How to become visual storytelling masters

It seems like the biggest concern everyone on social media has is how do I produce an interesting post and engage with the online community?

There are two obvious ways of ensuring this: tell stories and use catchy images.

This actually makes a ton of sense. For example, will you be more drawn to a really good novel or a textbook? If you still aren’t convinced, listen to this great podcast by the CBC called Vestigial Tale which explains in evolutionary terms why ‘humans such suckers for a good story’.

As for catchy images, well let’s be honest: between a post filled plain text and a post with a super flashy image, you will click on the image even if the content of the text is extremely interesting.

So what’s the best way of marrying digital storytelling and eye-catching images?

VIDEOS.

According to Mashable’s ‘future of digital storytelling, according to industry professionals’, 2014 was the year of videos. Follow these 4 tips to make a catchy video!

1.       Choose your platform

Different platforms have different types of followers. Choose the platform where your target audience is sure to be hanging out and adapt your video content and style to this audience. Here is Social Media Week’s shortlist of the best social media video platforms:

·         Youtube

·         Vimeo

·         Facebook

·         Twitter

·         Instagram

·         Vine

2.       Choose  snappy title and work on your SEO

Most people view a video because they actively went looking for its content. If your potential audience can’t find you, they won’t watch you. That being said, one of the first things you have to concentrate on to improve your SEO is your video title. Not only does a powerful title incite viewers to click on the link, it will also help people looking for the content you are covering to stumble upon your video if you put the right keywords in the title.

3.       Tailor the length of a video to its genre

The optimal length for a video depends on what the content is. Research shows that, aside from entertainment videos, viewers prefer watching longer videos ranging from 16 to 20 minutes. That being said, it is still crucial to insert your message very early in the video because your audience will often stop watching before the end of it.

The ideal video length also depends on which platform you decide to use. For example, the best lengths for Vimeo and YouTube are usually between 3 and 10 minutes. Successful videos for Twitter, Facebook and Instagram are usually much shorter: from 6 seconds to 2 minutes. Why so much shorter? The content on these platforms is usually viewed on mobile devices.

4.       Keep it interesting

Humour, good music and professional content will keep your audience hooked and engaged. Of course, make sure that what you are adding in your video is what your public is actually interested in!

With all the real-life distractions and social media chaos out there, it is essential to make your content is interesting and engaging because viewers are generally multitasking (usually eating apparently) while viewing your video. Cut through the clutter with a flashy video your viewers will stay hooked on!

The best part about my job as (previous) Assistant General Manager – Production is to create and manage my own conferences from concept to delivery, identify future conference topics as well as giving me a chance to expand my business card collection. Having a bit of a sweet tooth, you will always find me having lollies on my desk or you will catch me browsing on fashion sites during lunch breaks.

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Do you have a bully in your workplace?

Psychopath, sociopath or emotional manipulator? The workplace bully comes in many different shapes and forms, but almost all organisations has one.

Research by the University of Wollongong has found that half of all Australians experience workplace bullying at some point in their career, and the consequences for the victim can have a severe effect on their mental health.

And when colleagues jokingly say the boss is a psychopath, they might actually be on to something. In fact, psychopaths are just as common in leadership roles as they are in prisons.

Research has found that one in five prisoners are considered to have psychopathic tendencies, compared to 21 per cent of people within the executive team of the corporate business sector.

An infamous case involving a 42-year-old female road worker who was so badly bullied for over two years that she developed depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and is unable to return to work. She was awarded $1.3m in compensation by the Supreme Court of Victoria earlier this year.

Though the legal process of handling work related complaints has greatly improvement in the last years, the amount of complaints has risen drastically, and the perpetrators tend to be managers to who yell, intimidate and humiliate their staff.

So what do you do when you find yourself trapped with a bully? Do you call him out, put your head down or quit?

Sarah Rey, from Melbourne law firm Justitia, argues that employees need to be better equipped on how to deal with conflicts in the workplace.

"There needs to be a move now towards giving people the skills to manage conflict and bring their complaints to the person against whom they wish to make a complaint in a safe environment and have the confidence to do that without feeling they are going to be bullied," she told the ABC.   

