David is able to tailor his presentation to a wide range of audiences and industries with a focus on any or all of the following topics:
Diversity
We live in the Asian Century and western organisations face unique challenges, threats and opportunities. With the flow of people, capital and resources from China, India and South East Asia into every corner of our society, now is the time for dynamic, progressive and ambitious organisations to embrace the benefits of diversification, which include:
- Boosting creativity, diversity and innovation – fresh perspectives lead to fresh ideas which leads to new revenue streams
- Doing business with Asia – presenting a multicultural ‘face’ to marketing, sales and client relationships
- Increasing productivity and profitability – organisations with cultures that promote diversity, inclusion and collaboration get better results
Keynote Speaker, David Thomas, has lived and worked in Asia Pacific for the past 30 years. He brings unique insights to this topic from his role as an adviser and thought leader to Australian and Asian business leaders seeking to embrace multiculturalism and maximise their opportunities in the region.
In this interactive, challenging and illustrative presentation, you will learn:
- Our place in the Asian Century – past, present and future – opportunities, challenges, risks
- How multi-national organisations have achieved success in Asia via diversification – case studies, anecdotes and stories
- The challenges of implementing diversification in the workplace – on the organisation, team and leadership levels
Future Trends
We live in the Asian Century, with China as the growth engine, and the next 50 years will see many industries disrupted by Chinese consumerism, innovation and aspiration. Many services industries, including healthcare, retail, luxury, travel, education and food are already affected by the rise of China’s middle class, together with their massive investment in technology, R&D, e-commerce and AI. All business leaders and managers need to be aware of the likely impact on their industries and organisations from these disruptive forces and the opportunities it creates for them to develop a new cultural mindset and a China engagement strategy.
David Thomas is an experienced and dynamic speaker who will bring this topic to life at your next conference or event and a thought leader who lives and breathes the China growth story at ground level.
Past speaking engagements include:
- Telstra Young Leaders – The future is China
- ING Top Brokers – Bringing China to You
- Westpac – Doing business in China and India
- CEO Institute – The 8 critical steps to developing your China Strategy
- The Executive Connection – China in the Asian Century
Examples of keynote topics on Future Trends:
- China in the Asian Century– what this means for you, your industry and your business?
- Bringing China to You – The Inbound Opportunity
- The 8 Critical Steps to Developing your China Strategy
Leadership
Whilst IQ, and more recently EQ, were once regarded as the highest and most sought after qualities of leaders in western organisations, future leaders will be selected and judged by their levels of “CQ” i.e “Cultural Intelligence”, including their ability and aptitude for managing teams from diverse backgrounds and nationalities, overseeing cross-cultural communications, and handling cross-border negotiations and transactions. Very few of these skills are taught in western educational institutions and much of this has to be learnt from experience, trial and error, and listening to those who have done it all before.
David Thomas has spent the last 30 years living, working and managing relationships in the Asia Pacific region, including leading numerous missions, delegations and study tours to China designed to support western leaders on the ground and to highlight and address some of the cross-cultural challenges for their business and their teams, which always makes the difference between success and failure.
Past speaking engagements include:
- Property Profile Group Asia Day – Developing an Asian mindset
- William Grants & Sons, UK – Bringing China to You
- Real Estate Results Network – Three Cups of Tea
- First National Annual Conference – Doing business with Asians
- Louis Vuitton – How to sell luxury products to high net worth Asians
Examples of Keynote Topics on Leadership:
- Three Cups of Tea – a 3 step process to building trusted relationships in Asia
- From IQ to EQ to CQ – why all leaders need to develop ‘Cultural Intelligence’ (CQ)
- The Cultural Mirror – practical steps to cross-cultural communications, negotiation and transactions
Innovation
Once known for its fake handbags, copy watches and pirate software, China is now leading the world in science, technology and innovation. Chinese brands like Huawei, Alibaba, Lenovo, Haier and Tencent are disrupting traditional industries (notably retail, e-commerce and IT) by leveraging their access to over 400m middle class consumers, spending billions in R&D and launching new products and services on a scale previously unheard of. China’s ‘Made in China 2025’ plan is intended to completely transform their manufacturing industry with a focus on clean energy, healthcare and communications, and China’s ambition is to lead the world in new industries such as renewable energy, driverless and battery operated vehicles and advanced medical products.
David Thomas speaks to business leaders, entrepreneurs and investors around the world about how their industry is being impacted by what’s happening in China, how they can take advantage, who they need to speak to and what they can do about it. He draws on over 30 years of on the ground experience, connections and knowledge and draws on case studies, anecdotes and examples to bring his presentations to life.
Past speaking engagements include:
- Thiess Directors Conference – The Future of the Mining Industry
- Magnitude Principals Forum – The Future of the Financial Services Industry
- Australia China Young Professionals – Booms Bust and Baozi, the future of finance in China
- MSI Regional Conference – The Future of the Legal Industry
- CPA Australia – The Future of the Accounting Industry
Examples of Keynote Topics on Innovations:
- Innovation in the Asian Century – how China is transforming an industry near you
- From Shanzhai to Shanghai – how China leapt from imitation to innovation
- Bringing China to You – how to do business with China without leaving home
Globalisation
David Thomas is well known within the Asia Pacific region for his passion and experience for investing and doing business in emerging markets, notably the four “BRIC countries” (Brazil, Russia, India and China) plus the growing influence of China as the engine of global economic growth and the rise of the Asian middle class. Having lived in Asia for the last 30 years, he literally lives and breathes emerging markets. His broad and diverse experience includes:
- designing, organising and leading research and study tours for professional asset managers to each of the four BRIC countries
- for five years on the Advisory Board of the Emerging Markets Masters Fund, he has direct hands-on experience of investing in emerging markets (includes overseeing asset allocation, fund selection, currency and stock analysis etc.)
- regularly travelling around Asia working with entrepreneurs and investors to review and select new opportunities in emerging businesses
Past speaking engagements include:
- AMP – fundamentals of investing in the ‘BRIC’ and ‘MINT’ countries
- Deloitte – the importance of BRIC for European investors
- Westpac – doing business and investing in China and India
- PNG Investment Conference – what can PNG learn from the BRIC countries?
- Colonial First State – Investing in Emerging Markets – local v global
Examples of keynote topics on Globalisation:
- Building with new BRICS – why the BRIC countries are the long term future
- BRIC – unlock unique business and investment opportunities in each BRIC country
- Think Global, Act Local– invest in global emerging markets