AIM 65th Anniversary

AIM CEOs reflect on the past and look to the future

Susan Heron FAIM
Chief Executive Officer, AIM Victoria & Tasmania

The establishment of the Australian Institute of Management 65 years ago showed great vision in recognising that management is a skill and that it is fundamental to the success of businesses and the nation itself.

Management has evolved over the years into a much more complicated beast, in line with the increasing complexities of business. The "jungle out there" incorporates regional, national and international competitiveness and a much tighter legislative and regulatory environment. This has all developed along with the growing education of the Australian workforce.

The period of retrenchments and downsizing has had a negative impact on the succession planning of many organisations. Combine this with the need to now consider not just gender, but ethnicity and the ageing workforce, and there is a realisation across companies of all sizes that human resource management must be incorporated into operational and strategic thinking. Professional development has become a strategic outcome.

The challenges today are skills shortages, competition for talent, and the declining birthrate. We've come from a period of focusing on products and services into a world where the workplace is a competitive product.

As business and technology have progressed, so have the needs of managerial expertise. New components have risen to prominence, such as information and communication technology, project management, customer service, logistics, and human resources, to name a few.

As a forum for management development, it is our role to realise these issues and partner with organisations to make a positive impact on their bottom line. That means providing management training and development that spans an individual's career.

The training we provide is designed to enhance an individual's career through each stage, recognising that our value offering of practical and theoretical is a powerful blend that results in a win-win situation for both the individual and their organisation.

Going forward, AIM is all about transferring knowledge into business performance. It is critical that the investment in management expertise leads to ongoing profitability. We are focused not only on providing the necessary training towards the outcome, but on being there from the beginning, to formulate a plan that complements the organisation's strategy and helps to deliver it.

Patrick Cullen FAIM
Executive Director, AIM Western Australia

The Australian Institute of Management has, over its 65-year history, emerged as one of the country's leading private providers of management, learning and development services. The contribution that such services have made to Australia's business community both locally and nationally, together with the vital membership role that AIM fulfils, is worthy of celebration. On a local level, since AIM Western Australia 's (WA) inception as a not-for-profit membership-based organisation, the Institute has been dedicated to raising the standards of management and leadership in WA and the broader Asian region.

A current Western Australian initiative of immense significance is the AIM·UWA Business School Alliance partnership, which has been recently extended to the year 2010. Created to leverage the intellectual power of one of Australia 's leading business schools, the Alliance offers a range of strategic services to facilitate the development of senior leaders and their organisations.

Another joint venture – between AIM WA and Pilbara TAFE – is the Pilbara Management Development Centre. This important venture enables the Institute to offer unique learning and development programs specifically designed for the business community in the North West of WA.

AIM's commitment to providing relevant and practical training to its Members is enhanced through research programs conducted several times a year.

Ensuring it brings access to the best minds in the world, each year AIM continues to attract international authors, consultants and Faculty from the leading International Universities to attend as speakers.

As AIM celebrates its past achievements, it is important to look to the future in providing bigger, better and brighter business opportunities for years to come. Remaining committed to providing strong, relevant and meaningful support to Members, and continuously improving management and leadership, will ensure AIM's enduring success in achieving future milestones from this point on.

John Stokes FAIM CPMgr
Chief Executive Officer, AIM South Australia

On behalf of AIM South Australia (SA), I acknowledge the significance of AIM's 65th Anniversary and, as an independent member of the AIM National Group, we look forward to collaborating with all stakeholders to ensure the continued growth and development of a strong and vibrant Institute.

Despite the development of different ways of expressing organisational objectives, particularly now through the use of vision and mission statements, AIM's journey since 1941 has only led to a greater emphasis on the benefits to society in improving the skills and expertise of Australian managers.

The Institute's long-term success has been driven by delivering products and services that are known for their relevance and quality. Add to this a clear focus on superior customer service and an arguably unique relationship with Australian organisations, AIM can demonstrate a significant "value-add" proposition to our clients and stakeholders. This value-add is critical for our continued success in the future.