Heads up have listed the following guidelines on what to do if you’re being bullied:

• Talk to someone you trust – this might be an HR person, a manager or a trusted colleague
• Check policies and procedures – Check whether your workplace has a bullying policy and reporting procedure
• Speak to the other person – If you feel safe and comfortable doing so, calmly tell the other person you object to their behaviour and ask them to stop
•  Report it – ways of reporting workplace bullying include informing your supervisor or manager, informing your health and safety or union representative and using established reporting procedures
• Keep a record of events – Ensure your records include the names of the people involved, including any witnesses. Focus on the facts including what happened, when it happened, what you did to try and stop it (if anything) and any evidence (i.e. emails, social media posts)

Mimmie grew up in Sweden and first came to Australia as a backpacker after high school. After travelling around the country for two years she returned to Europe and pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism in London. But the longing for Australia and the sun became too strong. After having worked for some time in the media industry, Mimmie decided to make a change and swap the news for conferences. She now gets to do what she loves the most, meeting new people and keep learning about cultures and issues while producing conferences on current topics.

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Is your company as empathetic as Facebook?

In a recent study published by Harvard Business Review, Facebook was ranked the most empathetic company in the world.

The annual study showcases businesses who are “successfully creating empathetic cultures” and scores companies based on:

• Ethics
• Leadership
• Internal culture
• Brand perception
• Social media messaging

The list of 20 most empathetic companies (which can be found here) includes LinkedIn, Netflix, Unilever and Johnson & Johnson.

Empathy is often misunderstood and companies go about making attempts to achieve it incorrectly. It is not trying to solve everyone’s problems, nor is it releasing photos of your CEO helping people in poverty.

It is, however, the ability to understand the perspective of Bob, the annoying IT guy who keeps wanting to update your computer. It is, to use an old cliché, putting on someone else’s shoes and asking questions from their point of view.

Whilst creating an empathetic company culture can take months, if not years, it starts with small steps:

1. Be willing to compromise. To develop empathy you must learn to understand, respect and acknowledge another point of view rather than enforcing your own.
2. Be transparent. To understand someone you must see their authentic self and this only happens when we trust them. We are more likely to work with companies who are honest and transparent.
3. Be an authentic leader. This means working closely with front line staff and taking personal responsibility for a level of ongoing direct impact.

Company culture has been the breaking point for companies, particularly start-ups. An empathetic culture is vital to ensuring ongoing organisational growth and retaining your highly-skilled employees. After all, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” – Peter Drucker.

Claire Dowler is a Conference Producer with Akolade. She recently graduated with a double degree: a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Media and Communications Studies majoring in International Communication. Claire minored in sarcasm and puns.

A ballroom-dancer who collects salt and pepper shakers and volunteers for animal rescue, you might say Claire has eclectic interests.

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Why we should all take up Chinese

The Federal Government is pushing for Australian school children to learn more languages, and launched a foreign language programme, ELLA, for pre-schoolers to boost international literacy.

Currently around 8,500 pre-schoolers around Australia are using the app, with the top three most popular languages being Chinese, Japanese and French, the Adviser reported.

“Seeing and hearing young children counting, following recipes and singing in a language that isn’t their native tongue, you understand how engaging this app is and why it has had such positive feedback from kids, educators and families,” Education Minister Simon Birmingham said, the Adviser reported.

Perhaps it’s even more crucial now than ever, that we get on board the Asian market, considering that China is Australia’s third biggest trading partner.

Minister Birmingham was especially happy to see the strong uptake of Asian languages, considering that we live in an “Asian century”.

However, statistics show that for example in NSW between 2005 and 2015, the amount of Year 12 students taking Chinese went down from 1,500 to 832, with only 153 of those being non-native Chinese speakers, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

And nationally the statistics were equally bad, with 4,000 students taking Chinese in 2015, only 400 of those were from a non-Chinese background.

There are arguments that studying Chinese should be made compulsory for Australian school children. Though both Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott showed interest in increasing the level of student participation in Asian languages, the task has now been passed on to current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. 

