AIEF students deliver an Acknowledgement听of Country

麻豆原创 has proudly partnered with the Australian Indigenous Education Foundation () since 2013, providing scholarship funding for Indigenous students to complete Year 12 or tertiary studies, with career support to help them make a successful transition to employment.

AIEF has been working for over a decade to make a sustained and significant, positive impact on Indigenous education and employment. Established in 2008 in response to community demand from Indigenous families who choose to enrol their children in boarding schools, AIEF has grown from one scholarship student to now supporting over 1,000 young Indigenous people from over 400 communities in every state and territory of Australia.

Volunteering with the AIEF Community

In addition to 麻豆原创鈥檚 significant financial investment, staff at all levels are personally engaged with AIEF鈥檚 work. 麻豆原创 volunteers across Australia take part in the AIEF Mentor Program, supporting
students through their senior years at school.

鈥淭he thing I enjoy most about spending time with my mentor Fiona is that I have the opportunity to get out of the boarding house and experience new activities,鈥� says Maria, an AIEF Scholarship Student who will this year complete Year 12.

鈥淗aving someone outside of school and family who can support me is an amazing feeling. It鈥檚 nice to learn about her experiences and journey and continue to build our relationship.鈥�

In addition to providing volunteer mentors, 麻豆原创 also hosts events, workshops and training sessions for AIEF Scholarships Students and Alumni to assist in their professional development as they
transition from school to further studies or the workplace.

Social Sabbatical Success

Through the 麻豆原创 Social Sabbatical program in 2016, 麻豆原创 worked alongside AIEF to review the delivery of AIEF Programs to ensure they continue to achieve key strategic outcomes. This review gave AIEF crucial assistance to ensure continued delivery of a high level of support to a rapidly growing network of scholarship graduates. It also helped create a more sustainable delivery model for the program.

One of the results of the social sabbatical is that AIEF now has a team co-located in the 麻豆原创 Brisbane office. 鈥淪ince many of our students come from Queensland, one of the recommendations was to open an office in Brisbane in addition to the one we had in Sydney,鈥� explains AIEF Executive Director Andrew Penfold AM.

鈥淭he way this has changed our program is a great example of how companies can invest expertise to support non-profits and achieve better outcomes for students.鈥�

Class of 2020

In 2020 AIEF is celebrating over almost 80 students from Partner Schools across Australia who will graduate from high school. Many of the AIEF Scholarship Students graduating this year will be the first in their family to finish Year 12 or to go to university, ultimately becoming role models for future generations.

To read more about 麻豆原创 ANZ’s CSR programs and partners, visit the .听

To find out more about NAIDOC week, visit .

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麻豆原创 Australia has recently announced a new corporate initiative called 5 & 5 by 鈥�25, targeting five per cent of its addressable procurement spend with social enterprises and five per cent with diverse businesses by 2025. The initiative aims to inspire organisations around the world to buy more goods and services from purposeful suppliers, making a positive collective impact on society.

Here, we look at one the Australian businesses that will benefit from the pledge.

Muru Office Supplies: Creating new paths for Indigenous Australians

offers more than 20,000 products, including everything from pens and paper through office furniture to cleaning products and kitchen supplies. In short, it stocks just about anything you could need for any office.

Muru means pathway in the traditional language of the Sydney Coastal Region. Mitchell Ross, Founder and CEO of Muru Group, is a proud Bidjigal man from La Perouse who wants to create a pathway for future generations of Indigenous people.

Mitchell took inspiration from the hardships experienced by family and friends in the community and created Muru Office Supplies, a partnership between Muru Group and Complete Office Supplies. It鈥檚 a purpose-driven, community-focused organisation that contributes a percentage of profits to education, employment, health and wellbeing initiatives that support Indigenous communities.

Muru Office Supplies has contributed more than $270,000 to these causes since opening in 2014. These include early childhood education, the revitalisation of native plants and safe spaces for vulnerable women. It is certified by , a non-profit database of more than 2,500 verified Indigenous businesses.

鈥淎s a business听certified by Supply Nation, we have a strong commitment to supporting Indigenous community projects in the areas of education and employment. 麻豆原创 has already placed orders with MOS, which will allow our community programs with partners like IndigiGrow and Mudgin-Gal to deliver even greater social impact. We hope this pledge leads to a step-change in how big businesses think about using procurement as a force for good.鈥�

Mitchell Ross, Founder and CEO, Muru Group

The post 麻豆原创 5 & 5 by ’25 – supplier profile: Muru Office Supplies appeared first on 麻豆原创 Australia & New Zealand News Center.

