THE latest insights into the meetings sector will be aired in Brisbane as staff from Australia’s convention bureaux convene for their 27^th annual flagship meeting from September 7-9.

To be held at the Emporium Hotel in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley, the Association of Australian Convention Bureaux (AACB) Conference is attracting leading bureau staff and industry representatives from around the country.

The conference theme of “Collaboration: Better Together” will focus on collaboration within and outside of the sector along with the latest ideas and thoughts on professional development, innovation and research.

This year’s event is being hosted by the Brisbane Convention Bureau, and General Manager Rob Nelson said the event featured an impressive line-up of presenters.

“We’re delighted to hear from experienced industry leaders such as Mantra Group CEO Bob East, AEG Ogden CEO Harvey Lister, Star Entertainment Group Queensland Managing Director Geoff Hogg and Emergent CEO Holly Ransom,” Mr Nelson said.

“We’ll also receive presentations from Brisbane’s Chief Digital Officer Cat Matson and Peak Teams Director Ian Schuback.

“We’re looking forward to hearing industry insights from the experts and taking the opportunity to network with our industry peers.”

AACB CEO Andrew Hiebl said: “Convention bureaux, as true public-private partnerships, by their very nature rely on successful collaboration.

“In order to bid for business events or market a destination, convention bureaux must work closely with their stakeholders in the tourism and events supply chain as well as governments at all levels.

“Australian convention bureaux are global leaders from a bidding and marketing perspective. It is essential we continue to support a strong culture of leadership and staff development that ensures bureaux remain internationally competitive.” 

The annual staff conference helps drive knowledge transfer and the professional development of bureau staff. It provides a unique opportunity for competitors in the same industry to network, share ideas, discuss trends and issues and work collaboratively on growing the overall business events market in Australia.

www.brisbanemarketing.com.au

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NOMINATIONS are closing Friday September 16 for the 2016 Construction Skills Queensland (CSQ) Excellence Awards.

Industry body CSQ is calling for final nominations from Queensland apprentices, schools, trainers, training organisations and employers deserving of recognition for their efforts in the state’s construction workforce.

The CSQ Excellence Awards provide an opportunity to publicly celebrate and thank Queenslanders involved in all facets of the building and construction industry.

CSQ CEO Brett Schimming urged Queensland to get behind their local construction stars and nominate them for a well-deserved accolade.

“This is the time to acknowledge members of our industry who go above and beyond in their role on a daily basis,” he said.

“It’s vital that we recognise training commitment and encourage the next generation of our workforce to strive for excellence.”  

The 2015 CSQ Construction Apprentice of the Year Lara Nobel said there were many reasons to nominate for the Awards. 

“Being a part of the CSQ Excellence Awards was a great experience. It was a huge thrill to have my name read out on the night,” she said.

“Winning the Award has helped me to build my own credibility in the industry and gain exposure for my business.”

This year the Awards have introduced the TAFE Queensland SkillsTech Award for Innovation in Construction Training which recognises employers who are utilising cutting edge training methods.

The simple online application process means applicants can submit details at any time of day to suit them with assistance available during business hours if needed.

The website also provides the opportunity to purchase tickets to the gala awards evening. Tickets for the CSQ Excellence Awards are now on sale for $175 per person or $1600 for a table of 10.

The awards night will be held on Friday November 25 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.

For more information about the Awards contact CSQ on 1800 798 488 or visit http://www.csq.org.au/excellence-awards.

