26^th November session: Amy Wong on Are you Risk Aware and Astute to deal with Risk?

We are excited to welcome Amy Wong as our guest speaker for our final session for 2013: Are you Risk Aware and Astute to deal with Risk?  Amy will discuss the current business environment, the top risk challenges for small and big businesses and good risk management practices.  The session will also include some case studies and learnings. There will also be prizes for Risk Quiz! 

Amy Wong is currently a risk professional with NAB in their Fixed Income, Currencies & Commodities area. She has several years of banking risk management experience working mostly in the Wholesale and Institutional banking areas of 3 major Australian banks.  She also has experience dealing with regulators and ratings agencies on various matters including risk, licensing and prudential regulation. Prior to working for banks, Amy worked in two major chartered accounting firms in their tax and audit areas.

Amy is a current CPA NSW Divisional Councillor and has held this position since 2011. She has also held other positions including as Deputy Chair, CPA Corporate Committee and convenors of a number CPA Discussion Groups such as Risk and Investment Strategy.  She is also a frequent speaker at CPA conferences and events. Her passions include wellness, travel, volunteer work, art and culture.

Please join us for our last session for 2013 - there will be food and lucky door prizes!

Please RSVP to Reis at cpawibfb@gmail.com or via Facebook by 5pm Friday 22 November 2013.

CPA Women in Business Discussion Group

Tuesday 29 October 2013 | 5.45pm – 8pm | CPA Centre Level 3, 111 Harrington St

We are pleased to welcome Martin Murden as guest speaker for our session on 29 October 2013. Martin will be talking about "Superannuation, retirement and longevity".  Australia, like much of the world, has an ageing population. The baby boomers have started to retire. We are living longer than previous generations. We are wanting to maintain our lifestyles in retirement.  And whilst some individuals are taking action, collectively we are not. During the course of the session we are going to look at this issue that is going to confront all of us and identify some actions we can take to reduce its impact.

Martin Murden is Director SMSF Consulting and Auditing at Partners Superannuation Services.  Martin has 42 years experience in superannuation industry and is a Fellow CPA and Fellow Australian & New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance, designated Specialist Superannuation Advisor and Specialist Superannuation Auditor by SPAA.  He is also one of the founders of the Partners Wealth Group in 2003.

Please RSVP to Reis at cpawibfb@gmail.com or via Facebook by 5pm Friday 25 October 2013.

CPA Women in Business Discussion Group
Tuesday 24 September 2013 | 5.45pm – 8pm | CPA Centre Level 3, 111 Harrington St
 We are delighted to welcome back André Croteau as guest speaker for our session on 24 September 2013.
For the past few years, André has been contracting as an Excel Specialist. Most recent contracts have been with Tourism Australia and Chandler MacLeod where André has been introducing work procedures with the use of Microsoft Excel to simplify the work load. His passion is to make work more efficient through the help of Excel, by automating repetitive procedures, or speeding up the work flow he has created hundreds of applications and has saved countless hours of work, particularly at month end.
In preparation for next week’s event, André has sent through this message:
Hello All,
I am looking forward to spending a couple of hours next Tuesday to explore new Excel tips & tricks.  If you have any questions (things that really bug you about Excel) or have any comments on what you would like to discuss during the presentation, please send me an email (acroteau@milAndré.com) before the weekend.  I will finalise the contents this weekend.
 In the meantime, to get you in the mood, please find attached a few Excel problems to solve.  Test your Excel skills!  Send me your answers!

Please RSVP to Reis at cpawibfb@gmail.com or via Facebook by 5pm Friday 20 September 2013.

CPA Women in Business Discussion Group
Tuesday 27 August 2013 | 5.45pm – 8pm | CPA centre Level 3, 111 Harrington St

We are excited to welcome Elizabeth Devine as our guest speaker for our session on 27 August 2013.  Elizabeth will be providing an update on recent developments in employment law.
If there is one thing which is certain in Australian employment law, it is that there is always something happening.   This presentation will bring you up to date with recent developments in employment law.  This includes changes to the minimum wage and parental leave, the expansion of the right to request flexible working arrangements and the introduction of an anti-bullying remedy.  We will also discuss significant decisions handed down in recent months, including a case in which record damages were ordered against an employer in a case involving workplace bullying.  You will also have an opportunity to ask questions on any aspect of employment law of interest to you.
Elizabeth Devine is the founder and Principal of Devine Law at Work, a law firm and consultancy which specialises in Australian employment law and workplace relations. Elizabeth has been practicing law for 22 years and has specialised in all aspects of Australian employment law, workplace relations and people management for 17 years. Elizabeth founded Devine Law at Work in 2002 to realise an ambition to practice workplace law in a holistic manner; bringing together skills and expertise in the law, adult education, communication and business development.  Prior to founding her own firm, Elizabeth worked for the Australian Government Solicitor, in a peak employer body and in private practice.  Elizabeth is passionate about enhancing the knowledge of others about workplace law and regularly presents to a broad range of corporations and business, professional and industry groups.  A professional speaker and enthusiastic educator, Elizabeth is well known for her engaging, easily understood and approachable style.  

