A Message From AmCham's CEO

Article by Niels Marquardt, September 2016

As the end of the year draws nearer, we at AmCham are truly gearing up for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) ratification end game in Washington. Our Trade and Government Committee released AmCham’s TPP Position Paper, which – Inside U.S. Trade reports – calls for a vote to ratify the TPP during the ‘lame-duck session’ of Congress, following the elections on November 8. Right now, the business community needs to be even more energetic in highlighting the benefits of free trade and open markets to business, consumers, unions, and workers. So I invite you to join in making the case for the TPP by contacting your senior executives in the US, and asking them to call on key members of Congress to compel a vote on TPP before the end of 2016. Finally, AmCham is now planning to send another delegation to Washington to knock on doors in Congress after the election to push for TPP ratification. If you are interested in coming with us, please let me know!

On October 30-November 4, AmCham’s Innovation Mission will take us to Seattle and Silicon Valley, home of the world’s most renowned technology giants and innovation pioneers. We will visit iconic innovators like Twitter, HP Inc., Tesla, Boeing, Microsoft, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Stanford University, and more. We still have a few places if you would like to come; check our website for details. You will also see that we are offering three other domestic Innovation Missions before the end of the year: on October 6, we visit six innovative workplaces in Melbourne; on November 10 we will do the same thing around Perth; and on December 6 we will travel around Sydney visiting innovative medical technology centres.

In other news, we bid a bittersweet farewell to outgoing US Ambassador John Berry last week. He will soon commence his new role as President of the AmericanAustralian Association (AAA) in New York. It has been a great privilege to have him as AmCham’s Patron throughout his term here. He has truly embraced that role by being an active participant in the AmCham community, and has been a steadfast advocate of the interests of American businesses in Australia. Whether it was attending our Innovation Mission, travelling to the US with AmCham for the SelectUSA Summit, or making the case for a fairer bilateral tax system, we have been extremely fortunate to have had an Ambassador that is a true AmChampion! Ambassador Berry has brought tremendous integrity, dynamism and good humour to his role – indeed, you would have to have a good sense of humour to still be a committed Richmond Tigers fan! These are all qualities that have endeared him to many of us here.

With Ambassador Berry’s departure, we particularly look forward to working with the new-ish Deputy Chief of Mission, Jim Carouso, as he will be in charge until a new Ambassador can be nominated and confirmed and actually arrives here. Jim is already off to a fast start, having held a series of roundtable meetings with representatives from leading American companies here, discussing issues around trade and the health sector in particular. Jim has a strong record of success in the Senior Foreign Service, having served in a variety of economic and commercial positions across the world, including as a member of the US team negotiating Free Trade Agreements here in Australia over a decade ago. We look forward to seeing Jim and his team at our next ‘Canberra Doorknock‘ on October 12 and 13.

AmCham is also keen to welcome Sydney’s new Consul-General, Valerie Fowler. Val arrives next week from her previous assignment in Washington as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs and we have already set the wheels in motion on a series of welcome and orientation events for her in October. We look forward to Valerie bringing to bear her regional expertise from past postings and her background in public affairs as she begins this new role. We have every indication that both Jim and Valerie will be tremendous partners of AmCham throughout their time here, and we hope to provide many more oppotunities for you to engage with them into the future.

Meanwhile, we have many exciting events coming up right around the country. We have a great line up in Sydney with speakers like Greig Gailey, Chairman of Caltex Australia on October 11, and a panel on ‘Bridging the Gender Gap’ brought to you by our Women in Leadership committee on October 26. In Perth, we have Deborah Terry, Vice-Chancellor of Curtin University presenting as part of our Women in Leadership series on October 19 and Michael Parker, Chairman and Managing Director of Alcoa of Australia on 27 October. Adelaide is bringing you a business luncheon on 21 October unpacking the topic of ‘Oil – South Australia’s Future?‘ To catch all of the live action as the US Election Day unfolds, don’t miss Melbourne’s US Election Event on November 9. Last but not least, in Brisbane we have a panel discussion on ‘Growing the Queensland Economy by Infrastructure and Innovation‘ on 11 November. Check out our website www.amcham.com.au for the full list of upcoming events.

Since my last message, we are pleased to welcome CSL Limited as our newest Premium Member! Please view our newest members here, including the following: Adobe, BSI Group, Resources Global Professionals, Management Consultancy International Pty Ltd, Imatis Australia, Harris Mackay Group, Careers Excelled, Symtech International Pty Ltd, Bootleggers, PBO Global, Australian Screen Association, Murray Trento & Associates Pty Ltd, Data Solutions Group, Crown Perth Limited and SPOKE Public Relations. If you are not already a member of AmCham, now is the time to join and increase your access to opportunity for 2016.

AmCham are now producing and publishing more relevant and interesting content than ever before. The newest edition of Access magazine is out now, and is available to view on the AmCham website. We also encourage you to view the Access BLOG – please contact our office if you would like to contribute. Plus, get to know us socially on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook! And, check out the expanding library of podcasts on www.amcham.com.au, featuring many CEOs and MDs of a range of AmCham member companies.
Until next time,