Outsourced to Poorer Experiences

 Outsourcing in various forms can illustrate its inherent disadvantages, lack of quality and disservice to paying customers.

Outsourcing is now a pervasive option by government, businesses and providers to firewall themselves, in their self centred reasoning, from higher costs, responsibilities and liabilities.  By contracting, not just once or on a temporary basis, the growing army of such providers, now beg more questions than answers.  Outsourcing is growing to be a mixed bag of a solution.  

Are contracts for tasks or series of deliverable outcomes performed by people who know what they are doing?
Is due diligence carried out on selected contractors?   Are contractors actually qualified or technically capable to successfully carry out what they promise or supposed to do?

Do people, who are given the outsourced contracts,actually doing the work?  Many are just brokers or middle men who then engage another layer of staff to do the work.   Think of solar panel installation  businesses, mortgage outsourcers, child care operators, medical  and aged care services.    Huge amounts of money received from government often attract operators with insufficient knowledge or experience to deliver.  Taking the grant first is a priority.

Are such lower level hired outsourced staff given proper levels of training, customer service and related skills? 
Are such staff in contact with customers really specialised in their niche work or do they really work in several different roles throughout the week?

Are the outsourced providers monitored in their performance, or the entities granting the contracts do not have much contact with them after agreeing to the outsourcing?

Members of the public are the ones interacting directly with such outsourced people.  We do not get to see the presence of the entity which has contracted them. 

Several years ago,  when we were  asked to connect to NBN, we never saw any NBN employees or managers.   We dealt with individual contractors, often recent migrants, who knocked on our door - such contractors told us they have to maximise the number of installations per day.    When some problems ensued with the NBN installations,  NBN was adamant they did not want us to contact them but we had to enquire our retail providers of wifi.

Even a simple experience of catching a railway bus at Central Station Sydney can bring out the down side of experiencing outsourced staff in action.

It was Saturday 29 March 2025, a dreadful weather time of sudden heavy showers, gusty winds and slippery surfaces.   Not that I like to use public transport on weekends to go to and from the Big Smoke these past few years - transport schedules are changed, delays are common and sudden changes often occur.

That Saturday no old style commute trains were running from Central in Sydney cbd to the South Coast of NSW.  Ah, I was grateful to have replacement buses instead.  Coming to the correct tent for me to catch the right coach to where I wanted, I was surprised that the staff told me they do not work for Sydney Rail, as they are contracted employees under outsourcing.

Even more fascinating was the conviction by this outsourced guy that he does not report to Sydney Rail.   He said he has another different outsourced job at night and he has no idea of how to answer various questions from commuters.  He only was working for a few hours in the Rail bus tent and only does what he was told.

There was also no indication of where the set up tents to catch the replacement Rail buses were when one came out to the Concourse - but that is another problem of lack of communication  by Sydney Rail top management to commuters.

Back to outsourcing.  Outsourced employees tend to work in silos and are unable to give a holistic understanding or appreciation of the bigger process to customers.  Not my problem.   When asked who next to approach, usually is they do not know.  And I really do not blame them.   Customers are left on the lurch. Check online, but the app or website does not have the information.

Paying customers are increasingly asked to self manage.    Entities selling them services or goods do not want to physically meet or communicate with other human beings who are providing the revenue.   Head Office tells us they have contracted out that part of process we are having problems with.  Outsourced staff tell us we have to resolve our problems with someone else.

When we face matters with outsourced providers, it may not be serious.  When significant issues arise with physical, financial, health and infrastructural consequences, do really ponder.

#yongkevthoughts

Repeating and Rhyming

 "History does not repeat itself, but it rhymes."

Whoever is attributed to have first made that quote, Mark Twain or someone else, does not really matter.

More important is what seems to rhyme again, after historical lessons are not learnt.  Do events seem to occur again in varying forms, more because human beings as a society are embedded in their ways, mindset and political behaviour?

History seems to repeat when we reflect on the fall of massive empires.   We are told that such political behemoths were not eventually sustainable due to rebellions, food insecurity, loss of trading hegemony, religious change, collapse of governance, etc.

The things that made empires great no longer exist when such entities begin to collapse.   Borders have been transgressed,  militaries have been gutted, foreigners have made incursions and the last generation of rulers were not made with the same guts and talent as the empire founders.

The rules, checks and controls that made an empire great in its heyday no longer exist by its end.   Rome was an ideal when it was managed by Senators - then came dictatorship and disorder. 

The last Chinese dynasty rotted and collapsed when it looked inwards rather than adapt and adopt the challenges of a new world order.   The Ottoman rulers could not hold on to various and diverse corners of their vast lands.  The last vestiges of the Soviet Union promised better political freedom but not economic opportunity.  The Japanese imperialists ventured out beyond their islands on a hunger for natural resources available in the rest of Asia, but floundered when it got hit with the early version of terrifying nuclear war.

The Moghuls did not survive the onslaught of colonials who came with better technology, divide and rule strategies and a sweeping rush of the growing British Empire ( where once the sun never set upon her colonised lands).  The British Empire became a shadow of itself by the 1970s but still holds the allegiance of Canada, Australia and New Zealand through Governor- Generals.

So which next contemporary empire is gradually destined to fall?

And then there are corporate collapses.  East Asian thinking notes that businesses do not last beyond three generations of ownership.   When a successful idea is over run by competition, contrition, conviving of narrow mindedness by its Board or top management and lack of capability, its inability to change often overwhelms its outdated structures held on and modus operandi.

If customers and suppliers are berated or not appreciated, the foundations of a business are quickly torn apart, unless one dominates the market. 

