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GROWTH,DIVERSIFICATIONAND JOBSA Business Development Strategy for the ACT

2013 Implementation Report

The Right Business Environment Initiatives

INITIATIVE STATUS IMPLEMENTATION OUTCOME

Payroll tax reform

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT | ACT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTORATE● GPO Box 158 Canberra ACT 2601 ● +61 13 2281 ● business.act.gov.au

Growth, Diversification and Jobs: A Business Development Strategy for the ACT


The ACT Government will raise the threshold from which businesses are liable to pay payroll. This means the ACT will have the highest threshold in the country, making it a great place for SMEs to grow.

Continuing The ACT Government has raised the payroll tax threshold to $1.75m – as a result over 110 businesses dropped out of the payroll tax system and we have put approximately $6.8m back into small business. And the ACT




Government will progressively raise the threshold to $2m, which will save another 80 businesses from paying payroll tax.




Local SME procurement




The ACT Government wants to support SMEs in Canberra and our region through its purchasing decisions. SMEs can find it more challenging to tender for and win government business. To recognise the importance of local industry and to address this, the ACT Government will

Completed The ACT Government has implemented the Local Procurement policy. Under the policy ACT and region SMEs will receive a favourable weighting when bidding for ACT Government contracts.




introduce new evaluation criteria for goods and services tenders that puts a weighting against whether the tenderer is a local SME and/or their involvement with local businesses. The criterion will be designed so that it doesn’t add to the cost of tendering and doesn’t detract from value




for money considerations, but does provide an incentive to engage with ACT and region SMEs. This policy change will be implemented early in 2013.




Red Tape Reduction Panel

The Red Tape Reduction Panel will be an expert panel tasked to investigate regulatory impediments to ACT businesses. It will be outcome oriented, focusing on specific problems

Continuing The Red Tape Reduction Panel has overseen the abolition of registration labels for light vehicles, has increased the majority of business licences to a




facing individual businesses with a mandate to engage with agencies and fix things that don’t work or don’t make sense. For the first 12-18 months the Red Tape Reduction Panel will focus on municipal regulatory issues. The Panel will report to the Minister for Economic

three year maximum term and is reviewing police checking and business signage processes. In addition, the ACT Government has established the Fix My Red Tape web site to allow businesses to bring red




Development and the Chief Minister. tape issues to the Government’s attention.

Listening to small business




The Government undertook to convene annual listening to small business forums to better understand the issues and opportunities small and micro businesses are dealing with.

Continuing In the development of the BDS the ACT Government actively engaged with the small business community through small sector based focus groups. Many of the initiatives in this strategy, including red tape reduction




and SME procurement policy, are the direct result of this engagement.

The next Listening to Small Business forums are being held between August and November 2013. Issues identified during this process will




presented to the Minister and red tape matters will be put before the Red Tape Reduction Panel.

Government Navigator Program




This will be a targeted information brokerage function between the ACT Government and SMEs to help build knowledge flows. The aim will be to quickly connect small and micro firms to relevant functional area expertise inside government and in the process of doing that,

Continuing Work has commenced on this initiative to understand further the possible short, medium and long term solutions and linkages of this complex problem. Advice will also be sought




build SME compliance capability. The program will deliver tailored information to the business sector on current compliance issues.

from the Red Tape Reduction Panel.

Social Media ‘Buy Local’ Campaign




Social media is a powerful tool to connect local communities. The ACT Government wants to encourage consumers to support local business endeavors. We also see increased business-to-business commerce as an important element of buying local. The ACT Government will

Continuing The ACT Government will consult key stakeholders on implementation options (currently under development) in the second half of 2013.




implement a pilot social media campaign promoting the advantages of buying from local businesses.

Canberra BusinessPoint




Canberra BusinessPoint is an information, mentoring and advisory service to start-ups, intenders, small and micro firms and high growth potential firms.

It is funded by the ACT Government but delivered under a collaborative model with the

Continuing Canberra BusinessPoint, the ACT Government’s business advisory service, delivered 842 one-to-one client connections and a further 1,290 client connections via workshops,




business community through the Canberra Business Council and the Lighthouse Business Innovation Centre.

To build on the success of the program, we are going to bring more direct small and micro business input to the way Canberra

seminars and networking events.

