Sector and AuSAE News

  • 26 Jun 2015 4:12 PM | Louise Stokes

    Michael Smith explains what Cloud-based payroll solutions can offer SME business owners.


    Business and payroll needs are constantly evolving, as is the technology that serves those needs. Cloud computing has exploded onto the scene and Australian businesses are leading the way in migrating to cloud-based services, but for many SMEs, cloud technology and its application for payroll services is not fully understood.


    With cloud technology, SMEs now have access to capabilities that they require but may not hitherto have had the necessary skills set to manage. So, is moving to the cloud the right option for every business? 


    Each business and payroll department faces its own set of challenges that lead the business to consider the prospect of migrating to the cloud. Some of these include internal pressures and budgets facing IT departments, lack of internal infrastructure to regularly process payroll, as well as cost and how that cost is valued – expense vs. opportunity. For many SMEs who do not have the capabilities to keep pace with software nor have the budgets to keep up with managing the costs of IT, migration to the cloud is often an easier move to commit to as it provides them with enterprise-scale IT capability without the price tag.


    However, there are still some very valid considerations SMEs must examine before migrating their payroll to the cloud. Every business must ask the following questions of any cloud provider before signing on the dotted line:

    • What experience do the provider have in data management for payroll?
    • What is the provider’s experience in payroll database, applications and the relevant updates?
    • What are the service level agreements?
    • What is the disaster recovery plan?
    • How will my data be continually protected?
    • What happens if the office loses its internet connection?
    • Where will my data be stored?  What support is available?
    • What happens if I decide to move to another provider? Can I easily access and move my data?

    Discussing these areas with your potential provider will help identify their capabilities and experience in managing payroll services, and provide peace of mind that your data is in safe hands. Here are some typical concerns that outline how migrating to the cloud can help increase business productivity and bottom line.


    Security: Security is one of the greatest apprehensions businesses have in regards to using cloud technology. Trusting valuable data to a third party can be daunting, however cloud technology stores data in a secure environment with the most updated firewall and anti-virus protection. With a cloud service, small to medium sized businesses receive a dedicated team of professionals in an enterprise grade security environment with an affordable budget. 

    Performance, availability and mobility: Cloud technology offers secure 24/7 access to data that is always available and backed up. Businesses can login from anywhere at any time through a secure system. The business passes the control and management of backups and disc space to a cloud provider and no longer has to worry about shrinking disc space or if the data is current. Workflow is never interrupted. This also applies to systems like Employee Self-Service (ESS), where security risks are no longer an issue and employees can access their records safely and securely from any device at any time. Cloud software is able to handle a large amount of transactions in a short amount of time.


    Infrastructure: With declining IT budgets becoming the norm, migrating to the cloud makes good business sense. IT departments are less and less able to manage the payroll IT functions and cloud technology shifts those responsibilities and the related risks off site and away from in-house IT. Using a cloud service also eliminates the need to maintain hardware and updates to infrastructure as they continuously purchase state-of-the-art equipment to ensure reliable performance.  SMEs are no longer responsible for the management of the application and their in-house IT department no longer has to manage accessibility to data, software upgrades or security patching 


    Cost: Cloud technology is an operational expenditure that is controlled and capped and does not suffer from significant or surprising increases. In-house solutions carry higher setup costs, ongoing costs of software and hardware updates and higher monthly maintenance costs.


    Data management, back-ups and disaster recovery: Cloud technology offers reliable and flexible backup and data management systems and gives SMEs peace-of-mind with a sophisticated solution that enables data to be accessed, restored or recovered with minimal down time in order to meet payroll deadlines.


    Compliance: Cloud technology is tailored to the SMEs’ local market conditions to ensure compliance as required by the business. A credible cloud software provider will maintain a number of compliance accreditations to also ensure every user is complying with internal controls and regulations.


    The argument for migrating to the cloud for payroll makes good business sense.  SMEs gain enterprise level computing capability for software applications and infrastructure that can continually grow and adapt to their business needs without the hefty price tag. Cloud payroll provides the reliability and assurance that the payroll function will continue to operate smoothly, with greater accessibility to data that is systematically backed up and all for a lower monthly cost.

     

    Michael Smith is Managing Director of Sage MicrOpay. (AuSAE Payroll and HR Systems Partner)


  • 26 Jun 2015 3:08 PM | Louise Stokes

    ASAE is pleased to welcome association professionals residing outside the U.S. (and Canada) to attend the 2015 ASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition, the largest gathering of association professionals from the United States and countries around the world. ASAE respects and values the opportunity to showcase and deliver a memorable and exciting learning event.