2016 Award Categories

Stars of 2016 – Outstanding Individual Achievement

• Hutchinson Builders Award for Construction Indigenous Person of the Year 
• National Association of Women in Construction Award for Construction Female of the Year
• Civil Contractors Federation Award for Construction Professional of the Year
• Master Electricians Association Award for Construction Trainee or Apprentice of the Year
• All Trades Queensland Award for Construction School Student of the Year
• Construction Trainer of the Year 

Excellence in Construction Training

• Construction School of the Year
• Registered Training Organisation of the Year
• Innovation in Construction Training

Employer Commitment to Training Excellence

• Watpac Employer Commitment to Training Excellence – General Construction (up to $20 million turnover)
• Major Training Group Award for Employer Commitment to Training - General Construction (over $20 million turnover)
• Employer Commitment to Training Excellence – Civil Construction (up to $20 million turnover)
• Evolution Training Award for Employer Commitment to Training Excellence – Civil Construction (over $20 million turnover)

Judges’ Outstanding Achievement Award

About Construction Skills Queensland

Construction Skills Queensland (CSQ) is an independent industry-funded body supporting employers, workers, apprentices and career seekers in the building and construction industry. Funded by an industry training levy, we work closely with students, schools, employers, apprentices, industry partners, training providers and individuals across Queensland to build capability at every level of business. As a recognised industry leader, our mission is to promote the building and construction industry as a career of first choice, encourage investment in skills and training and increase the number of skilled workers in the industry.

For further information about CSQ’s services visit www.csq.org.au or call 1800 798 488.

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THE banks’ treatment of small business customers will be forensically examined by the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) Kate Carnell, who will conduct hearings in the coming weeks to gather evidence regarding cases of alleged unconscionable conduct.

During an investigation into the nation’s banks, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services heard from various small businesses severely impacted by questionable banking practices. 

The Minister for Small Business Michael McCormack has asked the Ombudsman to look into these cases and determine whether subsequent government and industry reforms have done enough in addressing their problems and others like it.

“We have royal commission powers in situations like this and we plan to use them; we will conduct hearings and will use the powers set out in our legislation to require banks to appear and to provide us with the documentation that we need to thoroughly conduct this inquiry,” Ms Carnell said.

“There have been reforms made in this space, but what my office will do is make sure these changes go far enough to ensure small businesses are safeguarded against banking misconduct.

“I’ll be making recommendations to the government – and potentially to the banks as well – about possible changes, whether it be legislative, regulatory or even cultural, that may still need to be made to help prevent these sorts of situations happening in the future.

“We’re not in any way suggesting small businesses shouldn’t pay their debts; this is about addressing the imbalance of power between banks and small business owners, who in some cases have lost everything because their banks are basically riding roughshod over them.

“I’ve made the point in the past that small businesses who are at loggerheads with their banks over their finances, need a solution to their problem sooner rather than later; a royal commission may help mum-and-dad small businesses air their grievances, but it won’t save their business.

“Anything short of immediate action threatens the survival of small businesses who are struggling right now, and it’s my intention to ensure small businesses facing financial difficulties are given the help they need now, to allow them to survive and thrive.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

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WHILE Britain faces the economic, diplomatic and political unknown, nations on the other side of the Channel are also pondering their future with some officials, including Germany’s Vice-Chancellor suggesting that the Brexit vote could bring about the collapse of the EU.

On Thursday, one of the EU’s most distinguished legal professionals, Professor Verica Trstenjak, will look at the meaning of Brexit from a European perspective during a ground-breaking University of Sydney Business School Seminar.

Professor Trstenjak is an interim judge (juge par intérim) of the EU’s civil service tribunal and a former Advocate General of the European Court of Justice.

She has provided legal opinions on the Common European Asylum System, the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the transfer of asylum seekers from one Member State to another.

Professor Trstenjak’s work has been widely published and she is a member of editorial board of several legal journals including European Law Review (SSCI),  European Journal of Commercial Contract law, Ecolex, Italian Law Journal and others.

She is also a member of the International Academia of Comparative Law, Member of Academia Europaea and a Council Member of European law Institut.

 Seminar Details

Date:                           Thursday 1^st September 2016

Time:                          2.00PM

Venue:                        Case Study Lecture Theatre 2090

                                    University of Sydney Business School.

Cnr Codrington and Abercrombie Street, Darlington.

INTERNATIONAL experts will begin delivering a series of mental health and wellbeing workshops in Brisbane and regional areas from August 29, 2016).