These outcomes exceeded the 2012-13 KPIs and the program continues to grow in both numbers and depth of advisory services.




BusinessPoint programs are shaped and delivered. The small business forums will be a key source of information on how to best achieve this outcome.




Lighthouse Business Innovation Centre

Lighthouse Business Innovation Centre is a jointly funded initiative of the former Epicorp ICT Incubator and the ACT Government.

Continuing The Lighthouse Business Innovation Centre, in addition to providing services for investment ready




Its focus is to attract both high-growth business and early stage investment opportunities from existing local industry, research institutions and individual entrepreneurs. Lighthouse then provides the heavy lifting advisory service function required for the development of

companies:

Provided management support to the Capital Angels high net worth investors network;

Delivered the Entrepreneur




investment-ready companies.

The heavy lifting is being addressed through servicing the specific needs of individual enterprises to help sharpen their business model and their investment prospects.

Development Fund; Established the CBR Collective – a

retail shopfront in the Canberra Centre for Canberra based designers;




Lighthouse also acts as a focal point, or hub, in partnership with other institutional players in the ACT innovation system to provide a continuum of services that can assist in the critical early stages of business development.

Delivered the ‘Brilliant Idea Micro Credit Program’ to provide no-interest loans to women on low incomes with a business idea.




Business Online Services ACT Implementation, and the Australian Business Account

Work is proceeding on the ACT’s participation in the Business Online Services (BOS) Project, a key component of the COAG-endorsed Australian Business Number/Business Names Registration

Continuing The ACT Government has also been working to reduce red tape through the Australian Business Number/Business Names Registration




Project.

Part of the Seamless National Economy Intergovernmental Agreement, this project will deliver an ambitious set of reforms via the establishment of a nationally-coordinated online system that will provide one entry point for

Project and other COAG reforms. The ACT handed over business name registrations to the national system last year and now delivers business licence information through the nationally coordinated Australian




business interactions with all tiers of government.

The aim is to reduce red tape, ensure that businesses can access an improved information service, and enable businesses to manage their government-related obligations using a client

Business Licence and Information Service. The ACT was one of the first jurisdictions to complete the transition.

The ACT Government has now turned the attention to implementation




account.

The first services due for release are the new Australian Business Licence and Information Service (ABLIS) which will incorporate regulatory requirement data from all jurisdictions; and a more far reaching reform, the Australian

opportunities associated with the Australian Business Account (ABA) reforms. The ACT Government has identified a range of potential agencies for ABA related pilot




Business Account (ABA), which has the potential to revolutionise how businesses and governments interact in both transaction and information provision.

To make sure the ACT Government is at the front of this implementation process, we are going to

projects.




fund selected ABA related pilot projects within ACT agencies.

Redevelopment of the Government Business Portal




The ACT Government’s online information interface with the business community needs to be modernised. Just as other governments are encouraging businesses to join the digital and online revolution, the ACT Government needs to lead the way too. The existing business.act.gov.au website will be redeveloped on a Web 2.0 platform. We will also incorporate

Continuing The redeveloped Government Business Portal was launched in March this year. The new portal features a blog with commenting functionality as well as linkages to the new Business Development Twitter and Facebook accounts.



Supporting Business Investment Initiatives


Investment Facilitation




InvestACT is a dedicated investment facilitation function that will be established inside the Economic Development Directorate (EDD). It will bring together capabilities within EDD and across key government agencies to respond quickly to investment leads generated by expanded

Continuing The ACT Government has established InvestACT to promote the ACT as an investment destination and, following extensive consultation, the ACT Investment Strategy will be launched




marketing and outreach activities. An ACT Government Investment Attraction Strategy will be launched in 2013-14 that will see an increased capability to directly develop foreign investment leads and to respond to Austrade generated leads.

in November.

In the meantime, InvestACT has been working behind the scenes to support investment leads across that come through Austrade channels and local sources. The recent Solar Auctions




were extensively promoted by InvestACT through the Austrade network resulting in over 150 expressions of interest.




