The AuSAE team will be hosting a delegation for the upcoming ASAE 2017 Great Ideas Asia Pacific, which is being held in Seoul, Korea on 22-24 March 2017. The Schedule of Events will give you opportunities to connect with other association professionals from the region, build your skills in association management, and allow you to take back fresh ideas and concepts to implement in your own organization.

Additionally, former Kodak and Apple executive Donald Strickland, CEO, Strickland & Associates will explore four critical success factors of Leadership and two leadership traps you must avoid during his Opening Keynote Session. Don’t miss this opportunity to expand your global network and association management knowledge. Input the delegation code - PC2AJWK and you’ll save $100 on registration when you register before 21 February. 

Please reach out to Megan Kuhman, Senior Manager, Global Development at ASAE at mkuhman@asaecenter.org with any questions concerning your registration.

Register Now with your delegation code and Save!

Kirsty Kelly will be stepping down as Chief Executive Officer of the Planning Institute of Australia after six years in the role, and over 20 in other capacities at the Institute. Stepping into the CEO role will be David Williams, currently Chief Operating Officer of PIA. PIA President Brendan Nelson said of the transition, “PIA has been very fortunate to have David and Kirsty at the helm for nearly six years, in a successful partnership that has provided a natural successor on Kirsty’s departure.”

Under Kirsty’s leadership, PIA’s membership, influence and financial position have all grown, and its previously State-based structure tightened to form a cohesive national body. Reflecting on her departure, Kirsty said “PIA has been completely transformed and the steps are in place for its next evolution with Registered Planner,” referring to PIA’s new push to introduce a competency-based registration into the planning profession. David Williams is no stranger to the responsibilities of a CEO, having previously served in that capacity for Greening Australia, Australia’s largest environmental not-for-profit. Under his leadership, the organisation transitioned from government contract funding and developed new and novel operations including Australia’s first biodiverse carbon offsets business.

As PIA’s COO, David oversaw the conversion of PIA into a company limited by guarantee; stabilised the Institute’s volatile financial situation; and together with Kirsty, developed a set of purpose statements for the organisation as well as fostering a high-performing work culture internally. Most recently, David has overseen the establishment of the Registered Planner program. In accepting the CEO role, David said “I’m delighted to be returning to a CEO role, particularly for an organisation that I know so well, for a profession that I truly admire and a staff group that I genuinely enjoy spending time with.

“I’m really excited about PIA’s future, with record numbers of members, unprecedented level of PD and social events that are really hitting the mark for planners, and a Board who share my views for increasing the relevance of PIA to all planners, across all sectors of the profession.” PIA President Brendan Nelson echoed these sentiments, saying “David brings a wealth of experience both within PIA and in previous roles including as CEO of Greening Australia. On behalf of the Board and members, I congratulate David on his appointment and we welcome the continued growth of PIA under his leadership.”

David will take over as CEO from Kirsty on 22 December.

In my last article we talked about how to run the numbers with a cost benefit analysis. This time, we’ll look at how you can apply this thinking to analyse expenditure in individual areas of your business to ensure you’re running a lean, effective operation.

Staffing

• Think carefully about your staffing model. Do you need full-time staff (and the financial investment required to maintain them) or would part-time or contracted staff give your business more flexibility?
  
• Hire specialist contractors on an as-needs basis for short periods. By using experts in this way, you’ll get the best possible guidance during that time for a slight premium, versus having a full-time employee who may not have the specific skills or knowledge you need. If you can afford and need a full-time resource, great, but if not, don’t be afraid to bring in the experts as you need them.
  
• If you’re really looking to cut back, build cleaning tasks into staff roles. Create a roster to rotate the jobs and a system to document and check the work has happened. You can’t risk having unclean areas of your business, but you can save on getting this work done. Don’t forget to consider low-cost, homemade cleaning products and disinfectants to keep your equipment clean and to prevent the spread of germs.
  

Selective staff hours

• Consider a staggered approach to work hours to allow for increased staff presence and productivity in the workplace when your business needs it most. For example, in the fitness industry, 9am-11.30am and 1.30-3.30pm are usually far quieter than standard peak hours, so scheduling staff hours around shorter, focussed windows can often increase productivity and therefore business profitably.
  
• Seasonal and trend factors also work best with this selective approach to hours—for example, summer months tend to be busier than winter.
  

Reduce, reuse, recycle

• No matter what kind of business you’re in, but particularly if you run a 24/7 operation, ensure lights and air conditioning sensors are activated at off-peak times to keep electricity bills minimised. Put a note above all light switches to remind staff to turn them off when not in use.
  