When channels of sale and delivery or nature of market are significantly changed, inflexibility and lack of innovation are sure doom sayers.   Think of Kodak, Tupperware, the taxi industry, television channels, etc.

Rhymes of history affect us in parts of our everyday lives.

Why are infrastructure like highways and railways built with generous contracts given to private equity with the public taxpayer holding the repayment liability?

Why are casinos encouraged and thriving with not much concern about the social costs?

Why is priority given for immediate profits rather than concerns for environmental or public health?

Why are so many aspects of life privatised by government, with lack of monitoring of the performance and behaviour of those given public grants to run a service?

Even when there is obvious grief, disappointment and underperformance from those privatisation exercises, most Governments carry on in the same way, Australian Royal Commission hearings and recommendations or not.

Why are unhealthy foods allowed to lure, captivate and be consumed by individuals based on convenience, with lack of disclosure of balanced information and low cost driven with turnover emphasised revenues?

Despite the obvious sufferings incurred from outbreaks of war and use of aggressive weapons, the "civillisation" of human societies and geopolitics thrive on division, aggression, arnaments and conflict, rather than more seriously embrace shared values and moral practice.

Human selfish tribal mores over ride many alternatives - that is essentially driving the repeat of historical human behaviour and outcomes.

The specific players on the world stage can change, but not the acts, drama and memory.

What is the point of knowing and understanding history?  To know the past is to prepare for a better future - in theory at least.

History can rhyme but stand out leadership can break or reduce the cycle.   Such a leadership need not be from the political or religious field.

#yongkevthoughts

Becoming A Customer

 Human pyschology in approaching purchases - a deal, a package, a commitment, an arrangement or a perceived need - can be fascinating, bewildering or just being held captive.

Try assessing whether you would enter into the following product arrangement.

1.    You pay upfront in money for a promise of services.

2.     The annual charges increase every financial or calender year - and will definitely be charged more if we had breached some detailed promise on our part.

3.     You are asked to disclose personal details of yourself, your lifestyle and your movements before the product is sold to you.
There is no guarantee your privacy is protected in practice in the data base of such providers.

4.    Legislation makes it compulsory for you, your entity or business to have  or require the product.

5.  The people, software robot or website interface you deal with, after buying the product, have a different personality or customer interactive approach after you buy from them.

6.    The contract for such products is purposefully made complex, utilises legalise and high sounding technical terms and has so many pages that turns off most customers from ever reading it.

7.     There have been rogue players in the product sector that you want to deal with.  Gross breaches of contract, uncivil behaviour and unexplained penalties have been landmarks of such providers.

8.    Authorities and governments have declared such providers as too big to fail.

9.    Such providers often hold us as captives by luring us with peanuts and diversions as earning points, making us buy things we do not need and make us wait for a long time before we can claim our membership rewards.   The common thread in such provider programs are getting us to be involved in churning of transactions that add volume and margin to their business.

10.    Promises of payback, claims and refunds of our upfront financial payments are laced with conditions, percentages ans administrative splitting of hairs.

#yongkevthoughts

Thoughts in the Course of Life

 The coverage of news and communication powerfully funded media dishes out to us can be fickle, ever changing and held captive by selfish interests.

Freedom of access to what we need to know, has been replaced by manipulation, of such a freedom, to that of us being subject to propanganda, political brain washing and strongly vested interests.

Here are some of the news that we are rarely reminded of.

That things and experiences we seem to get for free and access so easily rob us of more significant personal costs.

That promises to reimburse us, upon the occurence of specified events, regularly drain us of our earnings as cash cows.  Such parties can play on the emotion of fear, risk and misplaced assurance.

That repeated behaviour of consumers can be the most rewarding of revenue source to parties that sell products and services to them.

That market capitalism and privatisation increasingly do not work in the interests of ethical behaviour.

That nutrition, medicine and health treatments can start with what you regularly consume and your lifestyle -  ending up with what only takes care  of symptoms and not the cause of it all.

That constant reinforcement of beliefs, right, wrong or dubious, emphasised on to the public can eventually work.

Just reflect more of these in your personal and family experience.

#yongkevthoughts

Purchasing Choices

 

The duopoly of supermarkets continues across Australia, as corporate muscles are flexed against suppliers, staff and customers in a relentless obsession of growth in profits, dominance and control.

I support more of stand alone independent grocers and direct producers, they have more variety on their shelves.  As prices in Coles and Woolies have gone up, they cannot compete price wise with some independent grocers, especially ethnic ones like Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indian, etc.

My strategy now is to be mindful of selected items of grocery to buy - and suppport small business in my locality as far as I can. A more focused approach helps to avoid wasting expenses on addictive food, zoom for more quality in edibles and exercise our minds and hearts in better choices with discretion.

Fresh eggs are not bad at Aldi, they do not shelf them in fridges like Coles and Woolies. Fresh milk at Aldis is a good buy, but at the same time there can be a lot of distracting products at Aldi outlets.

More distracting is the preponderance of products laden with sugar, salt, preservatives and fat at the main supermarkets.  Do walk the aisles and make up your own mind.

If one resides in an Australian regional area, I understand there can be a lack of choice -  and one depends more on the duopoly.

This is echoed in the lack of competition especially in the Australian sectors of domestic air travel, pharmacies and banking.

Fresh produce markets are fascinating to me, but generally since Covid, prices have spiked st such stalls, even if quality is maintained.

I have also dabbled in ordering online offers of groceries and white goods - some provide free  and next day delivery at the very latest.
The physical store model is increasingly under threat - the way some businesses are treating customers is viewed in disdain by more people I know.

