04 Aug PEAK RATES – IS THIS IT?; WHEN IN DOUBT, HIRE A CONSULTANT
PEAK RATES – IS THIS IT?
Nothing gets economic commentators quite as excited as predicting what the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), will do next.
This week, most commentators got it right – the central bank announced the cash rate would stay put at 4.1 per cent for a second consecutive month.
Which is good news for mortgage holders, but will it last? RBA Governor Philip Lowe commented that while inflation is coming down, “it is still too high at six per cent”.
However, Westpac’s veteran chief economist, Bill Evans, said the language used by Dr Lowe had shifted and made this prediction: “The next move [by the RBA] is now likely to be the first cut in the cycle, which is forecast for the September quarter of 2024”.
We shall see …
WHEN IN DOUBT, HIRE A CONSULTANT
It’s been liked to an episode of one of our favourite TV shows, Utopia (yes, it is a documentary!), but no, it’s true.
This week, The Guardian reported that the federal finance department has employed an external consultant at a cost of $32,000, to provide advice on how it should engage other external consultants.
Finance minister Katy Gallagher confirmed that Simon Longstaff, the respected and media-savvy chief executive of the Ethics Centre, has been hired to help the department decide how to best engage with consultancy firm PCW Australia and its new spin-off company, Scyne.
WORK FROM… MANILA
Work from home enthusiasts could find themselves replaced by cheaper workers overseas as managers give up on trying to wrangle staff back to the office and look for cost savings.
That’s according to Bob Easton, the newly appointed CEO of Probe CX, a private equity-owned call centre that employs thousands of workers in the Philippines.
Easton told the Australian Financial Review that employees’ unwillingness to work in the office, coupled with rising labour costs and inflation, will force business leaders to find replacements offshore.
“I think a lot of companies will go down the path,” he says.
WHO RUNS THE WORLD? YOUNGINS
Top jobs are traditionally associated with experience, wisdom and let’s face it … grey hair.
But younger people are challenging what leadership looks like with a growing number now occupying c-suite roles.
Management experts say while younger people might not have the traditional leadership traits such as long company tenure and institutional knowledge, their “greenness” shouldn’t be underestimated.
The lack of experience and time spent in the workforce means younger people aren’t bound to stuffy thinking or a lack of innovation. In fact, experts think their progressive thinking and tech-savvy nature makes them a good fit to lead the challenges and opportunities of our time.
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