The Queensland Mental Health Commission has partnered with Maudsley International to design and deliver the training which aims to enhance mental health and wellbeing awareness and knowledge through local community organisations.

The training follows the establishment of three regional Mental Health and Wellbeing Hubs in Central Highlands, Northern and Western Queensland and Logan and Southern Moreton Islands earlier this year.

Hubs staff will join local community organisations to take part in training on the Wheel of Wellbeing and Mental Wellbeing Impact Assessment. A partnership between the Queensland Mental Health Commission and the Department of Education and Training will also see the training made available to their staff.

The Wheel of Wellbeing uses a positive psychology approach to teach simple techniques for promoting wellbeing, through a focus on the six areas of body, mind, spirit, people, place and planet. Mental Wellbeing Impact Assessment is a systematic approach to understanding how the design of services and programs can be used to promote mental wellbeing across the community.

The two weeks of training begins in Brisbane today, followed by training in Townsville, Emerald and Logan next week (Monday 5 September 2016). To coincide with the training, the Queensland Mental Health Commissioner Lesley van Schoubroeck will join international mental health and wellbeing expert Tony Coggins for a mental health and wellbeing forum in Emerald on Wednesday 7 September 2016.

Last week the Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Cameron Dick and Queensland Mental Health Commissioner Dr Lesley van Schoubroeck launched the Queensland Rural and Remote Mental Health and Wellbeing Action Plan 2016-18 which details initiatives to promote mental health and wellbeing in rural and remote communities.

About QMHC: The Queensland Mental Health Commission was established to improve the mental health and wellbeing of all Queenslanders by driving ongoing reform.

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IMPROVING outcomes, regulation and oversight, providing certainty in funding and recognising its importance in skilling people for the jobs of the future are critical recommendations in CEDA's latest research on the forgotten middle child of education – VET.

Releasing CEDA’s latest research report VET: securing skills for growth, CEDA Chief Executive, Professor the Hon. Stephen Martin said VET delivered vital grassroots skills that industry needed but scandals and a disconnect with industry had significantly weakened this important tier of the education sector.

“That is why CEDA’s report is calling for a comprehensive national review of the sector to underpin COAG discussions to reach a new National Partnership on Skills Reform,” Professor Martin said.

“The imminent conclusion of the Commonwealth-State funding agreement for VET (National Partnership on Skills Reform) next year, and the fact that there are currently no signs of how or if this will be extended, is a significant issue for the sector.

“Comments from the Federal Minister for Education Senator Simon Birmingham last week suggest that the government is taking the right approach to cutting off dodgy private operators with poor outcomes from utilising VET FEE-HELP. However, much more needs to be done.

“The skyrocketing VET FEE-HELP costs have been concentrated to a relatively small number of private operators and must be fixed. However, what is equally concerning is the drastically plummeting enrolments in government supported providers.”

Professor Martin said there needs to be a refocus on working with industry to ensure courses are being linked with the labour market to ensure students have real employment outcomes on completion of a course.

“There also needs to be more focus on teaching broad-based skills competency that are transferable across occupational clusters, rather than narrowly focused courses that are too restrictive in a rapidly evolving labour market,” he said.

Professor Martin said there were many positives about VET and it had proven itself an adaptive and agile tier of the education sector.

“It has already shown that it can be responsive to Australia’s skill requirements by increasing the delivery of courses providing qualifications in childcare, aged care and disability care as demand has rapidly increased in the services sector of the economy,” he said.

“With the right policy settings, this sector is well positioned to meet the workforce challenges posed by digital disruption and automation and continue delivering skills needed by industry.

“As Australia faces coming decades of rapid technological change, which will require reskilling and new skills, our education sector needs to be strong at every level.

“The scandals in recent years in the VET sector, despite only relating to a small number of operators, have done significant reputational damage and it is now vital that the sector is supported to rebuild.”

