Ai Group Podcasts

Host James Scotland chats with the Chief Executive of Australian Industry Group, Innes Willox and learns of the organisation’s 150 years of continuous operation as the peak industry organisation supporting Australian business and industry. The conversation covers the history, the role and the importance of industry organisations,and considers the enormous changes to business and the Australian community in the last 150 years. Innes explains his role as CEO, and the changes that have happened in the 11 years of his tenure. The conversation turns to the present and to the future. Innes shares his thoughts and insights into many of the current issues facing Australian business including: • The current skills shortages and the jobs of the future. • The role of education in the future of business. • Digitalisation, the interaction of humans and machines, and cyber security. • The importance of increased productivity in the economy and in business. • The challenge of improving ports, current infrastructure an

With Paul on holidays in Scotland, James and Tennant discuss the multiple emerging opportunities in the infrastructure build of the transition, both nationally and internationally. Tennant starts by laying out the challenge of establishing goals and targets for the new economy before moving on to the opportunities from the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, the critical mineral industry and the ‘growth and opportunities’ section of the new ‘National Net Zero Authority’ in Australia. Tennant then explains the new policy discussion on the economic issues of ‘carbon leakage’ across nations and industry.

In this episode, host James Scotland ask Adam Blake: ‘How do we, in Australia, build resilient and sustainable supply chains in and from Australia’. Blundstone is a 150-year, family-owned, Hobart-based, globally-successful boot and apparel manufacturer. The company sells over 3 million pairs of boots annually to multiple markets in over 70 countries. It has a well-structured brand story and complex supply chain across the world. James and Adam address many meaty topics in this wide-ranging and insightful conversations including: - Achieving successful rapid international growth using innovative business design and organisational structures. - Breaking all the rules to achieve stunning global reach and success from a traditional Tasmanian manufacturing business. - Redesigning the business to become truly consumer-centric. - Managing seasonal global demand, highly-variable supply requirements and ‘lumpy’ cash flow challenges. - The excitement of ever-increasing Black Friday 4-day online sales, and why not t

James chats with two leading Australian supply chain academics and explores climate change, value chains, value-creation risk assessments, resilient business models and several other current and emerging issues. Lots of good discussion points including recognising investment as the answer to value risk, the urgency of recognising and identifying multiple energy sources in your business, and the rapid change happening in the market place as consumers start demanding climate/ post carbon activities. Melissa and Renu also describe university life today and the attitude and the focus of the next generation leaders of supply chain. It’s a good chat, please enjoy!

With our podcast host James Scotland on holidays overseas our podcast today is the re-release of the audition podcast James recorded with a former Ai Group employee. Whilst there are technical difficulties, its an engaging interview. Here’s the synopsis: What exactly is the circular economy, and where is it at in Australia today? Is circular economy the answer to our current supply chain issues in Australia? And what’s the future of circular economy as we transition to a Net Zero carbon emissions future? James and Rachael take a deep dive into these and other questions and come up with surprising and refreshing insights. Rachael challenges some of the current business thinking on circular economy, contends there is an urgency for action, and challenges James to join the journey, not just comment from the sidelines. It’s a lively and interesting conversation.

In this episode, the three amigos address the question: What on Earth do businesses in Australia need to understand about the transition to the post carbon economy? After some detailed assessments of the current structures, three conclusions are reached: 1. Energy and carbon are deeply entrenched in our day-to-day lives and in our businesses, there is a large transition underway 2. The transition is happening at the enterprise level, state level, national level and international level. If businesses want to keep trading, they will need to start transitioning: the economy is not going to wait for you. 3. Governments across the country are establishing the architecture and the business enabling programs to assist owners and managers to start the transition. This is an episode full of usable and timely information for business and enterprise leaders everywhere. It’s worth a listen. For details of the websites mentioned in the episode, please contact james.scotland@aigroup.com.au

According to global research over 53 per cent of managers were left ‘burnt out’ in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many leaders and managers have realised it’s important to take occasional extended career breaks: to refresh, re-centre, renew. In this episode, podcast host James Scotland delves into the concept of a mid-career sabbatical. He chats with senior executive Melissa Anderson who is at the end of her ‘year away’ from the grind of daily work life and an extended fast-paced career. He asks her how she came to the decision to take a break, why she needed to do it, what happened and what she learnt. It an entertaining and engaging conversation, addressing one of the most important issue of leadership and management today. The episode is fun, insightful and thought-provoking. Well worth a listen.

Welcome to a very special episode. Our guest is Ann Ackerson, the global head of procurement for BAE Systems. For those who don’t know, BAE Systems is a high-tech global defence Prime Contractor. It provides some of the world’s most advanced, technology-led defence, aerospace and security solutions. With a workforce of over 93,000 people in 40 countries the company develops, manufactures, and support products and systems that deliver high-end military capability and increased national security. So to have the Head of Procurement on the show is a big deal, and makes for a very special episode. And the conversation between host James Scotland and Ann lives up to expectations. James and Ann discuss: • How does one become the global Head of Procurement for a large organisation, and what’s it like? • The latest world views on multiple key procurement issues • The lessons from Covid and other disruptions • The world of Defence Industry and innovation • ESG and the impact on business • What does a ‘great’ sup

In this episode, the three amigos catch up on the events of the past months and the emerging issues in the transitioning economy. In a typically wide ranging conversation, several issues are addressed including: • Recent federal government policies and announcements and what it means for business. • Some thoughts on nuclear energy in Australia. ( it’s complex) • The pathway to Net Zero and what it means. • Is Gas the transitioning energy source? • What’s happening with EVs and Fuel Efficiency Standards? • Will El Nino impact our businesses (again)? Listen in as the three amigos share fascinating thoughts and insights, and seek to provide clarity to the constant announcements.

