Stellar Partnerships

APRIL 16, 2023

The Royal Family aren’t short of a dollar or two. It must be nice to have the crown jewels in storage for a rainy day. But the Royals are well known for some frugal habits such as re-using gift wrap, keeping outfits for decades and turning the lights off in unused rooms. Probably a sizeable contribution to climate change adaptation when your house has 700+ rooms.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Banking 130

Stellar Partnerships

APRIL 10, 2023

We held an Easter egg hunt last Sunday for all the kids at church. We hid a ton of tiny eggs in nooks and crannies for them to find. But the big drawcard was the giant chocolate Easter rabbit, which all of the bigger kids wanted to nab for themselves. While the older ones were performing a kind of egg hunt parkour to find where we’d hidden the big prize, one little girl took a different route.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships 130

Stellar Partnerships

APRIL 3, 2023

What would you do if you got everything you wanted, all at once? Would you be celebrating or panicking? Social media is full of stories about overnight successes, from tech start-ups to unlikely heroes. But there are downsides to early success and it can be hard to sustain if you don’t have the right infrastructure around you. Ask Britney Spears or Justin Bieber.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Energy 130

Stellar Partnerships

MARCH 26, 2023

Every one of my female friends has the same configuration in her kitchen. The top drawer holds the day-to-day cutlery. The third drawer has tea towels and place mats. It’s so commonplace there’s even a shop in Melbourne called Third Drawer Down. In the second drawer, however, it’s barely contained chaos. It’s full of all those kitchen utensils that are really useful, but they‘re odd shapes and sizes and don’t fit neatly together no matter how many natty IKEA storage hacks you buy.

Collaboration 130

Collaboration Banking Government 130

Stellar Partnerships

MARCH 19, 2023

My neighbour Jimmy has lived in his house for 60 years. The suburb at that time was full of recent migrants and tradies and people scorned the old Victorian weatherboard houses. Now it’s full of investment bankers driving Teslas. Real estate agents will always tell you that the best time to buy was last year. When Jimmy tells me how he bought his house for the equivalent price of a designer handbag, then they may have a point.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Partnership management 130

Stellar Partnerships

MARCH 13, 2023

The world is full of contradictions. The celebrities who trumpet their environmental warrior credentials from the deck of their luxury yacht; Jeff Bezos thanking Amazon employees for making his space dream come true whilst they work 10 hour shifts without a break; giant Freddos that actually aren’t that big at all. You probably think that your non-profit has a lot of trust and credibility within the community because you’re a for purpose organisation and the only ones who care about making the w

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130

Stellar Partnerships

MARCH 5, 2023

Every year around International Women’s Day I hear the same question: what about the men? Why isn’t there an international day for men? Spoiler alert, it’s on 19 th November. Maybe the reason there’s such a low profile is that every day is men’s day. Plus, they’re probably relying on the women to organise it. It got me thinking about IWD and what it would look like if men were the ones fighting for equality.

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130

Stellar Partnerships

FEBRUARY 26, 2023

Partnerships are more than just the money, right? Just like airlines are all about the schedules, seat size and in-flight entertainment, until one crashes into a hillside. Then it’s all about safety and maintenance. Alan Joyce is attempting a tricky balancing act between returning Qantas to profitability and getting a fully loaded 767 into the air without an engine dropping off.

Engineering 236

Engineering 236

Stellar Partnerships

FEBRUARY 19, 2023

Let’s play a game of pretend. What if cars ceased to exist? How would life be different? Governments would have to invest in public transport. People would walk more, get fitter and actually meet their neighbours. Concrete car parks would give way to green parks and room for more housing. Out of town monster shopping malls would be replaced by local markets and smaller urban villages.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Government Retail Collaboration 130

Stellar Partnerships

FEBRUARY 12, 2023

There is a lot of buzz around Chat GPT right now. Woo, shiny new toy – I’m there faster than a magpie in swooping season. Yes, my name is Sharon and I’m 100% sucked into using AI technology now. I went down a rabbit hole the other night having fun with Chat GPT and asked it to write a song about Stellar Partnerships. Linda almost fell off her chair laughing and replied saying Beyonce’s Grammy record will be safe.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Partnership management 130

Stellar Partnerships

FEBRUARY 6, 2023

It’s the start of the Australian school year and parents have been cleaning out the shops for new shoes, uniforms and eye wateringly expensive stationery. Of course, they need the must-have Harry Potter themed drink bottle at a bracing $45! February is when everyone is best dressed and ready to go. That’s why schools do their class photos now, and not in December when outfits are frayed, and everyone looks like they’ve been through Tough Mudder.

Corporate partnerships 246

Corporate partnerships 246

Stellar Partnerships

JANUARY 29, 2023

I once visited the World War One battlefields in France. It was moving to see the fields of crosses that stretched far into the distance. More surprising was a visit to the trenches. The German trenches were so close to the British ones that a decent cricketer could easily hit the stumps on the other side. But both sides were dug in deep and just kept lobbing bullets and artillery across the gap at each other, until they had fought to a standstill.

