from the regional director

Over the year, the Riverina Murray team delivered 21 events across the region including two events over the last quarter with NSW Premier, The Hon. Chris Minns MP. Hosting the Premier in region provided an invaluable platform for our members to hear from the Premier directly and have the opportunity to raise pressing concerns. 

The 2025 Riverina Murray Business Awards was a great success, with a record number of applications. This significant uptake is testament to the necessity of awards programs within regions and the desire for businesses to gain that recognition at a regional and state level. It also indicates the reputation and recognition of the awards program, with new businesses entering each year. The awards night was held at Piccolo Family Farm in Griffith, and we were delighted to showcase the incredible hospitality that Griffith has to offer with BNSW President Joseph Carrozzi and Helen Dalton MP amongst our guests. Many attendees continued on to make a weekend of it, visiting local businesses and exploring the impressive, award-winning Canola Trail. Congratulations to all our finalists and winners including Business of the Year, Flavourtech. 

We were proud to have such a talented cohort represent the region at the State Awards and congratulations to Albury Priceline Pharmacy for taking out the State Award for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion and DeniSpot for winning the Outstanding New Business Category. 


regional leader 2nd anniversary 

An important event on the calendar in February we celebrated the 2nd year anniversary of our Regional Leader program with our members and it was the perfect way to kick of our calendar of events for the year. With 21 new members to the program, lots of new faces there was lots of networking to be done and what we like to call "magic" happening.

It was a chance for us to look back on what we had achieved in the previous year including 23 events delivered, 5 interactions with Ministers in region and our advocacy work with campaigns like Housing Now!

This year, we celebrated at the state-of-the-art, award-winning PCYC Wagga Wagga facility, with a fantastic turnout and plenty of positive energy in the room. The evening wrapped up with a friendly game of Pickleball for those who were keen—another great example of the camaraderie and connection this group continues to foster.

It was a wonderful event filled with collaboration, reflection, and enthusiasm for the year ahead.

ceo connect | telstra

In February we launched a new event - CEO Connect designed to connect executive-level leaders from across the region, aiming to strengthen relationships and enhance our local business ecosystem.
The CEO Connect was a tremendous success! Hosted by Telstra we heard from Shailin Sehgal, Group Executive of Global Network and Technology, who discussed the future of connectivity and investments in our region, along with important initiatives to safeguard businesses against cyber threats.
It was wonderful to see our Regional Leader businesses in attendance, along with a diverse group of new members and companies who actively shared and highlighted their business journeys.
The hospitality provided by DJ at The Bidgee and Vine was a highlight, creating the ideal atmosphere for the evening.


Sustainable communities program launch with the hon tara moriarty

In March our Regional Director Serena Hardwick headed to Griffith for a $15 million announcement by The Hon. Tara Moriarty.
The first round of funding available, under the Sustainable Communities Program has been made available to provide immediate support to boost our local economy, with eligibility being targeted at 9 Local Government Areas of Balranald, Berrigan, Carrathool, Edward River, Griffith, Hay, Leeton, Murray River and Murrumbidgee. 
Serena Hardwick said "We look forward to working with Government to ensure that the funding helps to build capability and capacity in our local business community.
Investment to assist businesses in the region increase productivity, foster innovation and commercialise their research and development will not only see benefit to our local economy but contribute to the broader state economy.
With a large skill and workforce gap, this is an opportunity for us to consider how we can, as business, foster a skilled future workforce and rewarding career pathways with this investment ."


Network for knowledge & ir updates

In March we hosted the Network For Knowledge (N4K) forum for HR professionals to network and share local knowledge on the HR functions of different businesses across the region. Our members told us that they loved this forum and the safe space it created to have real conversations, so we bought it back!
Our first session featured a presentation from Sue Molyneaux from Casella Family Brands, who discussed some of the programs they run for staff and some of their challenges. We then as a group discussed our collective challenges and shared thoughts on how we might overcome them. 
Rebecca Spiliopoulos from Australian Business Lawyers & Advisors (ABLA) joined us to provide some advice on any questions that group might have. 
 It was a great forum, fostering information sharing and expertise between our regional businesses is something we are passionate about.

snowy hydro 2.0 tour

In April, we took another eager Regional Leader group on a tour of Snowy Hydro 2.0.



