The City of Greater Bendigo in partnership with Be.Bendigo is hosting a series of free webinars to provide valuable information and resources to help local businesses through the changing environment as a result of COVID-19.

Businesses registering for the webinar will also be encouraged to send questions relating to the topics under discussion.

The webinars will be held every Tuesday at 12 noon. The topics and dates may be subject to change:

David Robertson, Head of Economic and Market Research for the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank will host Talking COVID-19 – An Economic Snapshot for Regional Victoria on Tuesday June 2 at 12pm.

The webinar will examine the impact of the pandemic on Australia particularly on central Victoria, including the latest unemployment figures and the sectors adversely affected by the global crisis. David will provide insight based on current economic indicators and give an overview of what will be required over the next 18 months to help with the region’s recovery. Registration here

Briana Cowan from Mingle Media will host: Talking COVID-19 - Marketing on social media during a crisis on Tuesday June 9, 2020.

With Australians turning to social media more than ever to feel connected during COVID-19, it is important that your brand/business continues to be present in the newsfeed. Even if you are not trading or trading at a reduced rate, there is still enormous opportunity to market your business. In this webinar, you will learn tips and tricks to market your business on social media and how to leverage the power of social media so your brand stands out. Register here.

Briana Cowan from Mingle Media will host: Talking COVID-19 - Building a social media strategy beyond the pandemic on Tuesday June 16, 2020.

Looking beyond the current situation, how will you get people buying your products and services again? Social Media is an important platform to market your business! When done correctly with a strategy, the results can be incredible. In this webinar, you will learn how to build a social media strategy, we will cover off objectives, content pillars and your target market. Register here.

Leadership and change management expert Pam Macdonald will host Talking COVID 19 Leadership through the pandemic on Tuesday June 23. This webinar will highlight the strengths and skills that have displayed by the most effective leaders during the pandemic and will discuss what impacts this may have on how to lead more effectively in the future, as well as what shifts may be needed in recruitment and skills development plans for the leaders of the future. Register here.

Leadership and change management expert Pam Macdonald will host Talking COVID 19 - Why people keep asking when will it be over- how we respond to change on Tuesday June 30. As an experienced change management professional, Pam will talk us through typical responses to change (both emotional and practical) and and why these responses need to be revised. 

People are generally okay to get through a crisis or something that has a clear end date. What happens to our wellbeing when there is no specific end in sight can be highly destructive. This webinar will cover uncommon beliefs about change, the stages of change and emotion that people go through.

Pam will also cover what leaders and managers can do to communicate accurately and honestly in an environment where they don't have all the information and where the answers are unclear. Register here.

Joe Ciancio from Maxsum Consulting will host: Talking COVID-19 -Phishing for love, masks and money - A look at how phishing emails have changed during the pandemic and how to spot these serious new threats with the right cyber security on Tuesday July 7.

This webinar will explain what you and your team need to be looking out for and how your business can actually use this as an opportunity to start getting cyber security right in your business. Registration here for Navigating Phishing for love, masks and money.

Past webinars available

AFS Chartered Accountants Partner Damien Palmer hosted the first webinar on Tuesday April 28, covering information on the JobKeeper initiative, cash flow management during COVID-19 and information on Federal and State Government support and stimulus packages.

If you missed Talking COVID-19 - Navigating government support and cash flow management, the webinar is available to view here.

Katherine Hietbrink from Robertson Hyetts Solicitors and Conveyancers hosted: Talking COVID-19 - Navigating challenges through employment law on Tuesday, May 5 at 12 noon. The webinar is available to view here.

Anna Doughan from Robertson Hyetts Solicitors and Conveyancers hosted: Talking COVID-19 - Commercial Leasing and Contracts on Tuesday May 12 at 12pm. The webinar covered leasing and contracts, landlord and tenant issues. Please view here.

Joe Ciancio, Managing Director from Maxsum Consulting hosted: Talking COVID-19 - Navigating cybersecurity - Critical IT security steps on Tuesday May 19 at 12pm. The webinar tackled critical IT security measures that have been missed to get remote ready and how to fix them now. Find out what’s missing from your remote working set-up that is leaving your data, your people and your business more exposed than ever. Please view here

Joe Ciancio from Maxsum Consulting hosted Talking COVID-19 – How to use COVID-19 Stimulus Packages to make IT lemonade and hit the ground running on the other side of COVID-19 on Tuesday May 26 at 12pm. Please view here

About the presenters:

Partner/Business Services Damien Palmer, AFS Chartered Accountants

Damien is a Member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is a Registered Tax Agent. Before joining AFS, Damien gained experience as a Senior Consultant within the Corporate Tax Consulting division of Ernst & Young in Melbourne, and as an Accountant within the Business Services division of HLB Mann Judd Melbourne. Damien advises businesses in a variety of industries, ranging from large private companies, family groups and syndicates to small sole traders.

Solicitor Katherine Hietbrink, Robertson Hyetts Solicitors

Katherine provides employment law and human resources (HR) advice to both employers and employees and has worked in management roles within both medium and large businesses.

Among her many roles as a HR professional, Katherine has managed a payroll team, drafted enterprise agreements, supervised large scale business restructures and managed a team of HR advisers. She has broad practical business experience which provides her with a unique approach to HR and employment law. 

Associate Anna Doughan, Robertson Hyetts Solicitors

Anna is a lawyer specialising in commercial law and property law. Having worked in the legal profession since 2004, Anna has gained a broad knowledge in the areas of property law, commercial law, and civil litigation and has been involved in a range of matters from minor leasing and contract issues to Supreme Court trials as well as multi-million dollar out of court settlements.

Managing Director Joe Ciancio, Maxsum Consulting

Joe graduated from Melbourne University with a Bachelor of Science (Computer) and a Bachelor of Engineering (Elec.) The final year of his Computer Science degree was completed at the Tokyo Institute of Technology in Japan.

He spent the next four years living and working IT and electronics industry both in Tokyo and the IT epicentre - San Jose, California USA.

During this time working abroad, he regularly visited and gained an insight into many of the world’s leading IT and electronics companies throughout the UK, Europe, North America, South East Asia, North Asia and the Oceania region. He founded Maxsum Consulting in 2001 specialising in technology consulting, IT security, cloud services and IT infrastructure.

Owner Briana Cowan, Mingle Media

Briana has a vast experience of customer service, sales, account management, marketing, and social media across retail, telecommunications, small to medium business and not for profit. 

After working in corporate marketing for 9 years, she saw an opportunity with social media. Mingle Media was established in 2014.

Over the past 4 years, Briana has worked on accounts and created campaigns for Federal MP's, businesses in Health and Beauty, Real Estate, Hospitality, Fitness, Women's Footwear, Events, and many more.

Every year she attends the Social Media Marketing World Conference in San Diego to keep up with the latest trends and tools.