June Comment

At Schmooze we work several months ahead as we prepare our various events and create new opportunities in response to the suggestions of our members.

One of the main aspects of Schmooze is our professional development program. Last month we and our event partners, the Australian Marketing Institute and Public Relations Institute of Australia, were delighted with the response to the recent success of the first Canberra Communications and Marketing Forum which saw well over 200 delegates attend the event- so thank you for your support in making that event such as success!

On a more intimate scale we've recently lined up the speakers for our Professional Development Workshop's which are held each month at the National Press Club for the rest of the year.

Some of the subjects we'll be exploring in the coming months are:

• Personal Branding and presentation
• Cultivating Government contacts
• Sustainable Leadership and management
• Interview techiques and reference checking
• and we'll also revisit networking skills, mentoring, and a few other topics!

Meanwhile, our SYPG Council are working on the rest of their program with the next in their SYPG series being The Message which will take place in July and is tailored for young professionals, and will include three perspectives and discussion.  

All these events provide not only an opportunity to learn and be inspired, but valuable opportunities to make new contacts in our personalised setting we offer. If you've suggestions on topics you'd like us to present on we welcome your suggestions and we look forward to welcoming you at one of these events soon.

Oh, and yes I do I realise its still May 31 today, but we thought we'd get in early today!

Phillip Jones

Founder, Schmooze

The May Schmooze video

When they hosted last week's memorable May Schmooze, SilverSun Pictures decided to show exactly what they could do.

So they filmed, edited and produced a film on the night using our guests as actors, and added some stunt men, live crosses, special effects and more.... and this was all done within an hour keeping our members and guests in complete secrecy until it was shown within minutes of being finished!

You can watch the result here via YouTube.

Meet a Member: Stephanie Hawkins

Due to popular demand, we've compiled most of this year's featured members onto a new page on the website- you can meet them all here!

This week, our popular series continues as we put one of our  young professional members on the spot.

• Name: Stephanie Hawkins
• Occupation:  Communications Officer, St Vincent de Paul Society
• Is there one thing you love about your work? I love all of it. I really enjoy working in PR. I get to meet all sorts of people and to see the results of my work through all aspects of our organisation really motivates me.
• What inspires you each day? When I get the chance to talk to our clients, they are the ones that inspire me.
• If there is one thing older folks should know about Gen-Y, what would it be? We may not have 5-10 year plans, but we do know what we want, when we want it, and we feel we work hard to deserve them. But saying that, we prefer strong performance-based cultures where results count more than job security or personal appearance.
• We want to be responsible with the decision-making that helps move us on in our career path. We are ambitious but we also see a job as more than just a pay check; we care about what our employer stands for and expect corporate social responsibility to be both noticeable and available within the organisation.
• If you could invite two people from history to lunch, who would it be, and why? One of them would definitely be Kerry Packer as he was a media mogul in Australia and was a very interesting man, so the conversation during lunch would never by dry! I would also like to have lunch with John Howard, although he is still alive, he has shaped Australian politics and was an influential political figure during his career (even before he became Prime Minister).
  

Opportunities with the SYPG Council

We'd love to hear from young professionals interested in joining our SYPG Council. 

Each Council member serves for six months and then moves onto bigger and better things with some great practical experience, contacts and friends made during their time with us.

We are  looking for outward going and friendly young professionals with a mix of skills such as writing, marketing, promotions, events, hospitality and the like- but its more important to be enthusiastic and willing to help out a few hours a week- we'll provide the training.

If you are not a member yet of Schmooze you'll need to join for six months and we'll give you another six months free. 

You can find out more about the Council on this page, and to express interest please email us with a short resume. Applications will close COB Friday 4 June.

Congratulations to SYPG Councillors!

One of the benefits of serving of the SYPG Council is the opportunities it opens up.

Recently Schmooze was contacted by Questacon to provide mentors for this year's Smart Moves Invention Convention is a 5 day residential program and is based on inspiring young Australians in the areas of innovation and entrepreneurship held in July.

This year there are 21 delegates this year, from all states and territories except NT with their ages range from 14 to 17,  and there are 8 girls and 13 boys.

The Mentors form part of a team of industry experienced facilitators that will provide the Delegates with the knowledge and skills to transform their ideas into reality.  They will be involved in helping the Delegates further develop their business ideas in particular drafting a business plan, drafting a marketing research survey (both using the scientific method as their premise) and helping to create a story board for the IC showcase that will take place on Friday morning.