Sam Matandos is the thoughtful and forthright CEO of Sydney-based precision engineering company Moxon Industries. Under Sam’s guidance during challenging time, Moxon Industries has continued to expand in the rail, civil and defence supply chains. Sam and Moxon are experienced and successful suppliers to demanding structured supply chains. Sam says the growth and the success is due to its hard-fought reputation for delivering as promised. In this episode, James and Sam discuss the challenges of the Australian business sector, of being a small manufacturer in Australia, and of ways to address these challenges to achieve continued business growth. Sam challenges some of the assumptions and the reporting on small business in Australia and provides thought-providing responses to James’ questions. Well worth a listen.

In this episode we talk Operational Excellence. Our host , James Scotland says: “What if I told you there are ways to improve your operational performance, reduce your costs, improve your quality and increase your bottom line while also improving your major buyer relationships? Impossible? Today’s guest - Tim McLean, the founder of TXM Lean Solutions- knows how. In just 20 years Tim and his partners have built a global business by assisting businesses all over the world to do just that. James and Tim talk Lean, Total Quality Management, the Toyota Way, the Supply Chain Bullwhip Effect and much more. They also talk about trade show and how to ensure attendance converts to invoice. This episode is a practical conversation on business and supply chain improvement. It’s a great addition to the knowledge bank being created by this podcast series. About Tim McLean In 2004, Tim McLean left a successful Operations Leadership career to form TXM with the aim of helping manufacturing and supply chain companies t

It’s been a busy month of big announcement for Australia’s transitioning economy. In this episode, the three amigos unpack the announcements, and question what it means for Australian businesses. • What international opportunities in the transitioning economy are emerging for Australian businesses, especially in the infrastructure build? What can we learn from the trailblazers in this area? • What does the recently announced ‘National Reconstruction Fund’ bring to business? What is it all about and how does it fit into the transition to post-carbon? • What will the Safeguard Mechanism mean for the transition and for business? • And why hasn’t Nuclear Energy become a bigger part of the post-carbon equation? This is a fact-filled and fascinating episode, and quite a fun listen despite the weighty topics. The three amigos are ‘on fire’ and ‘on topic’: It’s well worth a listen.

In just a few short years, Nicola Lane has built an impressive reputation as a supply chain manager, leader, and advocate for sustainable supply chains. In this episode of Supply Circles, Host James Scotland chats with Nicola to learn of her short and impressive career to date and her views of the future. - Her urban, regional, overseas and now national roles and what she learnt. - The lessons for Supply Chain management during Covid especially Working from Home, the impact on communities and the challenge of being a young parent woth a demanding work role - Her thoughts on sustainable supply chains from her roles in the LNG, heavy infrastructure and other industries - The role of emerging leaders in supply chain management today - The lessons from her recent post-grad engagement with Cambridge University where she engaged with supply chain sustainability specialists from around the world and in multiple different industries - Her views on the importance of sustainability in supply chains going forwar

In conversation with host James Scotland, Sarah provides a clear-eyed and clearly-explained analysis of the opportunities, challenges and imperatives for Australian businesses in accessing the roll out of the newly announced AUKUS submarine deal. Among a myriad of gold nuggets of insights in an hour-long conversation, Sarah and James discuss this week’s AUKUS deal from the perspective of business. Their conversation covers - Technology transfer across nations and across Defence and Industry- and what it means for business. - The role of Industry 4 and digitalisation in accessing the opportunities in the new agreement - The importance of clear strategy and how to achieve - The challenges of the Defence Industry supply chain and how to be successful in accessing Defence work - The upcoming Defence Strategic Review - And so much more. This is another great conversation with an industry expert in a complex industry. This podcast is perfect for every businessperson wanting to understand the business impacts

Australia’s transition to the post-carbon era will require many changes to the way we as a nation live and work. One issue is ‘electric and other vehicles’: The transition will require a change to the way we think about our mobility options. And this change will create many new business models, new revenue streams, and exciting new opportunities for many Australian businesses. In this episode, James, Paul and Tennant look at the new options for personal and business mobility – especially Electric Vehicles- and look to the underlying issues of the change. And whilst doing so, uncover several emerging and new business opportunities. It’s an emerging and fascinating aspect of the transition economy and the three amigos do a great job is finding some clarity within the complexity of the electric vehicle transition. Some of their insights will surprise, other will inspire and excite, whilst others will fascinate. It's another great episode addressing the issues of the transition. Well worth a listen.

Nestle has set ambitious targets for decarbonising its entire global supply chain. It’s a tough challenge – The supply chain is long and complex and includes everything from agriculture to manufacturing to warehousing to distribution to the end-user and much more. And its not just the supply chain: Nestle itself is enormous with over 339,00 employees, 442 factories in 86 countries and a world-wide distribution networks providing over $130b in sales. Decarbonising is no easy task. In this podcast, James chats with Margaret Stuart to find out how the Nestle supply chain is being redesigned and improved. And how Nestle Oceania is achieving its targets, ahead of time. In a fascinating conversation, Margaret and James discuss: - The complexity of the challenge of decarbonising and how there is no ‘one’ answer. - Regenerative agriculture and how farmers are accepting the Nestle challenge. - The redesigning of packaging, and the many options available - The role of consumers and others in changing behaviour

In this episode, James Scotland chats with Tim Walmsley to find out how to use Industry trade shows to build successful sales pipelines. Tim shares insights on how to prepare for trade shows and how to convert interest into sales.

What On Earth - Episode 20 - The Annual Salad Bowl Of Crunchy Transition Issues by Ai Group

Insights into emerging Manufacturing & Defence Supply Chains; with Michael Sharpe by Ai Group

Significant Workplace Relations Issues - January 2023 by Ai Group