TECHNOLOGY entrepreneur Yvette Adams has written a book to assist parents in understanding and adapting to the digital world of their children.

Last year’s Australian ICT Woman of the Year at the National iAwards, Ms Adams is a serial entrepreneur who operates The Creative Collective, a creative services and training agency, out of her commercial warehouse at seaside Maroochydore, Queensland. 

Today's kids are intuitively able to use every device, app, game and social network handed to them. Just give a tablet or a smart phone to a toddler and watch what happens.

Ms Adams, a mother of  children aged seven and 10, said children desperately needed their parents to understand the technology they are using right now, and to embrace the technology themselves. Her book, being released steadily across Australia, is titled No Kidding – Why Our Kids Know More About Technology Than Us (and What We Can Do About It!) in an effort to help parents adapt to this digital world.

“There is no point in fighting technology or ignoring it. It’s not going away, and the sooner you embrace it, the better off you and your family will be,” Ms Adams said.

She has aimed the book at assisting parents to get started with technology and to understand how it can actually help, and not hinder family life through many practical applications. She outlines these benefits as technology to save time, technology to save money, technology to stay fit and health through to technology to be a creative family.

More than 500 websites and apps are showcased throughout the book. Industry leaders such as David Bartlett, who has been named one of the Top 50 Most Influential People in Technology in Australia, Andy Lark and Vanessa Garrard have contributed to the book.

Mr Lark is the former chief marketing and online officer at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, who sits on the board of New Zealand technology venture capital firm No.8 Ventures. Ms Garrard leads E3 Style, the largest licensed youth electronics supplier in Australia and New Zealand.

Ms Adams is hopeful the book will become a valuable resource to influencers of children across the globe, such as government leaders, teachers, career advisors and grandparents.

“Even if you’re not convinced that technology is your thing, I’m hoping that you care as much about your child and their future as I do, and that you’ll give this technology thing your best shot for their sake,” Ms Adams said. 

“You see, for the first time in history, our children know more than us about something: technology. Just stop and think about that for a moment. It’s a crazy phenomenon.

“Since the dawn of time, cavemen and cavewomen have taught their children everything they needed to know to survive. Firstly, to hunt and gather and later to farm. Then, to cook, clean, sew, build and study, and, of course, to love and share.

“But then technology came along and turned every aspect of our lives on its head. Our kids just pick up devices and naturally know what to do with them,” she said.

“Love it or hate it, life is not the same as it once was. And it will keep on changing. So it’s time to get up to speed with technology and what it means to be a parent in the digital age.”

Ms Adams said the challenge before parents and influencers of children today was immense, dealing with information overload, rapid change and safety and privacy concerns.

“The fact that we are preparing them for jobs that don’t exist yet. Not to mention the giant digital footprints they are creating,” Ms Adams said.

But Adams said the book was most definitely not another negative tirade about the evils of social media or cyber safety issues, which though she does touch on, are only a minor aspect of the book. Instead, through it she hopes to introduce readers to the many positive benefits of technology.

“The short of it is, the kids need us to step up,” Ms Adams said. “You see, at the moment, we expect the education system and the government to do something about it, but the curriculum can’t keep up with the speed at which the world is changing.

"So kids desperately need their parents to understand the technology they are using right now and how the future is changing because of it. In the book I also explain the massive skills shortages going on right now in the ICT industry and how you can get your kids into coding and ICT for a guaranteed career.”

Ms Adams said she “never thought in a thousand years I’d work with computers”. She neither studied computers or even touched a typewriter at school, and never went to university.

Yet using technology to her advantage, she has started five businesses, two of which she has since sold, and she now actively champions the ICT industry and the use of technology in daily life and business.

Simply, she gets “a real kick out of helping people fall in love with technology too”.

Ms Adams won ICT Woman of the Year for Australia at the National iAwards in 2013, is a public speaker including recently compering EduTech, Australasia’s largest education and technology event with over 4000 delegates, and is a regular media commentator on topics related to trends, technology and social media.

Ms Adams won the Commonwealth Business Owner of the Year at the Telstra Business Women’s Awards in 2010 for Queensland and the Employer of Choice and the Entrepreneurial Award at the Women in Technology Awards 2012.

The Creative Collective operates as an innovative and versatile agency that helps people achieve online success through the building of websites and digital marketing strategies as well as through an extensive array of online and offline training.