麻豆原创 Australia has recently announced a new corporate initiative called 5 & 5 by 鈥�25, targeting five per cent of its addressable procurement spend with social enterprises and five per cent with diverse businesses by 2025. The initiative aims to inspire organisations around the world to buy more goods and services from purposeful suppliers, making a positive collective impact on society.

Here, we look at one the Australian social enterprises that will benefit from the pledge.

Kua听鈥� World Positive Coffee for Workplaces

https://youtu.be/JH3rO_MBq7A

In mid-2017, two UNSW students found themselves in rural Uganda. Inspired by the energy and passion of the local people, they founded , a world-positive coffee company in Sydney.

With a mission to have a greater handprint than footprint, Kua sources specialty coffee direct from the misty slopes of Mount Elgon, East Africa鈥檚 oldest extinct volcano. They pay the fairest prices on the mountain to farming families who handpick the reddest (and best) coffee cherries.

Every dollar of profit from sales in Australia goes back into the farming community helping them on their journey to climate resilience through native tree planting, designing waterways that improve soil conservation, and providing sustainable incomes through carbon offsetting activities.

Kua also recycles coffee grounds in the belief that your brew shouldn鈥檛 end up in landfill, where it would create harmful carbon emissions. Instead, those grounds are given a second life in community gardens and reuse projects听 across Sydney.

Kua has already made more than 240,000 square kilometres of Ugandan land resilient to climate change, and removed more than 2,300 kilograms of used coffee grounds from landfill. It鈥檚 a brilliant example of the circular economy in action that aligns perfectly with 麻豆原创鈥檚 commitment to eliminating single-use plastics.

鈥淥ur coffee allows businesses to embed impact into their every day. Each cup fights climate change, diverts waste from landfill and enhances farmer wellbeing. 麻豆原创鈥檚 pledge is a positive step towards helping social enterprises like us make an even greater impact.鈥�

Darcy Small,听 Kua, Co-Founder

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麻豆原创 Australia has recently announced a new corporate initiative called 5 & 5 by 鈥�25, targeting five per cent of its addressable procurement spend with social enterprises and five per cent with diverse businesses by 2025. The initiative aims to inspire organisations around the world to buy more goods and services from purposeful suppliers, making a positive collective impact on society.

Here, we look at one the Australian social enterprises that will benefit from the pledge.

The Good Good: Better tea, better world

https://youtu.be/PzFOf7Jrr-4

Your next cup of tea could do so much more than taste good. It could feel good. The fast-growing social enterprise听听sources premium organic tea from responsible plantations and uses 50 per cent of profits to fund education for disadvantaged kids.

Its products are sold in planet-friendly packaging including biodegradable infusers, plastic-free tea bags, recyclable foil pouches, and reusable glass jars to reduce its environmental impact. Seven teas are available including popular varieties like Earl Grey, lemongrass and ginger or peppermint.

It also has three 鈥樷�� 鈥� Brain Focus, Immune Booster and Stress Buster 鈥� designed to boost wellbeing and performance at work. So it鈥檚 no surprise that some of the biggest Australian corporations are already supplying The Good Good tea. But anyone, anywhere can buy the products too.

Half-owned by women, The Good Good is doing its bit for gender diversity. It also partners with another local social enterprise, the Cerebral Palsy Alliance鈥檚 supported employment division,听, for the preparation and shipping of most orders. Packforce, which has operated for more than 50 years, offers employment opportunities to Australian workers with disabilities.

鈥淲e use business as a force for good by donating 50 per cent of our profits to programs that help disadvantaged kids get access to education. We also partner with the Cerebral Palsy Alliance supported employment division, , to employ Australian workers with disabilities. Our tea is better not only for the employees but for the planet and the community. Our partnership with 麻豆原创 represents a great opportunity to create impact at scale in Australia. We hope that more organisations will be inspired to join us on the exciting journey of purposeful procurement, so we drive fast, positive and systemic change together.”

