THE IMPACT of foreign investors in Australian residential property is the subject of a special report by Propell National Valuers – and the results are in contrast to recent reports in the popular media.

Prepared by Propell National Valuers head of research, Linda Phillips, the report found the impact of foreign investors is in defined markets and is here to stay. But canny domestic investors are seeing the trends and joining these markets for greater price growth. 

“Foreign buyers are here to stay,” Ms Phillips said. “Their impact is in defined markets.

“Rather than complaining about them, domestic buyers might do better to deal into the game and buy into the same market on the assumption that price growth will be stronger in those markets that attract foreign buyers.”

The Propell report found overseas buyers mostly came from China, Canada and the US.

She said “media hype” about foreign buyers pushing up housing prices had been way overstated, based on a recent House of Representatives report and submissions.

“Australia already has tighter restrictions on foreign buyers than most countries,” Ms Phillips said. “Foreign buyers account for less than 2 percent of all purchases.

“Although the Sydney market gets the headlines, Melbourne approvals were double those of Sydney (over the past year).”

Ms Phillips said the important factor in residential property was that foreign buyers targeted specific property ranges, mostly inner city apartments and expensive properties in Sydney and Melbourne, with Brisbane starting to attract interest.

“In those specific markets, the impact on prices is likely to be measurable,” Ms Phillips said.”

A factor into the future was that that fall in the Australian dollar is making Australian property more affordable for overseas buyers and interest is likely to increase.

“Australian property prices are cheap compared to most cities in Asia,” Ms Phillips said.

“Melbourne core CBD prices are on par with Kuala Lumpur, 50 percent cheaper than Sydney, 200 percent cheaper than Singapore, 350 percent cheaper than Hong Kong, and a staggering 550 percent cheaper than London.”

The Propell National Valuers report determined that house prices were likely to continue to increase in the next year, regardless, by 10 percent in Sydney, and 7 percent in Melbourne.

Ms Phillips said the House of Representatives report that the Propell research also looked at stated: “Foreign investors are vital to the property market, are not to blame for making prices unaffordable for Australians, and if banned would curb the construction of new homes.”

However, Ms Phillips said the report also proposed better compliance measures by the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) and the law should be enforced – but these measures would not affect the demand from foreign investors.

Click here to download the report in full

www.propell.com.au

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EXTRA >> A Report by Digital Business insights.

THE not-for-profit sector in Australia includes over 700,000 not-for-profit organisations, 100,000 incorporated associations and 10,000 companies limited by guarantee.

The sector can be broadly divided into public-serving or member-serving organisations.

Public-serving organisations typically deliver health, education or community services.

Member-serving organisations exist for the benefit of their members, in the areas of sport and recreation and common interest. Interest organisations include peak bodies, religious organisations, political parties, lobby groups and unions and professional and business associations. 

Not-for-profit organisations are increasingly adopting and using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to improve their productivity, service delivery and enhance the many ways they interact with government, businesses and the community.

The value of ICT to an organisation varies depending on the organisation size, type, location and services delivered. Some business processes are common to all not-for-profits and some are specific to public serving or member serving organisations.

It also helps to understand the value ICT can deliver by looking at the relationships the organisation has. All organisations have internal relationships and activities, as well as external relationships with customers or clients, suppliers, competitors and complementary organisations.

INTERNAL

ICT enhances various internal administrative business activities for the not-for-profit sector – accounting, payroll, records and information (database), rostering, internal communication and so on.

Accounting – MYOB, Quickbooks, Xero, Arrow, Attache, SAP etc

Database – Access, Excel, SQL, Filemaker etc

Rostering – None, Excel, Time Target etc

Security – Norton, AVG, NetboxBlue, Interactive etc

Backup/Storage – Hard Drive, NAS, SAN, DVD, CD, Tape

Intranet – web developer

Mobility – Airwatch, GBM, Blink, VmWare etc

CUSTOMER

Customer relationships will vary depending on the type of not-for-profit organisation. ICT can enhance communication through telephone, SMS, email, email newsletter and web site, and also help with the active management of relationships through client and customer relationship software.

