THE Standing Committee on Employment, Education and Training has launched a new inquiry into Innovation and Creativity: Workforce for the New Economy

The inquiry is a re-referral of a similar inquiry started by the Standing Committee on Education and Employment in the 44th Parliament. That inquiry lapsed when the Parliament was dissolved in May this year. The revised terms of reference have a renewed emphasis on public and not-for-profit incubators and accelerators, doctoral training practices and opportunities for generating increased economic activity through greater synergies among publicly funded research agencies and can be found here.

Committee Chair Mr Andrew Laming MP said continuing the work started in the last Parliament was important.

“An innovative and creative approach to building businesses will be a key to employing people in the future. I look forward to engaging with innovative businesses during the course of this inquiry.” Mr Laming said.

Committee Deputy Chair Ms Terri Butler MP endorsed this view.

“Innovation and creativity will be the key to educating people to be ‘job ready’ in the future. We need to find out what changes need to be made so that our education system inspires our next generation of innovators and creative thinkers,” Ms Butler said.

Issues the Committee has been asked to look into include:

• The extent to which students are graduating with the skills needed for the jobs of today and of the future;
• laws and regulations that may act as a barrier to education providers being able to offer qualifications that meet the needs of the new economy and fastest growing sectors;
• Factors that discourage closer partnerships between industry; in particular small and medium enterprises, the research sector and education providers;
• Opportunities for generating increased economic activity, including further investment and jobs, through greater synergies among publicly funded research agencies, universities and other Australian research institutions with businesses and industry; and
• Relationships between tertiary education entrepreneurship programs and public, private and not-for-profit incubators and accelerators.

Submissions are open until 13 January 2017. Please notify the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you intend to make a submission.

Further information on the inquiry, including the full terms of reference, is available on the Committee website.

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THE new 10 Year Sector Competitiveness Plan for Australia’s mining equipment, technology and services (METS) industry provides a clear roadmap for the development of a sector that is poised to drive significant economic and employment opportunities for Australia, says national resource employer group AMMA

Launched today at the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC), the 10 year plan is the result of extensive research by industry-led ‘growth centre’ METS Ignited in consultation with federal and state governments, industry peak bodies, and Australia’s national resource industry employer association, AMMA.

“Australia has an opportunity to be at the fore of an increasingly important global industry that is driving technology advancements, productivity and efficiency improvements across all key resource markets,” says AMMA head of policy Scott Barklamb.

“Australia’s resource riches, long established and highly innovative resource industry, and world leading education and research position our country to be global leader in this exciting area.

“AMMA congratulates METS Ignited on providing industry and government with a comprehensive plan for the future of Australia’s METS sector.”

AMMA strongly supports the five work programs identified in the 10 Year Competitiveness Plan:

• Aligning the strategies of METS providers, miners and research institutions to ensure future innovations are driven by customer demand and industry needs.
• Developing a stronger sense of value and brand identity for Australia’s METS sector.
• Increasing the participation of Australian METS companies in domestic and global supply chains.
• Providing platforms, both virtual and physical, for METS companies and researchers to come together to tackle practical problems for resource producers.
• Supporting skills and employability to ensure Australia’s technical capabilities keep pace with evolving technical and industry demands.

“As a contributor to the 10 Year Plan, AMMA looks forward to continuing to work with METS Ignited, particularly in our key areas of expertise across productivity, social licence to operate, skilling, human resources and other people-related matters,” Mr Barklamb continues.

“Governments and regulators also have a significant role to play in reforming regulatory processes that impose unnecessary costs and compliance burdens on Australia’s METS industry.

“This includes an unproductive and often cumbersome workplace relations system, inconsistencies in OHS laws, serious issues in exploration and mining project approvals, and a lack of protection against increasing vexatious environmental and social activism.”

Click here to visit the METS Ignited website and download its 10 Year Sector Competitiveness Plan.

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INDUSTRY experts predict stagnating global gold production will have the biggest impact on the future price of gold, the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) heard today.

Goldcorp Chairman Ian Telfer said after enjoying decades of growth, global gold production had peaked and was starting to decline.

“The amount of gold produced globally has continually gone up for about 40 years, but that’s started to flatten out and even go down,” he said.

“That’s going to have a bigger impact on gold prices than people think. Once the world starts to see that we have passed peak gold production and the volume of production goes down for the next 10 years, that will have a big impact.”

Mr Telfer said there had been no “secret sauce” to Goldcorp’s success, but the company had benefited from being able to buy assets during market slumps.

Follow #IMARC2016 on social media for live updates

TODAY's EVENT

Global trends impacting trade and investment opportunities exposed at IMARC

Changing economies, technology demands and consumer trends are forging a new breed of resilient miners that forever has an eye on operational excellence, managing risks and delivering returns to investors, the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) will hear today.

The International Mining and Resources Conference runs until tomorrow, Thursday 10 November, at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The four-day event is covering all aspects of mining, from exploration, investment and production through to optimisation, technology, health and safety, policy and governance.  More than 2,500 delegates from more than 55 countries are in attendance to learn from more than 160 international experts.

IMARC also includes Australia’s leading mining investment forum, Mines and Money Australia, which connects miners with money and investors with opportunity.

IMARC Event Director Anita Richards said today activities would include the second day of the Exhibition alongside the conference which will focus on Technology, Investment and policy and framework within the International Mining Summit.

