The first half of the year is already behind us and what a year it has been so far! We’ve had an action-packed start to 2017 and the next 6 months is set to be no different.
Branding
Over the past 18 months, we have been making great progress in executing plans to evolve our organisation’s structure to ensure we are in the best possible position to continue meeting the needs of our members into the future. The first stage of our journey involved changing our legal structure to become a Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise (WFOE). Today we are pleased to announce another positive development in the life of the Chamber, with the release of our new logo. We have sought expert legal advice to ensure our IP and brand rights are now well protected.
We have partnered with Paper Stone Scissors, an Australian-Chinese design firm and AustCham Shanghai member company, to produce our new logo. The burnt orange colour palette alludes to the Australian outback, while the modern take on an arrow signifies our Chamber’s role in moving Australia-China business relations forward. While our logo has changed, we remain actively involved with the wider network of Australian Chambers in Greater China and will continue to work closely with them to support the Australia-China relationship. Various icons and images representing the ties between Australia and China have also been developed as part of the communications update. Check out our updated website and keep an eye out for the new collateral in our office, at events, and with our staff.
Annual General Meeting Recap
Our recent June AGM provided an opportunity for members to come together and hear directly from the Board of Directors about the Chamber’s achievements and progress for 2016. At the end of May 2017, AustCham Shanghai is proud to have 538 members across all categories. If you are interested in learning more I encourage you to download our Annual Report. At the AGM we farewelled Bernie Landy as Treasurer who is returning to Australia after 4 years in China, and Kim Gilliland who retired as a Director.
This year we received 8 nominations for 5 positions on our Board of Directors. As announced at the AGM our newly elected Board Directors are:
John Boyle, National Australia Bank
Simon Lance, Hays China
Craig Weightman, Asia Pacific Property Group
John O’Shea, Cordis Hongqiao
Heather Smith, Shanghai United Family Healthcare
The new and returning directors join Alan Chang, Qantas Airways; Craig Aldous, Elders Limited; June Fu, Westpac Banking Corporation; Paul Glasson, Satori Investments Greater China; and Susan Heffernan, Soozar, to make up the AustCham Shanghai Board of Directors.
Membership
I am pleased to announce that AustCham Shanghai now has a dedicated presence in the Yangtze River Delta region to cover the neighbouring provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu. There are considerable Australian trade and investment interests in this part of China just beyond Shanghai and opportunity for current members to expand their offerings and build new connections. Bede Payne is overseeing this expansion as Yangtze River Delta Executive Manager and will be travelling through major hubs including Hangzhou, Suzhou and Nanjing to meet with members and host events. Stay tuned in coming weeks for more information about our regional launch event.
In membership we have also welcomed two new team members in William Li and Toby Graham who have joined as Relationship Managers. William will be working with members in professional services, hospitality and human resources, while Toby will cover hospitality, technology and legal and financial services.
In May we launched our monthly Industry Insights which will rotate across various sectors to bring you a 1-page overview of a particular sector in China, the opportunities and challenges, and some links to key reading to ensure you are briefed. So far we have published one pagers on Food & Beverage and Agriculture and Education. Later this month we will publish our third brief on the Property & Construction industry.
I’d also like to take this opportunity to remind you that as a member you can access competitively priced medical coverage through our Membership Insurance Program. Through a partnership with JLT Essential we offer smaller companies attractive rates for health insurance that would otherwise exclusively be reserved for large corporations. Get in touch if this program can add value for your office.
Events
It has been a very busy quarter for events. During “MAyFL” week we hosted the largest event in the history of AustCham Shanghai – the 2017 Summer BBQ – with over 1,100 people enjoying food, kids activities, and the amateur AFL Shanghai Cup. We also hosted an On the Ground in China Panel Series where top China experts shared their insights on the Chinese consumer and the importance of China literacy in Australian boardrooms. More recently we hosted lunch with Professor the Honourable Bob Carr, where the former Foreign Minister of Australia spoke on China’s geostrategic future and Australia’s role within it.
The team has also been to Hangzhou to visit China’s largest cross-border eCommerce platform, NetEase Kaola, which was followed by our second regional Aussie Drinks. This month, the team was in Nanjing for a very successful first Aussie Drinks in the city where more than 50 people joined us at the Shangri-La.
In recent months we have also assisted a number of Australian organisations in China through our event management services, including, the State Government of Victoria, to deliver a half-day briefing series for a visiting La Trobe Valley business delegation; Organique Skincare (Shanghai) Limited, with the China market launch of their product line; and the University of Sydney Business School, to thank their China based corporate partners.
We have three major upcoming events that will see us through 2017. First up is our 22nd Great Australian Ballat Hyatt on the Bund on 9 September. With a ‘Movie Madness’ theme we are hoping to raise over 150,000 RMB on the night to support our charity partners Shanghai Roots and Shoots and The Renewal Center. In October, we will be hosting the inaugural Australia-China Sports Summit, a two-day high level Summit bringing together key industry leaders from China and Australia. The Summit falls on the back of the Shanghai Rolex Masters Tennis and immediately prior to the Alisports’ World Rugby 7’s Champion of Champions event in Shanghai giving visitors two great opportunities to witness international sport delivered in Shanghai. We will be organising site visits and tickets as part of our business delegation that will run alongside the Summit. And on 7 November we will be hosting Shanghai’s annual Melbourne Cup function – Shanghai’s daytime glamour event of the year.
Business Engagement
We would like to thank all of the participating universities, companies, partners and sponsors for making the 2017 Australia-China Careers Fair a resounding success. In partnership with Austrade, and supported by local partner LockinChina and sponsored by CPA Australia, the event attracted close to 600 alumni and future graduates from Australian universities who were able to participate in interactive career workshops and mingle with 51 employers.
Business Engagement will round out the year with the second iteration of our e-Commerce Business Delegation, a 5-day business trip around the Yangtze River Delta region jam-packed with presentations, business meetings, and exclusive site visits. We are currently taking expressions of interest so please contact us for more information.
As always, please reach out to us if we can be of any assistance. Regards,
Udo Doring CEO and Executive Director AustCham Shanghai
