Last week I attended a Small Business Round Table at Parliament House hosted by Martin Hamilton-Smith, the Minister for Small Business, Defence Industries and Investment and Trade. The Minister has established these forums to hear from small business peak bodies what their business concerns are, and to communicate to industry what initiatives the government is pursuing.
There were several topics discussed, including what is happening in the areas of Defence, BrandSA, Small Business initiatives and Grants. The Minister is making himself and his staff available to represent issues affecting small business within Cabinet.
Importantly, the Minister remarked that he viewed professional services as an area that is becoming increasingly important in growing the economy and an area for export growth. The Institute’s initiative ADL (Adelaide Design Link) is an example, which is why we have been able to attract funding from the Department of State Development (DSD) and the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC). If you are interested in finding out more about this initiative, or are interested in exporting your services, go to http://www.adelaidedesignlink.com.au/ for contact information.
Staff from DSD have been asked to engage with industry associations like the Institute, and will be doing so over the next few months in order to develop initiatives for funding in the State Budget. We will discuss the potential for holding a forum for Institute members with DSD.
The Minister also asked that industry groups look at what Acts and Regulations are either outdated and can be removed, or impede the business activities of our members. We would like to hear from you if you have any suggestions or feedback that we can give. Please contact the Chapter Office if you would like to contribute.
On Thursday, the government released their 2016 Annual Small Business Statement. A link to it can be found here. It is worth taking the time to read this document. There are initiatives in the statement that may be relevant to your practice such as:
- small business development funds
- grants for hiring employees
- small business development assistance
- business accelerators and co-working spaces (these are worth considering as a means of connecting with potential collaborators and even potential clients)
- workshops on improving your approaches to tendering
To follow is a summary of the topics that were discussed on the day:
Defence
Andy Keough, the CEO of Defence SA gave a presentation of what is coming up in the defence area. SA is the centre of Australia’s defence industry, and it is an area that is increasingly becoming a large part of our economy.
Interestingly he presented a graph showing the impact of the defence sector on employment in the state which showed that after a dip for a few years from next year as Holden closes, the defence sector will effectively replace the jobs that will be lost at Holden.
Although there is not a direct and obvious connection between defence and architecture, there will be a requirement for the design of defence manufacturing facilities for a number of the programs coming up. There will also be spin offs from a stronger economy.
Brand SA
Peter Joy, Executive Chair of Brand SA gave a presentation on how the state brand was developed and how it is being used.
He was invited as a result of a request from the group at the last round table to spend time at this forum looking at how we might get the positive stories out there in the community. Like us, other industry groups are frustrated at how negative news seems to stifle the good stories.
Brand SA is constantly on the lookout for positive stories about the state, and see that as one of their main missions. The Chapter will look into this further in the coming months to see how we might be able to connect with this initiative.
This will be the last e-News from me for the year. We’ve again been able to achieve a lot this year in advancing the relevance of our profession, and I thank the Chapter staff for all of their hard work and dedication.
I’d also like to thank the Chapter Council and members who have participated in task groups and committees this year. Without strong member participation, we can’t be effective in advancing the role of the profession.
I hope you all have an enjoyable and safe break over Christmas and New Year, and look forward to continuing the good work next year.