Need we visit a supermarket venue to get essential food?  We step in such places and we observe some using them for social chats.  We also note the rise in self managed check outs with narrow spaces.  Cameras are attached to monitor the movement of human beings.
Pyschological games are played with posters put up by the supermarket to induce us to buy, but which underestimate our level of intelligence.

Do reflect on the huge numbers of real estate such supermarkets sit on, they can easily get into the commercial property game once they stop selling food.

There has truly been this relentless drive to know what you and each family have bought in the past to shape millions of purchasing profiles.   The underlying rationale is that once you buy something, you will buy it again.   This model excludes the very possible human trait of not purchasing the same thing ever again - and the right to have a significant change in taste.

The use of membership cards implies the giving of peanut reward points to customers.

The duopoly puts its bets on greater convenience, habitual pattern of spending and lack of competition for the majority of the population to
regularly visit its outlets.  They are also experts in marketing, human behaviour and commercial practices.  

#yongkevthoughts

Energy Market Dynamics - Australia

 

What is still happening to the energy supply market across Australia?

1.  Huge  multinational energy corporates pay less in wholesale prices for gas and electricity resources from Australia, than retail consumers do within the nation - partly due locked in long term contracts allowed.

2.   Aging coal plants that are due to close soon are symbolic of socio- political issues in regions that have prospered in the past but now struggle economically to face a changing future.

3.    Renewable energy sources are not enough at this stage to replace coal  and traditional ones in sustaining supply to an inceeased population.

4.  The energy market in Australia has been totally outsourced by the Canberra Federal government to so called free market players in the form of only a handful of wholesalers like Aus Grid and Endeavour Energy - allocation has been made for monopoly by geographical areas.

Only the Western Australian state government has been wise and practical enough to ensure their domestic customers get enough supply before allocating supply to overseas wholesalers.

Just like any wise government would take care of its own people first.....

5.   Wholesale private players within Australia then farm out energy supply allocation to retail players like Origin, AGL, Energy Australia, etc.
Such retail players are huge in domination of the domestic market, have become agressive to consumers in utilities  and also said to have interlocking non- Australian interests.

There is an unwillingness by government in Australua to implement measures like price ceilings and caps on charges for essential goods and services. 

7.   Like for mortgage loans, consumers can choose between variable and short term fixed rates for daily supply and usage.

The few players at wholesale supply level already make it possible for them to likely and allegedly squeeze retail players fighting for profit margins in a market for essential utility needs of everyone.

8.  Australia is a major producer of energy resources, yet its residents do not enjoy the benefits of such bounty, due to potential
and alleged market manipulation, lack of strategic and forward looking planning by governments,  poor political leadership for many years and alleged strong interlinks between big business and those in power.

9.   No critical reserve of gas and electricity resources are maintained nationally as part of disaster planning and national strategy.

Note that Australian national emergency reserves in petroleum are kept in the USA. Makes one think!

10.   Although it is easy for retail customers like me to change energy providers (portability without exit penalties), most properties in Australia are not built in an energy efficient way.

#yongkevthoughts

Why, How and What Not

 Why is is that Yum Cha is never served like on a sushi train, with diners sitting around a carousel and picking up the moving  tapa sized plates?

Why are not more different culinary dishes served in small snack sizes late at night to accompany laughter, the party mood and small shots of alcohol after midnight?

Why are not more non Japanese restaurants using the useful Bento boxes to showcase samples of their food?

Why are serves of food still sticking to rather large bowls or plates - and diners wanting small serves are not catered for?

Why does the asking price for simple street food dramatically rise in price with the addition of a piece of seafood?

Why do we appreciate knowing the source and origin of ingredients used in our restaurant serves?

Do we welcome complimentary serves of appetisers like Korean Banchan - or hot piping soups and free fruit platters at the start and end of Cantonese banquets?

Must hot curries be accompanied by cooling yoghurts or pickled vegetable slices?

Must fries accompany battered or deep fried seafood?

Is sitting around a simmering hot pot or grill adding to the sharing of eaten food?

Why are dumplings found across Russia, Austria, Poland, Italy, China, Korea, Mongolia and south-east Asia?

Why do Thais traditionally use forks and spoons instead of chopsticks?

The Middle East, Mexico, Ethopia, Indian subcontinent and south east Asia encourage the use of hands to help down food at meals.

Why are Italian pasta hardly used in Chinese cooking - and Chinese noodles not used in Mediterranean cooking?

Why are diners forced to agree to 90 minute sessions of meals, hurried up especially in crowded suburban and city locations?

Why is the cooking fire and heat preserved endlessly through so many years in several traditional restaurants?

Why do most restaurant operators not own their venues?

Most eating places in Australia no longer open for the whole day.

Why is it mostly so difficult to find reasonably good eats near transport hubs?

#yongkevthoughts

Interdependencies!

 

When I had an unexpected electrical supply cut:

I did not have wifi to phone the related electricity wholesale supplier for help.

It was single digit temperatures outside during a winter night, so I learnt to appreciate when I could easily keep warm inside by the flick of a switch.

I could not boil kettle water to make a hot drink for comfort - nor cook on the stove top.

I had to depend on battery powered devices to shine a light in the dark.

I had to just read a good book beside a solar garden light, as my electronic interface devices had run out of power - and there was no electricity to recharge the power banks.

I had to take a cold shower and could not do the laundry.

I could not open automatically operated doors, windows or gates.

What do they always say, "Never put all your eggs in one place".