Digital Economy Program Support




In addition to the company and entrepreneur based support under the ACT Government’s innovation programs, the ACT Government will continue to support implementation of the Commonwealth Government’s digital economy programs and support the rollout of the National Broadband Network:

Digital Local Government Program

Continuing The ACT Government obtained $1.3m from the Commonwealth to prepare businesses and residents for the NBN. In the first five months of operation the Digital Hub and the Digital Enterprise Centre have provided training to more than 500 individuals and 200 businesses. Over 14,000




Branding of Canberra

This action is about defining and projecting the Canberra opportunity to the outside world. The ACT Government appreciates that people and investment are highly mobile, so we need to

Continuing The ACT Government will launch a new fully integrated city brand before the end of 2013. The new city brand




constantly shape and project our value proposition. Current branding is focused largely on the tourism message. While See Yourself In Canberra has been effective in the domain it is used, reshaping, broadening and refining needs to occur.

will:

Extend Canberra’s reach, profile and potential business, education, tourism, sport and event sectors;

Define and activate Canberra’s identity relative to our aspirations




in the context of a post-Centenary (2013) legacy;

Extend the reach of Canberra’s brand beyond physical boundaries in a consistent and coherent




manner; Enhance the recognition of

Canberra being a great place to live, visit and do business.

The new city brand will align and leverage the Government’s




investment in the Centenary of Canberra program.

Indigenous Enterprise Development




In conjunction with the Elected Body, support for Indigenous enterprise development will be established to assist Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to start or grow their own businesses, and to develop business acumen and business confidence.

Continuing The ACT Government has established a high level working group to liaise with the Elected Body on economic development opportunities. The ACT Government is also liaising with Indigenous Business Australia (IBA) to




promote access to IBA’s programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.Canberra’s Indigenous business community’s success was celebrated at the ACT NAIDOC Business of the Year Award. The 2013




winner of the award was ‘Bandu Catering’ which aims to promote the use of native foods and flavours in contemporary Australian cuisine. Bandu continues to succeed and in the last year they have secured more than




200 clients, delivered a range of training courses to stay-at-home parents wanting to give their children a healthier diet, and were announced as the cuisine provider for VIP guests




at Canberra’s 100th birthday.

Online Skilled Migration Processing System

Access to skilled workers is one of the business Completed The ACT Government has made it




community’s key concerns. The ACT Government operates a skills attraction and migration program that works within the policy framework set by the Australian Government. Our existing migration services have been very successful in attracting skilled migrants to Canberra in areas of strategic need to the economy. As a Regional Certifying Body, the program also works with

easier for skilled workers to migrate to the ACT and for employers to find and employ skilled workers where local labour can’t be found.

In July last year a new online skilled migration processing system went live and incorporates the skills branding site Canberra. Create Your Future.




Innovation Connect

Innovation Connect is a competitive grants program providing funding for small technology focused companies and entrepreneurs. It aims to accelerate viable, creative ideas along the

Continuing The Innovation Connect program received over 80 applications in 2012/13 of which 26 received funding. Additional funding was provided for a




commercialisation pathway. Innovation Connect was introduced in 2008 and has since directly supported around 100 applicants. As important as the direct support it provides, the program also establishes linkages, collaboration and referral of firms to other forms of support such

Clean Tech stream to support early stage projects that improve environmental quality, reduce environmental impacts and that can lead to the development of new, innovative clean technologies and




as company mentoring and guidance.

To build on the program’s success, Innovation Connect will be augmented in a number of important areas:

a new funding stream for clean tech or

services. Excellent examples of funded projects include:

Clarus Technologies to develop phase one of its cyber kinetics artificial muscle;

Trade Up to develop a mobile




sustainability oriented companies will be created inside the program and new funding will be added;

a strategic opportunities funding stream will be established under Innovation Connect to support co-funding development of major

management system for sub contractors managing workflows in construction projects;

StalkThis to allow online shoppers to stalk products and services on the web so they can




proposals focused on new innovation infrastructure. For example, this could be for state/territory co-investments in competitive funding processes such as Cooperative Research Centre rounds or for co-investments into seed and early stage

be alerted to price changes; and QHopper, a smart phone

ordering platform for stadiums and arenas that allows consumers to skip cueing at service counters.




investment funds. This funding stream would also consider seed funding opportunities in collaborative projects in the university and research institution sector. The objective is to build new and unique knowledge capacity in Canberra and to

The Strategic Opportunities Fund became operational earlier this year and has now provided grants of $347,000 to four Canberra research groups to develop leading edge collaborative research projects.




leverage external funding sources; and the ACT Government will commit new

funding to the Entrepreneur Development Fund (EDF) stream, subject the outcomes of the current trial and continued support from funding partners. EDF funding is provided in




a matched format by the ACT Government, Epicorp and Lighthouse to support high level skills transfer in innovation-focused Canberra businesses.