    International attendees will receive a special discount to attend the event. The registration fee of $699/$799 for international members/nonmembers includes one full conference registration to the event ($1,249.00 value)! All additional program expenses must be covered by each attendee and are not included in the cost of the full conference registration (examples include any Pre- or Post-Conference Programs; the ASAE Foundation Classic, a fundraising event for the ASAE Foundation; city and/or educational tours; community connection activities; and the Golf Tournament, another fundraising event for the ASAE Foundation).

    Find out more.

  • 26 Jun 2015 8:56 AM | Louise Stokes

    Post by Callie Walker, sourced directly from the Member Clicks Blog here.


    The primary goal for any membership website is to get members to the site and keep them coming back for more. This means offering fresh, up-to-date content that your members will find valuable.


    Not sure where to begin? Check out these five tips for maintaining a fresh membership website:

    Tip #1: Add a blog

    A blog is a great way to keep your website fresh and active. If you’re not sure what to write about, check out your competitors’ blog posts for ideas and inspiration.


    Still lacking ideas? Why not…


    The possibilities here are endless!

    • Write about an upcoming event or conference?
    • Feature a new member?
    • Review a book related to your association’s industry?
    • Make a list of relevant industry leaders to follow on Twitter?

    Tip #2: Add an image gallery 

    Not much of a writer? No worries! Try adding an image gallery to your site instead. This is a great way to add fresh content to your website while showcasing your organization’s unique personality. Feel free to add pictures of your office, a recent event, your board members, etc.

    Tip #3: Add an event calendar

    Event calendars are also great for keeping your site active and engaging. Members will keep coming back to see what’s going on and what they don’t want to miss. That being said, if your organization doesn't host many events throughout the year, this may be one feature you want to skip over.  

    Tip #4: Add testimonials

    Testimonials aren’t for everyone, but if you already have some handy, why not put them on your website? Just remember to ask your members for permission first. If you think that acquiring testimonials will be a time-consuming or difficult task based on current engagement levels, maybe it’s something to consider down the road.

    Tip #5: Add a news page

    Even if you don’t think your organization has much news, there is always something interesting going on. Perhaps you just finished a project, elected a new board member, received a new sponsorship, or welcomed your 1,000th member. Any of these could form the basis of a news story, which could help keep your site active and refreshing. 


    Remember, the trick to all of these tactics is to keep them updated on a regular basis. A blog or an image gallery won’t do you any good if they’re just sitting there. Update, update, update!

  • 26 Jun 2015 8:47 AM | Louise Stokes

    Sourced directly from JustGiving Blog here.


    On 19th June, over 100 charity and non-profit professionals gathered to find out about the Future of Social Media and the next generations of donors – Generation Z (Gen Z). The aim of the event was to get the answers to the questions on everyone’s lips: how will we interact with the donors of tomorrow and how can we future proof our organisation?


    We gathered a few of the world’s leading experts on the subject


    Our expert speakers, pictured below with Carlos Miranda from Social Misfits Media, were:


    Kevin McSpadden, head of marketing and brand strategy at Facebook, Amanda Kelso, head of community at Instagram, JustGiving’s CMO Charles Wells and Beth Kanter, a leading non-profit innovator.


    The future for social media as a tool for social good is bright.


    As a vehicle for social change and impact, these networks provide a way to create and share authentic, meaningful content to interact with potential donors and supporters, particularly millennials and Gen Z.


    Takeaways from Facebook

    • As a social platform, Facebook’s role in the social sector is to share ‘doing good’ in the world. Through sharing with new friends and ideas, Facebook allows us to build tribes in order to share causes, start a dialogue to inspire empathy and compassion, and to facilitate action while being locally effective and globally efficient.
    • Millennials and Gen Z use social media as a life tool to shape and define who they are, through sharing information and questions that represent their values. In this space, social good has an advantage as it is meaningful.
    • The sharing of information and the power of connections through Facebook can help deliver the social good that charitable organisations and non-profits are built for. Facebook take this further through programmes and initiatives like Internet.org and FB Start.

    Takeaways from Instagram

    • As an interest-based community, Instagram allows people to align with things that interest them and Instagrammers are on the platform for 21 minutes each day. For charities and voluntary organisations, this provides an opportunity to reach advocates with aligned interests.
    • As a participation-based network, advocates, supporters and potential donors can interact with and create content inspired by your cause. It’s a great way to reach millennials and Gen Z who actively use the platform to communicate in a visually impactful and authentic way – and in real time.
    • Instagram offers more than just content creation for social good – visual voices and authentic expression go beyond the screen as communities are built through instameets, bringing together activists and supporters for your cause together offline too.

