Business View Oceania | April/May 2022

11 12 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 4, ISSUE 4 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 4, ISSUE 4 AUSTRAL I AN INFORMAT ION INDUSTRY ASSOC I AT ION development of domestic credibility, and we’ve also navigated and continue to navigate the fine balance between privacy versus national security.” He continues, “Despite the changes in technology over the last 44 years, our role hasn’t changed. We have seen and contributed to the growth of the industry over that time, particularly in the last 18 months, where the curve has just shot up. We’ve gone from being Australia’s sixth largest sector in the sharing economy to the third largest, and we have emerging technologies that would quickly see us move to the largest industry sector in Australia. So, it’s an exciting time to be involved in ICT.” The team of 10 staff at AIIA, supplemented by approximately 350 state volunteers and outsource partners, value equality, innovation, communication, and responsibility above all else. Memberships are tiered according to the the entire depth and breadth of our industry. We came into being all those years ago to provide a representative organisation for the industry and solidify its role in the Australian economy, and from that point of view, our purpose hasn’t changed. Foundational members remain with us today, and our importance has never been more significant. Over the years we have successfully advocated for Australia’s National Skills program, the digitization of the Australian economy and digitalization of both private and public sectors, the building and development of the national broadband infrastructure, the commercialization of AI, major reforms to tax incentives, investments in the start-up community, the schools, and government agencies. Members are welcome from all areas of the industry; telecommunications, software, hardware, AI, data, analytics, machine learning, communications, networking information services, cloud and data centre infrastructure providers, strategy and planning professional services, cyber security, government services, HR, talent acquisition, workforce planning, and non-ICT-related organisations. We welcome Ron Gauci, CEO of AIIA, to speak on behalf of the association and its members. “We are the oldest association of our kind in Australia and the only one that still represents