Elise Perpetua, Managing Director, The Good Good

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today announced 5 & 5 by 鈥�25, a corporate initiative targeting five per cent of addressable spend[1] with social enterprises and five per cent with diverse businesses by 2025. In setting this target, 麻豆原创 aims to inspire organisations around the world to buy more goods and services from purposeful suppliers, making a positive collective impact on the societies they operate in.

Social enterprises are businesses culturally and operationally focused on changing the world. They are similar to other commercially viable businesses, but with three crucial differences: They are founded and governed on the basis of a clear social or environmental mission; they reinvest the majority of their profit back into this mission; and they are majority controlled solely in the interest of this mission. A diverse supplier is a business that is at least 51% owned and operated by an individual or group that is part of a traditionally underrepresented or underserved demographic; such as women-owned businesses, minority-owned business, and indigenous-owned businesses, among others.

Global commitment, Australia leading

The commitment will impact all 麻豆原创鈥檚 global markets,听but will initially be focused on听Australia,听the UK and Canada.听Commenting on the announcement,听Victorian Parliamentary Secretary for Jobs and champion of the Victorian Government鈥檚 Social Enterprise Strategy, the Hon Jane Garrett said: 鈥淚t is incredibly exciting to have a leading global company like 麻豆原创 helping to transform lives by growing this important sector. We hope to see more partnerships of this kind in future, to further boost Australian social enterprises and Indigenous businesses.鈥�听

According to , an organisation that certifies Australian social enterprises and connects them with business buyers, Australian corporate procurement spend is estimated at more than AUD$600 billion. The World Bank estimates global procurement spend in 2019 was at least AUD$19.85 trillion. By directing even just a small fraction of this spend to certified social enterprises and diverse businesses, organisations have the power to tackle some of the world鈥檚 most pressing social and environmental problems.

Based on early pilots in select markets, 麻豆原创 estimates it could direct up to AUD$82.5 million (EUR鈧�50 million) of its global addressable spend per year to social enterprises and diverse suppliers by 2025. In Australia, meeting the commitment would equate to roughly AUD$1.01 million per year directed to local social enterprises and diverse suppliers.

麻豆原创 Executive Board member for Customer Success, and recently appointed Global Buy Social Ambassador for Social Enterprise UK, Adaire Fox-Martin announced the 5 & 5 by 鈥�25 initiative at 麻豆原创鈥檚 Procurement Reimagined event. 鈥淓very company in every industry needs to procure,鈥� Fox-Martin said. 鈥淲e all need soap in our washrooms, landscaping for our offices, food and drink in our cafeterias, marketing services, office supplies, and even pest control. These and many more are all products and services provided by social enterprises and diverse businesses. This is money we are spending anyway. Why not spend it with suppliers who are delivering social impact as well?鈥�

Procurement with social enterprises

Recent efforts have shown promise. In a pilot in the United Kingdom, 麻豆原创 teamed up with Social Enterprise UK in 2019 to define and execute on a social-procurement strategy. Within nine months, 麻豆原创 had identified addressable spend of approximately GBP 拢30 million and directed more than 2 per cent of this to over 20 different UK social enterprises.

麻豆原创 has since expanded relationships with social enterprise interest organisations in other markets, including a partnership with Social Traders in Australia, to introduce similar programs and further globalise and scale its social procurement efforts.

Mark Daniels, Executive Director, Social Traders says, 鈥淭his pledge is one of the largest of its kind in the world and demonstrates a huge public commitment to social procurement. Our research estimates that for every AUD$1,000,000 spent on social procurement, 7.5 jobs are created for disadvantaged Australians. By encouraging other organisations to participate in this initiative, 麻豆原创 Australia will help drive enormous change.鈥�

麻豆原创 is also growing its support of potential suppliers through capacity building programs like MovingWorlds鈥� S-GRID (Sustainable Growth of Revenues in International Development}. 鈥淲hat makes this moment in time so pivotal is that inequities and environmental degradation tend to increase after recessions,鈥� said Mark Horoszowski, CEO and co-founder of MovingWorlds, SPC. 鈥淏y investing in social enterprises today, we can help them integrate into the post-COVID recovery to build a more equitable society, while using regenerative business models to address the ongoing environmental crisis.鈥�

Procurement with diverse businesses

麻豆原创 Australia already works with a diverse range of social enterprises and indigenous businesses, including:

