Think: Business Futures
213 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 months ago - ★★★★ - 1 ratingHost Stefan Posthuma finds the people who are the movers and shakers in business, and brings them together to get to the essence of the financial issues of the day.
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Episodes
Can a Four Day Work Week Work?
March 29, 2022 09:00 - 29 minutesThe pandemic has completely overhauled our relationship with work. Priorities are shifting with an increasing number of people looking for job satisfaction and a harmonious work/life balance. One proposed solution is a shift to a four day work week. On this episode we discuss what four day work week can look like, and how companies and individuals maintain productivity working less hours. Guest: Rowena Ditzell - PHD candidate and lecturer at the UTS business school, currently researching th...
The Ethics Of Sanctions
March 22, 2022 09:00 - 29 minutesMost media outlets talk about Russian sanctions in reference to their effect on an economy... But what about their impact on people? Does forcing a recession on a nation of mostly innocent civilians require a deeper level of ethical enquiry? And are the associated business boycotts and pullouts a moral decision, or they just what's best for the corporate bottom line? Guests: Carl Rhodes - Dean and Professor of Organisation Studies at the UTS Business School & Steven Hamilton - Visiting Fello...
Capitalising On Post-Covid Consumer Behaviours
March 15, 2022 09:00 - 29 minutesThe Covid-19 pandemic has changed the what, where, when and how we shop - presenting a range of opportunities for business unlike anything we've seen before. So what are the changes? And how can businesses capitalise? Guest: Ofer Mintz - Associate Head of the UTS Marketing Department and Author of The Post Pandemic Business Playbook.
How Is Crypto Taxed?
March 08, 2022 09:00 - 29 minutesCrypto is here to stay. Individuals, businesses and banks have all jumped on board - so its time to ask some simple questions. Do we pay tax on crypto? If so, when? And in an ever-evolving, technologically driven, decentralised world - how will tax authorities keep up? Guests: Roman Lanis - Associate Professor from the UTS School of Accounting and Shane Brunette - Founder of Sydney-based tech start-up Crypto Tax Calculator.
The Cost of a Clean Bill of Health
November 23, 2021 07:37 - 35 minutesOver the past 18 months, COVID has demonstrated the need for a well funded health system. The cost of dealing with a pandemic has been most clearly borne by our hospitals. So how does the Australian healthcare system stack up comparatively? Guests: Kees Van Gool, Deputy Director and Professor at the Centre for Health Economics Research and Evaluation at UTS and researcher on the ICCONIC project
Woke Capitalism
November 16, 2021 05:59 - 33 minutesIn the past few years, businesses have begun signalling their support for traditionally progressive ideas like marriage equality and environmental sustainability. This has been called woke capitalism, where multinational corporations enter the public sphere by taking and amplifying political positions. Corporations talk a good game on social credibility, but can we rely on them when the going gets tough? Or are they just following public sentiment to profit? And how does this newfound corpora...
Deck the Malls
November 09, 2021 07:36 - 31 minutesWe’re coming up to the most wonderful time of year - Christmas. Tinsel is up and Mariah Carey is blaring through shopping centre speakers. Most retailers make around 30% of their annual income from this time alone. But is consumer confidence still high after a long year of covid lockdowns? And will issues with global supply chains led to empty stockings under the chimney? Guests: Sanjoy Paul, senior lecturer in operations and supply chain management at UTS Brian Walker, CEO and founder of ...
Taxing Times for Multinationals
November 02, 2021 08:31 - 31 minutesWhile the attention is on COP26 and Glasgow, there was a less discussed meeting of international leaders going in Rome. On Sunday, the leaders of the G20 endorsed the OECD changes to international tax laws designed to crack down on multinational companies. Tax havens and profit shifting are key targets, as well as creating new rules for the digital era and ending the race to the bottom for corporate taxation. So, what's in the rules? Who are the winners and losers? And will it actually work? ...
Populate or Perish?