Phone – Telstra, Optus, Vodaphone etc

Internet – Telstra, Optus, iiNet, TPG, Pacific Internet etc

VoIP – Skype, Broadsoft, Asterisk, Avaya, Cisco etc

Website – web developer

CRM & membership – MS CRM, IMIS, ACT, SDG, Salesforce, Access, Outlook, EventPro, Frontdesk, Aspedia etc

Client Management – CareManager, Pivotol, Tectura, XaptCare, iCare, QuickKids, ionmycare etc

SUPPLIER

Supplier relationships will also vary depending on the type of organisation. For public serving organisations funded by government, there is an ongoing cycle of tendering for funding and reporting on services delivered. Member-serving organisations manage member fees.

Both types of organisations may raise funds and sign up and manage volunteers. All organisations may buy general goods and services. ICT can support all these activities through fundraising software, telemarketing, Government tender and reporting portals, and general supplier websites and portals.

Reporting – Excel, Calxa, Datacare, Arrow etc

Volunteers – Outlook, Vision6, etc

Fundraising – Blackbaud, ThankQ, Donor Management, Open Alms etc

Ordering/Buying – Supply/Buy website, portal

COMPETITOR

All public serving organisations compete for funding. Members-serving organisations compete for members. The internet provides a simple, quick research platform for competitive intelligence gathering as well as a research resource for proposals and reports.

            Tenders – Government portal

            Research – Web browser

COMPLEMENTARY

Not-for-profit organisations often collaborate in service delivery, lobbying, promotion and education. ICT provides a number of collaborative platforms including weblogs, wikis and portals.

            Information portal – InfoXchange, Our Community, Connecting Up, DoC

ICT satisfaction and concerns

Respondents to the last four surveys over 8 years raised specific issues with ICT products and services. The main issues were – lack of software designed and customised to the sector needs, software not fully integrated or able to be easily integrated with other software, affordability, training and support, not intuitive and not easy to use.

Organisations need the right client management software, staff management software, customer relationship management software, membership and fundraising software to operate effectively.

Overall problems with IT & software

“Need to provide software that is everywhere and everywhen” - Church, NSW

The cost of hardware and software, and cost and availability of training required to use it effectively are two other major issues holding non-profits back from increased productivity and effectiveness.

It is only the enthusiasm, flexibility and commitment of the sector to service delivery that compensates for flaws in the tools that are available to them.

“Prices are prohibitive for small non-profits” - Creative & performing arts, Victoria

Many issues are common to all organisations regardless of their size – integration, reporting tools and CRM. Larger organisations manage their own training needs effectively.

Issues by size of organisation

There are signs of improvement in this area as a result of the overall trend towards open systems, web based solutions and managed services. But not all software developers are moving in this direction fast enough for the sector.

INTEGRATION

Effective analysis and reporting demands an integrated operational platform and many non-profits wrestle with hardware and software that is not fully integrated, open system, up to date, supported and funded, often using a mixture of hardware and differing versions of software.

This situation is further compounded by government and peak bodies developing and providing reporting databases and portals that are clunky, slow, non intuitive and not well supported, and then expecting non-profits to use them as the primary reporting tool for their funding.

Legacy hardware and software increasingly causes problems. Many organisations can’t afford to upgrade their hardware and software, and can’t afford to train staff (especially volunteers) and maintain new ICT products even if they could afford them. This reinforces the requirement for all non-profit software to be intuitive, easy to learn and use.

AFFORDABILITY

The DonorTec program and the annual Connecting Up events are two programs that lead the way in trying to improve the affordability and information issues.

Connecting Up, Our Community, Infoxchange and Church Resources also work individually and together to lobby State and Federal Government for more and better directed initiatives to improve capability across the sector.

As a result of this lobbying there are signs that hardware and software vendors in Australia are developing, updating and providing more solutions that are valuable to the sector. But it is slow and the current financial environment is clearly affecting many smaller ICT developers.

Cisco and Microsoft have supported the DonorTec program from the beginning. Existing CRM products are now being repurposed and configured to reflect the needs of non-profit organisations. Other software products have been customised for the sector. But these efforts only go so far and none of them address the major integration issue. In many ways they make it worse.