You can still rely on your separate and independent sources of power, away from the commercial grid, if you have them.  As the population grows, as supply chains get disrupted, as the number of suppliers are fewer and more events outside our influence and control arise,  it is more important than ever to update our personal and collective risks.

Do we have a back up choice if petrol prices hit the roof at the bowser?  EVs still require us to use electrical power, the critical question is from.which source do we generate the electric power for such vehicles.

Gas may cause breathing health issues indoors if not used properly, but can be a back up to electricity for hot water and cooking requirements. 

Looking further beyond to diversify your business or personal needs, do you depend on only a single provider for most of your needs? Remember several retail providers, whether in insurance, tourism, telecommunications, food supply, construction or utilities, can be owned by the same parent company - and if the latter collapses, we can find ourselves with the carpet being pulled under.

Large businesses around the world tend to be vertically integrated, owning different parts of the chain of sourcing, production, logistics and sales - so if your business is dependent on such scenarios, do prepare for back ups, not just in supply, transport and parts, but also in the higher risks of being pressured in pricing dynamics.

Review your dependencies, whether in over relying on a small range of markets, customers, suppliers, revenue options, sales channels or only a few large players that can make or break your choices.

#yongkevthoughts

The Changing Supermarket

 

So I noticed the new packaging, smaller serves and higher prices charged.

Just dropped by a mainstream supermarket, which does hold a duopoly advantage in a business sector vital to everyone's lives in a nation of around 25 million.

Perhaps it is just me, but the increased processing of food is so obvious on their aisle shelves, as opposed to the more pleasing sight of natural produce.

Ready made meals with more preservatives.  Bites and packages that utilise latest food technology but coldly hiding behind manufactured artificiality.
Convenience emphasised with the furthest distance from the natural producer.

So much sugar, so much salt and other chemicals.  Edibles over standardised in look and formula.  So many items looking like clones and fulfiling measurements that cater to logistical and cost imperatives, rather than appealing to our human instinctive need for variety.

The inevitable self check out of the future is reinforced by the opening of only one cashier's aisle.  The seeping dominance of contactless payment methods is already foreshadowed by less direct contact between staff and customers.

Still, old fashioned pyschological methods to spur unplanned purchases, mixing of items with big discounts and high margins plus the attention placed on certain brands continue to be deployed.

More home brands at lower prices seem to oust separate brands not so connected with the supermarket chain.  Many of such home brands are made in the same factory.  There is a continuing hum about the significant hold by such supermarket chains  over producers, who increasingly have to decide on take it or leave it realities.  Too big to fail can summarise the powerful ability of such businesses.

Fruits and veg look not so appealing in the remaining fresh produce aisles, compared to what is on offer in local outdoor markets.  Milk is sold with labels stating it is sourced from various Aussie producers, rather than proudly naming the farm. 

Go figure.

#yongkevthoughts

Corruption and Manipulation

 

Ethical standards and practice have significantly fallen around
the world.

The levee against corruption, rorting and monies stolen from the public in many sectors have collapsed.

Is it the system?  Is it the manipulation of the system?
Is it that third parties do not call it out when breaches occur?

Is it because I observe, but do not say anything and do nothing more?

Does it go deeper into the mindsets, of those individuals in and with the power, getting more greedy?

Is it because the common person like me is easily fooled?

Is it because I am part of the corrupt system, willing to pick up peanuts strewn on the ground by individuals who rake in millions in cash?

The manipulation by the corrupt few will only grow, if nothing further is done more effectively, apart from reporting after the fact, discussing and talking.....as the said levee continues to go under.

#yongkevthoughts

Costco Revisited

 Costco Australia - navigating between the aisles.

It is said the main revenue for Costco derives from the annual membership fees. The rest is just bonus income for this business model.

Costco shelves are chock a block with seeming captivations, but one has to often buy in bulk - and this best suits small business operators, large families and those with ample home storage space.

Not everything is a bargain at Costco, but they do sell an increasing variety of items from petrol for vehicles, coffins, optometrist services, white goods, health supplements, liquor and fresh bakery consumables. In USA, the range is even more, offering for example jewellery and tour programmes.

Their trolleys are bigger than their retail competitors.  One can be lulled into stacking so many items in the trolley, but checkout can be a hassle, and on getting out of the Costco door, customers have to show their receipts to inspectors who also make a visual audit of the items in your trolley.

Never go to Costco on a busy day.  There is no social distancing, no face masking and at times, observed possible lack of civility in the behaviour of the crowds.

Costco pricing does awaken at least one thing in me - our main stream supermarkets are charging us more than a bit as they make it a routine to go to them to buy.

There are only three Costco outlets in NSW, centred on huge population hubs in Greater Sydney.  This says a lot abour their emphasis on having a large viable market base before they establish any branches.

Continuing Change

 

Artificial software increasingly replaces human interface.

Real human experiences are sidelined by virtual ones.

The enjoyment of writing is downgraded by clicks and quick phrased audio instructions.

Creativity is reduced in the art and science of photography.

Truth and facts are suppressed by manipulation.

Durability is replaced by instant gratification.

Organic and natural benefits are deemphasised by chemical induced produce and products.

Greed overtakes civility and ethics.

Short term priorities overlooks the multiplier impact on the future.

Volume in turnover rewards business more than loyalty to customers and recognition to staff.

Getting away with exploitation continues.

The need for consumer goods and electronic devices are caught up in commercial churn.

So called denocracy has been hijacked behind doors and in our face.

Repairs of manufactured things are more costly than buying a new one.

The credibility of marketing and advertising fizzles out when we use more of our intelligence to respond to them.

The masses are continuing to be fed an addiction that I do not even realise in my self.