October 26, 2021 08:30 - 30 minutesAs Australia heads towards reopening its international border for the first time since the pandemic began, migration has been flagged as critical to the Australian economic recovery. Last year was the first time that more people left Australia than arrived since World War 2. Immigration has been critical to Australian economic growth for nearly 80 years, but has the way temporary migrant workers have been treated soured the appeal? Will there be an influx of migrants to help Australia grow it...
Big Tech and the Future of Democracy
October 19, 2021 08:30 - 33 minutesTechnology platforms have become ubiquitous in our lives, effectively public utilities despite being run by private corporations. For years, Google operated on an ethos of "Don't be evil" before quietly retiring the phrase from their code of conduct. More and more questions are being asked about how these businesses are run and their overarching impact on our lives, as well as the access they have to our information. Facebook has been the subject of numerous inquiries of late regarding its in...
What's the Beef With Fake Meat?
October 12, 2021 08:30 - 29 minutesThe plant-based meat industry in Australia is booming. Australians forked out $185 million for meat alternatives in 2020, and the industry is only set to grow from here. As more of us look to ditch meat, or eat less of it, there are questions being asked about the seemingly healthy alternatives. Many are highly processed to simulate meat, which raises the question: just how "plant-based" are they? How much bigger will this industry get? Are we headed for a world without meat, or is it just ph...
Spooks and Economists
October 05, 2021 08:30 - 32 minutesEvergrande is the name on everybody’s lips. China’s second largest property developer is struggling to service debts of up to US$300 billion. With Evergrande in a trading halt and on the verge of collapse, there's a broader question to ask about what this means for Australia. Australian iron ore has helped build the Chinese property market which has been the engine of their economic growth. If the Chinese economy suffers a slowdown, will this impact Australian exports? What should the trading...
Combating Vaccine Hesitancy
September 28, 2021 09:30 - 34 minutesAfter a slow start, Australia is surging ahead in vaccine uptake. The number of Australians who are unsure whether they’ll get the jab has plunged from heights in May of 29% down to around 9%. As NSW and Victoria get closer to restarting their economies, vaccine saturation is going to be critical to reaching herd immunity whilst limiting the number of people who will get a serious infection. So how do we identify and break through those final barriers of vaccine hesitancy to keep people safe ...
It's Quitting Time!
September 21, 2021 10:00 - 27 minutesAre you thinking of quitting your job? You're not alone. Overseas, people are switching careers or leaving the workforce in such volumes that it's being called The Great Resignation. COVID-19 has shifted many people's priorities or motivated some to pursue their dream career, while others are sick of employers putting excessive demands on their time. Australians have remained loyal to their employers so far, but this week we're asking whether the big quit is coming down under. Guests: Kyo...
The Crisis in Australia's Universities
September 14, 2021 09:30 - 28 minutesPublic universities in Australia are in a dire state. This week, two reports outlined that 1 in 5 academics have been made redundant over the past year and that the government’s changes to funding student places, last year’s Job-Ready Graduates program, doesn’t cover the cost of cuts made in years prior. International students were the third largest export in Australia prior to COVID-19, and universities have become heavily reliant on their fees to cover teaching and research costs. But with ...
The Ebbs and Flows of Water Markets
September 07, 2021 09:30 - 29 minutesIt’s no secret that water is essential to life as we know it. By 2025, it’s estimated that over 60% of the world will live in water stressed areas. So it’s no shock that access to and ownership of water is big business. Australia has the most sophisticated market system for the trading of water entitlements, predominantly built around the Murray-Darling Basin. But does the market work effectively? Should something as valuable as water be commoditised like shares? Guests: Mike Young, profess...
What Makes a Modern Leader?
August 31, 2021 09:30 - 29 minutesTo lead or not to lead, that is the badly paraphrased question. Trendsetters and thought leaders proliferate across every aspect of our lives, from our workplaces to our social media. But what makes a leader? Does leadership just come down to how many people follow you on LinkedIn? Or is there something more intangible than that? Does the cream always rise to the top? Guests: Dan Caprar, associate professor at the University of Sydney David Goldbaum, associate professor in economics at UTS.