• Solar power can also be a viable option to help keep electricity running costs low. But don’t expect an immediate return on investment—your payback period could take up to five years.
  
• Go paperless. Minimise printouts and digitise processes where possible.
  
• Re-cycle—not only is it great for the environment but it will also help minimise costs.
  
• And when thinking about efficient use of resources, can you consider subleasing a space in your premises to a complementary service provider? In the case of a gym it may be a win-win for you to rent space to a physiotherapist, a chiropractor or a dietician.
  

Purchasing policies

• Purchase from wholesalers to buy in bulk and save money.
  

Maximising marketing budget

• Although it may seem obvious to say ‘only spend money where it’s yielding the most results’, it can be difficult to actually measure the effectiveness and track the results. Try and track the impact where you can by analysing data and talking to your customers.
  
• Pick the right marketing tool for the biggest return on investment. Will your customers respond to a flyer in the mailbox or are they more likely to pick up on a Facebook campaign? Or perhaps that money is better invested in Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)? Again, track the impact!
  
• Share marketing costs with other like-minded businesses. Perhaps you can share the cost of an advertisement in a publication too—a half page each?
  

Capital expenses

• Think about how major capital expenses can become tax deductions for your business. Currently the Australian Government provides a $20,000 ‘right off’ (for all businesses operating in less than $1 million per year gross revenue) for capital expenses. Capital expenses include equipment, security, some software and technology-related services. So reducing tax paid can also reduce costs, and sometimes very big costs!
  

Talk to your local PaySmart Business Development Manager for more great ideas or read more on the PaySmart website.

Posted by Colin Walker In PaySmart News

The Real Estate Institute of Australia has welcomed the election of the new President, Malcolm Gunning from New South Wales. Mr Gunning was elected to the Presidency today at the Annual General Meeting held in Canberra. Mr Gunning has over 40 years of experience in all facets of real estate agency practice, property development and property valuation. 

He is the Immediate Past President of the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW). Currently, Malcolm is the principal of Gunning Real Estate, a property agency and consultancy with offices in Hurstville and Surry Hills whose business focus is sales and leasing in commercial, industrial, retail, residential and development real estate. In accepting the role, Mr Gunning thanked out-going President Neville Sanders from Victoria who has served in the position for two years. “Neville has provided excellent stewardship of the organisation since 2014 and during that time he has achieved much in ensuring that our members have a strong national voice,” Mr Gunning said. “On behalf of the Board and staff, we extent our sincere thanks to Neville for his professionalism and commitment to the role during an important chapter in REIA’s history.”

“Next year will be an equally important one for the sector with the public debate on taxation of housing and affordability continuing. REIA will continue to be a strong advocate for the retention of negative gearing – its abolition is not the panacea for housing affordability that many seem to think it is. The debate on taxation must be broader and include stamp duty, land tax and value capture. “I am also resolved to ensure that professional standards are improved and consumers are protected when they make the biggest and often the most important purchase of their lifetime,” Mr Gunning added.

“Improving the professionalism of the sector requires a multifaceted approach encompassing higher levels of qualifications, CPD, standard of training including ASQA’s role, accreditation, harmonisation, and working towards membership of the Professional Standards Authority”, concluded Mr Gunning.

The Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) is the national professional association for real estate agents in Australia. For further information or interview opportunities, please contact:

Malcolm Gunning REIA President 0413 872 422

Joanne Gundlach Administrative Officer 02 6282 4277

This media release was originally sourced from REIA. 

Passion is not enough to keep the burgeoning number of non-profit organisations on track for success, a Canberra-raised global strategist says. Liana Downey, a New York strategic consultant and author who was once the Braddon Pizza Hut's first "delivery girl", said not-for-profits needed a clear focus and to do their homework to avoid failed models. "There is a lot of research which says the more goals you take on the less likely you are to achieve them," she said.

A former special strategic adviser to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Ms Downey has returned to Australia to promote her new book Mission Control, in which she said measuring impacts, not just inputs, was crucial to avoiding well-intentioned agendas becoming ineffective or harmful. She pointed to a successful US government strategy to encourage people to shift to low-fat milk, based on a supposed correlation between whole-fat dairy consumption and heart disease. The change in behaviour was massive, but there was no lowering in heart disease rates, she said.

"The research suggested that we see more intensive heart disease where they have lower milk fats," she said. JBWere's recent Cause Report showed there were nearly 57,000 not-for-profits in Australia, twice as many as 20 years ago. Australian charities also faced significant donor funding challenges, with individual giving as a percentage of GDP at 0.23 per cent, compared to 1.44 per cent in the US, the report found. Ms Downey said pressures to deviate from a core focus, such as to attract research funding, were understandable but could slow achievement. But Australia had a proven track-record for delivering successful public awareness campaigns.