Customer focus is downgraded by emphasis on window dressing performance outcomes and need to have ever more sales.

We must not be distracted by temporal matters, but value what is eternal and more reliable.

Perhaps what is consistent is change, but below the hype of change, is our ability to recognise what continues to not change.

#yongkevthoughts

Not Post Apocalypse, But It Can Be

 Around a year after the reported arrival of Covid 19,  we walked around the main street of a most familiar stomping ground - one of many comparable suburbs around Australia.  This one is served by a functioning rail station, albeit a secondary line outside a capital city.  The years leading to 2020 has seen a spike in small retail outlets, mainly in food, grocery, coffee, basic health services, household needs and nothing too fancy.  I did note that this micro economy was mainly based on consumption and a quiet lifestyle - and not so much on investment except in constructing more residential units.

The future of an economy, big or small, need not be fully tied to its past.   What sustained in history can no longer be relevant.  Changes coming in the future need to be worked out to take advantage of them.  The Covid 19 year has not been kind to the viability in spending at small businesses, which do form the back bone of the Australian economy.  It underscores the urgency for innovation, transformation and longer term planning in what we do at various levels of our personal lives, the health of our community and the financial growth of society.

Walking down on the still well maintained pavements (several had in fact been upgraded by Council recently), I observed that some long standing shops had gone, but replacements still are mired depending on personal consumption.  The long standing chemist near the main set of lights has gone, but the pub still is there.  The suburban version of a bank branch, ethnic culinary restaurant and medical centre all survive, but the travel agent is closed.  There is no significant sign of the future possibilities - are there shops writing analytical programmes, experimenting with new business models and tapping into cost wise customer interaction platforms?  We still depend on petroleum to drive us, our food supplies and online orders of purchases.  There are more solar panels on roofs in this neighbourhood, but mostly we still have an energy supply grid that relies on coal, monopolistic players and political demands.

For a long while, I reflect on the state of business in that suburb in early 2021.  A cafe has turned into a barber shop, a corporate child care business has been swallowed up by a bigger rival and one of the existing chain supermarkets is getting more shabby.  On the brighter side, the Returned Service League has renovated and improved its operations, while vehicle traffic on the main road - Princes Highway -shows the return of more paying customers.  Underlying like a strong thread of commonality are signs of ageing of society here -  with medical related services vying with cafe activity.

There is also an increased presence of franchised and chain business operations, with names that started in the nearby Big Smoke and replicating its operations for new markets in areas with growing residential population.  Does it mean better service?  Not necessarily, as staff can be put under more pressure, delivery can become more impersonal and performance  is watched like an eagle to achieve revenue targets.   What retail banks went through in the past 30 years at the street level is now beginning to be happening with other retail businesses.

Disenfranchisement of the work productive young can be forecast in such a suburb.  Schools are busy but their graduates look to greener pastures outside this suburb. The nearby university has learnt in a disturbed way the over reliance and non diversification of its student markets from overseas.   The regional town and area is not earmarked for any exciting specialisation in growth of a forward looking technology.  The region grew because of extraction of natural resources and it still depends on such income.  The place is not in any ruling Government's macro plan to provide any public services.  Without any medium and longer term vision, the region has become more residential than pro-active in improving its lot.   Even its city centre landscape has evidently become more reliable on stamp duty and Council fees than something more promising.

Potential advantages of the region - a clean environment, human talent and development of businesses of the future - are under played.   I would not say this area has been caught in a time warp, but neither is it moving forward to move out of its usual problems and issues.  Somehow I suspect the attitude is more inward looking than asking "Why Not?".   Does the region want to grab an opportunity not to be an appendage of the nearby capital city?   Does the region not want to utilise the unique offerings of its hinterland?  Does the region just want to be content to be a sea change for people?

What Do You Read For Leisure These Days?

 In an age of information overload, increased screen time and competing media seeking your attention,

what do we read for leisure these days?

Or do we even  think of going for the written word as an option.....

We get visual clips, often brief ones, shared with us from the social media network.

Photographs can truly be better than a thousand words in conveying so many things.

We have access to virtual and true computers in varying sizes in the course of a day's routine - the smart TV, tablets, mobile devices and desktops.

I baulk at times at having to read long passages of messages, as if I really do not have the time to saviour them, even if some of them can still be inspiring, humorous or useful to know.

Then there are those long PDFs in small font, not user friendly when we read them on the mobile smart phone when on the go between appointments in public places.

Moments When Our Fingers felt the Paper

Long ago, many individuals thought first of grabbing the newspaper after waking up - and like having a Linus blanket from the Peanuts cartoon strip, these same persons would be holding the print in their arms.

These mornings, it is a better bet they are seen either holding their hot beverage or mobile device, rather than any newspaper.  Or their sports gear!

Not slowly, but surely, the printed medium has significantly dropped its utilisation of wood plantations, naturally growing trees and Nature's growth product.

Where societies and consumers may be using less paper, we are increasingly dependent on more electricity and better performing Wi-Fi, not just to read, but to run our gadgets, critical systems and life routines.  If there is a water or natural gas supply cut, we can still react better than when electricity and Wi-Fi supply problems arise for households, commercial outlets and community grids.

When things do work, we still may have exchanged convenience for higher vulnerabilities and risks.  We pollute the environment when we continue to practice the throw away mindset  - this time it is not recyclable paper but more challenging chemicals, toxic metals and unrecyclable materials.