LACK OF APPROPRIATE SOFTWARE

One issue raised by non-profit organisations was the lack of off the shelf software developed with their needs in mind, specifically Customer Relationship Management software (CRM). Many products address only part of an organisations needs. There is a perception that software is developed for business … not the non-profit sector. This is especially true with CRM software.

“Can’t find good CRM for a small organisation” - Youth Services, Victoria

"We need a CRM with integrated fundraising” - Multiple Services, Tasmania

 “We need a CRM system” - Law & Advocacy, Victoria

 “We have outgrown our custom-built CRM" - Philanthropy, Vic

Another perception is that State and Federal GovernmentS are not software developers, and when they build web-based tools and portals for reporting or other reasons … they don’t do a good job. Software has bugs, is slow, isn’t intuitive or user friendly, is not supported … and users inherit the blame.

Dissatisfaction is wide ranging – “Transport Access  – slow and limited; CLSIS legal database – poor and out of date; Health Network – slow and frustrating; CAIS – flawed and doesn’t meet our needs, prescribed by DHS so meets their needs and can't be modified to meet internal needs; VPAD - Government provided and very poor."

“Government provided software is difficult to use and has reliability issues.” - Disability Service, NSW

Compounding this problem is the growing operational desire to integrate and share data across a range of applications. Funded non-profits have to report to funding bodies regularly and this requires software integration to avoid multiple data entry, and to be able to create tailored reports effectively. And indeed for the CEOs across the sector to be able to manage their organisations with clarity, oversight and access to information.

Some larger organisations have addressed this issue by using external integrators and software developers to create solutions, or implementing fully integrated (ERP) systems. This option isn’t realistic for smaller organisations because of the initial cost and ongoing support requirement for the system.

“The biggest concern is the lack of system integration across our organisation and the huge loss in productive hours resulting from this.”  - Peak Body, Queensland

Even when existing solutions are available, many organisations are not aware of them. Many non-profits are still unaware of the DonorTec program.

COST AND LICENSING

Non-profit organisations don’t have money to waste and often don’t have money to spend on ICT at all. The structure of funding provision (lump sum) and timing (one-off, for program or for fixed period) also doesn’t usually match the new payment options now available for managed services (cloud computing services) delivered online for a monthly fee.

Organisations are often forced to wait to buy new technology, and upgrading equipment and software is something that only large organisations do to a planned schedule. Most others upgrade only when systems fail and they are forced to.

The result is often a mixed bag of hardware, software and operating systems, making it even more difficult to manage training, support and licences. There is also concern about the legality and currency of licences because of the inclusion of donated equipment.

The DonorTec program has had, and continues to have, a positive influence in helping non-profits upgrade software and is one of the most valuable strategies for building capability in the sector. But support for the DonorTec program by Microsoft and Cisco is likely to finish in the near future, not just in Australia, but also internationally where the program is managed by TechSoup Global.

Cost, training and support are linked by many organisations. There is concern about the expense of purchasing software and then getting the most productive value from it, especially if the software is not intuitive and easy to use.

“Not able to keep up to date (no money)” - Disability Service, NSW

Non-profits are expressing a desire for the DonorTec program to include Adobe products and MYOB.

“Would love Adobe products through DonorTec” - Education & Training, NSW

 “Wish MYOB was available through DonorTec”  - Creative & Performing Arts, Victoria

TRAINING, SUPPORT AND ADVICE

Training (or the lack of it) to get the most out of the investment in technology is an issue raised by many organisations. Most training is on the job and many organisations can’t afford external training, especially for their volunteers and part time workforce. Most “pick things up as they go along”.

“Expense of purchasing software and training staff how to use it effectively” - Seniors Organisation, South Australia

“We need access to local, low cost and tailored training” - Industry Association, Victoria

The main currents of the digital revolution – more connection, more collaboration and more integration, impact non-profits just as much as businesses and households.

Convergence between telecommunication and data is creating new opportunities for cost saving and improved communication though VoIP and unified communications. Low cost mobile devices offer new opportunities to manage service delivery more effectively.

Cloud computing offers the potential for lower cost software services and new payment regimes. But VoIP, mobility and cloud computing all carry new issues and problems that need clarification and understanding. Governance, legislation and regulation impact the funded sector to varying degrees.