Drop in drinks with business snowy valleys

In April, we headed to Tumut and co-hosted a drop-in networking event with Business Snowy Valleys.  We had a great evening connecting with local Tumut businesses and introducing our Regional Leader group at Tumut River Brewing Co
 
Next time you're in Tumut, be sure to stop by and support this local business. The team have pulled through some tough times and relaunched under new management with a fresh new brand and they’re eager to share a taste of Tumut with you!

ceo connect | essential energy

May saw another fantastic CEO Connect event in partnership with Essential Energy at their depot in Albury. 
The event brought together executive leaders from across the region for an insightful presentation led by John Cleland, CEO of Essential Energy. 
Thank you to the Essential Energy team for taking the time to connect with our business community and a special thanks to John Cleland who shared his perspective on the evolving energy landscape and the opportunities and challenges ahead for the industry.
A great night with Regional Leaders, Business NSW members and the broader business community.

24 Hour economy round table

Recently we hosted 24hr Economy Commissioner in region, hosting roundtables with industry stakeholders discussing the opportunities of a 24hr Economy.

This was a conversation, not about operating longer hours or operating at night but one about what does it look like in a regional context.


drma security and supply chain forum

In August, Regional Leaders addressed critical challenges around attracting and retaining skilled workers and developing the workforce of the future. This led to the Skills and Workforce Development Forum, a highly impactful event showcasing the incredible efforts of local businesses.

Two engaging panels provided valuable insights, enhancing our understanding of the issues. A heartfelt thank you to Michael Hampson, Tim Cohen, Damian Chapelle, Kerry, Andrew Rose, Jeffrey Cook, Kerrie-Anne Maunder, Jennifer Mossfield, and Tursa for their contributions. Special thanks to Dr. Nigel Palmer from Business NSW for presenting his insightful report and to Janelle Saffin MP for delivering the opening address.

We look forward to continuing our focus on Skills and Workforce Development in 2025, as we remain committed to supporting the needs of businesses in the region. 

ceo connect | rsm

In June we hosted our 3rd successful CEO Connect event on Tuesday evening with RSM Australia.
A classy event with insights from RSM experts - Economist Devika Shivadekar, Corporate Finance Director, Oliver Gaunt and Export Finance Australia's Krystal Doyle showed why RSM are one of Australia’s leading professional services firms. Founding Regional Leader members and longtime supporters of Business NSW, RSM Australia share our passion for living, working and investing regionally and work tirelessly to advocate change and build capacity for businesses right across the region. 
This series highlights the importance of regional connection and it has been great to see the calibre of regional business leaders coming together to collaborate and learn at these events. 

REgional health innovation showcase

In July we supported the Murrumbidgee Health and Knowledge Precinct to deliver the second annual Regional Health Innovation Showcase on behalf of the precinct.
 
The event commenced with a warm welcome to country by Cheryl Penrith. Our regional Director Serena Hardwick was MC for the day, introducing the line up of amazing speakers to get the room considering Ai in the health sector. 
 
As a contributor to the Precinct's One System Integration Working Group, it was a very exciting moment to see Narelle Mills, Chair of the working group launch the Regional Planning Framework. This is a tool for the Health sector to guide collaborate and create better health outcomes for our region. 
 
We heard from Dr Kim Sutherland who set the landscape for the day discussing how Ai in the sector meant not only use in the clinical side of the industry but the benefits in the business side and principles, policy and practice should all be considered when implementing. 
 
Our first key note Associate Professor Fatemeh Vafaee UNSW left us all with the realisation that we could be talking earlier intervention or even prevention and less intrusive procedures for diagnosis. Ai will allow us to collect so much more data to capture the picture of a person's health but we will need Ai to help us process what this means also. Her presentation highlighted that Ai brings the opportunity of more tailored treatments and the opportunity to realise the benefits of innovation in the sector sooner. 