Choices Have Narrowed, The Pleasures Have Been Diluted

The number of periodical publications in Australia has significantly dropped over the past 30 years.  Local magazines are mainly been confined to lifestyle, speculative and low level content.  Just walk into any newsagent and it is so evident.  The revenue contribution from publications to such newsagents has gone down so much they have wisely taken up being outlets for banks, Australia Post and other ventures.

Even from overseas, the extent of publications that used to criss-cross the world every day on air and sea transport have come to a sorry state.   Yes, they now are transmitted in cyberspace.  Changing parameters in the viability of the news publishing trade, kicked off by falling advertising revenues over several years, have come in addition to the challenges from media platforms that can reach actual and potential customers simultaneously in the blink of the eye.  Not only are traditional publishers feeling serious transformation of their business, but the number of mega owners behind so many mastheads across the Globe have become the privileged few.

Seemingly eternal publications like TIME, the Australian, The UK Times, the South China Morning Post, Newsweek, the Washington Post, the Straits Times and the Wall Street Journal are still operating, but most of them under different owners.  Not many remember other titles like the Asia Magazine, The Bulletin Australia, the Australian Business Review, LIFE and People as they are no longer publishing.

Do reflect on when we came across more independent reporting, boldly proclaiming information and data that most mainstream newspapers avoid?  These days such boldness become so rare in view of rising financial costs, litigation and less liberal political tolerance.   When they do arise these days, they are small outfits, always online and so like the guerrilla on the fringe.  Many publications, whether toeing the line of the powers that be or not, ask for donations from online readers  - hence this has led to the subscription payments required if you want to read more than just the headlines.

One of the key features of an Enlightened and more tolerant world is the freedom of expression across the country in newspapers churned out in small towns and various regions across a country.   What do we get these days?   The merger of television news channels news with online publications and print mastheads under the same eventual owner has instead led to the uniformisation and greater editorial control of news content.   The concept of supplying news around the clock - instead of at a set time every evening when everyone gathered around the living room - has diluted the enjoyment of jointly sharing the experience of finding out significant news developments.  And mind you, who gathers much in groups these days, as we are encouraged to go into more personalisation routines, even before Covid?  It can be so disheartening to watch newsreaders read out the same lines of news repeatedly on media.

Increasing Regular Use of our Eye Power

Most of us utilise more of our ears and eyes, less of our muscles, sense of smell and agility in our contemporary lifestyle.   The urbane will not even go out to get their meals, they have it delivered to them.  Think of your own personal lifestyle - your eyesight is vital.  Gaming, communicating, doing business, etc.

Perhaps stimulating our eyes to a more diverse and stimulating set of profiles each day becomes important.   Switch from bright white light screens to calming greens and blues of the outdoors.  Our eyes are more significant now for identification purposes in public places,  Still, the written word can be the most common use for our eyes - texting messages, clicking an option or when stimulating our minds for further thoughts.

So perhaps my question at the very beginning of this write up - what do we read for leisure these days - can be redundant.   We are increasingly reading all the time, so when we do not have to, we better do other things.

Illawarra Coast NSW - My Surviving Favs

 

On the Illawarra coast, we live a relatively free lifestyle devoid of
severe movement restrictions related to Covid 19.

Eating outlets have been reopened for dine in from July 2020. Fresh produce markets, cafes and supermarkets have witnessed bounce back in business.  There are no caveats on travelling north to Big Smoke Sydney and south, further north or west to regional areas.

So in gratitude, I list the outlets that still operate and carry on the good work they have been doing even before the arrival of the Coronavirus - and which I still drop by   from time to time.

Nowra - The Deli on  Kinghorne.

Berry - Queens Cafe.

Lake Illawarra - Fish and Chips.

Warilla Mall - Baker's Delight and Mitchell's.

Warrawong Westfield - Country Grocer, Fish Feast and the Coffee Emporium.

Figtree - Coles.

Wollongong -  My Lan, Kurtosh, Kinn Thai, Da Orlando, Lagoon, Harbourside, Aqua Cafe, Utopia Cafe and Boston Espresso.

Fairy Meadow - Broken Drum Cafe, Fedora Fresh Pasta, Massimo Papa Patisserrie.

Balgownie - El Nido and Mad Cup Cafe.

Towradgi Beach - Hello Darling Cafe.

Corrimal - Sam's Crusty Bread, Haven Cafe, Manjits.

Woonona - Mountain Meats, Moon Sushi, Three Beans.

Woonona Beach -  Northbreak Cafe.

Bulli - Bulli Seafood and Meats, Timbermill Cafe.

Thirroul -  Black Market Roasters.

#yongkevthoughts

Threesomes with a Difference

 

Singapore is surrounded by a peninsular, islands big and small, trading routes, channels and seas. It is an island itself, albeit with reclaimed land fringes, but it is also an island beyond the geographical meaning of the term.

Singapore thrives on differentiation.  Its dynamics, governance drivers and ability to grow thrive on offering something which its neighbours cannot, to the same degree.

Myanmar just had a military coup.  Vietnam is communist, together with Laos.  The Phillippines and Kampuchea have had more tumultous experiences in politics.  Thailand and Malaysia are technically constitutional monarchies in varying forms.  Timur-Leste and Papua New Guinea became fledging democracies after independence, but have not reached maturity in governance.  Indonesia is a federation of several cultural regions that has so much land size and population in comparison to the city state of Singapore.

So what captivates the rest of South-east Asia to offerings by Singapore?  Reassurance, relative stability, better reliance and constant progress - just like Switzerland to Europe.  Not just in being a transport hub, infrastructure provider, banker, shipping safety harbour, medical and education excellence provider, a place with good social cohesion structure,  technology facilitator, military capability displayer and strategic planning thinker - Singapore is ever the middleman, broker and trader.  As long there are transactions to be churned and there are problems elsewhere,  there is commission, value add and profit to be made, as Singapore beckons the talented, the visionary and the adventurer.