• Elise Perpetua, Managing Director of organic and sustainable tea supplier The Good Good says, 鈥淲e use business as a force for good by donating 50 per cent of our profits to programs that help disadvantaged kids get access to education. We also partner with the Cerebral Palsy Alliance supported employment division, , to employ Australian workers with disabilities. Our tea is better not only for the employees but for the planet and the community. Our partnership with 麻豆原创 represents a great opportunity to create impact at scale in Australia. We hope that more organisations will be inspired to join us on the exciting journey of purposeful procurement, so we drive fast, positive and systemic change together.鈥�

https://youtu.be/PzFOf7Jrr-4

• David Laity, Founder and CEO of online wine retailer Goodwill Wine says, 鈥淔ollowing the Black Saturday bushfires, I lost almost everything. After the humbling support offered by my community, I wanted to start a social enterprise that would allow me to give back. Since our inception we鈥檝e contributed $360,000 to a wide range of charities that support everything from those living in poverty to environmental sustainability, and we’ve done this just by selling great quality听wine. Quite frankly, I鈥檓 amazed by this step from 麻豆原创, which is an incredible signal of intent from one of the world鈥檚 biggest companies. If it can inspire even a small proportion of businesses to follow its lead, this commitment will help accelerate a huge number of meaningful social initiatives鈥�.
• Mitchell Ross, Founder and CEO of Indigenous-owned office supplies provider Muru Office Supplies (MOS) says, 鈥淎s a business certified by Supply Nation, we have a strong commitment to supporting Indigenous community projects in the areas of education and employment. 麻豆原创 has already placed orders with MOS, which will allow our community programs with partners like IndigiGrow and Mudgin-Gal to deliver even greater social impact. We hope this initiative leads to a step-change in how big businesses think about using procurement as a force for good.鈥�

Procurement with purpose with 麻豆原创 Ariba

麻豆原创鈥檚 Ariba Network is the largest business-to-business marketplace in the world, supporting nearly AUD$5 trillion in transactions each year. In partnership with leading social-enterprise and diverse-business interest organisations, the company is opening this network up and connecting corporate-ready purposeful suppliers with more organisations who want to make a difference with their spend.

As part of the 5 & 5 by 鈥�25 initiative, 麻豆原创 invites other organisations to begin or accelerate their social-procurement journey based on a simple framework of discovering the right partners, adopting a social procurement strategy, consuming the products and services they procure, and then continuously expanding their base of social enterprises and diverse suppliers.

鈥淭ogether with our customers, partners, diverse suppliers and social enterprises, we have set out to expand social procurement where infrastructure exists and intend to establish the infrastructure and build capacity where it doesn鈥檛,鈥� Fox-Martin added. 鈥淲e invite our entire ecosystem to learn more and take part, join us in this pledge, and help build the pathways and the momentum to realise this ambition and find a better way to grow.鈥�

[1] *Addressable spend (as opposed to total spend) includes only a company鈥檚 orders for goods and services that can be fulfilled by a social enterprise or diverse business. For specific goods and services such as rent, energy, labor, and some professional services, often neither social enterprises nor diverse businesses yet exist that provide them. Estimates based on assessments of 麻豆原创鈥檚 own spend suggest that between 10% and 30% of total spend could be designated as addressable spend, depending on country.

The post 麻豆原创 Launches 5 & 5 by 鈥�25 Initiative, Rallying Businesses to Spend More with Social Enterprises and Diverse Suppliers appeared first on 麻豆原创 Australia & New Zealand News Center.

The听challenge now is to create virtual experiences that provoke the same emotional reactions that in-person immersive practices typically elicit. There is no better time than World Ocean Day to get started.

It Starts with a

Curators of听听鈥� like Dave Ford of听, a company that brings industry leaders to threatened ecosystems, or ocean activist Emily Penn, founder of听, a not-for-profit organization that runs all-female sailing research expeditions to investigate causes and solutions to ocean plastic pollution 鈥� are now forced to recalibrate and create entirely new models for engagement.

鈥渆XXpedition鈥檚 鈥楻ound the World鈥� voyages have been paused due to the听COVID-19听pandemic,鈥� Penn explains. 鈥淏ut by using technology, we have an unprecedented opportunity to mobilize people, on land or water, who are looking to make a positive impact on society.鈥�

It Works Like This

Anyone anywhere in the world can access the听, which Penn developed in close collaboration听. Powered by听, the user-friendly, custom-built digital tool is designed to help individuals, advocates, and experts find their role and best-fit solutions to help solve ocean plastic pollution.

