a doctrine or practice. From the Latin ‘ongregatio de propaganda fide’, congregation for propagation of the faith.

This is an ideology based on the premise that we, the great unwashed, are not capable of governing our own behaviour.

Propagation of a faith, doctrine, philosophy, agenda or ideology... my words, my interpretation.

Definition of lie; an intentionally false statement.

Definition of deceit; the act or process of deceiving, a dishonest trick or stratagem.

Based on an idea that a perfect world could be created, not with the liberation that comes from education, but by regulating every aspect of human behaviour, every aspect of every day life, even to the extent of manipulating our thoughts, feelings and belief systems.

The first matter I want us all to think about is the most fundamental in my mind because it is at the foundation of all the issues that I would like to raise.

But, and this is the crucial element to understand, when and where we transgress from ‘their’ idea of that perfect world, we could be labelled heretic, subversive, sceptical and the trump card… racist.

Freedom of speech!

The erosion of our freedom, the right to speak freely, had begun.

The Left would have us all believe that the erosion of freedom of speech is a Conservative plot to silence its detractors. In other words, the Left would have us believe that the Conservative Government will silence any and all critics of its government by legislating against freedom of speech.

I want to say that I would not and will not support the suppression of our right to freedom of speech. I will defend our right to speak freely on all matters as long as it does not undermine our ability to maintain our national security.

Having said that, let me remind all who care for the truth that the erosion of our right to freedom of speech started once we were forced to accept political correctness, a flawed ideology that would enslave us all to a life of obedience; an

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Based on the belief that we, the rank and file, are not intellectually equipped to live our own lives.

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

This very same ideology will, if left unchecked, change the face of this country forever.

Now some people may think that is not such a bad idea. After all was it not members of the Left, including recent Labor Prime Ministers, State Premiers, Senators and politicians, sitting members, both state and federal, that said that the typical ‘Aussie’ was an embarrassment internationally? Didn’t the so-called intelligentsia leap to endorse that statement whenever it was touted? TV presenters, reporters, writers, journos, actors and cultural snobs bayed long and loud that Australia had to become part of the International population, inferring that we weren’t already; telling us that somehow we were lacking sophistication, education and enlightenment to the ways of the world.

Another Lie! This political correctness would not only make us ‘better’ people but would cure the ills of the world.

Put an end to poverty.

Put an end to war.

Put an end to pollution.

Put an end to racial disharmony.

Put an end to global warming.

Yeah right!

Well, it won’t, it can’t, it hasn’t and it never will!

Political correctness is another form of brainwashing sold to us by a devious and dishonest propaganda campaign.

When, some time ago, I asked a learned acquaintance, a journalist of great standing, admired and respected by all who appreciate quality journalism, where he thought the roots of political correctness sprung from, he was quick to answer that he was of the opinion that Germaine Greer was close to the source if not responsible in part for the planting of that seed. There can be no doubt that she was at the forefront of the ‘Feminist’ movement, revolution or whatever you may want to call it and there can be no doubt that the movement has done wonders for women in most parts of the world.

Germaine, herself a self-confessed ‘Lefty’ has proved herself to be, on the odd occasion, an embarrassment as an Australian albeit an ex pat.

I have always been a little worried about people who, when it suits them, “still call Australia home” or admit at least that Australia is the place of their birth but they choose to live in another country.

Some of course are well known for criticising the country of their birth and delight in bringing our

SOCIETY & LIFE

shortcomings to the attention of the world, that world that we are supposed to need to become part of.

I might add at this moment that most of these so called intelligentsia are of the Left persuasion, supporters and advocates of the socialist ideal of the perfect world, brought about by an obedience to political correctness, United Nations style.

Propaganda; the United Nations, as an institution, is there to protect the innocent, to bring good government to the oppressed and down trodden, to oversee international justice and ensure the protection of human rights and to bring freedom to the enslaved, in any and all forms.

Well, they have failed and are failing and will fail as long as they are the marionettes dancing to the master puppeteers’ tune, as long as they are they are slaves to the strings.

Who pays the dancers and dictates the dance?

The wealthy have an obligation to support the poor, or put another way, the worker should support those who cannot work or those who choose not to work,.. Well, no! The wealthy have no such obligation, if they choose to be charitable towards their fellow man then that is their choice but it is their choice to make and theirs alone.

True, we are better people if we choose to be responsible for our ‘brothers’ or ‘sisters’ to be politically correct but it should always be our choice.

Political correctness would have us believe that just because we were born and raised in a ‘lucky country’ it is our obligation to care for all who suffer poverty, racial persecution or any

of a dozen other human sufferings. To support this correctness they will use guilt as emotional blackmail to support their agenda, they will try to convince us that somehow it’s our fault so therefore our responsibility.

The other part of this spin, myth, deception, lie, is that somehow, we are a nation with endless wealth, enough, according to some, to feed the starving or right the wrongs of the whole world.

Well, we aren’t!

I will argue that there are few in this country who would turn their back on their fellow man; few who would not extend a helping hand to those in need; few who would not hear the cries of suffering and would not want to bring succour to those in pain.

But do not accuse us of not caring if we cannot save the whole world. Their pain is not of our making; their salvation is not our obligation.

Go with your God, go in peace, go do the best you can with what you have learned, Your friend always, Angry. G

Angry Anderson AM is available for the following public speaking.

Subjects covered: • personal life journey experience, overcoming obstacles along the way like his battle with alcohol and drugs, humorous anecdotal stories about his life on the international stage with his band the legendary Rose Tattoo; • inspirational messages on his ability to deal with surviving all his tribulations; • stories about his involvement in Television which introduced him to his dedication to helping others in need; • his commitment to Men’s Health;

As decent human beings we will always step up to do our share, as people of Christian backgrounds we will always live up to our beliefs that we are here to serve but that is a matter for the heart and soul, not a matter of obedience to a politically correct ideology.

• his life long battle with depression and his dedication as ambassador, to spreading awareness regarding Prostate Cancer.

There are enlightened souls all around us. Seek them out for what they have to teach, do not close your mind, soul or heart to any sources of enlightenment lest you became lesser than that you were meant to be.

Let me leave you with this wisdom I found on Facebook, a question asked of all of us, a question to ponder.

w | www.angryanderson.com

’What if I told you that both sides of politics serve the same masters?’

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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GWP Media

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LAND A BETTER DEAL AT LANDER TOYOTA The Lander Toyota better buying experience starts from the moment you enter our stunning new showroom. Our professional consultants will discuss your needs and present all the options available to you from the exceptional Toyota range.

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There’s a lot more on offer at Lander Toyota.

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WESTERN SYDNEY’S NO.1 DEALER landertoyota.com.au

02 8884 4888 36

Business Resource & Lifestyle | Issue 68 | August 2014

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