Both Indian and Chinese cultures have significantly infused the South-east Asian make up for umpteen years, before the arrival of Islam and Colonialism added further layers of social and political influences.  Today's Singapore can be said to be a microcosm of this historical accumulation and interaction - and yet the thinking and actions of its leaders and society stand apart.

So what abhors its neighbours about Singapore?   Perhaps the very same things that attracts them -  the better quality of life, its persistently stronger currency, its First World economic prowess.   Its sheer dependence on migrant labour in construction, house help and jobs its citizens will not do can cause an Achilles heel which makes it vulnerable to supply forces from its neighbours.

Singapore, small as it is, buys more arms than Australia, Indonesia or New Zealand.

Singapore has no home grown traditional royalty aristocrats to pander to.   It has maintained to a higher intensity the use of the English language and promoted the prominence of Mandarin spoken amongst its population.  Its leaders impose a strict political discipline for its citizens, resulting in a social order that contrasts with the waves of political instability of its neighbours.   Singapore's ensuing ability to hugely attract international business and talent belies its absence of natural resources.

Likewise, Australia and New Zealand can also empathise with how contemporary Singapore feels.
Both these two Antipodean countries find themselves different from their neighbours in the Asia-Pacific hinterland and ocean backyard.

The three nations have a Westminster based system of government.   They are the outcomes of British trading, military and expansionist initiatives from the 18th to the 20th centuries.   They have attained an economic status which is the envy of their neighbours, short of China, Japan and South Korea.   Each of these three nations were also built on the contributions of historical migrants.
They all offer a high measure of social stability, governance and economic wealth, but Singapore has the lowest taxes.

One lacks land size, another has too much and the third can be so remote from the rest of the world.  Both New Zealand and Singapore governments dare to stake their more independent positions in contemporary geopolitics. The Australian government continues to not seize an opportunity to assert its own refreshing values in international diplomacy and political moves.

In terms of wartime risks, Singapore geographically lies in a highly likely flashpoint, while Australia is most vulnerable in its exposed northern coasts and its affiliation with the South Pacific.

Nww Zealand has taken huge consistent steps to embrace its Indigenous heritage, when compared with its cross-Tasman neighbour.  Singapore is most conscious of balancing the implications of its multiracial population.

Singapore is what it is today, despite not having any natural resources.  Australia is blessed with many natural resources and yet its financial centres are behind that of Singapore.   All three countries utilise high levels of immigration to supplant population growth (before Covid 19).

Australia and New Zealand have proved to be bastions of relative stability, governance and reliability like Singapore.  They have attracted investors as places to park excess funds in search of higher returns, buy properties as back up refuges and place children for higher education.  Where people originate from nations with political instability but varying levels of economic opportunities, all  three countries can be heaven sent as lower risk alternatives for escape to in the worst of times.

#yongkevthoughts

Risk and Opportunity 2021

 

A Baker's Dozen of non-Covid  Significant Risk and Opportunity Themes We Face in 2021 - in no particular order.

1.    The Pace of Healing of Divisiveness and Polarisation in the USA.

2.     The low interest rate environment impacting on macroeconomic policy, fiscal management, investment options and personal financing.

3.    Life after Brexit in Britain.

4.    How China, Russia, America, Japan and Europe make their next moves on the chess board.

5.    Trying to rebounce the dynamics of international travel.

6.     Rising use of AI and the evolving transformation of consumer experience.

7.     Oligopolistic business  ownership in technology, health, social media, energy, transport, resource extraction and agricultural sectors.

8.     Compromised and hidden relationships in managing a nation's key assets and strategic parameters.

9.      Changes in the evolving nature of financial currency, market value chains, banking and trading mechanisms.

10.   Continued transformation of mindsets and practice in the political spectrum, including nationalism, modification of democratic practices, heartlander alienation and promotion of cultural uniqueness.

11.   Rising  concerns about intrusions into personal privacy and data utilised for dubious purposes, coupled with more access to overloads of misleading information and news.

12.    The role of world dependence on petroleum in the complex geopolitical stage of the Middle East.

#yongkevthoughts

Eating Out in Covid Times

 Eating out since Covid 19 emerged has changed the related flavour, experience and satisfaction - and I am not talking  about the food.

For starters, we are not even sure if the place is open, when we want to go visit.  Many outlets no longer make it a disciplined effort to update on websites their opening hours or when they do close, due to some 24 hour given notice of lockdown authorised by people external to the hospitality industry.

If we then arrive at the venue of an open cafe, restaurant or pop up outlet, we most likely see eager customers patiently lining up outside the door.
They are not in queue to purchase tickets for a good gig (that is rare now) or a fantastic physical reality sale ( online is so convenient now, except for  possible hiccups in the  parcel collection process).

Instead we are subject to mindfulness about social distancing requirements - that ever changing rule on how many square metres we have to be from the nearest human being, or group of strangers also here to get some food.  There can be tape markers on the floor or seats to help us realise this new normal. 

To discourage us spewing our unwanted DNA or simple saliva,  we are to face mask up at any indoor venue - or in this case of munch places, only allowed to remove the contraption when we actually eat.

When we do enter the dining place, we are asked to compromise our personal privacy by using the QR scan code - and no smiling please. 
Even if we want to pull up our own buckstraps of responsibility, the powers that be operating the related phone apps have a rather patchy reputation in having stored data hacked - or just may be relishing in tracking our where abouts for their own discretionary use.