    Takeaways from JustGiving

    • People and technology are moving fast – is the charity sector keeping up? Non-profits and voluntary organisations need to move faster, dream bigger, fail more and partner wisely for success.
    • As a sector, we champion transparency – we need to talk about the impact we deliver.
    • Three actionable trends that your charity needs to consider:
    • Causes, not organisations: Use storytelling to make sure you’re connecting with people who support your mission.
    • ‘The Good Me’: People share content that reflect how they want to be seen – appeal to this for your cause!
    • Expression, not consideration – donations are achieved by the right message in the right place at the right time. This can apply even more to Gen Z, who will be interacting with your organisation and cause through a social platform.

    Top tips from Beth Kanter

    • It’s not about numbers – be socially present, engage with your network and inspire action. Individuals and their networks are key to fundraising in a connected world. Organisations need to tap into their staff’s networks too.
    • Charity ‘slacktivists’ are important – don’t dismiss them! Social media is not a dead-end for donors, but quite the opposite. Young people are likely to hear about new causes through their feeds, and they will donate and share through their networks.
    • Start thinking and getting excited about Gen Z or ‘philanthroteens’ – they are globally connected, entrepreneurial and the likes of Malala Yousafzai and Jack Andraka are already blowing us away. They are committed to social change, not just social capital – most are already involved in a cause, so listen to them and bring them into your planning.

  • 25 Jun 2015 2:47 PM | Louise Stokes

    Sourced directly from the ATO NFP News Service


    Tax Laws Amendment (Small Business Measures No. 1) Bill 2015 was passed by parliament on 15 June 2015 and is awaiting royal assent. It will reduce the company tax rate from 30 per cent to 28.5 per cent for companies (including non-profit companies) that are small business entities for the income years starting on or after 1 July 2015.


    A non-profit company is a small business entity if its aggregated turnover is less than $2 million.


    The company tax rate and shade-in taxable income limit for non-profit companies that are small business entities will be changed. The current rates and limits will still apply to all other non-profit companies.


    The ATO will update their publications for the changes once they become law.


    Find out more.

  • 24 Jun 2015 3:56 PM | Louise Stokes

    ‘Who’s Sponsoring Who’ is a fast-paced, interactive presentation on sponsorship and the first event in a series of breakfasts for business professionals presented by ICE Australia in association with Strategic Membership Solutions (SMS) and the Sofitel.


    Julian Moore is our guest speaker, Australasia’s foremost not for profit sponsorship practitioner focusing on associations and charities. He specialises in training, motivating and up-skilling boards and staff to improve sponsorship performance, with twitter address @SponsorshipGuru he has plenty to say and many followers.

    • Where: Sofitel Brisbane, 249 Turbot Street Brisbane
    • When: Tuesday 11 August 2015
    • Time: 7.15am-8.45am
    • Register by: Thursday 6th August 2015
    • Cost: $89 per person

    For more information
    ICE Australia
    Greg Sharp
    E: greg@iceaustralia.com
    www.iceaustralia.com


    To RegisterPlease click here


    ICE AUSTRALIA

    We are a Professional Conference Organiser (PCO) specialising in total conference management

    with staffed offices in Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney. With a national

    presence and employing some of the most experienced and dedicated conference management

    staff ICE is large enough to manage the most complex conference while still priding ourselves

    on providing boutique tailored services.


    Here’s a taste of what we will offer your next conference or event;

    • Creativity & Innovation
    • Collaborative Network
    • Rewarding Partnership
    • Demonstrated Experience
    • Robust Infrastructure
    • Operational Excellence


    Head Office

    183 Albion Street Surry Hills NSW 2010

    Ph: 02 9368 1200

    Email: info@iceaustralia.com

    www.iceaustralia.com


    SMS

    Strategic Membership Solutions (SMS) is an Australian owned and operated company providing

    high quality, practical and comprehensive advice, support and training on topics relating to

    turnarounds, sponsorship and membership.

    The client base of SMS is predominately service clients from Australia and New Zealand,

    although from time to time SMS undertakes activities in North America and the United

    Kingdom.


    SMS is run by Belinda Moore (formerly Belinda Busoli) and Julian Moore who each have wealth

    of experience in the Australasian and European nonprofit sectors.

