Now and then in general conversation, friends, family and even I will say, “Oh, I didn’t know that!”
Quite regularly, members say they were unaware of a particular service or corporate partner benefit. It is these almost throwaway remarks that caused us to think about a mechanism to engage with members on a one-on-one basis to listen to their views and impart membership, service and benefit information. Our vision is to be Queensland’s most trusted, influential and engaged industry body.
Guiding the thinking was the recently approved Strategic Plan 2019-2021 which has as its prime aspirational strategy ‘Service Excellence’. Clearly, when a member or members casually imply that they were unaware of a service or benefit, it is our duty to seek improvements to our communications processes.
To enable increased awareness of all memberships services and benefits the intention is to unfold a comprehensive member engagement strategy. Its purpose is to engage members directly. It is in addition to other communications such as account and human resources, the Weekly Industry Bulletin and priority advices. New members will receive an email informing them of acceptance of their membership of their chosen division and detailing the services and benefits accruing from their belonging to MTA Queensland. Likewise, members renewing or transferring to another division will receive an email restating the many advantages of involvement in an industry specific organisation. Importantly, at each stage – new, renewal or transfer – members will receive a follow-up telephone call to discuss their access to, and information about, the wide range of services and benefits available to them, including our free digital advice offerings as part of our digital champions project.
I assure members it is not a bothersome process. It has a dual function: to check that we, MTA Queensland, have the right contact details for the member and to discuss membership services and benefits or industry issues.
The engagement strategy will commence within the coming fortnight and will be ongoing. The aim is for all members to be contacted at least once every six months. This is a standalone strategy and complements the field work of area managers who visit members at their business premises to discuss industry and Association issues.
For the Association itself, direct one-on-one engagement with members – either new, renewing or transferring – provides the opportunity to hear industry issues and local views relating to the wider automotive value chain. This is particularly relevant with businesses adapting to technological innovations and disruptions. These insights will be advocacy aids when engaging with stakeholders including government ministers, at industry round-table discussions and in submissions. More detail on the roll-out will be provided in the Weekly Industry Bulletins and, of course, Viewpoint.
Small Business Digital Champion
Thank-you to members who responded to the Small Business Digital Champion survey regarding their digital presence. Analysis of the responses indicated that ‘businesses in the automotive industry fully accept that it is crucial to have an online presence’. The findings are contained in the ‘3 Month Milestone’ report which is a representative assessment of the digital needs of the automotive industry. Specifically, survey findings indicated that: ‘72% of members surveyed believe it is extremely important to have an online presence and the remaining 28% believe it is either somewhat important or very important. This indicates that businesses in the automotive industry fully accept that is it crucial to have an online presence.’
In a prior Viewpoint, I advised that MTA Queensland, as an industry association, had been selected as one of 15 Small Business Digital Champions under the Australian Government’s Small Business Digital Champions Project. The project extends across two years and its purpose is to promote the benefits of ‘going digital’ to members in their respective organisations.
Overall, having an online presence is a recognised business necessity. However, the assessment of responses suggests that online platforms are not being utilised to their maximum extent to secure profile and economic benefits. In response to modes of communicating to customers, members indicated ‘not applicable’ or ‘mail’ in 47 per cent of responses. This highlights an issue for careful consideration where many members are either not communicating or are using traditional mail to engage with their customers. On the other hand, it is promising to see some members adopting bulk email to communicate. I remind members of the free digital support program which includes personalized, face-to-face mentoring, resources and workshops. Joining details are HERE or via the button on the front of the MTA Queensland website – Small Business Digital Champion.
Industry Awards
The Industry Awards Dinner will be held on Saturday, 16 November at the Emporium Hotel, Southbank. The Awards comprise of the Apprentice of the Year Award, Innovation Award, Women In Industry Award, and Community Award. Nominations for these awards have now closed but I can reveal we have had the largest number of applications in the history of the awards and the quality of each is outstanding. Choosing the award winners will be a challenging task for the selection panel. I encourage you to consider attending the dinner to celebrate achievement and enjoy industry camaraderie.
Advocacy
The National Transport Commission (NTC) has distributed a significant paper: ‘In service safety for automated vehicles’ for consideration. It relates to the role and regulation of different parties involved in the safe operation of automated vehicles on Australian roads. It considers safety duties that should apply to various parties, and the institutional and regulatory arrangements to support them.
Group Chief Executive Officer Dr Brett Dale attended an NTC roundtable to discuss development of a nationally consistent regulatory framework to support the safe commercial deployment of automated vehicles into Australia. I distributed the document to our Automotive Engineers Division, which is a stakeholder in the process, for consideration and input to our submission.
Interesting industry news
Sometimes it is wise to take a balanced approach when considering statistics. The Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association commissioned ACA Research to undertake a study into the outlook for the industry post Australian car manufacturing. This is without Holden, Ford and Toyota as the primary sources of employment, funding and innovation.
The research indicated that there are now more Australian automotive manufacturing businesses operating and thriving than four years ago.
Currently, automotive manufacturing has 300 companies (up from 260 in 2015) of which 70 per cent are now exporting their products. Combined revenue in 2015 was $5.2 billion and now it is at an optimistic $4 billion. Employment within the 300 companies is approximately 9,800 people compared to 21,000 before Victorian and South Australian plant closures.
Finally
At this time of the year, implementing the rules and processes for the election of specific divisional office bearers is a priority. This year, nominations have been called for the Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary of these divisions: Engine Reconditioners Association of Queensland, Automotive Remarketing Division, Rental Vehicle Industry Division, Auto Parts Recyclers Division, and Service Station and Convenience Store Association of Queensland. Nominations close 9th August 2019.
Until next month, take care and stay safe.