By Gemma Manning Orator Simon Sinek famously said, “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.” From start-ups to small businesses to large corporations, companies across the enterprise struggle to identify the ‘why’ of their business strategy. It’s easy to pinpoint what your products and services are, and how they
Read more →By Gemma Manning Today’s CEOs need to view marketing as a strategic function in their business rather than a simple transactional mechanism to drive sales. A University of Technology Sydney study finds that one in three start-ups and small businesses fail in their first year of operation. A major reason for
Read more →By Gemma Manning The reality is this: we need more women in the boardroom. According to a 2016 Workplace Gender Equality Study by the Australian government, while women comprise 46.2% of all employees in Australia, they hold only 14.2% of chair positions. It’s predicted that Australia will not hit its
Read more →By Gemma Manning Whether you’re managing a large corporation, a medium-scale business, or a small start-up, pitching to influencers, partners, investors and customers requires a strategic and tailored approach. Get your pitch right to distinguish your business angle from other market players and disrupters. In Australia, we have a tendency
Read more →By Gemma Manning To drive the growth of your business in the long term, it’s crucial to think strategically about branding, and establish a unique and authentic brand. Your brand is about how your products and service offerings are interpreted by the outside world and your people. It’s derived from
Read more →By Gemma Manning In the last 10 years, Australian entrepreneurs have been looking to Singapore’s dynamic market to launch business ventures and start-ups. As a leading Innovation Nation, technology and finance hub, and cornerstone for development, Singapore is an ideal gateway for tapping into regional and global markets. Although we
Read more →By Gemma Manning Entrepreneurs, the most powerful support network is right in front of your eyes: your employees. Most entrepreneurs think of a top-down approach to business growth, where you alone brainstorm and instigate change across your organisation, designating roles and responsibilities to your employees accordingly. Yet to drive your
Read more →By Gemma Manning What needs to change? When it comes to innovation, Australia is lagging behind the world’s Smart Nations, such as Singapore and Israel – small nations with thriving startup and innovation ecosystems. For example, Singapore, which has an economy five times smaller than Australia, recently announced an $18 billion investment
Read more →By Gemma Manning Young women have enormous potential to drive Australia’s social and economic prosperity. According to the 2015 Global Women Entrepreneur Leaders Scorecard, Australia is currently ranked second in the world for female entrepreneurship, just behind the US and ahead of Canada, the UK, and Sweden. While this is an
Read more →By Gemma Manning In May this year, I was fortunate to be one of 28 entrepreneurs from around the world invited to spend a week on Richard Branson’s private retreat, Necker Island, otherwise known as the ‘entrepreneur’s paradise’. As a serial entrepreneur, philanthropist and champion for female entrepreneurs, Branson has long
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