Please RSVP to Reis at cpawibfb@gmail.com or via Facebook by 5pm Friday 23 August 2013.

CPA Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 30 July 2013

We are delighted to welcome back Stella Petrou Concha as our guest speaker for session on 30 July 2013.

Stella will be presenting “How to Build Your Finance Career – Hot Tips that will Fast Track Your Career Now!”  Over the years Stella has worked with some of Australia’s largest organisations and placed over 600 finance professionals. During this time she has learnt what gets finance people to the top. Stella will discuss 3 critical techniques that can be applied to reduce daily work anxiety, maintain successful working relationships with your peers, and increase your chances of getting the job promotion over others.

Stella Petrou Concha is an entrepreneur, career coach, key-note speaker and recruitment expert. She is the Founding Director of the fast growing brand REO Recruitment. Stella juggles new parenthood with the challenges of daily corporate business.

Stella’s mission and purpose in life is to help others succeed. Initially starting a successful career in medicine, she quickly realised that the healthcare sector was not her true passion and soon found her love in recruitment. After a highly successful career with an International Recruitment firm, Stella Foundered REO because she was unsatisfied with the way recruitment was being carried out.

REO has been extremely successful because the focus is on people. REO’s mission is to build organisational teams and build careers for Accounting and Finance professionals.

Please RSVP to Reis at cpawibfb@gmail.com or via Facebook by 5pm Friday 26 July 2013.

We are excited to welcome Nicola Styles as our guest speaker for our June session.  In this session Nicola will be speaking about  “Creating a Resilient Mindset to Overcome Life’s Hurdles”.

Nicola will provide valuable information and insights into:

- The importance of having a resilient mindset

- Types of thinking that hinders a resilient mindset 

- How changing your mindset will build your resilience muscle

- The power behind healthy self-talk

- Tools and techniques to overcome life’s hurdles

The session will help you:

- Create a more accurate perspective of the situation

- Become more flexible and optimistic in your thinking 

- Cope with adversity and disappointments better

- Achieve greater levels of well-being 

By the end of the session you will feel empowered to think differently and take on life’s challenges with greater personal resilience.

Nicola is a Corporate Trainer and Executive Coach specialising in the area of Career and Leadership Development.  Her passion lies in getting the best out of career-driven individuals and helping organisations develop their leadership capability and nurture their top talent.  In her role as a Career & Leadership Development Specialist, Nicola’s objective is to lift individuals out of a ‘day-to-day’ mind-set and help them create a clear pathway for success.  She does this by understanding the goals, vision and aspirations, of both the individual and organisation in order to achieve the desired outcome. Her approach is very much about collaboration and team work, bringing energy, enthusiasm and professionalism to all her sessions and workshops. She truly believes that her role is to support, encourage and facilitate excellence, through helping organisations nurture their most valuable asset, and individuals achieve their potential. In her spare time, Nicola is also a mentor with the Network Central Mentor Program for Executive Women (sponsored by NRMA) and a Volunteer Career Coach with Dress For Success Sydney - NFP supporting disadvantaged women in the community. On a personal level she invests significant time and energy into her fitness, personal relationships and love of learning.

CPA Women in Business Discussion Group

Tuesday 28 May 2013 | 5.45pm – 8pm | CPA centre Level 3, 111 Harrington St

We are delighted to welcome Clare Mann as our guest speaker for our May session.  Clare will be presenting “Difficult Conversations are a Breeze When You Know How”.

Why is it that some conversations flow with ease and yet others are filled with conflict and difficulty?  Why is it that some people seem to easily navigate challenging conversations whilst others find it difficult to say what they mean whilst maintaining rapport?  Are skills alone enough to make you proficient at having difficult conversations or is there is a missing ingredient that ensures you improve all your relationships?  In this highly interactive and humorous presentation, Clare will share valuable tools and techniques that you can immediately apply in your personal and professional life.