Ms Adams said the business had already assisted thousands of small businesses across Australia and her motivation for writing the book was to help parents and people who potiively influence children to understand the impact technology is having on their families’ lives, and how to embrace it, not fear it.

www.nokidding.com.au

www.thecreativecollective.com.au

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AUSTRALIA continues to be the most favoured foreign direct investment (FDI) destination among Asian investors of all Asia Pacific countries – and it is ranked the eighth most popular investment destination globally. That is according to the 2014 Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index (FDICI) results released this month by global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney from Washington DC.

In a report that is well regarded internationally for providing an in-depth view of forward-looking investment sentiment, A.T. Kearney also found the US has not only maintained its first place position from last year, but also increased the lead it had in the 2013 study, which was referenced in the recent White House report, Winning Business Investment in the United States. 

According to A.T Kearney’s notes on the report, the findings bode well not only for the US, but for the global economy as a whole – almost four out of five respondents are more optimistic about the global economy than they were a year ago.

Since its inception, the A.T. Kearney study has consistently pointed toward top global choices for foreign direct investment, with the top 10 most attractive FDI destinations receiving a majority share of global FDI inflows roughly one year after the survey.

Asia, which attracts roughly a third of all foreign direct investment, has shown particular resilience.

A.T. Kearney's Asia Pacific leader, John Kurtz said, “With investment still pouring into China and with India now on the rise, we notice too the collective strength of ASEAN as an investment destination of choice especially with the coming of the AEC.

“Last year ASEAN total investment outstripped even China and this year's FDICI seems to presage more of the same.”

China is at number two on the index, attracting higher-end manufacturing from overseas and increased inland investments.

India has dropped two notches in the Top 10 to seventh since 2013, the result of a cooling off in investor sentiment in such sectors as multi-brand retail and mining. However, the A.T. Kearney report indicated India’s new government and its Look East policy were expected to further buoy outbound FDI in South East Asia as well as inbound FDI sentiment.

Singapore, with its famously predictable regulations and low corporate tax rate, strengthened its standing in the Top 10 to ninth.

The strongest individual performance on the 2014 study came from Malaysia, which surged 10 points to 15th, benefitting from strong inbound regional FDI flows and good performance in financial services, heavy industry and primary industry.

Founder of the FDI Confidence Index and A.T. Kearney chairman emeritus, Paul A. Laudicina said, “Despite racking volatility and economic uncertainty on a global scale, the findings from the 2014 FDICI suggest that a corner is being turned. Corporations sitting on massive cash reserves are increasingly confident that they can parlay these into productive investments with attractive returns.” 

Other key survey highlights included:

• Despite unresolved deficits in the Eurozone, 11 European countries still rank in the top 25, some entering the ranking for the first time;
• Canada moved into the third spot;
• 39 percent of respondents voiced a more positive sentiment than last year for second-ranked China; and
• Russia, at number 11 last year, fell out of the top 25 rankings, even despite the fact that the survey was fielded prior to the current political problems in Ukraine.

“We feel confident that despite a slow and uneven economic recovery, executives who make FDI decisions are regaining a sense of measured confidence,” said Erik Peterson, A.T. Kearney partner and a co-author of the study.

“The 2014 FDICI is not only an indicator of FDI flows, but an excellent telescope into specific economic stories around the globe. We’re pleased that this year’s study portrays a more optimistic picture globally.”

Mr Peterson said each region has an interesting unfolding story seen through the lens of the FDI Confidence Index, with many of the winners riding on stability after the ongoing post-recession economic turbulence.

In the Americas, Brazil ranked among the top five most preferred FDI destinations for the fourth consecutive year, incentivised by new industrial policy measures.

Mexico, ranked 12th, is a quiet beneficiary of the wave of US reshoring, due to its integration with US supply chains. Chile’s stable economy and investment climate translated to a five-notch climb in the index, to 17th.

The index shows Europe attracts more than a quarter of the world’s total FDI inflows, due to its highly qualified labour force, sophisticated, well-heeled consumers, and world-class infrastructure.

Northern European nations Sweden and Denmark make it to the top 25 for the first time this year, while Belgium and the Netherlands return to the index after some time off investors’ radars.

The UK, amid discussions of a potential opt-out from the EU, rose four positions to fourth.

France, currently under President François Hollande’s efforts to increase the country's competitiveness, has reclaimed a place in the top 10.

BACKGROUND

THE 2014 FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT CONFIDENCE INDEX

The FDI Confidence Index is constructed using primary data from a proprietary survey administered to senior executives of the world’s leading corporations by A.T.Kearney.