Added to this, the pressure from other quarters continues to grow with changing expectations and increasing demands from clients, customers, government legislation, auditing and funding bodies.

Government is expecting “more for less” – more and better service delivery for less funding, whilst investing little or nothing to help the sector meet its obligations or help the sector better leverage the opportunities delivered by technology.

It is assumed that these things will take care of themselves through market supply and demand. From the consistency of the issues raised and comments made over the course of four national non-profit surveys over 8 years from 2006 to 2013, it is evident that this is not the case.

SOLUTION

It is possible to address many of these issues, but to do this effectively requires:

• knowledge of ICT demand and use across the sector – which DBi has accumulated over the past 10 years through its surveys across the sector 

• the ability and knowledge to bring together the key ICT vendors and manage the collaborative effort required to address the demand issues – which DBi can manage because of its industry networks, knowledge, experience and neutrality in the sector 

• the ability to bring together the Data Centres and Hosting,  Systems Integrators and Software solutions to create “total solution” options for the sector – still leaving competitive options and choices in place, but moving those competitive options from single point solutions to total solutions. The solution mix can be modularised so buyers can select options that suit them best – by cost, preference, industry category etc. 

• the ability to provide training and support to meet the demands of the sector relative to this solution mix – which DBi can deliver through its digital toolkit platforms and learning management system. 

• the ability to manage both the provision of higher cost options delivered by Telstra, Optus and Macquarie Telecom and lower cost options delivered by the tier 2 and 3 data centres – to meet existing comfort levels, existing relationships, budgets, preferences and other issues that affect a buying decision. 

Getting this “right” will go a long way to increasing efficiency, productivity, affordability, capability and collaboration across a sector that delivers many government funded health and community services programs as well as supporting the membership based organisations important for community vitality and health.

www.db-insights.com

#ends

ITS MAIN title is Grow Your Business FAST – but the subtitle tells it like it is: 'The Quick, Dirty, and Uncensored Secrets to Extraordinary Small Business Success Despite Recession, Crap Governments and Tight-arsed Banks’.

It is the work of UK-based copywriter and web marketeer Jon McCulloch, who happily admits he is “an unlikely genius and small business advocate who stops at nothing to make sure savvy and open-minded business owners know the truth”. 

Mr McCulloch’s goal is to help readers work less, earn more and build their own empires – but those stepping up to the plate must have a hard exterior. Mr McCulloch is as intense and unorthodox as they come.

The information his publishing company has released on this book gives a fair indication of what the prospective reader is in for.

“Those engaging with a business growth consultant would likely imagine a suit-clad gentleman with the perfect side parting and lack of social skills to match. Stop right there; Jon McCulloch is a celebrated and renowned consultant, but he’s so unconventional in appearance and approach that he’s come to be known as the Evil Bald Genius.”

Grow Your Business FAST: The Quick, Dirty, and Uncensored Secrets to Extraordinary Small Business Success Despite Recession Crap Governments and Tight-arsed Banks will make readers very uncomfortable, but for good reason. Mr McCulloch knows the truth about growing any business, and the truth hurts.

Jon McCulloch’s scathing and uncompromising style and language are for neither the sensitive nor the faint-hearted. He claims that in Grow Your Business FAST there’s something guaranteed to offend everyone.

But that’s okay, he asserts, because he is not in the business of winning friends and influencing people – and certainly not if it comes at the expense of hiding or obfuscating the truth about what it takes to succeed legally, morally, ethically, and entirely above board in business in today’s dire economy, “despite recession, crap government, and tight-arsed banks”.

“So if you're looking to have your hand held and your fevered brow mopped with gentle, loving hands, you’d be best advised not to read this book, because you won’t like it,” Mr McCulloch said.

“I can be your best business friend, but your worst personal nightmare.

“Each of my strategies is proven and ‘battle-tested’ in the real world, but I’m not going to tread on eggshells just to make you feel good while delivering them. Look, your business skills likely suck and you have a growth strategy as useful as a one-legged man in an arse kicking competition. But it’s okay, I’ll help you change it.”