When the Chips are Down
August 24, 2021 19:00 - 25 minutes - 23.5 MBSemiconductors are the tiny microchips that are critical to the operation of electronic devices. Working from home means that people want newer smarter devices, driving demand for semiconductors up. At the same time, its fragile global supply chain has been impacted during the pandemic. Industries relying on these tiny silicon chips, like carmakers, are losing money and running out of chips. How did this happen? And should Australia start making its own chips to build up sovereign capability...
When the Computer Chips are Down
August 24, 2021 19:00 - 27 minutesSemiconductors are the tiny microchips that are critical to the operation of electronic devices. Working from home means that people want newer smarter devices, driving demand for semiconductors up. At the same time, its fragile global supply chain has been impacted during the pandemic. Industries relying on these tiny silicon chips, like carmakers, are losing money and running out of chips. How did this happen? And should Australia start making its own chips to build up sovereign capability?...
Paying the Price for Carbon Emissions
August 17, 2021 19:00 - 29 minutesThe latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report is yet another warning to decarbonise the economy as soon as possible. To reach net zero, countries are putting a price on carbon emissions through cap and trade schemes or taxation. The EU and US are looking at going one step further by considering additional tariffs on trade partners who lack an emissions trading system through border adjustment mechanisms. The Australian government is hostile towards emissions targets, let alone c...
A Square Deal for Afterpay
August 10, 2021 09:30 - 29 minutesAfterpay is the darling of the financial world following its acquisition by US payments fintech Square in the largest acquisition in Australian corporate history, valued at $39 billion AUD. It caps off a monumental run for the pioneer of the Buy Now, Pay Later market. The payment scheme allows its target users to purchase goods upfront and pay them off over 4 fortnightly installments. So is this credit by another name operating in a regulatory loophole? Or is this modern day form of lay-by th...
Bursting the Housing Bubble
August 03, 2021 09:30 - 29 minutesAround the world, house prices are surging. In Australia, house prices are climbing at their fastest annual rate in 17 years. This is propelled by a combination of low interest rates and government stimulus along with a small number of properties on the market and a strong demand from people looking to buy. To be fair, it always feels like house prices are impossibly high in state capitals like Sydney or Melbourne, with young people feeling locked out from owning their own patch of affordable...
JobKeeper Resurrected? Stimulating an Economy in Lockdown
July 28, 2021 04:30 - 29 minutesAs NSW faces a protracted lockdown, stimulus is back on the agenda to keep the economy from crashing and burning. The Federal government has come out with a COVID-19 disaster payment while avoiding the magic word on everyone's lips: JobKeeper. Do we need to bring back a new refined version of the wage subsidy program or will the current stimulus plan be enough to save businesses? Guests: Mary Aldred, CEO of the Franchise Council of Australia Peter Docherty, Associate Professor of Economics...
Going for Gold: The Economic Impact of the Olympics
July 13, 2021 09:30 - 29 minutesIt may be 2021 but the 2020 Olympics are only just about to get underway. Tokyo has been a saga, with spectators banned from attending due to COVID-19 outbreaks and calls for the event to be cancelled. With Brisbane working hard to get a guernsey and host the 2032 Olympics, we're asking: are the Olympics fit enough to go the distance? Guests: David Rowe, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Research, Institute for Culture and Society at WSU. Tim Harcourt, Chief Economist with the Institute of Pu...
Sweet Charity
July 06, 2021 09:45 - 29 minutesWell, the financial year has come and gone, and you may have received emails or phone calls or postage from any number of charities calling for tax-deductible donations. The not-for-profit sector makes up 11% of the economy, employing around 1.4 million Australians. Indeed, a glimpse at the sector in 2019 paints a rosy picture of a broad industry made of large businesses and smaller volunteer outfits, a sector growing in donations, assets and government support. But this was before the pande...