Dr Simon Kos Microsoft discussed the types of Ai and how Generative Ai is the new element. He discussed how Ai can be used across the sector, including the opportunity to really maximise the skills we have in the sector by using Ai to do more of the administrative/business side of things. He also discussed that we need to consider how Ai learns but also that it can teach us. 
 
Frank Iorfino and Ebenezer E. discussed the ability for Ai to not only help with workforce productivity but retention, that it could help us reimagine the mental health space and it can actually offer us quality, consistent, reliability in the instance it is repeatable and responsive health care when we get the parameters right.

Business development forum | energy transition

In August we had the pleasure of hosting key industry stakeholders at our Business Development Forum on the Energy Transition.
 The Riverina Murray is on the cusp of enormous opportunity, with investment into renewable energy and the transition to net zero reshaping the future of our region.
 
We heard from EnergyCo, Essential Energy, Australian Alliance for Energy Productivity (A2EP), Snowy Hydro, Transgrid, Origin Energy and Riverina and Murray Joint Organisation, Tumbarumba Business Chamber and Leah Tucker, Business NSW on:
⚡ Reliability vs resilience in the energy network.
⚡ What $17B of investment into the South West REZ means for skills, workforce, and industry development.
⚡ Addressing barriers to reliable energy and electrification.
⚡ How businesses can connect with innovation and leverage opportunities in the transition.
 
We were also thrilled to support Halocell Energy in launching their Ambient Module – https://lnkd.in/gqbSsfSC another example of a regional business punching well above its weight on the national stage.
 
A huge thank you to our event partners Essential Energy, Riverina and Murray Joint Organisation and Transgrid for making this possible, and to all of our speakers for the high-quality insights shared. Thank you Dr Joe McGirr member for Wagga for taking the time to join us for this important discussion. 
 
And what better venue than the Transgrid Discovery Hub a showcase of how energy, projects and business can integrate and enhance the local community. 

A very special thank you to Marbull Catering for the delicious lunch and keeping our guests happy with the standout food that's always a hit!

It was fantastic to see so many Regional Leader members alongside our general members and broader business community in attendance. Your engagement ensures our region is ready to embrace and benefit from the transition, while also enabling us to continue delivering events of this quality in region.


leadership workshops with chief maker

We proudly hosted two days of Executive Leadership training with Chief Maker – supporting both emerging and established leaders across our region.

Day One focused on our future leaders, with an immersive workshop exploring the power of identity, awareness and story in shaping their values and crafting their future game plans as well as the importance of stakeholder engagement, building trust and strategies around giving feedback.

Day Two brought together CEOs and business owners for advanced sessions on leadership strategy and managing high-performing teams – equipping our leaders with the tools to strengthen culture, performance and resilience in their businesses.

These workshops are part of our commitment at Business NSW to deliver world-class leadership opportunities right here in the Riverina Murray, ensuring businesses don’t need to travel to access expert content and development.

skills and workforce with minister whan

We hosted a meeting with The Hon. Steve Whan MP and some our Regional Leader members. 
 
The conversation acknowledged that here in the Riverina Murray we have a few challenges when it comes to skills and workforce like:
- 88% of our businesses identifying they have a skilled or workforce shortage. This is the largest gap in the state 
- We have a pipeline of major projects that will put more pressure on current workforce need
- the consequence for our local businesses include not being able to meet their growth potentials, stepping back from R&D activities and more
 
BUT we never just come to the table with the challenges, we had a list of opportunities to discuss as well:
- with some industry leaders in region, what if Riverina Murray was the home to a Building and Construction Centre of Excellence. Focused on modern methods of construction this could support the major infrastructure projects in region as well a address the housing shortages we face in region and beyond.
- Opportunities for industry to be more involved with TAFE including supplying or assisting with access to new technology.
- Fostering skills in the renewable energy sector
- the opportunities for more international students and the impact this has on regional areas
 
We were happy to hear the Minister acknowledge our region is unique and his direction for placed based planning.

A morning with premier minns

Finishing August off, we had the absolute pleasure of hosting NSW Premier Chris Minns for our 'State of the State' event in partnership with Wagga Wagga Business Chamber and Committee 4 Wagga. We were welcomed to country by Aunty Mary Atkinson with the Premier being introduced by Dr Joe McGirr MP, who didn't skip a beat when it came to his advocacy on the Gobba bridge.
 
