Business and Finance Symposium
16 April 2024 | Grand Hyatt Melbourne
Join us at our Business and Finance Breakfast Symposium
– Leading city series.
A dynamic event that will shed light on Melbourne's economic prowess, infrastructure advancements, and its distinguished status as the arts and cultural capital of our nation.

This symposium will delve into crucial aspects of Melbourne's economic landscape while addressing pressing challenges, offering valuable insights into navigating economic realities, embracing AI innovation, and incorporating Environmental, Social, and Governance considerations.

Tuesday, 16th April 2024
7:30AM - 9:30AM
(Hot breakfast provided)
Grand Hyatt Melbourne
RSVP
Please advise of any dietary requirements upon RSVP.
If you have any questions, please contact Alegra Underhill on alegra.underhill@rsm.com.au
MELBOURNE BFS 2024
Join us for an engaging and insightful day as we collectively explore Melbourne's economic
Navigating Economic Realities in Melbourne
with Devika Shivadekar
Topic: Exploring broader economic trends and their implications on Melbourne's economic stability.

Discussion: Touching on global economic shifts, trade dynamics, and how Melbourne can strategically position itself to thrive amid changing economic landscapes.
dynamics, the transformative power of AI, and the crucial role of ESG in shaping business landscapes.
AI Update: How AI will Revolutionize Melbourne's Business Landscape with Ian Tho
Topic: How AI is impacting finance, reshaping business
strategies, and contributing to Melbourne’s economic growth

Discussion: Explore prevailing and new opportunities including algorithmic trading, fraud detection and smarter credit scoring in finance. We show how business strategies using Artificial Intelligence would likely accelerate operations and logistics, marketing and sales as well as powering customer service. We reference talent pools locally, the Australian start-up ecosystem, and plans for a smarter Melbourne.  We touch on key lessons from recent initiatives: Melbourne Smart City Strategy; Future Melbourne 2025 plan and “The Future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Australia” by Committee for Melbourne. Activities from AI startups Synchron, Harrison, Clearview and Leonardo will provide insights on job displacement, ethics, and regulation.
ESG Update: Incorporating ESG in Melbourne's Business Environment with Linda Romanovska
Topic: The importance of ESG considerations in shaping Melbourne's business and finance landscape.

Discussion: Delve into sustainable practices, supporting investments in environmental and social initiatives, and governance strategies contributing to economic prosperity and the overall well-being of Melbourne and its communities.
MEET THE SPEAKERS
Devika Shivadekar
Economist - RSM Australia

Devika Shivadekar is the RSM Australia Economist. In this role, she follows key macroeconomic indicators such as growth, inflation, central bank decisions and the labour market to assess the overall health of an economy....

She has over eight years of macroeconomic research experience spanning both public and private sectors, including stints at the Reserve Bank of India and Bank of America. Devika holds a MSc Finance from University of St. Andrews, UK and BA Economics from University of Mumbai, India.

Ian Tho
Partner – RSM Australia

Dr Tho is a Partner at RSM Australia. Prior to this role at RSM, Dr Tho led regional practice teams for Google across the Asia Pacific area as the Head of Data Science & Advanced Analytics (APAC)....

Ian is an acknowledged leader, a much recognised & awarded international luminary in the area of Data Science & Advanced Analytics. Amongst his recent accolades, he was nominated by his peers at the peak body, the Institute of Analytics Professionals Australia as Australia's Top 10 Analytics Leaders. He is a published author of a seminal text published in the United Kingdom by Elsevier on the use of data science to unravel business risk, as well as popular blogs. He is widely known, with over 3 decades of international experience, to deliver simple actionable insights, grounded by immutable evidence from data made usable through pure Mathematics, Semiotics and Behavioural Economics.

Linda Romanovska
Partner – RSM Australia

Linda Romanovska is a senior specialist in sustainability strategies and reporting with over 15 years of experience in the field....

Her expertise extends to broad sustainability considerations in both private and public sectors, including ESG governance, target setting and monitoring, climate change and transition policies and plans, ESG risk integration, adaptation and resilience planning, natural capital accounting, mobilising sustainable finance and designing sustainable investment frameworks. Linda has been appointed to several high-level advisory bodies to governments locally and internationally supporting the development of policies and standards for sustainable finance and corporate sustainability reporting.

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