It is halfway through the 2020-2021 term, and amidst all the challenges of lockdown and other restrictions, EO Melbourne has endeavoured to provide various avenues for its community of entrepreneurs, as well as their families, to grow in their journey.
Despite events taking place virtually, it didn’t stop the chapter from coming up with interesting, informational and enjoyable activities that are beneficial to its members. Here are some of the online events that have happened for the last six months:
Learning events
Committed to providing opportunities for personal and professional growth and development to its members, EO Melbourne has lined up several learning events online that could equip them with tools and additional knowledge.
This included webinars and Zoom calls with experts and business leaders who shared their experiences, lessons learned and insights to the EO community. These virtual talks featured the following speakers: Jeffrey Cole (The Coronavirus Disruption Project), Dr Emma Fulu and Hannah Kassay (Diversity and Inclusion), Austin McChord (his entrepreneurial journey), Joe Pane and Katerina Papamarkou (Readjusting to life after lockdown), Adam Ross (Launching a VC-backed startup during the pandemic), and Adam Bennett (In conversation with a “White Hat Hacker”).
There were also member-led virtual events such as the “Building Brands that Last” with Andrew McKinnon and the “Influencer Marketing” with Hannah Vasicek. There were also various online sessions with the chapter’s Strategic Alliance Partners like Airwallex, BlueRock, EOS, and Evans & Partners.
Moreover, it was a successful Mentorship Program launch and online training that saw the participation of 27 pairs of mentors and mentees.
Socials and family events
Apart from the learning events, EO also organised social events to provide fun and light moments for the members and even their families.
There were virtual wine tasting nights where participants and their partners enjoyed a thing or two about winemaking while exchanging stories over bottles of wine. It was an entertaining and magical day for parents and kids as they learned new tricks from Australia’s greatest magician, Cosentino, during the EO Academy of Magic.
With the absence of physical gatherings, EO came up with catch-up events, such as the Chat Roulette and Needs & Leads, that allowed members to get to know one another and lend support to each other.
APAC events
The EO Asia-Pacific region has also put together several webinars and special interest virtual events for chapters within the area. The APAC Celebrity Webinars featured the likes of Marc Randolph of Netflix, Jack Daly, Dr Angus Hervey and Tane Hunter of Future Crunch, Bhutan's former Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, and Starbucks Coffee Company International’s former president Howard Behar.
Meanwhile, the EO APAC Inspiring CEO Series took participants through the entrepreneurial journeys of Globe CEO Ernest Cu, Jindal Steel & Power Limited Chairman Naveen Jindal, Taylor's Education Group CEO Dato' Loy Teik Ngan, and Flight Centre Travel Group co-founder and CEO Graham “Skroo” Turner.
Apart from these activities, forums within the chapter continued to meet-up online. As restrictions are now easing after lockdown, some activities and events move towards the physical space. Although there is a face-to-face interface, safety measures and protocols are still strictly observed.
The calendar year 2020 is almost coming to an end and a new chapter in 2021 is about to unfold. Despite the challenges, EO Melbourne remains true to its mission of supporting entrepreneurial education by supporting the needs of the 360° entrepreneur through business, family, community & personal experiences and offering world-class learning events, skills-specific workshops and a venue to exchange business stories that can help its members learn and grow.
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