"Australia has really been seen as absolutely world leading – [on] skin cancer, cigarette abatement policies – and that's come from Canberra," she said. Ms Downey led international consulting firm McKinsey & Company's Australian government and social-sector practices before moving to the United States in 2011. Her work has included helping the New York City education department shift their measure of success from graduation rates to university and job readiness.

This article was originally sourced from The Canberra Times and written by Matthew Raggatt. 

Information for charities and the public about maintaining and spending reserves This fact sheet covers:

• What reserves are and where they come from
  
• Why it is important to have reserves
  
• Appropriate levels of reserves
  
• Who has responsibility for reserves
  

Reserves play an important role in the financial stability and long-term sustainability of a charity.  Managing reserves is an important aspect of the overall financial management of a charity – a crucial element of good charity governance. In line with good governance and proper risk management, a charity’s responsible persons (i.e., its board, committee, or governing body) should consider an appropriate level of reserves for its circumstances, as well as a strategy for building or spending its reserves in a way that is consistent with its purpose.

The purpose of this fact sheet is to provide general guidance on reserves for charities: what reserves are, why they might be needed, and how charities can determine an appropriate level of reserves.  This fact sheet is not relevant for grant-making charitable trusts and foundations that manage a corpus.

For full fact sheet, click here. 

In 2016 Women & Leadership Australia (WLA) is administering a multi-national initiative to support the development of female leaders throughout the not-for-profit sector. The initiative is providing women in the not-for-profit sector with grants for leadership development. More specifically, grant applications are open for women at three levels. Please click on the preferred program link for details. The deadline for expressing your interest for this funding in your sector ends on December 22nd.

1. Senior management and executive level women leaders can apply for $8,000 part-scholarships to undertake the Advanced Leadership Program

2. Mid-level female managers and leaders can apply for $4,000 part-scholarships to undertake the Executive Ready Program

3. Aspiring talent and emerging women managers can apply for $3,000 part-scholarships to undertake the Accelerated Leadership Performance Program.

Expressions of Interest

Register your interest by simply completing an Expression of Interest form.

Should you wish to discuss the initiative in more detail please contact Alistair Young at the office of the National Industry Scholarship Program, WLA on (03) 9270 9032 or via ayoung@wla.edu.au.

Fitness Australia has today announced the formation of the Australian Fitness Industry Standards Council – an entity that will help to advance and elevate Australia’s fitness industry.

The newly‐formed council will seek to – among other things – develop, manage, promote and review a suite of standards, codes, guidance materials and other documents to assist the fitness industry to manage safety and improve service quality.

Comprised of ten members appointed in October 2016, the council boasts a unique and diverse range of experts who will contribute to the future positive direction of the fitness industry.

Three of the council members represent academia, with experience in the fitness industry and in a relevant discipline (sports or exercise science, business, law), while another three are experienced industry practitioners. There is an additional three external members, including a representative of consumers, a representative of education providers, and a person with experience in accreditation systems.

The members of the Australian Fitness Industry Standards Council are:

Professor Patrick Keyzer(Chairman), Law Academic

Professor Kevin Norton, Exercise Science Academic

Professor Elisabeth Wilson‐Evered, Business Academic

Mr Max Martin, Experienced Industry Practitioner

Mr Michael Cunico, Experienced Industry Practitioner

Mr Gavin Aquilina, Experienced Industry Practitioner

Ms Maxine Cooper, Consumer Representative

Dr Melissa Arkinstall, Education Representative

Associate Professor Michael Greco, Accreditation Expert

Mr Craig Knox, Executive Officer & Secretary

The objectives of the Council are to:

• Develop, manage, promote and review a suite of standards, codes, guidance materials and
  
• other documents to assist the fitness industry to manage safety and improve service quality;
  
• Develop, manage, promote and review a suite of standards, codes, guidance materials and
  
• other documents to assist the fitness industry to support Fitness Australia’s registration and
  
• accreditation programs;
  
• Develop a risk management model and a program of total quality management for the
  
• Australian fitness industry that is based on data and other inputs that will help drive safety
  
• improvements by guiding prioritisation of standards development and regulatory activity;
  
• Provide independent technical advice to Fitness Australia staff, the Board and the public; and
• Undertake initiatives to support Fitness Australia’s role as the peak body in the self regulatory
  
• model of fitness service provision in Australia.
  

Fitness Australia CEO, Bill Moore is excited by the opportunities to affect positive change and direction in the industry with the guidance of the newly‐formed council.

