Op-ed

It's no exaggeration that people enjoy the act of shopping, echoing Parks and Rec’s Donna Meagle's famous words, "Treat Yo Self," when they make a satisfying purchase. But as more individuals engage in buying a variety of products and services, there is a growing likelihood of them needing to reach out to a company's customer service team for assistance.

Screening prospective employees to find out if they’re the right fit for your business is commonplace, but employee suitability shouldn’t stop at just the initial hiring process. By not regularly screening employees, you could be exposing your business to unnecessary risk.

Australia is infamous for having the highest skin cancer rates, a gloomy accolade that doesn’t seem to be fading anytime soon. But beneath this widespread knowledge lies a less publicised yet deeply concerning issue: the frequency with which skin cancers are misdiagnosed. When Aussies suspect they might have a skin cancer, the default method by a GP to confirm this is an invasive biopsy, a procedure only registered doctors can perform. But due to the fact that most GPs aren't specialists in the area, many skin cancers are incorrectly diagnosed.

Many people in the workforce are considering more progressive modes of work and questioning the conventional values that were once at the core of the way we work. There is an increase in people leaving traditional employment structures and either going to non-traditional work (temporary, gig/freelance, or part-time roles) or starting their businesses.

I think the layoffs are a bit of a knee-jerk reaction. Most of those that have done the big layoffs are companies that have experienced phenomenal growth during COVID-19, which led to an increase in the demand for online services. Now, a confluence of number of factors is behind the situation, which includes over hiring during the pandemic, a decline in demand post-COVID, rising inflation and interest rates, and an uncertain economic landscape.

Australia’s central bank on raised interest rates for a third straight month as it struggles to contain surging inflation, risking an economic downturn. Wrapping up its July policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) lifted its cash rate by 50 basis points to 1.35%, a 125 basis points of hikes since May 2022. Industry leaders offer insights on the central bank's move and how it is to shape the course of business for various industries going forward.

A labelling system that reveals the true nutritional content of fruit and vegetables should be considered to help consumers make more informed choices when shopping, as scientific studies raise concerns about a decline in critical nutrients caused by soil degradation. Recent scientific research studies have confirmed the declining nutritional quality of fruits, vegetables, and grains grown today compared to those cultivated decades ago, largely attributed to soil degradation from modern farming practices and chemical fertilizers.

The latest customer data breaches have exposed brand inadequacies in understanding how to deal with cyberattacks and the required levels of customer engagement and communication to support clients through the crisis. If you make a hack job of a hack job you risk destroying any sense of customer loyalty, trust and confidence in the brand.

Financial volatility is nothing new. That said, Australian banks and insurance companies will weather the economic storm of 2023 just as they did following the 2007-2008 global financial crisis, the early 1990s recession and previous financial turmoil. One thing that remains constant is the financial services sector keeps moving forward, particularly as tech advances and consumer behaviours change. Even during this economic environment, there are 5 emerging trends across Australia’s banking and insurance sectors. 

The recent 25bps hike is in line with consensus expectations and many will see it as the most palatable outcome for markets. There was talk of a pause in the lead up to the meeting, but sentiment about the financial sector has turned more positive in recently, and investors are reasonably confident that quick actions by regulators have avoided a systemic financial crisis.