A single program interface for Innovation Connect will also be introduced to bring these




activities together as a way of further driving synergies and collaboration. The My Digital City innovation prize will also be brought under this project suite.




My Digital City Innovation Prize

A prize-based innovation competition will engage tertiary students and ACT citizens in the development of new digital government services to stimulate innovation in electronic and mobile

Completed The Digital Canberra Challenge was launched in August 2013. The first program challenges are currently under evaluation after a call for




technologies, including government service access on mobile technology platforms such as tablets and smart phones. Beyond the prize, the ACT Government will also match up the best applicants and their ideas to mentor in the business community and other programs that

interest process. The full program consists of:

program guidelines detailing objective, design, operations and governance have now been




can accelerate their route to market business journey.

formulated. A Program Board consisting of

representatives from government directorates and the business and ICT community has been established and the e-




Government Cluster at NICTA contracted to be program administrator.

Coaching, mentoring and research assistance will be offered to selected innovators during the




course of the competition. Contestants could also apply for

separate Innovation Connect funding to help with the commercialisation of their products and ideas.




ACT Technology Business Incubator Feasibility Study

A high performing business incubator has the potential to be an important innovation asset for Canberra’s private sector economy. This study will look at best practice models for an incubator

Continuing As a result of the ACT Government’s work with the ANU and the business community Entry 29, a technology business incubator, was established in




with advice on the role of government, likely partners and partnership funding models, the nature of demand and services, target outputs, and outcomes.

the ANU Exchange Precinct.

There remains significant interest across the innovation community in the potential for a formal business incubator in Canberra. The Government will revisit this matter




with stakeholders in 2013-14 in light of Entry 29 outcomes and experience and the formal review of Canberra BusinessPoint.




Global Connect

A single program interface, Global Connect, will be established for the various trade development related activities supported by the

Continuing

Centre for Exporting

The ACT Government’s commitment of $1.5m in last year’s budget for the Global Connect program has seen the first ever ACT trade mission to




ACT Government. It will fund:

a competitive grants program providing funding to emerging Canberra exporters to support certain trade development activities;

the ACT Exporters’ Network which provides

Government Solutions launched in March 2013

The Government-Industry

Indonesia, ScreenACT’s first trade mission to Marche Du Film in France and the establishment of the Centre for Exporting Government Solutions to build ACT exports to other public sector markets focussing on the USA




private sector leadership promoting exporting in a unique forum for new and experienced exporting companies to network, share knowledge and expand their export activities;

the Trade Mission Program, an annual

Education Exports Strategy has been superseded by the establishment of

and Asia.

The ACT Government supported 38 companies with Trade Connect funding over

2012-13. This included funding to




outbound ministerial-led mission providing companies with soft landing support in new markets;

the ACT Chief Minister’s Export Awards, which recognise excellence in export performance and feed into the National

StudyCanberra. support 10 companies that participated on the Indonesia Trade Mission and 10 companies that participated on the ScreenACT Film Du Marche Trade Mission.

Two new categories have been added




Export Awards. It provides ACT finalists with a prestigious reference to expand international markets;

the Exporting Government Solutions Centre of Excellence, which will provide resources and expert mentoring to SMEs with a

to the ACT Chief Minister’s Export Awards – Exporting Government Solutions and Exporting to Asia. The Chief Minister’s Export Awards will be presented on 26 September 2013.

The ACT Government’s objectives




demonstrated capability of delivering innovative solutions to the Australian public sector to access international markets;

the delivery of the Government-Industry Education Exports Strategy; and

the ACT International Student Ambassador

around growing education exports are now being realised through Study Canberra, a new initiative that was funded in the 2013-14 Budget.




Program, which aims to leverage the international student experience of Canberra as both an international education marketing tool and as a skills network that can link to the ACT economy.




