Saturday, November 23, 2013

What Jackie Saw

A picture paints a thousand words, in this case, a series of photos.  It's been plastered all over our media this week.  The moments leading up to and immediately after President John F. Kennedy was shot. For many people this moment and this footage will be etched into our memory.
 

However, what sticks with me isn't necessarily picked up by the camera.  It is the sheer terror of what Jackie would have seen and gone through in the immediate seconds after her husband was shot.  You wouldn't  wish that on anyone.  From what we know of the extent of his injuries, there really would be no hope that he would have survived something like that and I guess at that time, so would have she.

One minute he is sitting there waving to passers-by, the next minute, he's keeled over, blood everywhere and a good chunk of his head is gone.  The car is still moving, there is no one immediately there to help. At the same time, it dawns on you that your own survival is at stake, so you try to escape over the back of the car.

The sheer terror of going through something like that.  To see body parts of a loved one that should be well hidden.  The conundrum of fight or flight.  Adrenaline kicking in with shock and wanting to know what has just happened?

It's a lovely day, of course a drive in a convertible is a good idea. You're with your husband, the American people are out to see their President.  Who would have thought what happened, happened.



Picture from: 
http://media.smithsonianmag.com/images/zapruder-jfk-assassination-631.jpg

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

The Super Paradox

Women, generally speaking, will be out of the workforce for a few years due to caring needs placed upon us from raising children and for looking after frail parents. Superannuation earnings could be short by $232,500 because of time out of the workforce.

Women who are generally the primary carers, are disadvantaged providing a service to society by not earning, let alone not having additional super contributions made^.

Women, on average, have a longer life expectancy than men. Retirement is at 65, however, with a women’s life expectancy at 83, we’re living on average 13 years without income, relying upon superannuation.

Considering, there isn’t enough super accrued for women, there will be a strain put on the demand for the government funded pension.

Demands on the pension also strain our health care system as pensioners cannot afford private health insurance.

Solution, women will have to work well past the retirement age.

However, who will hire an employee over 60 and at their appropriate skill and qualification level?



References:


^ - The Labor government under Gillard introduces a ‘Low Income Superannuation Contribution’ for people earning up to $37,000/year.


Friday, September 6, 2013

Work 2.0

The concept of 'work' and the way our workplaces function is a construct invented by males.  Women initially joined the workforce and started paid work as a result of most males leaving to go to war.  It was hoped that the women could 'fill in' until the men came back.  When the men came back, a slight concession was made for women to be able to enter paid work until they were married. It wasn't till 1950's and 60's that women were embarking on a career for themselves.

Jumping forward to present day 2013, there is a push to have greater representation of women in organisations; on board of directors, in senior management and in typically male dominated industries such as engineering and transport.  The diversity agenda (in Australia) is firmly being pushed.

Knowing that women have only been active in the labour force for over 50 years and that women still experience a 17.5% inequality of pay, can women really be given a fair go in an environment that has been typically male dominated and designed?

What if we turned things up-side-down? What would 'work' and our 'workplaces' look like if we could re-do it?  What if it were up to women to redesign the way work would work?

Over the last few weeks I've given this a bit of thought.  Here are some of my ideas.
  • Joint or job sharing CEOs (leading by example is the best way to make it seen as a norm)
  • Fully decked out HUB offices opening up across the city (instead of just in CBD, Sydney has a number of areas where these could open)
  • Flexible work arrangements for ALL employees  
  • Extend school hours till 4pm and provide less homework (the hour in school makes up for the hour doing homework but also provides parents more time at work)
  • Additional sick leave days provided to those over 50 (government funded)
  • Typically female dominated professions are paid much higher, entice more males into those industries
  • Weed out the idea of 'gender based professions' and what constitutes gender based activities. Young boys and girls should grow up equally wanting to be nurses, teachers, researchers as well as accountants and electricians.
  • Bonus not tied (or completely tied) to individual performance but to the organisations performance
  • Rewrite job descriptions - take out the fluff, make it easier to understand and also make it easier to work out; part time and job sharing programs
  • Having suits (and ties for men) as dress code
  • 24/7 access to offices/work spaces/Hubs
  • Superannuation paid for all types of leave (including; parental and long service)
  • 24/7 childcare facilities
  • Childcare facilities are available in proportion to where employees are located
  • Improved 2-way loyalty between employers and employees
  • Centralised services (I.E. procurement, admin, payroll, tax, professional development advisers) for small to medium sized businesses.  No one wants to mitigate red tape when they should be growing their business
  • Laptops not desktops, greater utilisation of software, social media, video conference and communication tools.
  • Proper job-for person program for skilled migrants/people on 457 visas.  No point in them coming here if there is no job directly available to them.
Will some of these become a reality with the implementation of the National Broadband Network? Through greater numbers of women on boards and government? Technology such as Google Glass going mainstream? Who know what will happen, but keep watching, it's going to be well beyond the offices and cubicles we know!


References: 
1. http://www.womensagenda.com.au/talking-about/editor-s-agenda/re-imagine-work-could-you-make-it-better-work-for-you/201306072285?utm_source=Women%27s+Agenda+List&utm_campaign=04ac0fd79b-Mon+03%2F06%2F2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f3750bae8d-04ac0fd79b-30603413
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_the_workforce
3. http://www.hcamag.com/hr-news/looking-for-the-ideal-worker-time-to-wakeup-177367.aspx
4. http://www.womensagenda.com.au/talking-about/top-stories/the-cost-of-being-female-64-extra-days-at-work/201309022823#.Uih1pByUlpc.twitter




Monday, July 22, 2013

Advertising on Underbelly

Ever since I can remember, I was always looking up.  Up in the sense that, as I heard the roar of a plane fly above, I would always look up. I'd wave to the plane as my mum would tell me and my siblings to, "say hi to Granny", even though Granny would have flown back home 3 months ago. Slightly older, my brother and I would play the 'guess what plane' that is game. Ah, some things never change, I still play that game, with or without my brother around.

When Emirates started flying to/from Australia it was literally a game changer.  Not only did Emirates have their identifiable tail, but they also had emblazoned on the plane's belly, EMIRATES.


Of course, this also made the 'guess the plane' game so much easier.  No more waiting for the plane to turn, no more tilting my head at awkward angles.

However, after all these years, the only other plane that I see often that also has an inscribed underbelly is JetStar.  In this day in age where all spaces are for sale, how could such a prominent place on a plane be so under utilised?

I did some research and found that only a handful of airlines capitalise on this space.  These include: Emirates, JetStar, Air Berlin, Virgin Atlantic, Fiji Air, Solaseed Air, Qatar Air and Air Asia/Air Asia X.

Utilising this space on the underbelly of the plane would be a marketers dream!  I know that it costs money to paint and maintain it, and that paint is heavy, detracting away from the cargo/passengers it could carry, but it seems priceless.  The brand would exposed to so many people in so many countries.


Surely I can't be the only one in the world who looks up every time a plane flies overhead.  What a missed opportunity!




References:
http://m7.i.pbase.com/g4/89/584089/2/52450667.Emiratesnewunderbellylogo.jpg
Had a little help from my mates who helped me I.D. what other planes have their name on the plane's belly

I designed my "Air Ayesha" at the following site - http://www.skies-unlimited.com/conceptdemo.aspx#/?mode=&item=0