ESG For You and Me
June 29, 2021 09:40 - 29 minutesMore and more, companies are investing based around the buzzword of ESG. That stands for Environmental, Social, Governance, which broadly describes the non-financial factors that are increasingly important to investors. These can include incorporating gender diversity in a company board, to not supporting carbon emitting investments or other such ethical commitments. As the European Union and the United States take steps to regulate the ESG investing industry, the question is whether Austra...
School Daze: Funding Private and Public Education
June 23, 2021 04:00 - 29 minutesWhere did you go to school? Over the last 30 years, non-government schools have doubled in size as more and more parents are opting for greater school choice. How these schools are funded has been a point of contention. School funding is provided by partnerships between the federal and relevant state governments. Private schools are predominantly funded by the federal government, while public education is mostly drawn from state funding. A funding model for private schools is set to come in ...
Confidence is Key
June 16, 2021 05:19 - 20 minutesThey say confidence is key to many things in life, but when a pandemic brings a city to a lurching halt, how does it bounce back? As restrictions in Melbourne begin to ease, and government stimulus payments attempt to stem the bleeding, how will Melbournians regain the spring in their step when it comes to spending? It’s a question for a behavioral economist really, and today, we’re joined by Professor Michelle Baddeley from the UTS Business School, to help us understand why confidence is key.
Cradle and Ore
June 01, 2021 06:59 - 21 minutesThe Chinese Government have made a monumental policy shift, announcing that it will allow couples to have up to three children, after census data showed a steep decline in birth rates. China scrapped its decades-old one-child policy in 2016, replacing it with a two-child limit which has so far failed to generate the uptick in the birth rate needed to keep pace with the countries rapidly ageing population. An online poll conducted by state media outlet Xinhua news found 29000 out of 31000 re...
Is Money Enough To Fix Aged Care?
May 19, 2021 06:55 - 22 minutesIt’s been a big week since the Treasurer handed down the Budget 2021, but the biggest story- and certainly biggest handout- was in the Aged Care Sector. $17.7 billion dollars has been allocated to making a once in a generation change to a sector that has been plagued by horror stories from the Royal Commission, underpaid staff and limited career opportunities. But is almost $18 billion dollars enough when the funding is set to be drip fed over a five year period? The Treasurer announced the ...
The Quarter Acre Bubble
May 10, 2021 08:27 - 29 minutesThe Morrison government has announced the New Home Guarantee will allow 10,000 first home buyers to purchase a new home with a deposit of just 5 per cent, while over the next four years the Family Home Guarantee will let 10,000 single parent families put down a deposit of only 2 per cent. But can we bank upon the housing market with interest rates at uneasily low levels? What happens when they jump? To break this down today is Professor Harry Schuele, Professor of Finance at the University o...
Streamers and Schemers
May 04, 2021 08:11 - 24 minutesAustralia has had a touchy relationship with Multinationals since the economy was opened to the world during the Hawke-Keating years. But now, the distinction between those well-known multinationals in primary industries such as Rio Tinto or Adani Mining, and the new-age arrivals like Facebook, Google, Netflix and Spotify, is making the argument about why less corporate tax gives Australia competitive advantage a little harder to argue.
'The Global Pharmacy'; India's Outbreak
April 28, 2021 07:55 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBIt wasn’t that long ago that India was seen as a light on the hill for COVID responses. A mammoth population, and incredibly diverse ethnic and geographical country gave the Modi Government a shining reputation abroad. Now, India is on the verge of breaking 200,000 deaths and over 17 million cases. Oxygen supplies are at critical levels, hospitals have reached breaking point and the country known as the ‘pharmacy of the world’ as the biggest producer of generic drugs is now relying on foreig...