The day will conclude with the industry’s night of nights, the sold out IMARC Gala Dinner with the headline address from Mike Henry, President Operations, Minerals Australia at BHP Billiton.

“The challenges and opportunities of recent years has created a new normal for mining companies, forcing them to become more resilient to market conditions by optimising their operations,” she said.

“Today, IMARC looks at the global trends impacting trade and investment, how improved data and system interconnectivity is creating the digital enterprise of tomorrow, and how miners are looking to de-risk their projects.”

The IMARC Exhibition is free to attend and will showcase the industry’s latest innovations, technology and services.  The Exhibition includes Innovation Alley, which highlights new products and technologies, and The Mining Hub, which gives investors the opportunity to meet junior minors.

Highlights at IMARC 2016 on Wednesday 9 November 2016 include:

Please see release and full agenda attached for today’s key speakers and events

Follow #IMARC2016 on social media for live updates

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THE IPA-Deakin University SME Research Centre has been officially launched at a special event in Melbourne today. 

The Centre is an expansion of the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) and Deakin University SME Research Partnership that published the first-ever Australian Small Business White Paper in 2015.  The dedicated SME Research Centre is located within the Deakin Business School and is set to drive the development of small business globally. 

Giving the keynote address at today’s event, the former Federal Minister for Small Business and inaugural Chair of the Research Centre’s Advisory Board, Bruce Billson congratulated the IPA and Deakin University for the collaboration and commitment being made to the small business/SME sectors.

“This is such an exciting initiative and genuinely shows that the critical role played by small business in a modern and emerging economy is being taken seriously,” said Mr Billson.\

“I am delighted to play a role in this endeavour, having accepted the opportunity to chair the Centre’s Advisory Board.  Together, we will drive great results for the advancement of small businesses and SMEs."

IPA chief executive officer, Prof Andrew Conway said: “Through the IPA Deakin SME Research Centre, we want to ensure there is a rigorous evidential base as the foundation of future policy that will drive ongoing discourse and provide a credible voice for small businesses and SMEs globally.

“The Centre’s work will deliver applied research in relation to SMEs with expanded reference to the growth of SMEs and their respective trade links globally.  Already the Centre is actively engaged with academics in the UK to focus on that market.

"This will be important in light of the impact of Brexit on the economy and business in general and particularly in considering trade and investment while the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between the UK, Australia and the EU are ongoing,” said Prof. Conway.

Professor Mike Ewing, Executive Dean of the Deakin University Business School said the partnership with the IPA was pivotal to delivering genuine outcomes for the SME sector.

“We have already achieved great outcomes, including the Australian Small Business White Paper, however, ongoing momentum is required to drive successful policy that would enhance the productivity of small businesses and SMEs,” said Prof Ewing.

About the Institute of Public Accountants

The IPA, formed in 1923, is one of Australia’s three legally recognised professional accounting bodies.  In late 2014, the IPA acquired the Institute of Financial Accountants in the UK and formed the IPA Group, the largest SME focused accountancy organisation in the world, with more than with more than 35,000 members and students in over 65 countries.  The IPA is a member of the International Federation of Accountants, the Accounting Professional and Ethical Standards Board and the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants.  The IPA was recognised in 2012 as Australia’s most innovative accounting organisation and listed in the top 20 in the 2012 BRW Most Innovative Companies List.

About the IPA Deakin SME Research Centre

The IPA-Deakin SME Research Centre conducts multidisciplinary research on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and not-for-profit enterprises (NFPs). Focusing on bringing together practitioner insights with world-class research, we provide informed comment for substantive policy development.

In June 2013, Deakin University partnered with the Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) to form the IPA-Deakin SME Research Partnership, a first in Australia, located within the Faculty of Business and Law. The Centre aims to expand our existing portfolio of research and consultancy for SMEs and NFPs. 

The Centre is affiliated with leading international SME researchers and research centres, such as Professor Robert Blackburn and the Small Business Research Centre at Kingston University (UK), Professor Marc Cowling (University of Brighton, UK) and Emeritus Professor Gordon Murray (University of Exeter, UK).

The Centre aims to contribute to policy development in Australia, UK and other countries in areas of relevance to accountants, the accounting and finance profession and in the public interest.  Since 2013, this has included, financial services and financial markets, innovation policy, competition policy, regulation, macro and micro economic issues, trade and investment policy, taxation, retirement incomes policy, sustainability and governance.

In 2015, the Partnership released the landmark Small Business White Paper which has been well received and has influenced the policy platform in Australia. The Research Centre will be working on the next evolution of the White Paper; and other issues of importance in an increasingly connected world. 

The Centre is managed through the Deakin Business School and is co-directed by Professors Barry Cooper, George Tanewski, Andrew Conway and Associate Professor Julie Clarke.

The Advisory Board comprises:

Bruce Billson (Chair), Former Federal Minister for Small Business;

Su McCluskey, Chairman, Energy Renaissance;

Tim Reid, Founder & Host, The Small Business Big Marketing Show;

Dr Michael Schaper, Deputy Chair, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission;

Bernadette Uzelac, CEO, Geelong Chamber of Commerce;

Prof Robert Blackburn, Associate Dean Research, Director of The Small Business Research Centre

Kingston University, UK;

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