The words that now describe AIM's objectives may be different from those used in 1941, but the meaning has remained unchanged; can I suggest that the organisation's primary objective is the development of "better managers for a better society".

AIM continues to strive to remain relevant to today's manager. This will only occur if we continue to deliver products and services that meet the needs of Australian organisations – AIM SA's commitment is to ensure that we play our part in achieving these objectives.

Carolyn Barker AM FAIM
Chief Executive Officer, AIM Queensland & Northern Territory

Sixty-five years is a long time on which to reflect. In fact, there are relatively few organisations in Australia that have such a long-term history from which to draw and gain perspective.

All those years ago, Australia 's leaders in business, government and commerce saw the need to create an "organisation of managers" that was a catalyst for ensuring relevancy, peer-to-peer networking, succession planning and skills transfer.

Interestingly, in 2006, while the rules of engagement have changed, the central focus has not.

There is no doubt that AIM Qld & NT's role within the network is that of innovator. By ensuring the business is nimble, flexible and strategically agile, 17 per cent annual growth has been delivered in this decade alone. Our membership is the strongest per capita in Australia and our commitment to regional Queensland and the Northern Territory is evidenced through a vibrant network of active Committees that are peopled by business and government leaders in their respected regional centres.

In terms of AIM's traditional heartland, we still continue to dominate in professional development courses in customer service, project management, human resources and general management. In fact, a learner can enter at certificate level and exit at graduate level.

Learning and education through coaching is a more recent initiative, and through that strategic focus this Division has built a significant executive coaching and mentoring business. In doing so we have developed the well-respected AIM Coaching Model.

Since 2000, AIM Qld & NT has built a publishing business in the management, leadership, innovation and strategy space. As a result, a series of best-selling business books and web-based communication forums have been introduced to the market.

The Institute's subsidiary, TheCyberInstitute Pty Ltd, has earned its place in the rapidly growing online learning environment as a savvy provider of cutting-edge content.

We live by the mantra that through contemporary learning, AIM exists to enhance an individual's career. That's why AIM actively positions itself as "the voice of management" and is not hesitant in finding ways to influence the leadership agenda.

Jennifer Alexander FAIM
Chief Executive Officer, AIM New South Wales & Australian Capital Territory

In an era when we have lost some iconic Australian companies, and some member organisations are struggling for survival, it is especially pleasing that the Australian Institute of Management is not only celebrating another big milestone, but also continues to grow and proposer.

AIM has demonstrated a capacity to understand the needs of the time, and to change to meet these needs by introducing new products and services, and even changing its own internal structures to serve members better. The successful merger of AIM ACT and AIM NSW is a recent example.

It is daunting to think of how many Australian managers have partnered with AIM over the past 65 years, and the contribution that AIM has made to Australia , and the competitiveness of Australian companies, through these partnerships. Each year thousands of managers throughout the country continue to improve their capacity to manage through contact with AIM in one form or another.

And what of the future and the challenges of the 21st century?

Faced with the challenges of the 21st century – such as a global market for skills, technological connectivity, and profound shifts in the centres of economic activity – managers will need to not only have outstanding management capability, but their ability to lead will be of increasing importance. AIM's capacity to monitor changing Member needs and regularly update its suite of offerings to ensure that it remains contemporary and attractive, in particular, to younger managers, will continue to be important.

In the 21st century, the world of member associations is also changing significantly. There are now many more alternatives available than when AIM was established, and greater focus is now placed on the ‘value proposition'. The member associations that are growing are the ones that understand that there must be a close alignment between what members want and the services that their member associations provide.

Faced with these challenges, it is clear that AIM's original objectives are still relevant:

"To raise the standards of management and to gain acceptance for these higher standards by promoting and advancing throughout Australia, the art and science of good management in the fields of industry, commerce and government".