-: Hi, my name is Chris Thomas,
welcome to Global Strategy and Leadership.
This is a preview to I guess module one,
but really the five things that you need to know,
if you're going to pass the subject.
So our agenda is pretty simple, five things.
Let's start with the quiz,
which is something that we use throughout all the webinars.
So will you be
in the accounting services industry in five years?
And why?
There's no correct answer for this.
But the point of asking it, is to create some context.
Because GSL is important in that if you can't show
that you can provide strategic advice to managers,
C-suite to external clients,
then you may find, your role becoming more difficult
in the next five to 10 years.
We know that because of things like artificial intelligence,
robotic process automation
that's replacing the low level accounting tasks.
So I think it's more likely to be option D,
that you'll be doing this and it also may not be
in direct accounting services type industry.
Very briefly about me,
I've worked across a variety of industries,
I started out as an engineer, working Kraft Foods,
it's a large US company then no longer really exist
in Australia, then Mondelez now, and part of Cadbury.
I then worked in explosives and chemicals and paint,
managing a paint processing factory,
I spent a number of years in strategy roles,
or corporate strategy,
in project roles, at WorkSafe Victoria,
and of course, now I'm here.
But to be honest,
you don't get much in the way
of learning of strategic development,
strategic implementation, out of corporate roles,
as you do if you do your own thing.
So, past projects have included...
And yes, they have not all been successful,
Chatterbox Kids many years ago,
education business, doing not for profit work overseas
in India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan,
solar cells, trying to make solar powered milk chillers,
Pod, you'll see Pod pops up now
and again in the webinars in a couple of short videos,
that's a protein water, that I guess is on the back burner.
It did sell a little bit,
but I didn't get distribution right.
And we'll talk about that a bit more
in Module three, strategic drivers.
And now, I helped Courtney Russell set up KnowledgEquity.
Which is essentially a startup organisation as well.
So number one,
please don't look for shortcuts, they don't exist.
You need to go through the whole study guide.
Our learning materials are there as support,
you don't have to use them,
but of course if you're watching this video,
you're going to probably make an attempt.
So you'll see this from Courtney and others.
Especially in the pre-semester webinar,
and the exam prep webinar.
Our recommendation you don't have to do this,
but it's important for you to understand
that we do not do the work for you.
We're only here to guide you in a systematic manner.
So watch the short videos, read the study guide,
watch the webinar's review tool,
do the module quizzes,
and work your way up to the practise exam.
It's critical that you sit both practise exams
to give yourself the highest probability
of passing the final exam.
In terms of this new study guide,
I find it quite challenging to create a subject map,
but here is my attempt.
You start with external analysis.
You can't go ahead until you understand the industry
that you're working in, the PESTEL factors,
the five forces factors,
competitive drivers based on the competition.
All of these things, has to be quite clear,
before an organisation can go forward.
And then do internal analysis.
From that, you have to come up with some decisions.
And that's about understanding new product development,
new service development, but also markets.
You might want to go into a new market.
We know we've got something
like Ansoff's Product Market Matrix,
so you might want to diversify.
But what are the key things that you need to do?
What are the key risks, that going to be there
if you decide to do geographic expansion?
So after those three things,
a little bit on intellectual property,
but it's not too much.
We get to sort of module five,
and this is selecting our option, and a strategic theme,
and evaluate it, and of course implementation.
Now you may really ask where's the stuff
on the technology insights and where's leadership?
It goes across everything.
So the tech insights they've put in the new version,
bits and pieces were there in the previous one.
This is a good improvement.
Data analysis and new business models is something
that is changing every month.
There are more articles about new disruptive ways
that businesses have come into existing industries,
and you know, change the game as they'd like to say.
And across that,
of course the role of leadership is fundamental,
you'll see that towards the end of each module,
in the study guide,
and so we'll be discussing
it throughout the 10 weeks of webinars.
Please don't start studying in week five.
I say this, but of course many people do.
And I know this, because I get the emails
or the Facebook messages and posts.
So please plan your semester ahead.
That is important message number two.
Three, dive into the materials,
don't stop when you feel confused.
Again, we see this because the questions come in.
And our answer when we read the question is,
you didn't read the next three pages.
So the person gets to a point, they might be tired,
they get frustrated,
they hit what they feel is a mental brick wall,
and they just stop, and then email
into KnowledgEquity or put it into the forums.
A much more efficient way for you guys,
is to just read that extra bit further.
Sure, if you still have confusion,
then that's what the forums are there for.
But often we are answering students with,
please read the next two pages,
and this will explain this particular concept
and probably remove your confusion.
Also though,
we accept that sometimes your brain does freeze.
So that you understand,
there's two key modes that our brain works in.
The focused and the diffuse mode.
Alright?
Yes is a graphical representation here,
It's a bit like a pinball machine.
Basically, in the focus mode,
that's what we do day to day living.
We take small bits of data,
and we store it in the rear part of our brain.
The long term memory.