The CEDA report also recommends:

• Improving data and transparency of data to help stakeholders make more informed decisions;
• Ensuring regulators have the power to act if standards are not being met; and
• Providing national information around providers, pricing, qualifications, audit findings and satisfaction survey results to the public.

VET: securing skills for growth is being launched in Melbourne at noon with a keynote address by Victorian Minister for Training and Skills, the Hon. Steve Herbert. Other speakers include: Australian Council for Private Education and Training CEO, Rod Camm (contributing author); PwC Skills for Australia CEO, Sara Caplan; Metro Trains Chief People and Performance Officer, Nick Dickinson; and BUPA Aged Care Australia Managing Director, Louise Dudley.

For more details about the event or to download the report go to www.ceda.com.au

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Mr Raj Venga, Chief Executive Officer and Ombudsman of the Credit and Investment Ombudsman (CIO), today expressed concern about the proposal apparently being considered by the Federal Government to establish a ‘tribunal’ to hear financial services complaints. 

“Australia is currently very well served by the existing dispute resolution architecture in financial services. The types of disputes referred to in the current debate about the need for a new body generally involve amounts that exceed the monetary limits of CIO and the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), and so have not been able to be considered by either scheme”, Mr Venga said.

“The more appropriate course would be to expand the jurisdictional limits and responsibilities of the existing Ombudsman schemes in the financial services sector, rather than creating a new body. CIO is committed to reviewing monetary caps that apply to small business complaints, as well as other aspects of its jurisdiction,” Mr Venga continued.

According to Mr Venga, the establishment of a tribunal, which will necessarily be a statutory scheme, would:

• create a tax-payer funded right of appeal to the courts, defeating the objective to resolve disputes fairly, cheaply and expeditiously,
   
• not have the multiplicity of access points for industry and consumer representation that the current structure affords,
   
• not have specialised industry knowledge required for the sensible resolution of disputes,
   
• be substantially more inflexible, and
   
• not be capable of responding quickly to changes in relevant markets.

CIO receives about 22,000 enquiries and 5,000 complaints a year. Its 23,000 members include non-bank lenders, finance companies, consumer lease providers, small amount lenders, debt buyers, credit unions, building societies, finance brokers, credit reporting bodies and time share operators.

“We strongly urge Government to consider the wider impacts of the establishment of such a tribunal and to ensure that any decision about a tribunal or other changes to the dispute resolution landscape are fully informed and very carefully considered.

“The current independent review into dispute resolution and complaints services, chaired by Professor Ian Ramsay, should be asked to consider the relative merits of establishing a tribunal as compared to other models of dispute resolution”, Mr Venga concluded.

www.cio.org.au

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SMALL businesses caught-up in banking disputes are looking for immediate action to resolve their issue, not a drawn-out talk fest about the banks, Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) Kate Carnell said.

“Speaking from a small business perspective, the current political debate about the most effective ways to deal with community concerns regarding the banks, needs to acknowledge the importance of finding solutions to individual problems quickly and effectively,” Ms Carnell said.

“I’ve held extensive consultations with the small business sector in recent months, and bank-related complaints are certainly high on their list of grievances; so much so that in my view, without an increased level of accountability, some banking practices certainly have the capacity to stifle the growth potential of many small businesses in this country.

“More often than not, small businesses involved in disputes with their banks are hurting; they can ill-afford the time and money it takes to sort these kinds of problems out. They need help and support, and they need it now.

“This isn’t an argument for or against a Royal Commission; this is about getting immediate outcomes for small businesses and finding a mechanism that delivers solutions in a timeframe that helps business owners get back on track as soon as possible.

“A Royal Commission may allow mum-and-dad small business owners to tell their story, but it won’t save their businesses.  Royal Commissions typically go on for years, and by the time it produces its recommendations, businesses that are hurting now, will be long out the door.

“Whatever action the Government decides to take in dealing with concerns people have with the banks, my office stands ready to help small businesses who are experiencing bank-related problems; we can point them in the right direction and help assist them get on with what they’d rather be doing; running their small business and in doing so, making a significant contribution to the economy.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

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