Do you remember the last time you bought a car? Did it come with oil already in the engine? Did you think that you'd never have to worry about oil again because that had been 'done'? Probably not! Engine lubrication is not a one-off activity. We know we need to top-up the oil or the engine will seize up.

AMPEAK is the premier annual conference for Asset Management professionals and this year was held in Fremantle, Western Australia. As a member of the board of the Asset Management Council, it was my privilege to be involved in this event. We had record numbers, a sold out conference, trade exhibition and gala dinner. These are all indicators of the growing awareness and interest in asset management across Australian and around the world.

What can we learn from Agatha Christie?

Outsold only by the Bible, Agatha Christie’s crime novels have sold over two billion copies. For fiction written in English, only Shakespeare comes close in total sales, but he has had a four hundred year head start. In more than eighty novels, Agatha Christie held readers in suspense as they tried to use their ‘little grey cells’ to deduce the villain in a series of nasty murders. Over the years, many theories have emerged that seek to explain the secret to Christie’s success.

How is your company responding to this imperative?

In the 1990s the pharmaceutical industry was in the midst of a biotech boom. Recombinant DNA technologies and biological pharmaceuticals brought novel treatments to previously untreated conditions. For my PhD I researched the top 21 global pharmaceutical companies, who together represented a discrete strategic group. By the end of my four years of research there were 14 companies left. A flurry of merger activity between the dominant players in this industry was driven by the imperative for innovation.

Striking a Chord: Why the Strategy You Internalise Is the Only Strategy You Have​

Recently I attended a concert of fantastic contemporary music for choir and two pianos. There is nothing quite like watching a live concert pianist at work. For two pianists to play simultaneously and keep the harmony and rhythm in sync is very challenging, but amazing to watch when it's done well.

One of the keys to sustainable growth through innovation is to divorce what you own from what you earn. Historically, wealth was linked to land ownership and he who had the most land had the most wealth and power. Kingdoms were built and wars were fought over the ownership of scarce land assets. While land still has value, it's no longer the only way to build wealth.

This month I'm celebrating 15 years in my own consulting practice. In January 2004 I resigned from the job I was in at the time and set out on my own adventure. I haven't looked back. It's been exciting, challenging, rewarding and never, ever dull.

Remembering Brisbane's Flood - 8 Years On.

Antediluvian is one of my favourite words. It has a quirky ring to it and it's unusual enough that if you drop it into a sentence you can really surprise people.

As a kid my summers were filled with cricket. We watched it on the TV and then we'd play cricket at the beach or in the backyard with a transistor radio going so we didn't miss a ball. Some of my earliest memories are of Lillee and Thompson pounding the pitch against the Windies and Allan Border smashing it out in the Ashes. 

​When I was a postgraduate student I had the great privilege to spend some time in the University of Queensland's Fryer Library to examine Peter Carey's original manuscripts for the novel, Oscar and Lucinda. The purpose of my research was to study the author's writing practice. Through six boxes of archived materials I was able to observe patterns in the writer's daily habits and his approach to creating a major new work from the kernel of an idea to the finished novel. 

Economic growth is linked to technological innovation. However, many contemporary organisations are still modeled on a paradigm that pre-dates the industrial revolution. It’s like trying to win a Formula-1 Grand Prix in a Model T Ford.

​'Just as horses were once a status symbol and their pedigree an indicator of the wealth of the owner, cars in the 20th century were more than a mere means of transport. They were a symbol of freedom, a marker of wealth and an object of desire. In the 21st century, the role of the car in our lives is changing.'

Quote from Asset Management for Directors by Dr Monique Beedles

During October and November I ran three BOLT Asset Management Hackathons in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. 

I created the BOLT Asset Management Hackathons as an opportunity for asset managers in high risk environments to explore innovative ideas in a low consequence setting.  

Nine teams participated in three 12 hour events where they collaborated as interdisciplinary teams on real world challenges faced by asset managers. 

It’s only by looking outside your own environment that you can identify opportunities.James Gleick, in his book, The Information, talks about the introduction of the electric telegraph. Gleick says that in 1852, the ‘idea of connecting Europe with America, by lines extending directly across the Atlantic, is utterly impracticable and absurd.’ The impossible was accomplished by 1858. 

​My husband and I spent our honeymoon in France and we had the privilege to enjoy a wonderful lunch at the Ritz Hotel in Paris.

Cesar Ritz was a passionate entrepreneur, with a single-minded vision: to have his hotels be the very definition of elegance and refinement. He wanted his hotel to be a place 'where a Prince would feel at home'.

The Baker Library, Harvard Business School

Even the most talented and successful athletes need a coach. Coaching has been an integral part of my ongoing professional and personal development for many years. Three great coaches have had a significant impact on my career. They've helped me to come out of my shell, gain confidence and improve my resilience. In each case, the coaching experience helped me move on to bigger and better things.

Having a fantastic technical solution is only the first step in creating value. As well as the technical case, you need to make the business case. Part of building that business case is to identify the market.

There are four fundamental strategies to consider when it comes to business growth. Igor Ansoff encapsulated these neatly in his work Corporate Strategy. Although published in 1965, this simple matrix has stood the test of time and remains relevant to businesses today.

An excellent example of how behavioural change was achieved on a large scale, without using financial incentives, was the reduction of water consumption in South East Queensland during a period of extended drought.