Users start by deciding听how听they want to create a shift. They can learn about marine plastic pollution, make a swap, participate in events and campaigns, inspire others, innovate, or lead their own project. For the business sector, for example, it could be through contributing to a new technology to improve the management of downstream waste.

Next, the user decides听where听they want to create a shift: at home, with kids, in the community, at work, in industry, or in government. And lastly, they decide the听manner of shift听they want to create: from sea to source catch (shoreline clean-up), conversion (recycling), looping (circular economy), or avoidance (plastic alternatives).

The platform includes hundreds of solutions, from changes people can easily make at home, like using听听in their laundry or making DIY cleaning products and composting in their backyard, to shifts they can create in society, like听听in their city or helping introduce plastic bag bans.

It Takes Just a Few Minutes

The platform shares a tailored and targeted selection of solutions so people can pick the one that is right for them. From start to finish, users can generate solutions in a short time.

Browsing the platform, you might decide to explore听. You鈥檒l come across Slo Active, a brand that makes ocean wear out of plant-based neoprene while also planting a tree for each piece made to offset carbon emissions. You鈥檒l learn about the benefits of using alternative materials and the amount of carbon emissions reduced by this brand, but you鈥檒l also learn that the brand has a limited selection and that products are more expensive than mainstream swimwear. You decide if you want to make a purchase or explore further.

Members of the听听will come across many like-minded changemakers who are helping to reduce ocean plastic little by little with their projects, businesses, and initiatives.

One of them is Carry Somers, member of the eXXpedition journey from the听听and founder of听, a global movement of people in the fashion industry that aims to听conserve and restore the environment and values people over profit. Somers and her team are active around the world, helping others learn about the people who made their clothes, how to buy, sell, and recycle ethically produced garments, and how to participate in the great clothes swap听听in Hungary or Hong Kong.

It Can Have a Huge Impact

Tackling a massive problem like ocean plastic is extremely daunting, so Penn created the听, which helps people see the problem firsthand and explore different solutions before finding their own role to help solve it. It鈥檚 about taking action, no matter how small, and inspiring others to follow.

Penn and her team use the SHiFT Method during eXXpedition ocean voyages to empower, workplaces, industry, and government back on land.

鈥淲hat was missing was the ability to scale,鈥� says Penn.鈥淏ut thanks to the new platform and the partnership with 麻豆原创, we now have a chance to shift the way people feel, think, and act at scale.鈥�

The beauty of the platform is participants and motivate them to create shifts in their own lives, communities that it connects people to outcomes, taking them on a journey from concerned thinker to practical doer. XM solutions from 麻豆原创 were chosen because they help to build an accurate digital profile of a person, filtering a user鈥檚 personal lifestyle, circumstances, and the area they wish to become involved in, and then help them select the appropriate action to take.

Now that the technology is up and running, people who want to make a shift have an enterprise-grade, secure platform for submitting solutions to SHiFT鈥檚 directory, allowing Penn and her team to efficiently grow the database of solutions for reducing ocean plastic. At the same time, it will enable 麻豆原创 to connect its myriad of business initiatives to clean the ocean to a planet of changemakers.

Join Emily Penn and the WWF in conversation on Sustainability at e鈥檉fect at 11am AEST on Thursday, September 24 2020. .

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They鈥檙e (often tiny) businesses that are built around a social purpose and use the power of the marketplace to deliver on that purpose. They aren鈥檛 charities; they鈥檙e viable businesses that produce, sell or deliver goods and services, and reinvest at least half of their profits in their social mission.

From coffee carts creating jobs for the homeless, to community-owned energy providers and organisations delivering health and care services to disadvantaged regions; these are small business with big impact.

So, what do they have in common with 麻豆原创?

The concept of social enterprise is closely connected to our own purpose; to help the world run better and improve people鈥檚 lives. The social enterprise sector and 麻豆原创 are also both centred in innovation, and seek to inspire social entrepreneurship throughout the global economy. The underlying commonality is the belief that we can do good by doing good business.