SYPG Councillor Stuart Cook, and Tiffany Hart who recently finished her six month term on the Council, were invited to be mentors to this program- congratulations!

Professional Development Workshop: How to Rank no.1 on Google and other search engines

Are you frustrated by the lack of business that your website brings in? Not currently appearing in the top ten results in Google - but your major competitor is?

It's absolutely imperative that your business secures a prominent place in the search engine results pages. Why? Statistics show that:

* 93% of consumers’ worldwide use search engines to locate web sites. (Forrester Research)
* 85% of qualified web traffic is driven through search engines. (WWW User Survey)
* 75% of search engine traffic never scroll past the first page of results. (WWW User Survey)

You could have the best looking website in the world - but it may never be seen by anyone...unless it is optimised for the search engines. This practical session will teach you how to 'fine tune' your website in order to boost its visibility in the major search engines - Google, Yahoo! and Bing - so that your business can make more money.

• Where: National Press Club, National Circuit Barton
• When: Tuesday June 8, 530pm for a 545pm presentation start- concludes at 7pm
• Cost: free for members, non-members $55 incl GST - includes light refreshments and drinks
• RSVP for members: by Friday 4 June via email
• RSVP for non-members (tax invoices upon request) via email
• More info: read more here

Marketing and Communications Interest Group

Professional/Young Professional Member Activity

This popular group explores all things communications/marketing and PR with topics suggested by members in advance.  Its a great way to make new contacts, and tap into the collective experience and insights of other members in an informal setting. All members are welcome for this informal networking and discussion group.

This Month's topic: Three great sales or marketing tips for small business that work

• Where: In the very comfortable and welcoming National Press Club lounge
• When:  Thursday 24 June, 1730-1900
• Cost: Free for Professional/Young Professional members (first drink free)
• RSVP: by the Monday before the event via email

The June Schmooze

The Monthly Schmooze's are our flagship event each month, and provide a uniquely welcoming and vibrant environment to meet fellow professionals.

With a vibe more like a great cocktail party, each event we host offers a distinct theme, but the key elements are always the same: great people, personalised introductions, some live music anda great setting perfect for schmoozing!

This month we return to the place where Schmooze started over six years ago,  and the June Schmooze is presented by Manpower.

• When: Wednesday 30 June, 1730-1930
• Where:  National Press Club Lounge, Barton
• More Information: read more here
• Cost: Free for Members, $55 incl GST for non-members, all inclusive
• RSVP for members: via email by Wednesday 23 June
• RSVP for non-members: via email by Wednesday 23 June - invoices available upon request

Small Business Owners Group

This group provides the perfect environment for our members who want to meet their peers, talk about common issues and take some time out to work on their business. 

Each month we explore a different topic suggested by members to form the basis of the conversation.  In the past we've explored due diligence, loyalty programs, converting leads to sales and other real world issues and tactics.

Please suggest a topic for discussion when you RSVP.

• When: Wednesday 16 June, 1730-1900
• Cost:  Free. Professional/Young Professional members only: first drink free
• Where: TBA
• RSVP by Friday 11 via email

Charity Event: CEO Sleepout

We'd like to encourage you to support this great cause by donating to one of the CEO's in Canberra roughing it for a night in this event run by St Vincent de Paul on 17 June.

One our members Ilea Buffier from NinetoFive interiors is taking part and to support her, or any of the other Canberra business leaders taking part just search for ACT on the website here.

Member Hosted Event:Winter Solstice Sunday Lunch

Hosted by the Kitchen Cabinet at the Museum of Australian Democracy, celebrate winter with a delicious roast and pudding on Sunday 20 June from 12 noon.

Reservations are essential and read more here.

Melbourne Schmooze Update

We are steadily progressing our plans for launching Schmooze in Melbourne this year.

We are currently meeting prospective team members to run the show locally, as well as developing a database of interested parties who will be the first to be invited to our launch event later this year.

Following the launch we'll roll out in a gradual process the program very similar to what we run here in Canberra with some local flavour naturally.

We've also established a Schmooze Melbourne facebook page and an open Linked In group and if you know anyone in Melbourne who you think would be interested in Schmooze- then please invite them to email us (info@schmooze.net.au) to receive direct updates.

More News and Events.....

• You can find more Schmooze news on our website here,
• All our events, including advance dates of all our events and those of our members are on our events calendar here