5 October 2004

2004 Management Excellence Awards Final

"Chief Minister The Honourable Clare Martin MLA; Mr Keith Hilless FAIM President of Australian Institute of Management (Queensland and NT); Carolyn Barker FAIM Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Institute of Management (Queensland / NT; Fellows of the Australian Institute of Management; distinguished guests; members of AIM; ladies and gentlemen…..

Welcome to what has been billed as the Professional Manager's Night of Nights in the NT – the 2004 Management Excellence Awards.

After the successful re-launch of the MEAs just last year, requests for tickets to tonight's event have exceeded available seats by over 36% - and it would have been higher if we hadn't stopped taking names last Thursday.

This over-subscription is not only an excellent indication of the importance and relevance of both the Management Excellence Awards and the Institute in the NT, it is also another good example of the changing face of Darwin and the NT. With 310 people in the room now, the idea that we would be able to get 450 people into penguin suits and ball gowns at the beginning of the build-up is a long way from the Darwin I knew when I arrived here 10 years ago.

The Territory is changing. We are entering an exciting period, especially for those of us who have chosen management as our profession. In the years ahead, managers in the profit sector, along with not-for-profit, government, academia and the Defence Force will be called upon to exhibit a very high level of modern management skill as billions of dollars of world-class infrastructure development and construction projects combine with the natural cultural evolution of Australian's most dynamic and diverse region.

This rapid change in our local economy will mean our profession will be called upon to operate at a level never before expected.

Ladies and Gentlemen, as the incoming Chair of the AIM-NT, I can advise tonight that we have completed our four year business plan, and on behalf of the Council, I now commit the resources and capabilities of the Institute to working with managers at all levels to ensure we are ready to meet and exceed these world class expectations.

And it's not just the Territory that is changing. The profession of management is also constantly changing. The information age, the increase in corporate governance and regulations, the arrival of consumer and employee democracies, the globalisation of the world economies and the ever-increasing need to accept and understand the differences in each new generation that enters the workforce combine to make our jobs more complex than ever before.

Consider the quote from this week's Business Review Weekly: ‘ Half the workforce are Generation Xers and more than a 13% are the Net Generation; Only one in three is over 45… employers that fail to adapt their thinking to reflect the attitudes of younger generations are headed for oblivion .'

And as I say, handling the generational issues is just one aspect of modern management.

In the Territory we are faced with the challenge of ‘distance'. 78% of the Australian land mass is populated by only 1% of the total population. In the Territory, this issue is even more pronounced, so as managers we are constantly faced with the issues of small populations and large distances. It is an area of management where we should be - and are – recognised as ‘experts'. But it is still a daily challenge for us.

The good news is that AIM is now once again alive and well in the Territory. AIM's role is to provide our members with the opportunity to develop their skills, competencies and their capabilities via education, information and informal professional networks . As your Council and local secretariat we will work diligently to ensure you, the members, have the opportunity to continually grow and develop professionally, just like the Territory is continuing to grow and develop.

Two years ago, under the chairmanship of Mr Bruce Bird FAIM, the council of the AIM in the NT set out to re-establish the Institute here. This has now happened, and it is due to the great efforts of Bruce and his committee. I am privileged to accept the chairmanship from Bruce, and I extend my personal thanks to him for a job well done. Could I ask Bruce to please stand, and will you please join with me in congratulating him on his tireless efforts over the last two years as our Chair.

The road ahead for us in management is exciting and challenging, so tonight is a great opportunity for us to pause, reflect on the last twelve months, and to celebrate those of us who have displayed professional management excellence.

However, tonight would not have been possible without the incredible hard work of the MEA committee, chaired and ably led by our very own Sharyn Sherrington, FAIM. Sharyn is stepping down tonight as Chair of the MEAs to take a well earned break and to concentrate on her day job as General Manager of Corporate Express, so please join with me in thanking her for her outstanding efforts.

As I said, I believe the years ahead are exciting, and full of challenges. As members of AIM, we will face them together, and become better managers for the experience. But for now, let's sit back and enjoy the Management Excellence Awards for 2004 – a night that will certainly be our very own Night of Nights!