The Crescent Institute welcomed Ahmed Fahour, CEO of Australia post and Patron of the Islamic Museum of Australia (IMA) on the 25th of March 2014. (Click here for event photos)

The event took place at KPMG's Melbourne office attracting a diverse attendance both interested in the dual topics of Australia post and its future direction as well as social initiatives such as the Islamic museum of Australia.  Simon Benson from the host sponsor KPMG welcomed guests to the evening and was shortly followed by a formal introduction of the guest oh honour by the patron of the Crescent Institute, Talal Yassine OAM.  

Ahmed Fahour commenced his address by thanking the audience for attending and was delighted exclaiming  "I am honoured that you have chosen to spend tonight here with me as opposed to going home after a long day at work".

Ahmed began with the Islamic Museum of Australia discussing the idea behind this initiative and what he hoped it would achieve in Australia. He emphasised that "through the area of the arts one can express something in an uncontroversial  way".  He described the many challenges the four-year journey took but also the fantastic support from all parts of the community in working together and achieving the end result of the first Islamic museum in Australia. Mr Fahour also delved into the intricate design details and efforts put into the Museum to create a hybrid Australian-Islamic feel illustrating the intertwined nature of both cultures.

Mr Fahour then shifted to his current role as CEO of Australia Post.  " We have worked very hard over the past 4 years to in a sense rejuvenate an iconic Australian business which has been operating for 205 years". Ahmed highlighted the fact that the Australia Post's business model of delivering letters was under deep threat given the advancements of technology. To respond to such challenges Ahmed described the "Future Ready" initiative that started in 2010 at Australia Post playing a crucial role in transforming the business model. Ahmed exclaimed that "the best time to do something new is when you are at the peak of your game" going on to explain that a lot more needs to be done at Australia Post in order to embrace the digital age, changing with the customer profiles, highlighting the upgrades of the retail stores as well as looking for international growth opportunities. 

Ahmed went on to describe the challenges in transforming Australia Post where the average Australian household received 1.5 letters per day compared with the hundreds of electronic messages sent daily from email, text messaging and social media posts. With the exponential growth in electronic forms of communication Australia Post cannot in the future maintain a business model for 200 years anymore and must constantly and consistently always look for development opportunities to remain competitive, innovative and productive into the future. 

The final segment of the evening was question time where Mr Fahour fielded a wide range of questions ranging from everyday challenges during his stint at NAB during the global financial crisis, through to personal values he stands by when conducting business as well as his views about Carlton's performance and prospects of winning the flag in the near future as a board member of the football club.

The Crescent Institute would sincerely like to thank Mr Fahour for his attendance and his address to the institute. Additionally the Institute would like to thank its sponsors for their generous support.

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The Institute would like to thank all members and guests who attended the evening. The event would not have been possible without you and hope you had an enjoyable time. 

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We look forward to seeing you at our future events 

If you have any comments or suggestions please don’t hesitate to forward them through via email: info@crescentinstitute.com.au