Clare Mann is an Organisational Psychologist, Bestselling Author of numerous books and Existential Psychotherapist with extensive international experience facilitating individuals and organisations to create extraordinary results.  Her main focus has been on communication, leadership, executive coaching, organisational development and work/life integration. One of her books is a required text for a university course.  Her latest book Communicate – How to Say What Needs to be Said, When it Needs to be Said and How it Needs to be Said was released August 2012.

Please RSVP to Reis at cpawibfb@gmail.com by 5pm Friday 24 May 2013.  

Next Session: Tues 30 April:

We are excited to welcome Paul Bloxham, Chief Economist for HSBC Australia and New Zealand as our guest speaker for our April session.  Paul will be providing an economic update, including:

·         Why we expect growth in Asia to pick up in 2013 and what the main risks are.

·         Our outlook for China and the importance of the shifting composition of China's growth from being export to domestically led.

·          Why we believe that high commodity prices are the 'new normal' and what this means for growth prospects in commodity producers (such as Australia).

·          The outlook for the Australian economy.

·         Our outlook for RBA rates and the AUD.

·         What the mining story has meant for Australia and how the rest of the Australian economy faring (retail, housing, manufacturing).

·         What's in store for Australia beyond the mining boom.

Paul joined HSBC in 2010 as Chief Economist for Australia and New Zealand. Prior to this, he spent 12 years as an economist at the Reserve Bank of Australia where he held a range of different roles in the Economics Department. These included heading up the overseas economies and financial conditions sections. Paul has published a number of papers, including on household finances, asset prices and monetary policy. Paul is a regular commentator on local and international business television and a frequent contributor of opinion editorials to the Australian newspapers. Paul holds a Masters degree in public financial policy from the London School of Economics.

Light refreshments will be served from 5.45pm.

Tues 26 March 2013 session

We are delighted to welcome Silvia Damiano as our guest speaker for our March session.  Silvia will be talking about “Neuroleaders of the Future“.  The world is experiencing an economic, social and business transformation that requires the development of abilities that support people’s leadership capability in the current environment. Positional power is being replaced by the capacity to inspire, and the ability to create emotional connections with people from different teams, cultures and generations.
It is time to re-think leadership and to include the brain in this equation. The leaders of the future will be comfortable in exploring how to optimise brain performance, use intuition to make organisations more agile and use the power of imagination to advance innovation. Are the leaders of your organisation prepared for the future?
Silvia Damiano is a speaker, facilitator, leadership consultant, coach and author of the best selling book “Engage Me”. She is the Founder & Director of the “About my Brain Institute” & the “Brain Art Project”. Silvia’s clients have described her as a passionate, dynamic and highly experienced presenter.
An expert in the design and implementation of learning strategies, Silvia received in 2006 the L&D Excellence Award for the best learning tool for a financial institution (Westpac Bank). Silvia has taught and worked in business schools and organisations around the world helping individuals and teams to improve individual and business performance. In June 2012, Silvia launched in Madrid, the first “Female Neuroleadership Summit” to take place in a Spanish- speaking country. The objective of this gathering was to discuss how neuroscience is contributing to a better understanding of how women’s brains work and its impact on leadership.

Speaker for First Session of 2013

We are pleased to announce our speaker for our first session of 2013 is Dominic Siow. Dominic will be discussing “Emotional Intelligence for Superior Performance”

Emotional intelligence can be described as the capacity for recognising our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in us and in our relationships.

Studies show that EI is a more effective and powerful predictor than IQ in determining work performance, effective leadership and team effectiveness. In addition, such studies show that managers with high levels of emotional intelligence make better leaders in industry.

Mr. Dominic Siow will answer questions such as:

What is Emotional Intelligence and how is it linked to superior performance?

What are Emotional Competencies?

Mastering the key factors that affect our emotions

How can one develop such skills systematically?

Dominic is an inspirational speaker, coach and trainer with EQ Strategist. After a long career as a software engineer, project manager and then senior roles with grapevine Technologies and IBM, Dominic has over the past six years focused his energies and passion to teaching others the science and art of realizing their full potential. His seminars and workshops have impacted thousands across Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia.
Dominic is an accredited Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Hypnotherapy and Time Line Therapy™ and a trained coach with the Coaches Training Institute (CTI).

26 Feb: First Session of CPA Women in Business DG for 2013

Hello everyone,

Happy New Year!

Please note that the first session of the CPA Women in Business Discussion Group for 2013 will be held on Tuesday 26 February.

Details of the speaker will be communicated closer to the event.

Looking forward to seeing you all in February.

Kind regards,
Ellie