The Real Costs of Climate Change
April 20, 2021 08:54 - 26 minutesWhen I ask you what the cost of climate change is, you’re most likely to answer with a bigger macroeconomic picture. But what are the actual figures? Natural disasters already cost Australians over $13 billion on average every year, expected to rise to $39 billion per year by 2050. The National Climate Disaster Fund is a proposal by independent think-tank the Australia Institute for an independently administered fund to reduce the cost burden of natural disaster response and recovery to Aus...
The Burst-Proof Travel Bubble
April 06, 2021 08:15 - 25 minutesThis week, we’re taking on the biggest news story in the country. The gates have been opened across the ditch, and the New Zealand-Australia travel bubble, an idea first floated in April of last year, is finally upon us. Joining me today to help 'burst the bubble' is Senior Lecturer in the Management Discipline Group at the UTS Business School, co-chair of the CAUTHE (Council of Australasian Tourism and Hospitality Educators), and member of DFAT’s Consular Consultative, Dr. David Beirman.
Future Submarines; A Shipload of Trouble
March 30, 2021 06:25 - 29 minutesIt's time to dive to periscope depth and take a closer look at the Federal Government's $90 billion dollar Future Submarine Deal. With former Home Affairs minister Peter Dutton now sworn in as Defense Minister, many are expecting a decision on whether to stay the course with this white elephant of a defense contract, or simply torpedo the whole thing and start again. We ask former Submariner, and now Independent Senator for South Australia Rex Patrick, why the largest defense contract in Au...
A Tale of Stocks & Memes
March 23, 2021 07:33 - 24 minutesEarlier this year, struggling businesses GameStop (NYSE: GME) and AMC Entertainment Holdings saw their stock prices skyrocket overnight, thanks to a short squeeze initiated by a group of investors on Reddit.com. It was r/wallstreetbets, a coalition of largely amateur investors on the site- known as the front page of the internet- that created a surge of interest in a number of stocks being shorted by some of Wall Street’s largest hedge funds. It was seen as a brave new form of financial act...
Hot Property
March 16, 2021 06:36 - 29 minutesThey say there's never a bad time to buy Real Estate, but do we believe it? Predictions in March of last year were dire, with a 30% drop in market value expected across the country. Instead, figures suggest the real situation may be the exact opposite. Auction clearance rates are at record highs, asset prices are through the roof, and first home buyers are leading the charge with a 50% share of purchases over 2020. But, with all this hot-air in the system it isn’t easy to imagine one enorm...
From Pharma to Table; Australia's Vaccine Odyssey
March 09, 2021 06:56 - 26 minutesIn this, our glorious return to the airwaves, we ask; What does the global pharmaceutical industry have to gain from the roll-out of vaccines? Household names like Pfizer are their own kettle of fish, but for the AstraZenecas and Novavaxs of the world, it’s a rare coalition of public goodwill and government assistance that could fundamentally change the industry moving forward. But, when a global health crisis greases the wheels of the world's pharmaceutical regulatory bodies; what happens...
Think Business Extras: Dr. Dean Jarrett
December 08, 2020 06:48 - 17 minutes - 16.1 MBThis week, we bring you something different. I sat down with Dr. Dean Jarrett, the first Indigenous man to be awarded a PhD by the University of Technology Sydney’s Business School to talk about his thesis, which posed the question; rather than Indigenous business' needing to imitate mainstream ways of working to achieve success, should it really be the other way round? Dr. Jarrett finds a clear divide between western transactional understandings of trade and economy, with the relationsh...
New Age Bureaucrat; QR Codes and The Future of The Public Service
December 01, 2020 04:49 - 24 minutesHow many pubs, clubs or restaurants have you signed into over the last few weeks using a QR code on your phone? It’s become the go-to method for digitally tracing outbreaks and hot-spots of COVID19 in NSW, as well as other countries like Singapore. Around 2.2 million NSW residents now have the Service NSW app on their smartphone, up from 1.7 million last month, while another 5 million have a MyServiceNSW account. But, how exactly does one run an operation of this magnitude? And more imp...