But let’s hope the recent initiatives by the government, as well as schools’ own initiatives to encourage students to take Chinese, will have a bigger impact than the poor statistics we’ve seen in recent years.

From a financial and business perspective, being able to participate on the Chinese market is crucial, and it has to start with the younger generation of Australians.

Mimmie grew up in Sweden and first came to Australia as a backpacker after high school. After travelling around the country for two years she returned to Europe and pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism in London. But the longing for Australia and the sun became too strong. After having worked for some time in the media industry, Mimmie decided to make a change and swap the news for conferences. She now gets to do what she loves the most, meeting new people and keep learning about cultures and issues while producing conferences on current topics.

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Greater Sydney Commission unveils 40-year future plan for Sydney

The Greater Sydney Commission has released a draft amendment of its 40-year vision for a liveable and sustainable city.

The draft titled ‘Towards Our Greater Sydney 2056’, with its strategy for a metropolis of three cities including; the Western City, The Central City and the Eastern City is set to provide a framework to bring economic and employment benefits.

The aim is to drive national priorities tailored to local needs and includes creating a satellite city in Western Sydney around the new airport to be built at Badgerys Creek, which is being delivered by the Western Sydney City Deal.

Chief Commissioner of the Greater Sydney Commission, Lucy Turnbull the vision is to ensure the essentials of liveability, housing choices, smart jobs, great schools, open spaces and facilities.

“The establishment of three great cities in the Greater Sydney Region is emerging as the central and core organising principle of the Commission’s work. This gives a clear picture of how people can realistically achieve the goal of being able to live within 30 minutes of where they work, study and play. This makes life more liveable and way more productive and sustainable for everyone,” she said.

“This is also a particular opportunity for design-led planning. This type of planning will be critical to our future urban form. Design-led planning presents a particular opportunity to co-create hard infrastructure and soft infrastructure. This will improve both liveability and quality of life,” said Mrs Turnbull.

To read the view the full speech from Lucy Turnbull, click here - http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/bradford-oration-lucy-turnbulls-full-speech/news-story/3c9801bc3309c14419abb8287a908e1f

The plans is on public exhibition until the end of March 2017. Submissions can be made via the Greater Sydney Commission website here - http://www.greatersydneycommission.nsw.gov.au/towards-our-greater-sydney-2056

The best part of my job as an Assistant General Manager – Production is to create and manage my own conferences from concept to delivery, identify future conference topics as well as giving me a chance to expand my business card collection. Having a bit of a sweet tooth, you will always find me having lollies on my desk or you will catch me browsing on fashion sites during lunch breaks.

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Mortgage fraud is "systemic" in Australia

Mortgage fraud is systemic in Australia, with more than a quarter of recent home buyers admitting they misrepresented some information on their loan application. The disturbing results come from a survey of 1,228 people who had taken out a mortgage over the past two years, conducted by investment bank UBS.

The key finding was that 28 per cent of people surveyed said their mortgage application was not totally factually accurate. Of those who admitted misstating information, the bulk said their application was "mostly factual and accurate". However, one-in-20 mortgage applicants admitted that their loan application was only "partially factual and accurate", while 2 per cent "would rather not say".

Do all the little fudges matter?

UBS said it was possible that this kind of misrepresentation on mortgage applications had been going on for years with few adverse consequences. However, the bank pointed out that housing is now more critical to Australia's banking system, household finances and economy than it has ever been before.

"Given the rapid house price inflation that has been seen in parts of Australia (especially Sydney and Melbourne), the fact mortgages now represent 62 per cent of the major banks' loan books and household debt to disposable income is now at 186 per cent, we believe that mortgage risk is more elevated than it has been previously," UBS's analysts noted.

Banks need to tighten their underwriting standards and checks on borrowers' applications, especially when those come via mortgage brokers which UBS sees as a "potential area of weakness".

People are prepared to take the financial risk of lying in their application to borrow more money than they can potentially afford. This is particularly evident in New South Wales, where 99 per cent of mortgage applicants expect house prices to be flat or rise over the next 12 months, and in Victoria, where 97 per cent of mortgage applicants expect house prices to be flat or rise over the next 12 months.

