Leveraging global partnerships

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Mentre^® programme
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The major sponsor of
the GAP Forum on
'Leveraging Networks
in Business'
and supporter of
Australian business

GAP hosts high level conferences, seminars, briefings, online forums and business missions, both internationally and within Australia.

GAP Forum on Leveraging Networks in Business 2006

Executive Summary •
Forum Report •
Keynote Speakers •
Sponsors & Partners •

Networks abound in nature, technology and human society. The brain is a network of neurons, organisations are networks of people and the global economy is a network of national markets of interacting producers and consumers.

Food webs, ecosystems, and the Internet can all be represented as evolutionary networks, as can strategies for solving a problem, topics in a conversation, and even words in a language. All are proving to be 'small worlds', a concept offering elegant solutions in a remarkable variety of fields, from physics and mathematics to sociology, biology - and business.

How and why does networking happen, how can we manage and build the most effective networks, and how can the efficacy of these networks be assessed, were the topics of discussion at the GAP Forum on Leveraging Networks in Business, held in Sydney on 10 and 11 April 2006. Bringing together SMEs and large corporates, state and national level government departments and academia, the Forum offered participants a unique opportunity to explore 'small world' economics in the global marketplace and learn about the forces and laws of complex networks.

<< Download THE GAP FORUM report [PDF 661KB]

An insight into Network Theory was given by the keynote speaker Dr John J. Finnigan, Director of the CSIRO Centre for Complex System Science. The Forum also featured a guest speaker from the USA, Prof Miguel Centeno, Director of the Princeton Institute for International & Regional Studies and a recognised leader in network and globalisation research.

The GAP Forum on Leveraging Networks in Business addressed, among others, the questions such as how do people influence each other, how do large businesses communicate to the SMEs and individuals, and what are the barriers to get a message across. A post-Forum continuity strategy will include the creation of a consultative committee which will develop practical applications based on the conclusions of the Forum.

The following references have been recommended by the Steering Committee as background reading for Forum participants:

• "The ties that bind us" - By J. Casti, 'New Scientist'
• "New understanding to complex and costly problems" - By J. Galloway, NetMap
• "Network theory's new math" - 'CNET News.com'
• "American politics in the Networking Era" - By M. Barone, 'National Journal'

Sponsors and partners of the GAP Forum were:
• Qantas Airways Limited
• IMS (Intelligent Manufacturing Systems) Australia
• NSW Department of State & Regional Development
• ICAN - Innovative Collaborations, Alliances and Networks, UTS

This event was part of the 2006 Australian Innovation Festival.

The GAP Forum on Leveraging Networks in Business was held on 10 and 11 April 2006 at the NSW Trade & Investment Centre in Sydney, Australia.

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