To coincide with Anzac Day, this episode unpacks the concerning emerging issue for ex-Defence personnel in your business and your supply chain. The Defence Amendment (Safeguarding Australia’s Military Secrets) Bill 2023 came into law in Australia on the 8th April 2024. The act has two arms: the first impacts ex-Defence personnel and ex-Department of Defence staff, the second affects ‘Australian citizens’. Both carry penalties up to 20 years imprisonment. At face value, the need to safeguard Australian military secrets makes total sense- it’s a no-brainer… but as the episode’s guest explains, t ..read more

Generative AI is here and is a major game-changer for business and supply chains. In this episode, A.I. specialist Dave Phung guides us through the confusing and often challenging task of understanding the opportunities and challenges of AI in the workplace, and in implementing it. Dave tells us what AI can do for your business and how to help staff accept it. He also addresses the elephants in the room and clarifies many of the concerns that currently exist with the new technology. A good episode with lots of chunky nuggets of insights and learning. About Dave Phung: • Dave is the Chief Disru ..read more

Ai Group’s head of National Workplace Relations Policy, Brent Ferguson, speaks to Thomas Oriti on ABC NewsRadio, discussing Ai Group’s submission to the Fair Work Commission on the minimum wage ..read more

Sarah returns to provide clarity to the confusing plethora of announcements coming out of government regarding the Defence Industry. With her usual insightful commentary Sarah explains what’s going on, what is means for business and what we should do next to capture the opportunity. In a wide-ranging and engaging conversation, Sarah explains the many recent announcements and what they provide for businesses: • The review of Australian Navy surface fleet review (Enhanced Lethality Surface Combatant review ) • The important (to business) ‘The Defence Industry Development Review’ • The plans for ..read more

Innovation is a fascinating and often misunderstood concept when it comes to business and business operations, but not for today’s guest, innovation specialist David Martin. Host James Scotland gets into an engaging and enjoyable deep dive with David on what innovation means for business and what businesses need to do to thrive through innovation. The two address the good parts and the challenges of business innovation, and what it means for the future of business. It’s a rare opportunity to go deep into the issue with an excellent communicator and experienced operator in the sector. Among man ..read more

Leann Webb is widely regarded the undisputed pioneer of the bid management industry in Australia. With over 20 years in the industry, Lean has a deep expertise in managing bid responses for major and mega project bids, particularly in the construction, infrastructure, transport, and defence sectors. She also helps small-to-medium sized enterprises to successfully respond to bids and tenders. In conversation with host James Scotland Leanne shares the secret to successful bidding and tendering. She also shares the pitfalls and common mistakes. The market is slowing in Australia and most business ..read more

This is the final episode of ‘What on Earth...’ for now. Over the summer break we did a strategic review and we’ve decided to take a break for now- we’ve covered the key issues many times and a short break will give provide an opportunity for the issues to develop before we re-analyse. The good news is the monthly ‘What on Earth….’ will be replaced by a new monthly podcast addressing the broad issues of Industry Development and Industry Policy. Stay tuned. In this last episode, Paul is unavailable so James and Tennant look at the year ahead in the transition to the post carbon Australia. • Ten ..read more

Brand is business; business is brand’ with David Schloeffel, Chief Enabling Officer, Brandness. In this insightful episode, David talks about using the company brand to build resilience into the business. “Brand is your biggest asset and it’s critical to the success of any business, regardless of size”, he tells host James Scotland. In this fascinating conversation, David reveals: • why a brand is essential to operations and supply lines; • how the expectations and performance level on B2B (business-to-business) companies have changed as a result of our experiences with B2C (business-to-consum ..read more

In this first episode of 2024 James speaks with his colleague at Ai Group, the Director of Research and Economics Dr Jeff Wilson. In a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation, James and Jeff talk through the lessons from last year and the current economic trends framing the year ahead. They then discuss the findings of the recently released report ‘Australian Industry Outlook 2024’. This annual report is an analysis and summary of the opinions of what is ahead in 2024 according to 300 business leaders in Australia. The official release of the report says: After three years of pandemic-induce ..read more

Louise McGrath has been working in international trade for decades and now represents Ai Group and Australian industry at global industry meetings around the world. In this engaging conversation James and Louise share humorous stories and insights into the keys to effective cross-cultural communication in business, supply chains and international meetings. Louise also share her thoughts on the current state of international trade and what it means for Australian business. Industry topics discussed include: • The current effectiveness of Free Trade Agreement’s • The implications for Australian ..read more