When it comes to which state was the least honest, it is perhaps unsurprising, but concerning, that the state with the nation's highest home prices — New South Wales — had a much higher rate of fudging loan applications than anywhere else, with Victoria second.

Nicolas was born in Belgium and became an expert in consuming excellent beers, chocolate and waffles. During the winter period you can find him on a hockey pitch and in summer he loves to go for a swim or a surf. In 2013 Nicolas was wondering what the beers, chocolate and waffles would taste like in Australia and never came back. One reason… the weather. Nicolas obtained a masters in International Politics and tries to use this background to produce excellent conferences at Akolade.

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Aged care workforce on a crutch

A parliamentary inquiry has brought to light concerns of training deficiencies, accreditation needs and future staffing levels in the aged care sector.

Almost 300 submissions have been received from both the NFP and for-profit sectors.

Chair of the Community Affairs References Committee, WA Greens Senator Rachel Siewert said some of the biggest concerns were around staff training and retention.

"The issues that have come up are around inconsistent and inadequate training, remuneration and wages, lack of a career path and concerns about the growth of the workforce into the future, which keeps coming up again and again,” she said.

Staff retention and turnover in the aged care sector is a growing concern, with the average annual turnover now at 25 per cent.

The strain on the sector’s workforce comes in the wake of a $1.2 billion Federal Government funding cut.

The repercussions of inadequate staffing, however, are predicted to be much greater with adverse events due to staffing estimated to cost $4 billion annually.

Short staffing affects both the organisation’s finances and reputation - short staffed units have higher costs and are unable to deliver a satisfactory level of care.

The most prevalent factors affecting staff retention are organisational- working conditions and job satisfaction ranked above personal factors when a person decided to stay with or leave the organisation.

With the rapid changes occurring in the sector driven by CDC and shortage of skilled aged care workers, providers need to rethink their retention strategies to minimise financial costs and deliver a high standard of care.

Don't miss Akolade's just released Aged Care Workforce Growth Strategies Conference, sharing how to adapt your workforce strategy to drive business viability and financial sustainability.

Claire Dowler is a Conference Producer with Akolade. She recently graduated with a double degree: a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Media and Communications Studies majoring in International Communication. Claire minored in sarcasm and puns.

A ballroom-dancer who collects salt and pepper shakers and volunteers for animal rescue, you might say Claire has eclectic interests.

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Major reforms to shake up VET industry, loans scheme scrapped as of 1st December 2016

Vocational education, the great hope of the Gillard government to boost Australia’s skills based is an unmitigated disaster. The sector is expected a blowout of $3 billion in public debt this year. While its completion rate for courses is delivered online hovers around 6%. So how did it go so wrong?

Starting in 2012 the Gillard announced that publicly funded TAFE’s must now compete with private institutions who has shifted most of their learning online. As a result, the private market had access to public student loans while under its restructure, TAFE had to close its campuses, 5000 jobs were made redundant and lost 100 000 students to institutions that offered more flexibility in learning.

Australian TAFE’s loss has been the private sectors gain. Until 2015, private providers could recruit as many students as they see fit using any means possible e.g. laptops and free courses were handed in around the country, in exchange for students signing up to thousands of dollars of public debt which they didn’t have to give back until they earned $55000 per annum.  

The former Vocational Education Minister Scott Ryan said the scheme “has quite frankly been a disaster for taxpayers. The uncontrolled growth of the scheme is completely unsustainable.”

Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham has pledged to take a leading role in rebuilding the sector over the next term.

“It’s become apparent that to truly fix the VET FEE-HELP scheme we first need to axe it. The scheme has been fundamentally broken from its design and we need to build a replacement model from the ground up.

“From December 31 this year, no further loans will be issued under the VET FEE-HELP scheme. We will bring in place a new scheme, TAFE’s and public providers will be provided with automatic entry into the new scheme. Private providers will have to meet strong and clear tests and those tests will be related to their relationship with their employers, employment outcomes, satisfaction of their students, completion rates and compliance with regulatory settings,” he said.

Just how successful they’ll be at transforming a sector that has cost taxpayers dearly remains to be seen. What are your thoughts on this matter?