鈥淚n the last few years we have seen profound shifts in the corporate world, as more organisations realise that businesses must exist for more than the singular pursuit of profit,鈥� says 麻豆原创 Executive Board Member, Adaire Fox-Martin. 鈥淪ocial enterprises exemplify this and show that commerce can be used as an incredibly powerful force for change.鈥�

Empowering this force for change is why we not only care about social enterprise but take an active role in accelerating this sector. And to extend that active role across Australia, 麻豆原创 proudly launched a new purpose-led partnership with last week.

This partnership is designed to accelerate the sector鈥檚 impact by creating corporate spend opportunities through 麻豆原创鈥檚 Ariba network and to support the capability and capacity of social entrepreneurs to scale and deliver to these new markets through mentorship with 麻豆原创.

鈥淚 hope that by sharing our expertise in technology and operational excellence with Social Traders and its network, we can supercharge the impact of its work in Australia and beyond,鈥� said Adaire at the launch of the partnership. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that makes significant business sense; your customers demand it, your employees expect it, and your investors are starting to measure it.

It makes good sense to do good business and have a positive impact at the same time.鈥�

The virtual launch event was hosted by Australian journalist and broadcaster, Annabel Crabb and Adaire was joined by Social Traders鈥� Executive Director, Mark Daniels and the Victorian Government鈥檚 Parliamentary Secretary for Jobs, The Hon. Jane Garrett.

鈥溌槎乖粹�檚 reach into the procurement industry is phenomenal. As a leader and advisor, the influence 麻豆原创 can bring to this is super [and] the benefits to social enterprises can be enormous through this partnership.鈥� Mark Daniels, Social Traders

鈥淚t鈥檚 never been more important to have a vibrant social enterprise network as we鈥檙e headed into incredibly difficult economic times. We鈥檙e going to need companies like 麻豆原创 to continue what we have seen around global kindness, around looking out for each other during this horrendous pandemic.鈥� The Hon. Jane Garrett, Victorian Government

Now, more than ever, is a time to better understand how we can all 鈥� as individuals and organisations 鈥� make a significant and positive impact on our economy and communities.

Look out for more news about 麻豆原创鈥檚 commitment to social enterprises and diverse suppliers, and the commitments we鈥檙e making to the sector with our own corporate spend.

Please reach out if you鈥檇 like to find out how you can be part of the movement to help accelerate social enterprise and scale its positive impact across our communities.

Suranee Perera, Head of CSR and Employee Communications, 麻豆原创 Australia and New Zealand

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The government鈥檚 online recruitment tools and Jobseeker systems may not be fit for purpose given the mass unemployment expected post-Covid, an 麻豆原创 report warns.

The software company鈥檚 report, , also states the construction industry needs to digitise to increase productivity and create new jobs, with even a 2% cost reduction likely to result in billions saved for the government as it embarks on shovel-ready projects.

It also flags a possible $4.4 billion saving if businesses and the government adopt e-invoicing and e-procurement, and recommends a digital health certificate be pioneered with Australia to enable borders to open sooner.

NBR was given a first look at the report, which will be shared with public agencies this week. Nick Quin, 麻豆原创 NZ鈥檚 director, public sector, said the government鈥檚 online recruitment tools were designed to solve the issue of a small number of unemployed people within a tight job market.

What New Zealand faced post-Covid was totally different, with vast numbers unemployed at one time and some key industries suffering and unable to accommodate large workforces.

The Reserve Bank鈥檚 Monetary Policy Statement on May 13 forecast unemployment rates would more than double from 4% to about 9%, with models suggesting the recovery to the 4% mark would not arrive until 2022.

Quin said, as a result, government systems helping jobseekers find work needed to become more individualised, with new abilities to marry needs directly with solutions.

Too much government data concentrated on the 鈥榟ow鈥�, and not the 鈥榳hy鈥�, he said. Addressing the why meant collecting data on the circumstances that led to that person losing their job, the person鈥檚 intentions for the future, and any constraints in their job search, including whether they were prepared to relocate.

In response, Ministry of Social Development spokesperson Kay Read said the ministry had received $150 million over two years in Budget 2020 to scale up employment programmes to support the increased numbers expected to become unemployed.

鈥淭his will be a more diverse group, including highly skilled people who have not previously approached MSD for support before,鈥� she said.

The funding would bolster existing programmes such as Transition to Work (a grant for items someone might need to start a job, such as clothes and living expenses) and Flexi-wage (a subsidy to help with costs for those who wish to start their own business).