Strategic partnership 130

Strategic partnership Government 130

Stellar Partnerships

JANUARY 22, 2023

During the summer holidays our habits change. We get used to sleeping in, moving at a slower pace in the heat, long lunches and ice cream in the sun. As the holidays come to an end, we have to shed some of those habits as they no longer serve us for the year ahead. For me, it’s back to shoes instead of thongs and goodbye to the afternoon naps. If you want to grow partnerships in 2023, you’ll need to examine the habits that have developed in your organisation and whether they are supporting or hi

Partnership success 130

Partnership success Government 130

Stellar Partnerships

DECEMBER 11, 2022

When my kids were little their Santa list grew exponentially as new toy catalogues arrived in the mailbox. Every possibility sparked joy, but unlike Marie Kondo, nothing ever seemed to come off the wish list. So every year we had a pre-Christmas clear out. Things that had languished unloved and unattended went in a big bag to the Op Shop. For a few days I could actually see the floor in their bedrooms, until the Santa onslaught arrived.

Energy 130

Energy 130

Stellar Partnerships

DECEMBER 5, 2022

There is something very interesting going on in sports sponsorships this year. Unless you’ve banned yourself from all media in Australia, you would have heard about Hancock Prospecting pulling its funding of Netball Australia. Donnel Wallam expressed her concern about wearing a uniform with the Hancock Prospecting logo. Why? Because of comments made by Gina Rinehart’s father in the 80’s.

Energy 130

Energy 130

Stellar Partnerships

NOVEMBER 28, 2022

I never thought I’d agree with Donald Trump. Not with his ideas about disinfectant cures for COVID, why Nazis are good people or how global warming is a Chinese conspiracy. But he’s always advocated thinking big. It’s fair to say The Donald never had ambitions as small as his hands. We discussed partnerships recently with a leader at a large corporate.

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130

Stellar Partnerships

NOVEMBER 21, 2022

Cookbooks are my guilty secret. Like a teenager sneaking porn into his bedroom, I try to hide the latest acquisition in the bookshelf, where my addiction won’t be obvious. My new favourite turns out to be an unexpected hit. The cookbook by Nagi Maehashi , a novice cook and food blogger, has sold 37,000 copies since launch in October, becoming the highest selling title ever by a debut Australian author in the first week.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships 130

Stellar Partnerships

NOVEMBER 13, 2022

When COVID forced us all to work from home, many people discovered an unexpected benefit. We had more time in the day. The commute to the office transformed instantly from several hours of wrestling with traffic and transport to a 2-minute walk to the desk. For some, they didn’t even bother with the desk and stayed in bed with the laptop. It felt like time had suddenly been gifted to us.

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246

Stellar Partnerships

NOVEMBER 6, 2022

Everything 1980s is back in fashion – shoulder pads, big hair, bold colours, Duran Duran. I should never have cleaned out my closet, as my wardrobe would now be ‘vintage’ and not daggy. During the 1980s and 1990s cause marketing became the new way of corporates and non-profits working together. We were drowning in a sea of fuchsia from the Pink Ribbon campaigns around the world.

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130

Stellar Partnerships

OCTOBER 31, 2022

Sometimes the lure of big money can make us overlook the risks behind a decision. Like a gambler convinced that the next game is going to be the big winner, we can fail to see the real costs and consequences. In the UK a restaurant chain offered to sponsor a local soccer team for under 10-year old boys. The sponsorship provided much needed funds for equipment, kit and training.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Construction Engineering 130

Stellar Partnerships

OCTOBER 23, 2022

Years’ ago my running coach taught me that when you’re running up a hill your eyes are down. Why? Because you don’t want to see the top of the hill and start panicking. When you’re looking down at the road, it looks just as flat as any other part. It helps to protect your attitude. Shielding ourselves from upcoming pain can work but often it’s better to be prepared and have a plan.

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100

Stellar Partnerships

OCTOBER 16, 2022

“There is no duty more indispensable than returning a kindness” Cicero. Only two more haircuts to the end of the year! My friend measures time in haircuts rather than sleeps, so it shocked me how little of 2022 we have left. When my kids were young, I’d be super organised and hit the mid-year toy sale at Target to stock up. Now I’m struggling through the shopping mall frenzy a few days before Christmas in desperation.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships 130

Stellar Partnerships

OCTOBER 9, 2022

Mismatched expectations can be the source of great frustration and disappointment. Like online shopping when you think you’ve found the perfect outfit, but what arrives is a mess of polyester that’s cut for a skinny giraffe. Or maybe you’ve booked a fabulous looking holiday villa only to find that your balcony view is of the high-rise car park next door.

Banking 130

Banking IT partnerships Finance Government 130

Stellar Partnerships

OCTOBER 4, 2022

Modern dating is a minefield. There are endless sites that claim to find you the perfect match or you can try your luck with Tinder or Bumble and hope you won’t get swiped left. It was much easier in my day when you could rely on introductions from friends or bagging an attractive groomsman at a wedding. Finding the right corporate partner can be equally challenging.