The best part of my job as an Assistant General Manager – Production is to create and manage my own conferences from concept to delivery, identify future conference topics as well as giving me a chance to expand my business card collection. Having a bit of a sweet tooth, you will always find me having lollies on my desk or you will catch me browsing on fashion sites during lunch breaks.

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What is it like working as the Personal Assistant to the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron

Recently, the conference producer of Akolade’s 3^rd Annual Public Sector EA & PA Summit, Claire, conducted an interview with Kate Marley who was the Former Personal Assistant and Political Special Adviser to the UK Prime Minister David Cameron to ask her what is it like working for the most powerful leader in the UK.

C = Claire, Akolade’s Conference Producer
K = Kate, Former Personal Assistant and Political Special Adviser to the UK Prime Minister David Cameron

C: Was it always an ambition to work so closely with the Prime Minister?

K: I started working for David Cameron when he became Leader of the Conservative Party, and therefore Leader of the Opposition in the UK, in 2005. It was a goal of the whole team over the five years that followed to get the Party elected and to see him become Prime Minister. So while it may not have been an ambition when I was younger to work for the Prime Minister of the day, it soon became a goal when I was working for David Cameron. Even still, nothing prepares you for the moment you walk into No. 10 Downing Street – it was such a privilege to work there.

C: What is the most important piece of advice you would offer to EAs and PAs?

K: If you want to progress in your career, make sure you don’t get boxed into the role. It is often the central most position in an office so you are in a great place from which to identify new opportunities to develop your skills. Don’t neglect the time needed to focus on your career development as you can easily increase your value in an office.  

C: What was the most useful lesson you learnt over the ten years in your various positions?

K: Time seems to disappear very quickly working in politics – there is always something unexpected happening and with the 24-hour news cycle, always something you need to prepare for, or react to. Therefore, you haven’t got the luxury of putting off doing something today as you think you will get a chance to do it tomorrow. But at the same time don’t let the moment pass you by in any job – make the most of the experience and maximise the opportunities.

C: Did you enjoy working with David Cameron?

K: Yes, very much so. He was a great boss and engendered a real team spirit in the office, so people stayed loyal to him. He is such an intelligent and thoughtful individual, passionate about his beliefs and strong values, while also being a strategic leader with a clear vision - so every day I learnt something from him and how he approached each challenge. Given the nature of the job and fast-paced environment, I spent more hours at my desk than a usual job, but it never felt a chore and often didn’t feel like work. It was a pleasure and a very memorable experience.

C: Where to next?

K: I am just finalising my next steps but I will be heading into the private sector where I will have a lot to learn. However, I will still be keeping a close eye on politics and public policy – the next few years will be critical ones for UK as we leave the European Union and there are a number of great challenges and opportunities ahead for us all.  

Hear what it was like for Kate working for David Cameron in the past 10 years at the 3^rd Annual Public Sector EA & PA Summit and how she went from PA to Political Special Adviser. 

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Dreamworld: A case study of ineffective management

I have always had a place in my heart for Dreamworld, the popular family theme park located in Gold Coast. This theme park has always been my favourite among the other theme parks in the same area.

With the recent tragedy on the 25^th October 2016 that took place on the family ride, Thunder River Rapids, claiming the life of 4 adults due to a malfunction of the system, it has affected me, and many Australian families who grew up with the park, deeply.

Dreamworld has 1.8 million visitors each year coming from across Australia as well as the globe. Its tagline is “Happiness”, which can be found written on their logo and also their app named “Happiness”, signifying that guests are there for happiness. However, after this tragic incident, many people will not trust the brand or feel it is safe to return.

In times of crisis such as this, it is important that the company handle their crisis communication and media properly to try and save their brand and reputation. Unfortunately for Dreamworld, or their parent company, Ardent Leisure, it seems like this event has caught them by surprise and they have not had a plan for crisis management.

From this tragic incident, we could learn some important lessons on what NOT to do when managing crisis.

Over the past week, CEO of Ardent Leisure, Deborah Thomas has copped immense media backlash for her poor media performance and has even received death threats to her family. In times of crisis, timing is really important. Since the occurrence of this incident, it took two days before Deborah spoke publicly, and it was at their AGM, a statutory business meeting. If it wasn’t for the AGM, would she have not spoken to public at all?

