News
I’m in a bit of a dilemma. I have just returned from the latest Business Chicks breakfast at the Westin in Sydney. Business Chicks is an Australia-wide organisation for women in business and a very successful one at that. As one of few female editors of a business magazine, I have always had a fundamental […]
Kevin Rudd’s controversial stimulus package has finally been passed by the Senate. A deal was brokered between Independent South Australian Senator Nick Xenophon and the Government, with $900 million now being promised for the Murray Darling Basin, along with $500 million for the drought-ravaged area.
Australian businesses and students are being encouraged to apply for the iAwards, the leading annual technology awards honouring the efforts of Australian business success in the ICT (Information, Communication, Technology) industry. Organised by the Australian Information Industry Assosciation (AIIA), the 2009 iAwards is designed to showcase and launch Australia’s new national and global technology success […]
The latest ABS Labour Force Data figures have indicated the pressure currently being felt in the Australian jobs market, with the unemployment rate soaring to 4.8 percent.
Results from a study conducted for American Express Global Commercial Card by Accenture, shows that businesses have begun to hold staff more accountable for business spending. This includes implementing a policy around spending, educating staff about the consequences of their expenditure, and enforcing the policy. Other strategies included data analysis—benchmarking expenditure against other businesses and […]
The number of women in accounting has almost doubled since 1998, according to the Institute of Chartered Accountants. Women now account for 30 percent of Chartered Accountants in Australia, jumping from a mere 19.7 percent in 1998. According to senior member for accounting and financial services firm Azure Group, Jacqueline Butler, there has been a […]
Businesses across Australia are banding together to donate money to the Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal. The Red Cross has indicated that it has received pledges of support from over 50,000 people across the country, and millions of dollars have so far been provided by the corporate sector from organisations such as 7-Eleven, Telstra, Commonwealth […]
Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has encouraged business owners to contact the government if they believe their bank is treating them unfairly. Because of the government guarantee, banks should ensure a sufficient flow of credit, he believes. “If there are viable businesses that have an adequate income and are profitable into the future, then they should […]
Kevin Rudd has come under fire for hinting that the Government will provide relief for the Victorian bushfire victims through the $42 billion stimulus package. The government was forced to clarify what they meant after Federal Opposition MPs came forth expressing their anger at the proposal, believing the Government is putting pressure on parliament to […]
ANZ has been named as the Best Local Private Bank – Australia at the 2009 Euromoney Private Bank Awards. The bank received the honour due to it’s consistently high standard of customer service, along with assets under management, profitability, privacy and the products and services offered. According to ANZ managing director, private bank, Catherine McDowell, […]
Well, after my first blog I feared I would be disowned by the entire PR industry. I sat back and prepared myself for the backlash but what happened? The opposite! Phonecall after phonecall and email after email inviting me for coffee, lunch, and even beer (for future reference, I prefer wine). From the most senior […]
Thirty-two environmental projects comprising 400 skilled workers have received funding from the first round of the Federal Government’s Climate Ready program. Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research Senator Kim Carr offered $26.6 million in funds to projects ranging from wind turbine production to water saving solutions. “Not only have these 32 innovative projects identified […]
A new survey released by WebTrends has shown that Australian businesses believe online marketing is a key component to overcoming challenges faced by the economic downturn.
The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has warned its members about proposed Federal Government workplace laws that could lead to an increase in retail wages by 14 percent. An email sent out to 5,000 recipients urged retailers to take advantage of the last days of the Howard government’s WorkChoice laws before the new laws come into […]
Ezypay CEO Trent Brown believes that the Government’s proposed stimulus package will do little to solve the cash flow woes of small to medium enterprises (SMEs). In working with the SME community on a daily basis, Brown believes that the welfare of 500,000 small businesses will hang in the balance, based on indirect incentives offered […]
As investors everywhere hope for a resurgent 2009, I have cast my eye over the year ahead. How will the share market perform? Sector by sector here are my predictions. XAO We are now entering a very interesting phase in the market: although we are still locked in a sideways move, we are now about […]
All I want for 2009 is for PR people not to call me every time they send a press release to see if I received it. I mean, if I didn’t, it would have bounced back, right? If I was interested, I would have replied, and if I wasn’t, well, that’s why I didn’t get […]
Research released by credit reporting agency Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) sees one in nine businesses in the ‘high risk’ category of financial distress, according to a report by The Weekend Australian. This puts more than 100,000 small to medium sized businesses in the path of failure. SMEs contribute to about a third of gross domestic […]
Vodafone and Hutchinson Telecommunications (Australia) Limited, a listed subsidiary of Hutchinson Whampoa Limited, have announced an agreement to merge their telecommunications businesses in Australia.
HTC Corporation has joined with Optus to release the first Android-powered mobile phone released in Australia. The HTC dream combines full touch screen functionality and a QWERTY keyboard with a mobile web experience that includes popular Google products such as Google Maps, Gmail and YouTube. The device is the first to provide customers with access […]
