LESANZ President’s Christmas Broadcast 2022
As we head all too rapidly to the close of another year, longing to clear our desks ahead of the festive holidays, it is time to reflect on the past year and to start thinking ahead to the coming year.
2022 has seen the start of people being able to get together again, with more face-to-face events and hybrid events than over the previous two years or so. Connections are being remade and networking gathering apace. The webinar and online meetings fatigue is starting to fade. Meetings and events are finding more of a balance between in-person and online. One benefit of the past three years is that we have all learnt to use online platforms for business and personal meetings, and for simple catch-ups that are more personal than just telephone but avoid the time involved in travelling for another coffee. Not to mistake the tangible benefit in meeting in-person though – that human touch will always be most valued.
In 2022 LESANZ delivered events in almost every month of the year, with many webinars of national and international appeal, as well as regional face-to-face events where possible.
The successful annual LESANZ national conference was hosted entirely online in 2022 due to international and interstate travel restrictions and associated risk of committing to a face-to-face conference that may not otherwise have been able to go ahead in the event of a change in COVID restrictions. To ‘mix things up a bit’, this was the first time our annual conference was delivered through session topics and speakers organised by our Australian and New Zealand regional committees.
LESANZ continued its support of the annual Francis Gurry Lecture on Intellectual Property, which was presented by Shira Perlmutter, Registrar of Copyrights and Director, U.S. Copyright Office through Melbourne Law School and live streamed.
The very successful IP Fundamentals and IP Intermediate workshops were run in online formats in mid-2022. These will be returning to face-to-face workshops in 2023 by popular demand. In fact, the Intermediate licensing course has returned to in person in New Zealand at the end of 2022.
LESANZ kicked-off 2022 with events on ‘IP enforcement: Issues faced and lessons learned’ and ‘IP Licensing 2022 Takeaways from recent cases & HERC reform’. Webinars delivered throughout the year covered very relevant technology, IP and commercialisation topics, including ‘AI Inventorship – the rise of the machines’, ‘Quantum Technology – Australia’s quantum future’ and ‘IP Valuation – assessing commercial value intangible assets’.
Our LESANZ Emerging Professionals group continues to go from strength-to-strength, developing their professional skills, building networks and adding value to the businesses they represent.
Members are reminded that the 2023 membership renewals are now due for our new year beginning 1 January. The Secretariat will process professional membership renewals invoices to your account, please remit your membership fees prior to going on annual leave. Members are welcome to contact the Secretariat and renew memberships over the phone here: Make a time to talk to Beth about renewing.
We are very much looking forward to getting back to face-to-face networking in 2023. Join us for the LESANZ annual conference ‘Connecting Country to Global’ at the Waurn Ponds Estate, Geelong, 8-10 March 2023. Topics planned for the conference include Indigenous Culture and Intellectual Property (ICIP), Collaborating for Commercial Success and learnings for expanding your business from Australia/NZ to the world. We are also planning to deliver the much appreciated annual ‘Licensing Year in Review’ by Scott Bouvier at the 2023 conference. Early Bird registrations are open until 31 January 2023. I personally look forward to meeting many of you there. Visit the LESANZ website for more information and remember ‘book early!’ as accommodation on-site will fill quickly.
Future LESANZ projects in-the-pipeline include a pilot ‘mentoring’ program to connect Emerging Professionals with experienced professionals, and a series of recorded IP/commercialisation modules.
On behalf of LESANZ, thank you to all members for your support during 2022. My personal thank you to our national and regional committee members, and to our Secretariat, for the great work you do for LESANZ and our members.
Keep safe and well. Look after each other. Touch base with us if you just need someone to talk to – LESANZ members are just the friendliest bunch of people in commercialisation, tech-transfer and IP that you could ever wish to meet.
Come along – be part of it and grow your knowledge, skills and networks.
Best wishes to all of you for Christmas and the New Year.
Mark Pullen
LESANZ President