Prior to that, the only form of communication was through a written statement on the situation. In today’s day and age where people are prefer to receive news through social media almost the minute an incident happens, this is not good enough, especially when there is a huge media presence on Dreamworld’s premises right after the incident.

To make matters worse, the CEO was given a performance bonus of potentially up to $860,000. Don’t forget, this was two days right after the death of four people on one of their theme park’s rides. Although Ardent Leisure explained this was a long-term bonus, however, the public could only think of the deaths that have occurred.

On top of this, the CEO mentioned at the AGM that the company has reached out to the families affected to offer support and assistance, however she was quickly contradicted by a journalist who was in touch with two of the victims’ family saying the family was furious at the suggestion that they had been offered support when they are yet to hear from the company. When such a situation arises, it is important for the company to be in contact with those affected to keep them in the loop with all updates.

On Dreamworld’s website, besides an announcement notice on their homepage outlining that the park has been closed due to an incident earlier in the week, there was no mention of the victims involved or a link for media statements or further information about latest updates. The only information by the company was only addressed to the ASX, making it as if the company doesn’t care about anything else but their share price.   

Originally, the park was set to re-open four days later, beginning the day with a memorial ceremony for the victims and all entrance fees for the day to go to charity; however this was not consulted with the police who were still in the middle of investigations and in the end they had to defer their opening date. This re-opening day was also set on the day that the mother of two victims would be viewing their bodies, which would have been another stab at the broken heart.

Managing crisis is an important aspect for all companies and it must be done appropriately and timely to save further damage to the brand. Akolade’s Corporate Communications & PR Leadership Forum being held on the 21-23 February 2017 brings together communications leaders from Australia’s top employers to provide skills on how PR and Communications teams could take a strategic leadership role to influence and drive change and growth.

Being brought up in a typical Chinese family in Australia, Vivian takes pride as an ABC (Australia-born Chinese) where she happily embraces both the Chinese and Australian cultures. 

In high school, Vivian wanted to become a fashion designer, however she has developed a passion for running events after working backstage for multiple live shows. Prior to starting at Akolade, Vivian worked 4 years in the wine industry and she misses the wine tasting sessions and openly drinking on the job. As the Assistant Marketing Manager, Vivian enjoys using her creativity to design unique and fun campaigns for each event. In her spare time, Vivian loves to spend time with her two adorable pets; a cat and a dog. 

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It’s not about what you know, it’s about what you want Part 1

First you go to school, then you go to work. They are two major components of most people’s life, yet very separate from each other. If you don’t have the right education, you can’t get the job. It’s as easy as that.

Or is it?

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are worse off than non-Aboriginal. Only 21 per cent of Australia’s Aboriginal population (aged 15-64) has finished Year 12, an often crucial component to be able to enter employment.

It is also estimated that 63 per cent of Aboriginal people feel that lack of adequate training and qualifications are a barrier to entering the workforce, and only 47 per cent believe they have a good understanding of the rules of Australian workplaces.

So what if you suddenly hit your adult years and you don’t have the qualifications to gain employment, is that it? Is everything over and too late?

The answer is no. There are people and organisations that choose to bend the rules, who choose to make what seems impossible possible.

One of them is Chris Harvey, CEO of Nyangatjatjara College, which is close to Uluru. The school is a non-government secondary school that was set up by the Nyangatjatjara Aboriginal Corporation and opened in 1997, on the initiative of senior community members who were fed up with seeing their grandchildren being taken away to boarding schools, as a result of there not being any nearby schools around.

Though Chris originally was sent to the school to close it down, he saw its potential.

The school hadn’t been running very well and there were many people in the same room, both government officials and the local aboriginal population, trying to decide its future. But the problem was that no one could understand each other. There was in fact not so much that was wrong with the school, it was just a lot of miscommunication.

Chris detected this issue and made sure there were interpreters present in the room, and as a result the school was saved and improved further in its delivery to its students.