    Office: Suite 2.01, 433 Logan Road, Stones Corner QLD 4120

    Ph: 1300 852 303 (inside Australia)

    Email: info@smsonline.net.au

    www.smsonline.net.au

  • 24 Jun 2015 8:37 AM | Louise Stokes

    The Australasian Society of Association Executives (AuSAE) is pleased to announce the Call for Papers and invites presenters to submit abstracts for sessions for the AuSAE 2015 Leadership Symposium with the theme of this year’s Symposium titled: “Building Sustainable Futures”.


    The annual AuSAE Leadership Symposium provides a platform to critically articulate the profound challenges and opportunities faced by not-for-profit organisations today. This is a great opportunity to assist your fellow association colleagues to reach their full potential and advance their organisations.


    To find out more about this year’s Symposium and how to submit a session abstract please click here to download the 2015 AuSAE Request for Session Proposals Form.


    For consideration please submit your session abstract by June 30 2015.


    If you have any questions in the meantime please do not hesitate to contact me.


    Warm regards
    Kerrie 


    Kerrie Lucas
    Events Coordinator 

    Australasian Society of Association Executives

    P    Direct: 3394 8295 Office: 1300 764 576  F +61 (0) 7 3319 6056  

    A    Suite 2.01, 433 Logan Road, Stones Corner QLD 4120  P  PO Box 752, Stones Corner QLD 4120 Australia

    E    kerrie@ausae.org.au W www.ausae.org.au Follow AuSAE on Twitter L Join AuSAE on LinkedIn



  • 15 Jun 2015 2:50 PM | Louise Stokes

    For every nation-building job that disappears and ends up in tourism, the country is getting poorer, New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association (NZMEA) new chief executive Dieter Adam tells people.


    The native of southern Germany grew up near a massive industrial area "halfway between a Porche and Mercedes factory". His capsule of economic thought is a quote from the late Sir Paul Callaghan, after whom the Government's Callaghan Innovation network is named.


    Adam is a fan of Sir Paul's critiques, including his measure of average GDP per worker.


    In manufacturing, Sir Paul said, the average contribution to GDP per employee was $120,000. "And every job that creates less makes the country poorer."


    The assessment was "a very mature and interesting way of looking at economic development, " Adam said.


    But NZMEA's frontman is not sure everyone had their head around the concept.

    Government had a bigger part to play in fostering manufacturing as a bright, modern wealth-creator, he said. 


    Adam's first few weeks with NZMEA had offered a glimpse of how manufacturing is seen outside its own bubble. Manufacturing seems to be officially off-the-page within government, it seems to him.


    The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) had sector groups, including a kind of food and beverages department. Adam said he asked officials where he could find the manufacturing cluster. He was told there wasn't one.


    "That's fairly telling," Adam said.


    Whereas the NZMEA's slogan is "The Real Economy", the attitude on high seemed to be that if manufacturing was not surviving then it was a case of 'too bad, tough luck'.


    To Adam, the mood seemed similar to the early 2000s, when IT and film was peaking in popularity and agriculture was widely written off.


    "We've come to understand, that with all the ups and downs...agriculture is not a sunset industry for New Zealand. Likewise, this country can't exist without manufacturing."


    Adam took his encouragement from a revival of manufacturing in the United States.  

    "Five, 10 years ago, manufacturing there was all dead - it goes to other countries with weaker services. Now it's coming back with a roar."


    With the historically low value of the US dollar, manufacturing was thriving and recognised as a central part of the economy.


    "I think we need to get back to that."


    Adam did not want to be seen simply as a booster for manufacturer and a bagger of other industries.


    Back to Sir Paul's assessment of tourism, Adam said undoubtedly tourism had advertising agents who shunted more GDP into the economy than a service worker at the frontline.


    If statistics were examined "in their own right", the biggest individual contributors to GDP worked in the mining and construction industries.


    "Because they sit in the control room of an oil well and produce millions of dollars per day. And that (statistic) gets chopped up against the average. But in general, manufacturing produces above the average contribution of GDP per worker."


    Raised in southern Germany, but a New Zealander for nearly 30 years, Adam was aware his plug for smarter, more productive manufacturing looks unfashionable. But his personal style would fit NZMEA's reputation for "speaking fearlessly," he said.


    Adam had not met his predecessor, John Walley, who had a reputation for shooting provocative barbs.


    NZMEA was born from a 2007 merger of the Canterbury Manufacturers' Association and the New Zealand Engineers Federation. Under Walley, NZMEA tended to have an interventionist approach to business, which sometimes jarred with the Canterbury Employers Chamber of Commerce, for example.


