Victorian State Liberal Party Director admits to Fraud.

Victorian State Liberal Party Director, Damian Mantach pled guilty to a total of 44 charges relating to false printing of invoices and other fraudulent expenses billed to the Liberal Party of Victoria, as well as other fraudulent charges billed to MP’s offices and paid by State or Federal authorities. “Initially.. I was under substantial financial stress and I got myself into too much debt,” Mantach is quoted as saying in a police interview. “When I took the money, it was basically to relieve pressure in my personal life.” The fraudulent practices took the form of inflated invoices, allowing...

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How social media is being used to catch fraudsters

Welfare payments make up a third of all government spending in Australia. It is estimated that every year, $3 billion of tax payer’s money is paid to people who have lied about their circumstances. With the increased global use of social media, government agencies including Centrelink, ATO or Medicare are using social media to catch people cheating the welfare system. It was revealed recently that Centrelink has contracted private investigators to trawl social media accounts of suspected welfare cheats. This is part of the Department of Human Services Taskforce Integrity’s operations...

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How to retrain the brain: Overcoming bad habits and replacing them with good ones

Everyone has a bad habit, whether they’ll admit to it or not. Some of us smoke, some drink too much and others make themselves grand promises to exercise daily and instead are up to season 7 of Supernatural on Netflix. But why do people do things they know aren’t healthy or supportive to their long term future? Back in the dark ages of the late 1990’s I bought a CD set from Anthony Robbins, Personal Power. It went for 30 days. Every night for 30 days I sat down in my spare room/office and listened to Anthony Robbins extol the virtues of neuro linguistic programming. By the end of...

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41% of Managers too busy for workplace diversity

Do you know what the biggest reason for why companies can’t have a diverse workforce? 41% of the managers claim they are “too busy.” Besides making diverse companies look better to the public eye, companies need a diverse workforce to give wider perspectives and can contribute to different things the company is working for.  By being diverse, a company recognises that individuals have different traits and characteristics, which sets them apart from the rest of the society.  Diversity can be in many different forms, including: gender, age, race, sexual orientation,...

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Guest Post: More changes ahead for Australia's IR landscape

Workplace relations ultimately impact our productivity, resilience and effectiveness as a nation. The role of Workplace Relations practitioners is central to understanding, implementing and managing the best available opportunities for their organisations   Akolade recently caught up with Lisa Burrell, General Manager – Workplace Relations from the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry ("Victorian Chamber") to discuss all things workplace relations, including the much anticipated release of the Productivity Commissions review into the Workplace Relations...

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Australian Unemployment Continues to Rise.

Figures released in February show the seasonally adjusted employment rates stands at 298,300, or 2.6 per cent) higher than it was this time last year and well above the decade average of 1.8 percent.  Minister for Employment, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash said the underlying trend of the Australian labour market continues to demonstrate encouraging resilience, despite facing international headwinds and share market turmoil. "There is still considerable underlying strength in the labour market. The overall trend and the statistics show the Australian labour market is holding is...

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Digital marketing: Changing the world, one click at a time

As anyone in the marketing industry knows, the rules are currently being re-written right under our feet. Long established strategies are no longer working as they used to and the move to faster, cheaper, digital marketing avenues is the only way organisations are going to stay abreast. The digital environment is revolutionising all aspects of marketing, and marketing and branding experts are expected to embrace the digital blitz or be left behind. Though as the digital landscape continues to change, challenges certainly play a part. CIO article describes common online marketing...

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5 Dementia care tips

There is no cure and current treatments aren’t conclusive. It’s the disease that directly affects 47.5 million people worldwide. Its impact on family and friends can be akin to that of the loss of a loved one. Progress towards a cure date? On July 22nd at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, in Washington, DC, researchers from big pharmaceutical, Eli Lilly delivered a cutting edge presentation on the discovery of an antibody that slows down the illness’s progression. The antibody is called solanezumab. This is in no way a cure but it does provide some glimmer of hope...

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Australian lonely hearts defrauded of $22.7 million in 2015

In the lead up to Valentine's Day, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission warned the online dating community to watch out for any love interest asking them for money.  The ACCC reported 2,620 Australians reported losing almost $23 million to dating and romance scams in 2015.  "Romance scams continue to cause significant emotional and financial harm to the community. We know these figures are only the tip of the iceberg as many victims are reluctant to admit to friends, family or authorities they fell for a scam," ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said.  "Scammers...

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What is the value of EQ within your business?

Having worked in the conference industry almost 6 years now, I’ve come to realise that how I respond to my emotions has a major influence on my ability to work effectively with others. And working in a highly competitive, deadline driven and stressful environment, the ability to harness the power of my emotions to create significant connections with others and be a positive influence can sometimes be a challenge. Leadership at its core is an invitation to a future that is better than today. People willingly follow leaders who have a strong sense of optimism and aspire to bring the very...

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