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UncategorisedOpen spaces or open slather?
MalevolentMiss | August 19, 2007Sydney open spaces need better management, so what are the councils doing?
The brouhaha over the lack of open space in Sydney continues across a number of local government areas (LGAs). The city has lost considerable amounts of open space over the past 25 years. More and more people are being crammed into less space as councils cave in to the developers. Sporting groups call for more facilities while those who prefer to engage in passive recreation lament that they are being deprived of access and dog owners think of themselves as marginalised.
What is being done on an across-Sydney basis to solve the issue of our shrinking open space? How should the matter of who gets to use Sydney's open spaces and for what purpose be resolved? Do we need a comprehensive plan (and agency) to manage resources across council boundaries or are our lives over-regulated as it is?
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UncategorisedEXCLUSIVE: 13th SARAJEVO FILM FESTIVAL REPORT
editor | August 10, 2007
One of the most vibrant film festivals in Europe in the last decade, the Sarajevo Film Festival, focuses on the region of Southeast Europe. The festival aims to present important and inovative films of high artistic value made throughout the world. In 2006 the festival screened more than 120 features and some 50 short films. This year, Open Forum brings you an exclusive insight into the world of Southern European cinema.
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UncategorisedThe interesting thing about interest rates….
alison gordon | August 9, 2007People are not happier because their debt suffocates them. Living outside their means has decreased their quality of life, not improved it.
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Uncategorised
What we can all learn from “The Simpsons”
alison gordon | August 2, 2007What is it about The Simpsons that speaks to such a wide audience?
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Uncategorised
Facing Up to Reality
alison gordon | July 26, 2007The Girl Guides changing approach to young women from potential housewives and good deed doers to savvy, independent individuals.
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Uncategorised
The Demise of Accountability
alison gordon | July 18, 2007Is the problem that nobody has made athletes painfully aware that like every other individual in society they are (or should be) completely accountable for their actions?
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UncategorisedWhen does a key become an identifier?
StephenWilson | July 10, 2007Should we re-visit the intuition that identities can be federated? Do we really know what it means to "add up" a bank card and a Medicare card? Do we have the mathematics to do such a thing with rigor, asks Stephen Wilson.
I wonder …
Is a passport an "identifier"?
Is a drivers licence an identifier?
Is a credit card an identifier?
Is a professional membership card an identifier?
Is a building access card an identifier?
Is a house key an identifier?
Is a car key an identifier?Or putting the questions another way …
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UncategorisedKnowledge and technology are key to value creation
Steve Vamos | July 10, 2007SYDNEY – Just as the agrarian society gave way to the industrial revolution, the industrial society is giving way to one where knowledge and innovation are the key drivers of economic value and wealth creation.
As organisations from all sectors come to rely more on knowledge-intensive resources and technology for value creation, it is clear that an organisation’s ability to foster, manage and profit from the knowledge of its people and their capacity to innovate will be the key to its future success. However, as an economy and a nation we are challenged to find meaningful, consistent and reliable ways to successfully deal with these things often called "intangibles".
As managers, leaders and citizens, we must explore and address the challenge of understanding value in this new knowledge-based era. Managing a business, government agency or an economy in this time requires new understanding and skills if we are to continue to prosper.
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Uncategorised
The role of the workplace in achieving work/life balance
alison gordon | June 14, 2007The term “work/life balance”, and the struggle for most to attain it, is rapidly gaining awareness in the workplace.
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Uncategorised
Changing the Concept of Productivity
alison gordon | June 13, 2007Which sounds like a more successful business to you – one that understands that offering flexible working practices is vital to attracting and retaining employees, or one that views the number of hours an employee sits at their desk (regardless of what they are actually doing) as a key performance indicator?
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UncategorisedWhy should we value intangible assets?
tamaraplakalo | June 12, 2007At its most obvious, when unmeasured, intangible assets amount to unmanaged risk.
The debate on the perceived need to measure
the value of organisational intangible assets
has been around for over 30 years. But the complexity of the issue has consistently obscured the benefit of numerous attempts to bring accounting and valuation practices up to date with the realities of the post-industrial economy. In the balance-sheet approach to the world, intangible assets – be they human resources, processes, brands, intellectual capital, customer goodwill or the value of IT-underpinned productivity, are somehow considered to be divorced from the cash-flow. They are therefore deemed irrelevant in determining a company’s current or future value.
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TALK OPENLY: The Hon. Tony Abbott, Minister for Health and Ageing, Answers Your Questions
editor | May 30, 2007In an effort to facilitate a higher level of consultation between our community and key decision makers, Open Forum has invited a number of thought leaders to facilitate an Open Forum discussion. Our first “Talk Openly” session will be facilitated by The Hon Tony Abbott, Minister for Health and Ageing. Details of the session will be posted in our Events section.