CollabIT

CollabIT is an engagement and business development initiative that links SMEs with

Continuing In 2012 the ACT Government doubled the CollabIT budget to $100,000.




multi-national corporations, government purchasers and other stakeholders in the ICT sector. It is a joint initiative of the ACT Government and the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA).

CollabIT does an excellent job in promoting SMEs as innovative companies and establishing partnerships between government agencies, SMEs and multinationals.




A recent member survey found that CollabIT members attributed $925,000 in revenue in 2012-13 to the program and 81% of respondents expected to derive business success in 2013-14 as a result of their engagement in the




program.

NICTA

This initiative provides funding for the Canberra Continuing NICTA is now recognised




Research Laboratory of NICTA, Australia’s ICT research centre of excellence. This new arrangement will provide up to $12 million over four years, consisting of project-based grants and payroll tax waivers. NICTA has a staff of 55 full time researchers and 50 PhD students who

internationally as a premier ICT research organisation and its Canberra Research Laboratory is undertaking world leading and world renowned ICT research activities.

NICTA has now graduated over 300




are working to develop technologies that will meet the current and future needs of Canberra and the nation.

Over the next few months, the ACT Government and NICTA will establish a number of projects where NICTA’s advanced ICT expertise can add

PhD students. Its Canberra researchers, including the current crop of around 55 PhD students, are engaged in challenging collaborative projects across the country that are




value to the issues the ACT Government faces as a service deliverer. For example, NICTA’s e-Health Living Lab concept will draw in the research expertise across our universities and hospital system to test bed technologies and training systems for the next generation of

transforming major industry sectors.

NICTA’s Canberra researchers are working with the ACT Government, ACT companies and other research groups at ANU and the University of Canberra in areas including smart grid




clinicians.

NICTA is also developing advanced technologies to make transport systems more efficient with the potential to save millions of dollars in direct costs and reduce carbon emissions.

developments, solar energy output prediction, transport optimisation and social media monitoring. For example NICTA has headquartered eHealth “living laboratory” at the University of Canberra’s Faculty of Health Clinical




The 2009 Commonwealth Review of the NICTA program noted that the national investment in NICTA has developed it to a point where it is at an optimum size and can be regarded as a national asset and key component of Australia’s innovation infrastructure.

Teaching Building. The lab aims to develop technology and business processes that will enable health care providers to deliver better services, increased access and open new opportunities for businesses.




The review also emphasised the importance of investment in ICT research given the underlying and enabling nature of ICT capabilities in all areas of the economy, and the continuing comparatively low investment in ICT research and development within Australia. These are

NICTA in Canberra also hosts the Australian eGovernment Cluster, a combined initiative of the ACT Government and NICTA, together with support from the Canberra Business




views shared by the ACT Government. Council and local industry.

The Cluster promotes collaboration between government, industry and research in finding innovative ICT solutions to increasingly complex




problems faced by government today.

An independent analysis by Deloitte estimates that two of NICTA’s projects based solely in the ACT, the ePASA and Automap projects, will have a combined annual impact of $354




million a year on the national economy either through cost savings or increased productivity. The same Deloitte study quantified NICTA’s current impact on the national economy at $2 billion per annum




through productivity and efficiency savings.

Science Communication




Good science is one of the key drivers of knowledge and innovation and critical to our ability to participate in an increasingly competitive national and global economy. The Science Communication Program supports a range of activities that allow the public to

Continuing A highly successful National Science Week program was delivered in August 2013 with participation well up on previous years. The National launch was held in Canberra this year, to coincide with our centenary




interact with science, scientists, scientific issues and processes. The program is aimed at raising awareness of, and engaging the ACT community in, science and scientific issues.

celebrations. The theme of the program was 100 years of science and numerous events were held all over Canberra to excite and inspire an interest in science.




The ACT Government is also collaborating with the CSIRO Discovery Centre and Questacon on the Inspiring Australia Program which delivers science-related events throughout the year to build on the momentum




generated by the National Science week events.