鈥淔unding will also provide for new innovative approaches to support people into work, such as short-term employment supports and services, for people new to a benefit, to enable a quick return to work,鈥� Read said.

The ministry has also said newly unemployed workers will be exempted from the normal obligations required from those receiving a Jobseeker benefit or hardship grants for six months. That included attending meetings and job interviews when asked and accepting suitable job offers.

Construction digitisation

Productivity was widely considered sub-par in the construction sector, which is one of the least digitalised industries, Quin said.

He referenced a 2016 report by McKinsey and Company that observed 鈥渃ost and schedule overruns are the norm in the construction sector鈥�. A subsequent report in early 2017 said construction continued to show 鈥渓imited improvements in technological capabilities, production methods and scale鈥�.

Quin said digital tools that should be considered included those that enabled the digitalisation of project management and how companies planned and forecast costs.

Other digital capabilities including abilities to create 鈥榙igital twins鈥� 鈥� copies of builds created on the computer that allowed builders to verify all methods and materials were up to spec and appropriate.

鈥淭hese would also help you support maintenance of the build in future,鈥� he said. The 麻豆原创 report recommends choosing a public works project as a pilot to explore the application of digital tech 鈥� a suggestion supported by Infrastructure NZ chief executive officer Paul Blair.

He said of the estimated $300b of infrastructure assets in New Zealand, 80% was owned by the local or central government, so they were well placed to lead the industry in adopting digitised systems.

Infrastructure NZ 鈥� which aims at advancing best practice in transport, energy, water, and telecommunications 鈥� recently published a report called Unlocking the Value of Data, which highlighted the benefits of creating digital twins.

It found that with the right data, workers could minimise disruptions and costs, while maximising outcomes, because issues could all be worked out through pixels on a screen, rather than with hammers and tools.

Blair said the government could make it a condition of the build on new shovel-ready projects that private companies adopt digital tools and create a digital twin, thereby stimulating exploration in the sector.

The under-utilisation of digital tools in construction was a global issue, Blair said, and Kiwi companies were often unwilling to invest because they typically operated on a low margin, and the sector was prone to boom-bust swings.

鈥淵ou don鈥檛 over invest in a flash new machine that give you greater productivity, you tend to put on another worker,鈥� Blair said.

Naylor Love general manager of construction Pete Lockhart said digitisation is a huge opportunity for the construction sector. 鈥淲e are making progress, albeit rather slowly.鈥�

Key challenges Lockhart identified included there being no one product that met the sector鈥檚 needs or one that had been widely adopted.

鈥淲e remain fragmented and inconsistent from project to project as teams change,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he other key issue remains the New Zealand market鈥檚 reliance on outdated procurement and contracting models that don鈥檛 encourage true collaboration and innovation.鈥�

He said the key would be to create integrated systems, because 鈥渢ime and time again, we see that there is wasted data that has been created in silos鈥�.

Businesses were also worried about the contractual risk of providing incomplete data to other members of the supply chain, Lockhart said.

E-invoicing and e-procurement

According to MBIE figures quoted in 麻豆原创鈥檚 report, Kiwi businesses send 282 million invoices annually.

The processing cost of an e-invoice is estimated to be $7.63, compared with $23.01 for pdf paper invoices and $25.67 for a paper invoice.

This equates to an opportunity to save $4.4b annually, which Quin said would translate to companies being able to expand quicker and hire new staff.

鈥淚f you can electronically solve a problem you are going to naturally help resolve some productivity issues.鈥�

Quin said it was time to accelerate the deployment of these capabilities, which were already being encouraged by the government, but which had to be adopted sector-wide to be fully effective.

Digital certification of wellness

The report says an open border is critical for New Zealand鈥檚 economic recovery and suggests a digital health certificate is worth exploring.

鈥淲e could understand and be comfortable if people entering our borders have had a health check,鈥� Quin said. 鈥淲e just simply have to acknowledge that opening the borders is essential for this recovery.鈥�

The report recommends the New Zealand and Australian governments work with industry to pilot a technology solution to establish a 鈥渄igital health check certificate鈥� between trusted jurisdictions to allow border movement.

Jamie Bamford leads Customs鈥� work programme to develop smarter borders, and said Customs continued to work with overseas partners to refine how border security operated and how it could be strengthened.