Nyangatjatjara College is now a great example which engages not only its students, but the surrounding communities. Local businesses are working together with the school to provide the students with work opportunities, and the result has so far been a sustainable pathway into the workforce. The college encourages students to think about their “after school life” early, and create an integration between education and work early on.

The results have been fantastic. Not only have Chris and his team managed to engage their students, but whole communities, including business and families are engaged.

The statistics for Aboriginal kids finishing school and moving onto the workforce are shockingly bad. Nyangatjatjara College is a role model that many have a lot to learn from.

Mimmie grew up in Sweden and first came to Australia as a backpacker after high school. After travelling around the country for two years she returned to Europe and pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism in London. But the longing for Australia and the sun became too strong. After having worked for some time in the media industry, Mimmie decided to make a change and swap the news for conferences. She now gets to do what she loves the most, meeting new people and keep learning about cultures and issues while producing conferences on current topics.

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Why isn’t your supply chain digital?

Digitisation is here, but have you explored the benefits of digital transformation on your supply chain?

The figures speak for themselves; a digital supply chain can:

• Lower procurement costs by 20%,
• Reduce supply chain process costs by 50%, and
• Increase revenue by 10%

If you haven’t digitised your supply chain, perhaps you need to consider the benefits a technology-assisted chain can offer:

Drive customer-centricity

In an increasingly customer-to-business global economy, it is vital to align your processes with meeting the needs of your end consumer. We have powerful tools at our disposal (Big Data, the Internet of Things, social media) allow businesses to know the desires of their customer as never before. A digitised supply chain holds the potential to deliver the customer with the right product at the right time.

Differentiation in a cluttered marketplace

Having total visibility is a differentiating factor in a world full of supply chains which are, for the most part, kept secret from the consumer. Differentiating your business or service equals revenue growth and has the potential to lower your costs significantly.

Improvements in productivity, quality and efficiency

Think Artificial Intelligence and robotics which allow you to collect data from one system, streamline it and then deploy it where it’s needed. ‘Human error’ is an expression these digital workers don’t know.

Responding quickly to customer demands and growing market share

As your business builds digital capability you’ll see drastic reductions in the time it takes to implement changes. Whilst it currently takes a couple of weeks or more to make changes in products, the introduction of 3D printing technology, coupled with data, brings with it the potential to respond to customer demands in less than a day.

Enhanced people management

Whilst supply-demand conversion occurred once a month a mere decade ago, the expectation is now that meetings can occur in real time. Instant communication means an equally prompt response, giving business the capacity to deliver on evolving consumer expectations through technology-assisted employee management.

The question is no longer one of why should you digitise your supply chain, but why haven’t you?

Claire Dowler is a Conference Producer with Akolade. She recently graduated with a double degree: a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Media and Communications Studies majoring in International Communication. Claire minored in sarcasm and puns.

A ballroom-dancer who collects salt and pepper shakers and volunteers for animal rescue, you might say Claire has eclectic interests.

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The art of effective listening

Have you ever noticed that most people don’t actually listen to hear what you’re saying anymore?

They listen to respond. Rather than taking the time to consider what you’re saying, or why you’re saying it, they’re already ten steps ahead inside their own minds, formulating an answer to give you.

When I was a child I read a book my Father gave to me. I can’t remember what it’s called but I can remember one key lesson in it.

“When someone is talking to you give them your full attention. Listen, acknowledge, wait for them to finish speaking and then reply.”

While effective listening seems to be something of a dying art these days, there are ways you can improve your listening skills. Here are just a few tips that will turn you from a disinterested listener, into an active listener.

Keep eye contact:

Look the person who is speaking to you in the eye and keep eye contact. It’s important you not only listen, but appear to be listening. We’ve all had it happen when we are talking to someone where they appear be watching the world go by, or looking at someone over your shoulder. If a person is talking to you, give them the courtesy of giving them your attention.

Pay attention:

This ties in with keeping eye contact, but when someone is talking and you need to listen put down the smartphone, the pen or anything else you are fiddling with. It takes a moment to fully engage with the person who is communicating with you. If a portion of your brain is busy doodling on a piece of paper or flipping through your Facebook timeline you are not listening with your whole attention on what is being said.