Road to Somewhere; The Financial Sector's Guide to The Future
November 24, 2020 06:18 - 26 minutesToday, the 24th of November 2020, marks the release of the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative's new roadmap to reshape the countries financial system in the wake of droughts, bushfires and a global pandemic. Comprising of 80 organisations across major banks, insurers, super funds, civil society, and stakeholders, the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative has handed down 37 recommendations that will enable the financial services sector to deliver a transition to a net zero, resourc...
Under New Management: What Will The World Look Like Under A Biden Presidency?
November 10, 2020 06:46 - 26 minutesIt was one of the founding fathers, and the United State’s third President Thomas Jefferson who said of the presidency ; “No man will ever bring out of that office the reputation which carries him into it. The honeymoon would be as short in that case as in any other, and its moments of ecstasy would be ransomed by years of torment and hatred.’ In today’s episode, we’re taking a wider scope, and asking; ‘What happens to the rest of us with the United States under new management?’ Joining Max...
'That's Just, Like, Your Opinion Man'; The Mechanics of Political Polls
November 03, 2020 05:52 - 25 minutesWell, the quadrennial circus of rallies, rhetoric and state roll-calls has finally reached its last stop on the road. And by roughly lunchtime, the world will most likely know whether the polls were right, or whether- once again- political science’s own creation will turn on its masters as the polls did in 2016. Joining me today is Professor Lionel Page, from the Economics Discipline Group at the University of Technology Sydney’s Business School. Professor Page has just released some new re...
Is The Federal Budget Fair to Women?
October 27, 2020 03:50 - 27 minutesCriticism has been leveled at the Federal Government's $240 million Women’s Economic Security funding package, that aims to support a return to the workforce for many women, greater opportunities in STEM industries, and channels for female entrepreneurs and start-ups. It’s a mere fraction of the spending, but how little is too little to help women who have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic? To discuss this, I’m joined today by Katherine O’Regan, Executive Director of The Sy...
Is Money The Cure to All Ills?
October 20, 2020 07:38 - 31 minutesIt was the 18th century philosopher Voltaire who once said; ‘“The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.” And, with the Federal Budget’s delivery in health funding of a record $115.5 billion in 2020–21- and $467 billion over the forward estimates-there’s more than enough to amuse ourselves with here at Think Business Futures. It’s a lot of money, a dizzying amount, but what are the real stories behind that wall of zeroes? Joining me today to pull...
Budget Bite #2: Extended Interview With Industry Professor Warren Hogan
October 16, 2020 03:10 - 12 minutesThe full, unabridged interview with former ANZ chief economist Warren Hogan on this year's Federal Budget.
Budget Bite #1: Nicole Sutton breaks down the $2 Billion R&D Tax Incentive
October 16, 2020 02:43 - 10 minutesWe covered the murky waters of R&D tax incentives in this week's coverage of The Federal Budget 2020. But for those who's curiosity was piqued, Nicole gives further detail on the evolution of the R&D tax incentive scheme from the Turnbull days of 2016 until now.
A Tale of Two Budgets
October 13, 2020 05:54 - 40 minutesDeck the halls with forward estimates! Christmas for the finance world has finally arrived, with the Federal Budget 2020 putting pen to paper on a fiscal year for the ages. And with a deficit to the piercing tune of $213 billion dollars, this year’s tea leaves do not paint a pretty picture. Can we hitch our recovery wagon to tax cuts? Will big-spending in business add up alongside a continuation of social distancing? As they say in economics, ‘You can never judge a budget until it’s at l...
Carrot and Joystick; The Future of Australian Video Games
October 06, 2020 05:44 - 26 minutesYou’ve probably heard of Flappy bird, and you’ve definitely heard of Fruit Ninja and Temple Run. Little did you know, those games were developed in Australia. And despite their global popularity and literally billions of downloads, the domestic game deployment industry can’t seem to get past the first level. In anticipation of this evening’s budget, the Australian video game industry have asked for a 30% refundable tax offset and a restored Interactive Games Fund for video game development t...