High tech 130

High tech Retail Energy 130

Stellar Partnerships

SEPTEMBER 27, 2022

People have been sharing their memories of the much-loved Queen Elizabeth. A former colleague went to Buckingham Palace to receive an award for her work with young entrepreneurs. Dressed in her best outfit and killer heels, she was very nervous as her name was called. What does one say to Her Majesty? After the initial greeting and responding to the Queen’s favourite line of “have you come far?

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships 130

Stellar Partnerships

SEPTEMBER 19, 2022

How is your partnership prospecting going? Unless you’ve got a Rolodex like the legendary PR guru Max Markson, I suspect you don’t have the connections to the corporate partners you want. We often hear from non-profits that the board is full of technical experts or they’re not well-connected businesspeople. They claim they can’t provide connections or introductions to help the partnership team.

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130

Stellar Partnerships

SEPTEMBER 12, 2022

As a vertically challenged female, clothes shopping is a struggle. Modern clothes, especially jeans, are made for people built like a giraffe, with impossibly long arms and legs. I have to imagine every outfit with 10 cm shaved off somewhere. On the few occasions when I’ve had something tailor made, it was a revelation. I couldn’t pour enough cash into the hands of those talented tailors in Hanoi fast enough.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Construction 130

Stellar Partnerships

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022

When you get started on something new you become aware of all the people that are already brilliant at it. At my first tap dancing lesson I felt like I was wearing lead boots compared to the Fred Astaire level tap enthusiasts in my class. It was unfamiliar and uncomfortable. It took a couple of years of practice before it finally felt right. Then I had to be restrained by my kids from endlessly rehearsing my routines in the kitchen.

Partnering capability and readiness 130

Partnering capability and readiness Corporate partnerships Legal 130

Stellar Partnerships

AUGUST 28, 2022

What do you want to be when you grow up? It’s the favourite question that adults ask kids. How on earth do you know? In my fifth decade I’m still figuring it out. A better question would be to ask what you love doing and what makes you happy. My daughter at age 6 said she wanted to be a fairy princess rock star- combining her love of sparkly dresses with singing in the shower.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Insurance Business development 130

Stellar Partnerships

AUGUST 21, 2022

Kids are the most brutal critics. Perhaps that’s why so many people prefer dogs; they don’t care if you’re dressed badly or haven’t cleaned the house, you’ll still get a warm welcome and undying love. My daughter is training to be a teacher and she sees what kids write in their daily diaries. They are startlingly frank about their family’s shortcomings.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Collaboration 130

Stellar Partnerships

AUGUST 14, 2022

I grew up before the internet, when kids played in the street until it got dark and came home when dinner was ready. Thankfully, the absence of smartphone cameras and social media means that my teen years were undocumented and unseen by the world’s critical gaze. Mullets, blue eyeshadow, shoulder pads and ill-chosen boyfriends are dark secrets hidden in old boxes of grainy photos.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships 130

Stellar Partnerships

AUGUST 7, 2022

There is an old story about Winston Churchill taking a newly elected MP into the UK houses of parliament. Pointing across the chamber, the newbie asked, “Is that where the enemy sits?” Winston replied, “No my boy, the opposition occupies the benches in front of you. The enemy sits behind you”. When you’re working hard to build great corporate partnerships, it can sometimes feel like the biggest challenges are with your internal teams, not your corporate prospects.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Partnership management Partnership success Collaboration 130

Stellar Partnerships

AUGUST 1, 2022

When you open your wardrobe do you have your favourites? I find myself reaching for things that I know are predictable, comfortable and safe. When Sharon moved house recently, she discovered a treasure trove of items that had languished unnoticed for ages. After the cursing and effort to pack everything up, I wonder if she’s discovered some hidden gems?

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130

Stellar Partnerships

JULY 24, 2022

Last Mother’s Day my family treated me to a dinner at a swish Melbourne restaurant. It had an impressive 4- star rating from the critics and looked just like a real Parisian bistro. But despite the lovely setting and friendly service, the steak was overcooked, the sauce bland and the wicker seat kept catching on my dress. It made me wonder what criteria they used to give it four stars.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Legal Retail Energy 130

Stellar Partnerships

JULY 18, 2022

“Life is like a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving” Albert Einstein. It’s midwinter and getting out of bed on a cold morning is a struggle. Even my border collie, a hardy soul, put one paw outside the door this morning and thought better of it. How’s your motivation right now? We know that end of financial year can be a high-pressure time.

Energy 130

Energy 130

Stellar Partnerships

JULY 10, 2022

Our world is in a turbulent phase, like an oyster writhing to resist the grain of sand before it creates a pearl. Things we took for granted are no longer a given. Think about reproductive rights, home ownership, democracy or a thriving Great Barrier Reef. The stats from the Edelman trust barometer show that 56% of Australians think the system isn’t working for them.

Corporate partnerships 130

Corporate partnerships Construction 130

Stellar Partnerships

JULY 4, 2022

I once asked an international development expert what she really wanted from a corporate partner. Her response wasn’t what I expected. Rather than ask for a large amount of money for more programs, she said this. ‘There’s a copper mine near one of our biggest programs in Chile. I’d love the company to shut it down so the local communities could have better water, less pollution and their own land to grow food again.

Collaboration 130

Collaboration 130