    Adam, a father of four adult children and son of a school teacher, said he was "determined" rather than confrontational. People sometimes alluded to his Germanic background, he said.

    "I tend to be fairly focused on a target and not easily deflected."


    He comes to the association from the state-run business development agency, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE).


    Adam has a PhD or doctorate in plant biotechnology and having held research positions in Germany and Denmark. He arrived in New Zealand from Germany in 1986 to take up an academic position at the University of Waikato.


    He joined the commercial world in 1994 and has held senior management positions in the primary industry with forestry-based Rayonier New Zealand and Livestock Improvement Corporation, a livestock genetics co-operative.


    He had also run his own consultancy business.


    Adam said one of his early aims for NZMEA was a regular forum for manufacturing leaders to "speak among like minds". People may have family and private networks to share ideas but they didn't always want to talk about business, he had found.


    "And when it comes to the question of speaking with others, there's always the question of 'what can I share and what can't I share?'.


    The discussion loop would probably be like one he had set up at NZTE.


    The NZMEA set-up would ideally bring people together who weren't directly competing, but who had an interest in collaborating. Several businesses developing the China market, for example.

    People had realised they had nothing to fear from each other, then opened up and shared their experiences.


    "And a couple of times I had to kind of send them out the door; they wouldn't want to go home because they were so lively."


    For the sake of NZMEA as an institution, Adam wanted to make the group more appealing to younger business owners. It also needed to be less Auckland-centric.


    "...…but we certainly have to be sure this organisation is nationwide and it's not known for people over 60."


    Of the 13 business he had visited so far for NZMEA, all but one of the chiefs had an engineering or industrial science background.


    "If you look back a generation, those jobs were usually taken up by males so it's not a surprise that the situation we find ourselves in."


    NZMEA had "ambitions" to be more involved in the food and manufacturing sector, where more employees were female.


    This was not to say manufacturing was generally male, conservative and unwilling to move with the times, Adam said. He was "amazed" how many businesses were shrugging off old habits, even if they probably had no choice in the matter.


     - Stuff



  • 15 Jun 2015 2:45 PM | Louise Stokes

    Farmers facing tough times are being encouraged to talk to their bank early and often in an information resource launched today by the New Zealand Bankers’ Association at Fieldays. 


    “We all know that the agri sector is hugely important to our economy. We also understand the volatility and complexity of the sector,” said New Zealand Bankers’ Association chief executive Kirk Hope. 


    “That’s why we’ve put together an information sheet about how banks can help farmers facing financial challenges.


    “Banks work in partnership with farmers to support their businesses through good times and bad. Two-way communication is essential, particularly during times of financial stress.”


    Depending on farmers’ particular circumstances, there is a range of potential measures available across the banking sector, including:

    • Reducing or suspending principal payments on loans and temporarily moving to interest-only payments
    • Allowing term deposits to be broken without associated costs
    • Low interest loans for investment in key environmental systems and projects
    • Waiving fees associated with restructuring business loans
    • Providing access to short term funding
    • Financial management and budgeting advice
    • Access to workshops on improving farm productivity and performance.

    “The key is acting before the event takes place, having plans and a budget in place, and keeping your banker and advisers in the loop,” Hope said. 


    Read this in full
  • 15 Jun 2015 2:36 PM | Louise Stokes

    The Taxpayers’ Union is calling for law changes requiring more transparency from taxpayer funded agencies after today’s report in the NZ Herald of the taxpayer-funded Pacific Island Forum not reporting a staff member to police who had admitted misappropriating more than $60,000 of public money.


    Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director, Jordan Williams, says:

    “This isn’t the first time the current government has had to answer awkward questions about fraud in taxpayer funded NGOs. It is likely the media only scratches the surface of the wedding dresses, international travel and similar frauds on taxpayer funded credit cards in NGOs."


    “The Government should extend the Official Information Act to taxpayer funded not-for-profits rather than continue to allow them to shun transparency. If a group relies on taxpayer money it should be required to be transparent and accountable under freedom of information laws."


The Australasian Society of Association Executives (AuSAE)

Australian Office:
Address: Unit 6, 26 Navigator Place, Hendra QLD 4011 Australia
Free Call: +61 1300 764 576
Phone: +61 7 3268 7955
Email: info@ausae.org.au

New Zealand Office:
Address: 159 Otonga Rd, Rotorua 3015 New Zealand
Phone: +64 27 249 8677
Email: nzteam@ausae.org.au

Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software