Focus on the content:

Whether you like what you’re hearing or not, focusing on the content that is being delivered. It’s not the person talking who is important but what they are saying. How many times do you hear a politician on the television begin to speak and automatically your mind goes to why you don’t like the person, rather than trying to hear the message they are attempting to deliver.

Wait your turn:

Interrupting is not a sign you are actively listening. It’s a sign you have already made up your mind and have an answer prepared. There is nothing more annoying than being interrupted. When someone in the office, or in life, is trying to explain something to you all you have to do is pay attention and listen. Once the person is finished, paraphrase what they’ve said to show you understand or ask a question for further clarification.

Avoid predicting the outcome:

Avoid thinking ahead in the conversation. You may well know where the conversation is going, but you’re just as likely to be wrong as you are to be right. By paying attention, listening actively and waiting for the message to be finished you’ll be in a much better position to respond than if you simply jump the gun and hope you’re correct.

Ask open ended questions:

If you need clarification on what has been discussed take the time to ask clear, open ended questions. There’s nothing wrong with failing to grasp a concept and it shows the person who has been speaking to you that you’ve been listening. Whether that conversation is one-on-one or in a training situation if you're not 100% sure what's expected of you, ask.

Ultimately effective listening is about respect. While you might think that jumping to conclusions or trying to answer before the person has finished speaking shows how intelligent you are, or how across the topic you are, what it shows is you’re not really paying attention. What you’re doing is waiting to speak, not listening to hear.

Do you think people listen to you when you speak? Are they actually hearing you or are they simply biding their time, waiting to speak themselves.

Over the next week, take note of how active the people listening to you are and more importantly, how actively you listen to others. I think you’ll be surprised by just how often we don’t actually listen when we think we are.

Mike Cullen has recently returned to Akolade after a period as the conference producer for one of Australia's leading economic think tanks. Mike began working in the conference industry in 2007 after looking for a career change from the high pressured world of inbound customer service. Mike has worked for some of the most well-known conference and media companies in the B2B space and in his spare time is working on his first novel in a planned Epic Fantasy trilogy.

Mike’s most recently published story, Seeds of Eden, is featured in the Sproutlings Anthology released in March 2016. 

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Virtual technology meets fashion

Who can honestly say they grew up watching Clueless and weren’t obsessed over Cher Horowitz’s virtual closet? Now almost 2 decades later, the way technology is moving, you can. Technology is constantly changing and so is fashion. What happens when the two collide?

Wearable technologies are becoming one of the biggest opportunities in the tech industries and we are now beginning to see them appear on every item of clothing possible.

With more people shopping online, shopping centres are exploring ways of bringing the virtual online world to the high street.

Take for example; Westfield Group, who own shopping centres throughout the world, have even set up Westfield Labs that explores how social, mobile and digital technologies can bring the digital and physical shopping experience together. The labs include a co-working and demonstration place called Bespoke, where innovators and retail start-ups can work, hold events and demonstrate new products. Smart glass, fashion incubators, and virtual reality are part of the futuristic landscape.

In May 2014, Misfit Wearables launched a necklace called ‘The Bloom’ which is a pendant with the Shine software inside. The software is an activity monitor, which can be worn anywhere and tracks your daily activities. It measures your footsteps and your goals. Misfit Wearables was just one of many companies looking at innovative ways to using jewellery to explore internet connected objects.

Luxury brands are also exploring new ways to showcase innovation — take for example, Diane von Furstenberg’s design collaboration with Google Glass, the wearable that has been criticised for not being sexy enough for regular use, is part of a larger trend to integrate wearables more easily into consumers’ lifestyles.

“Technology is your best accessory,” Furstenberg says.

This is definitely a growing industry and one that we should keep an eye out for. Who knows what other creative and innovative ideas will come next?

The best part of my job as an Assistant General Manager – Production is to create and manage my own conferences from concept to delivery, identify future conference topics as well as giving me a chance to expand my business card collection. Having a bit of a sweet tooth, you will always find me having lollies on my desk or you will catch me browsing on fashion sites during lunch breaks.

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