Get up and grow with networking
Cairns Forum 4 Business Growth was formed as an alternative business networking group for local businesses in 2011 and the group’s focus has remained on quality interactions and referrals with people – and those people happen to be in business.
The philosophy is to provide a professional environment in which like-minded businesses can meet on a regular basis to exchange quality referrals and build relationships through interactions.
Monthly lunches with engaging guest speakers are held in a personal atmosphere that provides just the right ingredients to support business growth.
Just one example of this is a local business that won a huge contract for the soon to open aquarium attraction.
This all happened from direct engagement at the last October lunch, where senior Cairns Aquarium executives addressed the forum.
Some of the other bonuses businesses get through F4BG are:
■ Community engagement: members believe in being an active voice in the community, encouraging opportunities for employment and providing business and professional development expertise to other members.
■ Personal growth: the group encourages networking in a social environment as well, with after-hours casual drinks and open events scheduled at regular intervals.
According to the latest published statistics from the ABS, of the 21,861 total registered Cairns businesses as at June 30, 2015, a notable 21,256 employed fewer than 20 people.
This is just over 97 per cent of businesses in our region.
Recent guest speakers at Forum 4 Business Growth events included Cairns Aquarium’s Andrew Hearn, Cairns deputy mayor Terry James and respected economist Bill Cummings.
Forthcoming guests include home automation expert Vas Allayialis of Omega Technologies and Regional Development Australia chairman Professor Allan Dale.
This is why we should remain excited and charged for the future growth of the Cairns region. Get involved at the coalface and see what’s happening first-hand.
— Tony McInnes is president of Cairns Forum 4 Business Growth