We all want to fight the Covid  - but would it not be easier to not let the Coronavirus breach our borders, not come in to circulate and inevitably not make us commoners run around like headless chickens in trying to comply with ever changing, minutely detailed rules?

The reality is that best public health management can often be superseded by political opportunism, economic priorities and other deserving or not so reasonable precedents, especially when the powers that be exceedingly remind us daily that they are following best medical and scientific advice.

Back to our eating venue - and we finally get a table, precisely placed to not let us be bothered by being too near to people we do not know in this infectious Covid strain age.

There are hand sanitisers placed at the venue - and we appreciate such thoughtfulness.  The success of any anti-Covid measure depends on the management of its weakest points in the process. Here at our table are usually menus that have been used by others, tap water bottles that are shared around and condiment containers that cannot be provided individually.  A few outstanding places are aware of such potential transmission weak points, and take extra careful steps - this is much appreciated and hey, we all have to get practical when we eat out.

Nobody has contracted Covid 19 from consuming food.  It is the environment where food and drinks are served  commercially that increases or decreases infection risks.

Small and tight indoor spaces with poor air circulation are the canaries in the Covid infection coalmine.  Where you see groups huddled together inside venues, the risks increase further.  Add a relaxed atmosphere, where customers let down their guard and understandably have Covid as the last thing on their minds, for a change.

Most Covid outbreaks identified in Australia so far have been caught through leakage from overseas arrivals. The Covid then spreads to household family clusters or in crowded social hubs like pubs and RSL clubs or to vulnerable aged care residents who live in closed up facilities.  Ah yes, infectees who show no Covid symptoms do go to dine in restaurants and Covid jumps over to other customers there.

It is essential to our mental health that we can still dine in at venues, even when some governments are not willing to exterminate Covid. It is vital to small businesses and the economy that eating outlets are allowed to operate with optimal arrangements that benefit both providers and customers. 

#yongkevthoughts

Passing Thoughts Too

Perfumes and aromatics used to be found only in uptown counters of elegant retail outlets. Now they are also sold in warehouse environments.

There was an opportunity to develop, practise and enjoy the art of conversation when using the phone. Now misspellings, acronyms and graphics are used for instant communication.

A beauty of a business starts to go downhill when the fancy exceeds the substance, when the greed subsides the inspiration and when demand is taken for granted.

The masses can only suffer so long, before the heavens churn to bring in a new order in human society.

Soon customers will no longer mind paying more for services which interact with just human beings.

Try to be like Earth's Moon, consistently reflecting the light when you can, even if others choose to harp over the dark side, for which you have no say in.

Uniqueness can be celebrated if they bring positive outcomes. The herd mentality can be consuming, addictive and falsely comforting.

Approach is everything.

Run when you can, even when you just smell the hint of a train wreck in the air.

Having too much choice can be a prison unto itself. A purposeful structure in life can be rewarding.

#yongkevthoughts

Advertisements

Advertisements!

Are they the bane of website readers or media viewers, forced upon us, or allowed to be skipped, whether on a You Tube vid or during the finale of a sporting event or more.

Commercial parties with large funding ability still churn out so called unique editions of ads aimed at millions of potential viewers, presumed all tuning in at the same moment. This defies the ability of target consumers to view at their own leisure, on separate media platforms and on reshared channels.

Do advertisements work by playing on our emotions when purchasing the products or services focused on? Do our products really live up to the hype of the emotion suggested in the ads?

What have advertisements become?

Customers can get turned off when the marketing and selling are put in their face. So subtleness and indirect influence have begun to be utilised, hiding behind other formats.

Advertorials now appear more often on so called news bulletins, especially when there is nothing much to report for the day. The most blatant use of such techniques is evident on breakfast shows, whether visual or audio. Advertorial techniques are also increasingly used by You Tubers sponsored by undisclosed or transparently mentioned sponsors.

Businesses are therefore using celebrity social media stars to help sell.

This approach combines the power of fan obsession, feel good experience and apparent independent validation of services or products in cyberspace.

There was a time when unsuspecting party goers were interacting with cool dudes or charming gals planted by sponsors to promote things. The trick by these paid influencers was to not make your target market feel they were directly being influenced.

Every one loves to have a pleasant experience. Applying psychology is a significant tool in sales techniques. The art of the successful deal is not just to persuade new buyers to try, but to obtain customers satisfied sufficiently and willingly to return to buy.

So one may reckon that returning customers are surely rewarded. No, the pressure by contemporary businesses these days seems to achieve results by getting new customer numbers, instead of showing appreciation to existing and retained loyal customers.

This churn technique can stress out staff who have to sell more and obtain new names of customers. Sectors involved in this manner are banking, utilities, telecommunications, direct selling, travel, education and more - it permeates the daily life of modern society.

Indirect advertorials can appear as well in feedback by rating agencies, social media opinions, hype of so called public opinion, fake news campaigns and reinforcement campaigns by parties targeting on groups of people who think alike.The level of trust for advertisements can vary. 

Together with the current lowering of respect for society's institutions like banking, government and more, how can marketing and sales move beyond the well and tired ad, in whatever form they come from?

Having catchy, unconventional and humorous ads may no longer have their desired effect. Visual repetition was thought to create indirect, hypnotic suggestions for people to try a product or service.

In the end, the quality, consistency and practicality of your product or service and pist sale customer engagement continue to be most critical. Do not underestimate your market to not identify a lemon in the long run.

Do not fool your customers, when interacting with them, with a reality far removed from the promise of your ad.

#yongkevthoughts