Page 37 - Packaging News Magazine Sep-Oct 2019

WHAT’S COMING UP
APPMA NEWS
Member dinners hit the mark
An occasion for networking and education, APPMA member dinners are popular events on the association calendar. We bring you the highlights from the Sydney dinner in July.
Award winning author and business coach Paul Allen was the main speaker at the recent member dinner held in Sydney, which drew an audience of around 100 APPMA members and guests.
Allen opened his talk by looking at the three main challenges APPMA members are facing: the high Aussie dollar; contracts that have become too large and complex; and the increasing demand for extended terms, sometimes up to 150 days.
Allen cheered guests by saying he would guarantee them a 15 per cent margin uplift if they followed his plan for 90 days.
He invited members present to note down the customer that kept them awake at night, asking them to write down the revenue received from them, the margin, and what a 15 per cent improvement would mean.
Allen gave what he said were the three key principles of margin retention: first, the need to work out the real cost to serve that customer, and how to generate incremental increase; second, the need to supply on your terms; and third, to teach customers, rather than have them teach you.
He asked members to consider the impact of giving away freebies, and said negotiation should be a two-way street. “So, for instance, if you have a client who wants 150 days terms you could say that is possible, but we will need a rolling two year contract extension,” he said.
He ended by going through the top ten actions a company can take to improve profitability, which are outlined in his book Take Back Your Margin, a copy of which was to be made available to APPMA members after the event.
Detailed reports on member dinners can be found on the PKN website in the News/Association News section. The November-December 2019 Machinery Matters edition will cover the Lindsay Tanner talk at the Melbourne dinner on 10 September.
CLOCKWISE: Mark Dingley and Paul Allen against the backdrop of a sparkling Sydney Harbour.
The APPMA members in attendance were keen to find out how to take back their margin.
(L -R) Hassan Rahman, Rhima; Rafica El Shami, Greenpack; Robert Silicato and Milan Bawa, Siemens.
PACKEXPO 2019
23-26 SEPTEMBER
LAS VEGAS, USA
APPMA is a recognised association partner for PMMI’s PACK EXPO Las Vegas, a quality trade show that focuses on packaging and processing innovation.
MEMBER DINNER BRISBANE
12 NOVEMBER 2019
BRISBANE MARRIOTT HOTEL
All member companies are invited, as are staff and colleagues.
AUSPACK 2021
25-28 MAY 2021 SYDNEY SHOWGROUND
The industry’s leading trade show for packaging and processing sectors, owned by APPMA. (See page 40).
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