He wouldn鈥檛 comment on whether work on a health certificate was being considered.

Article first published on .

To read the full 麻豆原创 report -Helping Kiwis Get Back to Work – .

By Geraden Cann
Journalist, The National Business Review
Contact the Writer: geraden@nbr.co.nz

The post NBR NZ: Are government employment solutions fit for purpose? appeared first on 麻豆原创 Australia & New Zealand News Center.

Amidst the fast-evolving global conditions, all of us at 麻豆原创 are focused on the health and wellbeing of our families, communities, colleagues, customers, partners and the many who make up 麻豆原创鈥檚 vibrant ecosystem. As we seek to take all necessary steps to keep our people safe and best support our customers, I want to provide you with information on our approach to reducing the spread of COVID-19, and how we will continue to support you during this unprecedented time.

Guidance to our Employees

As of this week, all of our employees who work in an 麻豆原创 office in Australia and New Zealand are working from home until further notice. We have also made the decision to reassess all business-related domestic travel, which will be reviewed in line with government guidelines and individual business-critical customer requirements.

I want to assure you that 麻豆原创 is absolutely here for you and your business, shifting ourselves to being primarily a digital team.

麻豆原创鈥檚 own continuity plans have been enacted globally and locally to respond to the COVID-19 situation and provide guidance to our people. Changes to our travel and remote working policies have been in place since 27 February 2020, and have included the amplified enablement and utilisation of tools and technologies to deliver work remotely and without disruption.

麻豆原创 understands that your business operations are further impacted by the advice being provided by our Governments. Our people, with the support of my management team, will work with our customers to reassess working arrangements to minimise disruption to delivery and ensure continuity.

Our Support to You

Leaders across our business are engaged in heightened levels of business continuity planning to ensure the security of your business.

Our teams have developed and documented Business Continuity Plans to respond to disruptive incidents, such as COVID-19, whilst aiming to safeguard the health of our employees and minimise the impact on the delivery of services to you.

麻豆原创 infrastructure and cloud operations teams have also put measures in place for all 麻豆原创-owned and co-located data centres. You can find more information and real-time updates on our business continuity measures, here: 麻豆原创 Letter to Customers Regarding Business Continuity. And globally, 麻豆原创 has launched a series of free tools to support our customers and communities as we partner through this disruption.

Your 麻豆原创 team will reach out to discuss your needs and the specific considerations relating to current engagements. Please let us know if there is additional support we might be able to provide, as well as if our people should be aware of any requirements you have put in place for your organisation.

For more than 30 years 麻豆原创 has had the privilege of serving our customers here in Australia and New Zealand. We remain committed as ever to our partnership with you, and if there is anything further we can do to support you through these fast-moving and variable times, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Our thoughts are with those affected personally by the COVID-19 situation, as well as the many communities around the world facing extreme measures in the attempt to curb the spread.

I wish you, all in your organisation, your family and community, all the very best at this time.

Your sincerely,

Damien Bueno

President and Managing Director
麻豆原创 Australia and New Zealand

The post 麻豆原创 Letter to our Australian and New Zealand Ecosystem appeared first on 麻豆原创 Australia & New Zealand News Center.

麻豆原创 will also donate 鈧�100,000 to the Australian Red Cross. This is alongside local fundraising efforts by 麻豆原创 teams in offices across Australia, including Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Perth and Brisbane, raising more than $8,000 in the past week alone.

麻豆原创 is also enabling all employees to donate to organisations of their choice that are supporting those impacted by the fires, through the company鈥檚 workplace giving program. These donations are made through monthly pre-tax pay, with administration costs covered, so 100 per cent of the donations goes directly to the organisation of choice. Free, confidential counselling is also available to all staff and their families at any time.

鈥淭he fires we鈥檙e seeing across Australia are totally unprecedented, and the devastating impact they have had on communities and wildlife across the country has been heartbreaking to watch,鈥� said Damien Bueno, President and Managing Director, 麻豆原创 Australia and New Zealand.

鈥淲e hope the measures we are putting into effect today help support our staff, their families and communities during this incredibly difficult time, while recognising the extraordinary heroism of the volunteers who are on the frontline.鈥�

The post 麻豆原创 Australia confirms unlimited paid leave for emergency service volunteers appeared first on 麻豆原创 Australia & New Zealand News Center.