It is clear that the cost of doing business is on the agenda as the hot topics discussed were around the need for workers compensation reforms, which the Government are trying to get through the upper house, energy and the need for reliability and costs to be controlled. 
 
 We took the opportunity to ask:
 - If payroll tax reform is on the agenda and if a Regional Payroll tax will be considered, so we are competitive with our bordering state Victoria?
 - Housing, acknowledging that this is an issue across the state, however our community is under further pressure with a pipeline of major projects. What initiative could we expect to see in the region to address the issue?
 - with supply chains a concern for our business community, how is the Government supporting our sovereign capability?
 
It was good to hear that payroll tax is a consideration, that the Housing Deliver Authority would help with supply and affordability but discussions with key stakeholder locally were taking place. The government was increasing biosecurity but acknowledged the focus for our manufactures was ensuring that energy was available and affordable. 
 

riverina murray business awards

Last Friday 19th September, we celebrated the 2025 Riverina Murray Business Awards in unforgettable style - and what a spectacular evening it was! 
 
 With over 280 attendees, the night was a true celebration of innovation, resilience, and excellence in our vibrant business community.
 
 A huge thank you to the stunning Piccolo Family Farm for hosting us - the venue was absolutely magical, the perfect backdrop for a night of celebration. And the incredible catering by Limone Dining? Next-level. From start to finish, every detail was flawless.
 
Our Major Sponsor and trusted AV wizards Pyrus Events lit up the space and crafted an amazing experience visually for our guests. We are always in such good hands!
 
 The dance floor was buzzing thanks to Riverina DJ Collective and the powerhouse live performance from Groove Inc - you brought the energy and the vibes!
 
Massive shoutout to the talented Matt Beaver who captured the night beautifully - we can't wait to relive every moment through your lens! Check out all the photos from the night on our Facebook page: https://lnkd.in/gBNAKtCd
 
Our charismatic MCs Jamie & Leigh from Southern Cross Austereo kept the energy high and the laughs coming - thank you both for steering the night with such style.
 
A heartfelt thank you to our category sponsors Visy, RSM Australia, Telstra, Habitat Planning, Griffith City Council, Flavourtech Pty Ltd, Riverina DJ Collective, SunRice Group and Origin Energy - your support is what makes this celebration of business excellence possible. Thank you also to Aquna Sustainable Murray Cod for the delicious produce for the menu, and to Quest Griffith, our accommodation partner. 
 
This event is more than just a night out - it's a reminder of the incredible talent, hard work and passion that drives the Riverina Murray region. We are proud to champion our local business community through this outstanding awards program.
 

in conversation with premier minns

On Tuesday, we hosted as special event in partnership with RSM Australia for our Regional Leader members with the Premier in our very own Regional Business Centre in Albury, alongside special guests Member for Albury Justin Clancy MP, Mayor for Albury City Kevin MACK and Mayor for Edward River, Ashley Hall.
 
 We heard from the Premier on the Worker's Compensation reforms the Government is trying to get through the upper house and the need for change, and on planning reforms that provide certainty and timeliness to development assessment.
 
We asked what was next on the agenda for the Government's pro-business agenda, acknowledging reforms in planning and some recent changes from the 24-Hour Economy NSW and we were very glad to hear insurance was high on the agenda, with the Emergency Service Levy next on the list. 
 
 The Premier also took questions from our members on:
 - energy and gas supply 
 - support for childcare service in regional and remote areas 
 - funding for infrastructure 
 - water policy and consideration of efficient practices 
 - food security policy and the need to protect what we grow and produce here in region from a social perspective 
 - Payroll tax and the need for us to stay competitive with our neighboring states
 - The restrictions of on grants for those who are successful and sell out (which the Premier personally took away to action).
 
A vote of thanks conducted by Dean Bocquet RSM Australia summarised how welcome the Premier is in the region, the importance of having good conversations with differing views welcomed and encouraged to ensure we get the best result, the need for leaders of our business community to come together and have these conversations and we couldn't agree more and are proud to be the enablers and facilitators of this.