Canberra Business Development Fund




Canberra Business Development Fund (CBDF) is an ACT-focused venture capital fund designed to provide innovative ACT firms with significant growth potential with a source of capital funds through equity investment. CBDF is a 50 per cent shared investment partnership between

Continuing The ACT Government provided a capital injection to the Canberra Business Development Fund of $500,000 in September 2012, based on commitments made in the 2012-13 Budget. This amount was matched by




the ACT Government and Australian Capital Ventures Limited (ACVL is a Hindmarsh Group company) currently operating with $8 million under management.

CBDF investment provides significant growth benefits for investee companies including the

Australian Capital Investments Limited.

The CBDF invests into early expansion businesses at that critical time of their development. Its unique structure sees ACT Government funds matched




injection of high-level management skills, the capacity to leverage additional private sector capital, access to Commonwealth funds and grants, and quality employment growth.

To date CBDF investments have created over 70 new jobs in Canberra, most of which are highly

by a local private venture capital operator, Australian Capital Ventures Limited a company associated with the Hindmarsh group.

In addition to the leverage of ACT Government invested funds, the CBDF




skilled positions within wealth creating businesses and sectors.

model has several other benefits. These benefits include the injection of management skills into early stage companies and introductions to potential markets, suppliers and




follow on funding.

To date, the fund has created some 80 new jobs and leveraged an extra $162m from private and Commonwealth sources.




Discovery Translation Fund / ANU Connect Ventures

ANU Connect Ventures and the Discovery Translation Fund (DTF) are venture capital and proof of concept funds respectively, managed by the Australian National University from

Continuing The DTF continues to attract strong interest from the ACT’s research community and from the private




funding initially provided by the ACT Government through Economic White Paper initiatives.

The Discovery Translation Fund aims to assist the commercialisation of new innovations and technologies originating from Canberra region

sector.

The DTF has proven to be a valuable link in the commercialisation path in the ACT with many companies progressing from Innovation Connect to the DTF and then onto




public sector research organisations and small commercial ventures. Unlike similar funds, it does not require matched funding and is not repayable.

ANU Connect Ventures is an equity investment fund operating as a registered venture capital

Commercialisation Australia and private equity. Companies including Beta Therapeutics, Sage Health and Nexus eWater are all strong case studies on the interconnectedness of the ACT program environment to




company. support local commercialisation.

Nearly $8m is currently under active management with investments through both the Equity Fund and the Discovery Translation Fund, the latter




investing $1.9M in 25 projects to date

ScreenACT

ScreenACT, the Office of Film, Television and Continuing ScreenACT has delivered several




Digital Media, is a central element of the ACT Government’s overall support to the local screen sector. ScreenACT’s vision is to make Canberra and the surrounding region a centre of creative convergence that contributes to the life and vitality of the nation’s capital. ScreenACT

capacity development initiatives for the local industry, including three major initiatives (the Canberra Centenary documentary, the Low Budget Feature films and the Anthology Feature film) that have




delivers industry support programs, represents the sector at local, national and international forums and provides professional development to local screen practitioners.

ScreenACT is currently delivered by the Canberra Business Council under an outsourcing

exposed over 200 emerging local film practitioners to the production of commercial feature films and documentary, some of whom will get feature film credits for their work in




arrangement (to 30 June 2013). these projects.

ScreenACT has also assisted local film makers to raise funding for film productions by connecting them to private sector capital sources such as Capital Angels, a local business investor




network.

An open procurement process for delivery of ScreenACT post June 2013 was undertaken and a new service agreement has been negotiated and agreed with the successful bidder,




Canberra Business Council.

ACT Screen Investment Fund

The ACT Screen Investment Fund is designed to Continuing Funding for the Film Investment Fund




support the growth of the ACT screen industry which includes film, television and digital media by increasing the output of screen productions made in the ACT involving significant Canberra elements. It provides equity co-investment with the marketplace (for example, Screen Australia)

was re-profiled in 2012-13 to move a fourth year of funding to the 2013-14 year.

Twelve projects have been supported by the Screen Investment Fund so far, of which four have been fully




into eligible projects with clear commercial potential. The objectives of the fund are to:

encourage producers to undertake significant film projects in the ACT;

stem the leakage of production and post

completed. The completed projects have generated ACT based expenditure of $1.6 million against a total investment of $605,000 yielding a multiplier of 2.7:1.




production activity from the ACT to other jurisdictions;

grow our creative skills base; and

contribute to cultural and economic development.



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