 “It is possible to make more money with less work and fewer headaches; just don’t expect it to be easy. This is the complete blueprint that will see your bottom-line skyrocket in just three months. But, damn, I don’t even know why I wrote it sometimes – 99 percent of business owners I meet are too lazy to even deserve this kind of information.”

Evil Bald Genius Jon McCulloch may live in West Cork, Ireland – “with Mrs EBG, his Jack Russell Terrier, Haggis, and an assortment of other dogs and cats” – but he has a global client base for his primary business as a copywriter and marketing consultant. In fact, he calls himself  “the most expensive copywriter and marketing consultant in Europe, as far as I know”.

He is regarded as one of Europe’s leading educators in direct response marketing and meets the needs of a fixed private client list, claiming to rarely open up to new clients because the ones on his list “never leave”.

When not busy writing inflammatory business books to assist business owners find their way, he claims to spend most of his time reading, writing, riding his bike, pumping iron, and growing the businesses of his 26, £997-a-month Elite Mastermind Members.

Sounds like he does not need those tight-arsed banks himself these days.

http://amzn.to/1E92uQF

http://www.jonmcculloch.com

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CORPORATE advisory and stockbroking firm Morgans has identified that the Australian economy is in the early stages of recovering from what it calls a ‘growth recession’.

Morgans’ research suggests this means economic growth without employment growth indicating business is working through productivity gains – but is also negatively impacted by Australia’s relatively inflexible labour markets. 

“What this means is that although the Australian economy has been growing it has been growing below the historical trend growth rate, of circa 3.2 percent, needed to generate net employment,” executive director for Morgans Corporate Advisory division, Philip Lee said.

“Hence, unemployment has been increasing despite economic growth in absolute terms. We forecast economic growth should accelerate to around 3.0 percent this calendar year.”

Mr Lee said this would be up from the 2.7 percent growth mark of 2013.

“Which suggests that the recovery in Australia will be what other countries call ‘a jobless recovery,” he said.

Mr Le said any recovery “will inevitably create opportunities and threats for Australian businesses” however a jobless recovery effectively suggests improved productivity.

“Businesses continue to suggest to us that one of the biggest challenges to Australian growth at present is its relatively inflexible labour markets,” Mr Lee said.

“In time this will likely lead to some form of Government intervention but in the meantime businesses will need to adapt and focus on productivity initiatives and innovation.

“Business confidence is key to support and accelerate growth. As the saying goes, success breeds success.”

What may positively surprise Australian economic forecasters is better than expected growth from its key international trading partners, Mr Lee indicated.

“The United States economic growth is being driven by improved consumer spending, a better market for housing, and stronger export growth,” he said.

“China purposefully continues to transition from export driven growth to domestically driven growth, which is forecast to remain well above 7 percent.

“Europe appears to be at the beginning of a modest recovery following its sovereign debt crisis, and the UK is coming off a low base but is expected to grow faster than Germany over the next two years,” Mr Lee said.

“As a result, opportunities will arise for Australian companies directly and indirectly leveraged to these key trading partners.

“A collateral benefit of stronger trading partners is a likely depreciation in the Australian dollar improving the global competitiveness of Australian businesses but likely impacting our importing companies.”

Mr Lee said Morgans analysts were expecting 2014 to present businesses with a plethora of productivity and growth opportunities.

“However, typically the pursuit of these growth opportunities, particularly if being driven by international demand, can be expensive and capital hungry,” he said.

“Access to debt markets remains a challenge for most emerging companies and ‘merger and acquisition’ opportunities are becoming more complex and expensive,” Mr Lee warned.

“Equity markets typically lead economic improvement by 12 to 18 months and as such will, in our view, become a more readily available and cost effective source of funding for emerging companies in 2014.”

Morgans, a long-term Industry Expert member of Queensland Leaders, recently struck a strategic alliance with CIMB Securities International Australia for research and cooperation on corporate advisory and capital markets in Australia. The alliance initially gives Morgans customers access to highly ranked research of CIMB Australia provides CIMB Australia with Morgans’ distribution platform of more than 300,000 customers for equity capital market transactions.

www.morgans.com.au

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