In the diffuse mode, that's about problem solving.
All I want you to understand is,
to work in the diffuse mode
which is what you need to do for GSL,
to problem solve, to evaluate, to synthesise information.
Please consider things like, making sure you sleep well,
making sure you eat well, that you exercise,
that you try and reduce your stress levels.
And yes, I'm aware we're in the middle of a pandemic.
And also try not to over concentrate,
as I call it, on a problem.
Sometimes you have to walk away from a problem,
or say brick wall that you've hit.
And actually just take 5-10 minutes
or the rest of the day and then come back to it.
Number four, please don't ask a forum question with,
"which page number is on?"
I jump in at the forums when we have other
subject matter experts, but response from me,
will be, no page number. See this time and again,
the student is focusing far too much with GSL.
Thinking perhaps it's like Financial Reporting,
or SMA, or perhaps Tax.
In that there's a black and white number,
a consolidated revenue, deferred tax amount
that we need to put into the P&L.
It's not that subject, it's conceptual.
So a question might cover 22 pages.
All of Module two.
Because there's a question asking you to explain,
or to apply a theory that actually is discussed,
and there's examples across a whole module.
So it's not going to help you look at a question,
finding that you maybe you got it wrong in a quiz
and then immediately say,
I just need to know what page number.
So I can read that page,
and then I'll see the answer in that line of text.
It doesn't work like that.
Five, stay positive.
Please read the news, read the business news.
Feel like you are getting more experienced
or smarter with these concepts.
Because if you read business news,
you will see the information jump out at you.
You'll read an article about say Virgin.
Bain have just bought Virgin, Bain Consulting,
What are they going to do with it?
What are they going to do with these assets?
They're already talking about cutting specific routes.
How are they going to manage their internal drivers?
We know what's happened with the external market, don't we?
We know the macro economic impact,
but what are they going to do now
in order to enable Virgin to survive?
And then probably do an IPO
and flog it off to some shareholders.
Alright, the schedule, now this is just an estimate,
you can see the waiting is 10%, everything else is 15.
You know when your mid semester test is,
you can see also that I've split it out.
Module one probably runs for one and a half weeks.
Same as module two, same as module three.
Module four, probably just a week.
There's not as much in it.
Same as five, maybe a bit more,
six there's a fair bit.
Seven is look it's new, and it's relatively light on.
So you should be okay with that one.
Common questions answered for you right now.
Will we have any live webinars?
Not likely, an outside chance.
Maybe about the same chance as Carlton making the finals.
So if you don't know where Carlton is,
look it up, and you'll realise what the chance is
that I'll be doing a live webinar.
Common questions about the study guide
that I can find answers to.
Areas that you are reading the study guide,
where you think that just doesn't sound quite right.
Yes, I will put an FAQ document in the KnowledgEquity LMS.
But please, please note, it's a work in progress.
So I am working my way
through module five and module six now.
You guys are probably a bit behind,
I will find more things
and what's really good is that you will bring
to my attention other things.
There's a new edition of a study guide,
we have to accept there will be some errors,
there will be some areas of confusion,
and I'll do my best to keep updating that document.
Will the GSL practise exams to reflect the real exam?
Absolutely.
So please make sure you put
in a genuine effort in the practise exams.
Far too many students, three days before their final exam,
sit two practise exams in the space of three hours.
And each one should take you three hours.
They gain nothing from it.
And I can, but won't show you the stats of those people,
and their probability of passing the final exam
when they take that approach.
I can promise you, it is a lower probability
than people that plan out their semester,
and sit their practise exams,
in the roughly the recommended timeframe.
So please do them,
because they do reflect what the real exam will be.
So, more information on study skills and exam prep,
again absolutely but not from me,
Courtney, will record webinars where he answers just
about every possible question ever asked.
Because we've been doing this for five years.
You will see that in a pre-webinar recording's already up,
but you will always see
at the end as well in the exam prep webinar,
and even probably around week five or six
if boot camp goes ahead in terms
of a recorded webinar for that.
Finally,
are the extra cases outside the study guide
that we need to read for pre-webinar work?
In the past it was a yes, but now it's a no.
What I basically found is lots of students didn't get
to cover that materials for whatever reason.
There were two cases.
So now look,
I'm pulling the focus back into the study guide,
the good thing about this new version,
is that there are better examples,
they're longer, they're more like mini cases,
like Zara, like the accounting services industry,
like Mr. Inamori at Japan Airlines in module one.
They're these cases that are really good
for you to use to apply theory, apply, apply, apply.
Which is part of your practise, practise, practise.
If you do that,
I guarantee you will be in a good place for the final exam.
Okay, that's it from me,
you know where to get hold of us.
you're accessing through MYOL obviously,
but there is the GSL@knowledgequity.com.au email,
please if you've got a faster answer
to a technical question go to the forum,
join the Facebook group if you want those sorts of updates,
and otherwise, have a great semester.
Thanks for your time.
Bye