Respondents include C-level executives and regional and business heads. The 300 participating companies represent 26 countries and span all industry sectors.

All companies report global revenue of more than $500 million. Companies surveyed are evenly distributed across the globe, with roughly one-third headquartered in Europe, a third in the Asia-Pacific region and a third in the Americas.

The survey was conducted in January and February 2014. While the FDI Confidence Index provides readers with a sense of investor attitudes about the future, it is not designed to reveal specific reasons for the results. This study reflects upon likely causes for upward or downward changes, but the conclusions must be regarded only as considered judgment on the part of A.T. Kearney’s Global Business Policy Council.

The index is calculated as a weighted average of the number of high, medium, and low responses to questions about the likelihood of direct investment in a market over the next three years. Index values are based on non-source-country responses. For example, the index value for the US was calculated without responses from US-based investors. Higher index values indicate more attractive investment targets.

FDI flow figures are the latest statistics available from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Other secondary sources include investment promotion agencies, central banks, ministries of finance and trade, and major periodicals.

For past editions of the FDICI: www.atkearney.com/gbpc/foreign-direct-investment-confidence-index

A.T. Kearney is a global partnership organisation that focuses on problem solving for international businesses by assisting with collaboration across borders to co-create sustainable results. Operating since 1926, A.T. Kearney has worked as trusted advisors on what it calls “most mission-critical issues” to the world’s leading organisations across all major industries and service sectors, and today has 59 across 40 countries.

www.atkearney.com

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LOOK hard enough and you will identify four key factors that drive all entrepreneurs to success. That is the basis of research by Australian author Allan Bonsall, outlined in his new book Entrepreneurial Intelligence, which draws on the approach of Australian coffee trailblazer, Phillip Di Bella.

While the book looks at the some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs – such as Richard Branson, Gerry Harvey and Steve Jobs, who largely attribute their own success to perseverance, commitment and hard work – Mr Bonsall outlines the ultimate formula for entrepreneurial success by identifying four key principles of vision, passion, brand and emotional intelligence.

Mr Bonsall said Entrepreneurial Intelligence was inspired by the philosophies of Queensland coffee entrepreneur Phillip Di Bella, and aims to present a new and enlightened way of looking at entrepreneurship that is immediately relevant to Australians. 

“Many people associate entrepreneurial success with commitment and preparedness to work hard, though if we delve deeper it becomes clear all successful entrepreneurs share several other distinct traits,” Mr Bonsall said.

“Vision for instance is a key driver for any entrepreneur. It is the ability of an individual to define a purpose, a goal or personal agenda and share that vision with others so it grows into the future place every successful entrepreneur can see clearly in their head.

“Passion is another key characteristic that envelops us all and fuels us to achieve our goals. Passion is the life-force of ambition, it propels entrepreneurs to the top and sets them apart from the rest.”

Mr Bonsall said the third part of the formula was more tangible than vision or passion and is the key to building loyalty and generating repeat purchase and referral.

He said the most fundamental of business principles is to place the customer at the very heart and core of a venture, this is done by harnessing the power of a brand.

“Successful entrepreneurs intuitively know that understanding their brand is the most powerful link they have with their customers,” Mr Bonsall said.

Mr Di Bella, who created the highly successful Di Bella coffee brand out of a sense of purpose in elevating the Australian coffee scene, said from his experience the final principle in the formula is perhaps the most complex: it grows from the combination of vision, passion and brand and is truly what sets successful entrepreneurs apart.

“It is the individual’s ability to be both aware of their own emotions and the emotions of those around them,” Mr Di Bella said.

 “Great entrepreneurs know how to effectively engage with people and recognise and prioritise the needs of others, often subjugating their own ambitions in the process.”

Di Bella established Di Bella Coffee in 2002 by leasing a roaster part-time. He roasted coffee at night and went door-to-door to attract clients by day.

His story fascinated Mr Bonsall, who had previously co-authored a book with Dr John Harrison from The University of Queensland, BRANDAID, Brand Power at the heart of your business.

Mr Bonsall spent two and half decades in advertising, delivering branding and marketing solutions to a line-up of top Australian and international companies and has since developed a strategic planning tool based around the principles of branding.

Entrepreneurial Intelligence is available online at MyDiBellaCoffee.com, Di Bella Coffee retail outlets, all online book sellers and Estee Media’s website.

Entrepreneurial Intelligence is also available as an eBook from Amazon, Kobo, Google and Apple as well as the Australian eBook Publisher.

www.mydibellacoffee.com

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