“This is an exciting time for our industry, and when you can attract the quality of members that we now have on The Council, it’s cause for even more excitement,” said Moore.

“This is an initiative designed not just to provide standards, as the name might suggest, it’s really a chance for some of the brightest minds in the industry and in a number of different specialist fields to get together, discuss, plan and project on where the industry is headed.

“We’re part of an ever‐evolving industry and the formation of this council is a step towards reflecting that even further.”

Stay tuned to fitness.org.au for updates from the newly‐formed Standards Council as they come to hand.

For more contact:

Angela Palogiannidis, PR and Communications Manager, Fitness Australia

D: 02 8036 0608 M: 0405 106 360 angela@fitness.org.au

About Fitness Australia:

Fitness Australia is the peak health and fitness industry association, providing a range of support services and solutions to almost 30,000 registered exercise professionals, fitness service providers and industry suppliers Australia‐wide

AuSAE has welcomed new members from the following organisations this month.

Is your organisation on this list? If your organisation is on this list as an AuSAE organisational member but you are unsure if you are part of the membership bundle, please contact the friendly AuSAE team at info@ausae.org.au.

Not on this list? To join AuSAE today please visit our membership information page here.

How did you first become involved with Audiology Australia and can you tell us a bit about Audiology Australia and the goals they strive to achieve?

Audiology Australia is the peak body representing over 95% of audiologists in Australia. Audiologists work with clients to help them to preserve, manage and improve their hearing, their ability to process and understand sounds, and their balance.

Audiologists help clients of all ages - from infants to older adults - and clients with complex needs improve their ability to communicate and interact in all situations.

I started with Audiology Australia in June 2016 as their Marketing and Events Manager. This newly created role was established to ensure the association fulfils its objectives outlined in its 2015-2018 strategic plan.

The strategic plan is built around four pillars;

• Education
• Engagement
• Advocacy and
• Professionalism

A major focus of my role is managing the delivery of initiatives under the two pillars education and engagement.

What do you personally feel has been the biggest challenge that Audiology Australia has overcome in your time with the organisation?

Like many national associations, Audiology Australia’s membership is spread across Australia but a majority in New South Wales and Victoria. A membership survey conducted in early 2016 highlighted the need for more varied CPD activities with a focus on online initiatives to support our regional members.

In the last six months, we have managed to launch a Member Value Webinar Series, exclusively and complimentary for members of Audiology Australia. This has been very well received with webinars selling out within 72 hours.

Just 10 days ago, we tested a hybrid event, where we live streamed select sessions from our WA Chapter Conference. Feedback being positive from this experiment now has given us the momentum to look at other hybrid events in the future.

How does the future look for Audiology Australia and what exciting projects are underway at Audiology Australia?

The next 12 months are going to be extremely exciting for us at Audiology Australia.

We are looking to implement a new integrated association management system. We have conducted a detailed review of all internal process with a view to identify business areas which are resource intensive and how we could improve the overall experience for members when interacting with us.

Due to the diverse and complex nature of Audiology Australia’s business requirements, finding a single solution that can meet all our requirements has been challenging. While no final direction or decision has been made on a technology solution, one of the areas of this project I am enjoying is evaluating how mainstream CRM used by commercial organisations can be tweaked to work for an association. Also, we are examining the viability of using “best-of-breed” technology solutions for different business areas (dedicated events software for events, dedicated marketing automation software for marketing and communication etc.) while ensuring these systems all connect with our key membership database so we have a centralised single source of truth for all our stakeholders.

Simultaneously, another key area we are working on at Audiology Australia is regulation of Audiology in Australia. There are currently two types of regulation of health professions that are recognised by the Australian Government:

1. Regulation under the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (NRAS) through registration with an Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) Board.

2. Regulation through clinical certification by a professional body that implements a “self-regulatory” model (i.e. non-Government regulated).

Audiology Australia does not meet the necessary requirements to be registered by AHPRA. Therefore, we are striving towards meeting the rigorous standards required for membership in the National Alliance of Self-Regulating Health Professions (NASRHP) and aims to meet the requirements by June 2017.

What would you say to someone starting out in the not-for-profit sector with a view to become a future leader?

Being an association professional was never a strategically planned career path I envisioned during my university days or in the early stages of my professional life. From having accepted a “job” 6 years ago, I now feel excited and proud to say I am an association professional.

Reflecting on my early years in the sector, I think one of the biggest learning curves which anyone new to the not-for-profit sector would face is working with volunteer members. Understanding the motivators of a range of individual members and learning how to channel this to ensure that the overall organisational goals are met would be one of the key factors to facilitate long term success in this industry.

Savio D’sa

Audiology Australia

www.audiology.asn.au