Aussie Rules

(Episode 278; 13min 23) The ACCC has just given Woolworths the approval to acquire the specialist grocery chain Macro Wholefoods. Woolworths will rebrand the stores as Thomas Dux Grocer, which already exists in a few locations. So what are Woolworths trying to do here?

In this edition of BTalk Australia Phil Dobbie talks to Martin Kneebone from retail consultancy Freshlogic about this latest experiment from Woollies.

Do you think it will work? Add your views in the Talkback section at the end of this post?

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(Episode 277: 12minutes 32) In this second part of our look at the Fair Work Act, with Adrienne Unkovich from Workforce Guardian, we investigate further the process for dismissing an employee. What role does the new Fair Work Australia body have in this process? What other impacts will the changes have on your business?

Listen to part one of this story here.

Add your thoughts in the talkback section at the end of this post.

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(Episode 276; 10minutes 21) It’s a new financial year in Australia and, as of July 1st, a raft of new Fair Work legislation comes into place, replacing the contentious Work Choice laws that almost certainly contributed to the downfall of the Howard government.

For small businesses the new legislation takes away a lot of the “hire and fire” flexibility of Work Choices. You need to ensure that you are conducting dismissals for legitimate reasons with employees being given new, easy ways to make claims for unfair dismissals.

On today’s BTalk Australia Phil Dobbie talks to Adrienne Unkovich from Workforce Guardian, part of a newly announced consortium charged with educating small business on these changes.

What do you think of the workplace changes? Add your views in the Talkback section at the end of this post.

See also: Fairer IR Laws? | BTalk Australia - Peter Anderson, the Chief Executive of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, spoke out against these changes back in October 2008.

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(Episode 275: 7 minutes 56) Whether you work from home full time, or you just spend a few days away from the office, we all know that working from home can provide many distractions.

So, here are seven tips from Productivity Queen Lorraine Pirihi that will maximize your productivity when you’re working from home.

Got some more to add? Use the Talkback section at the end of this post.

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(Episode 274; 12minutes 21) How do you sell a product when it’s exactly the same as what your competitor is selling? There might be some minute differences, but your customer is more interested in the key aspects of the product which might be exactly the same, whoever they buy from.

Today on BTalk Australia sales coach David Penglase talks about how to overcome the Sameness Syndrome.

Add your comments in the Talkback section at the end of this post.

See also:
Sales Tips for a Downturn | BTalk Australia

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View all BTalk Australia podcasts here.

(Episode 273; 9 minutes 45) AMR Interactive has just released the latest annual Corporate Reputation Index. It is part of a 27-country study produced in conjunction with the Reputation Institute. The results show that many Aussie businesses are making it through the global financial crisis with their reputation in-tact. In fact, many have raised their score over the last 12 months.

Phil Dobbie talks to AMR’s Reputation Practice Director Oliver Freedman about the results and what other businesses can learn from these results.

Have a look through the list of the top 60 most reputable companies while you listen to the podcast, then add your comments in the Talkback section at the end of this post:

1. Australia Post
2. Toyota Motor Corporation
3. Cadbury Schweppes
4. Nestle Australia
5. Virgin Blue
6. Myer
7. Bendigo and Adelaide Bank
8. BlueScope Steel
9. Woolworths
10. IBM Australia
11. ING Direct
12. ING Australia
13. Wesfarmers
14. Hewlett-Packard
15. Qantas Airways
16. Harvey Norman
17. Mazda Australia
18. Ford Australia
19. CSR
20. Air New Zealand
21. Coca-Cola Amatil
22. GM Holden
23. David Jones
24. Vodafone Australia
25. Country Energy
26. Commonwealth Bank of Australia
27. Westfield Group
28. QBE Insurance
29. EnergyAustralia
30. IAG
31. ANZ
32. BHP Billliton
33. Fosters Group
34. Suncorp
35. Medibank Private
36. Shell Australia
37. Crown
38. TRUenergy
39. Daimler Australia Pacific
40. Allianz Australia
41. Origin Energy
42. AMP
43. RioTinto
44. AGL Energy
45. AXA Asia Pacific
46. Westpac
47. Macquarie Group
48. Optus
49. Caltex Australia
50. Visy Industries
51. National Australia Bank
52. BP Australasia
53. Fairfax Media
54. Australian Taxation Office
55. Tabcorp
56. AAPT
57. Telstra
58. Exxonmobil Australia
59. Australian Wheat Board
60. Centrelink

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(Episode 272; 13 minutes 41) The latest Private Companies Survey from KPMG shows that most private Aussie companies are weathering the economic downturn, with an increasing proportion believing the worst is behind us. There are also noticeable trends that continue, irrespective of the influence of the global financial crisis.

In today’s BTalk Australia Phil Dobbie talks to Don Abell, a partner for KPMG’s Middle Market Advisory division, about the results. What are the views of these businesses with regard to the economy, finance, investment, government policy and the environment?

Add your views in the Talkback section at the end of this post.

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View all BTalk Australia podcasts here.

(Episode 271: 11 minutes 30) Some people, like billionaire hedge fund manager George Soros, believe the worst of the economic downturn is behind us. The media seems to have switched its outlook from pessimism to optimism. Shares have shown growth over the last few months. So, are we about to climb out of the global financial crisis?

“No” is the short answer according to credit reporting agency Dunn and Bradstreet. Their latest quarterly Global Economic & Risk Outlook report says Australian GDP will contract by 0.9% this year.

The World Bank agrees that the outlook is not bright. They have just downgraded their forecasts, saying the global economy will shrink by 2.9% this year, with a 10% drop in global trade making a rapid recovery next year all the more unlikely.

In today’s BTalk Australia Phil Dobbie talks to Christine Christian, Dunn and Bradstreet’s CEO, about the outlook for the Australian economy.

Add your views in the Talkback section at the end of this post.

See also: Recession is Only the Beginning | BTalk Australia

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(Episode 270: 19minutes 27) Knowledge is an important part of your business, but are you taking it seriously enough? Do you value it as you do other assets in your business? The answer, in most instances, is no.

Consulting firm CSC has just released a report called “Mind the Gap: Australia’s Knowledge Capital Shortcomings”. In this edition of BTalk Australia Phil Dobbie talks to Nick Wilkinson, CSC’s president and CEO for Australia, and Dr Christina Boedker, the acting CEO of the Society for Knowledge Economics.

Add your thoughts in the Talkback section at the end of this post.

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(Episode 264; 10minutes 41) RSS feeds are being used more and more by businesses to distribute their own content and pull together material from other sources. It’s a tool that can be used to generate interest in your products, even to people who haven’t found their way to your website.

On today’s BTalk Australia Phil Dobbie talks to Patrick Branley, a senior application developer at Webqem. Find out how RSS feeds work, how to get started and what does it stand for! He also gives a great example of how it can be used to distribute product information to your channel partners.

Add your comments or advice in the Talkback section at the end of this post.

See also:
Getting to the Top on Google | BTalk Australia
Out-of-the-Box Content Management | BTalk Australia

Subscribe to BTalk Australia on iTunes.

View all BTalk Australia podcasts here.