End of Year Message 2024, Sabine Pittrof, Chair

Dear Members and Friends,

As we approach the end of 2024, it is a good time to look back on the year for the German Australian Business Council.

2024 was a year of continued transition: Both Business Council Patrons, H.E. Ambassador Natasha Smith, and Consul-General Kelly Matthews, have commenced their posts, and both have kindly agreed to take up the roles as our Patron and Co-Patron. Our Board has had ‘a changing of the guard’ in key roles farewelling long-term treasurer, Eberhard Goihl, event oversight lead, Peirui Tan, and deputy chair, Evangelos Kotsopoulos, as well as board members Sergej Bukovac, Dalibor Vukadin and Simone Wienhausen. As announced at the AGM in April, in order to take some pressure off the chair role, we have moved to a Co-Chair model. I am delighted to announce that long-term Munich board member Robert Harrison has agreed up step to the role of Co-Chair. I will initially stay on as the lead chair and will, after a transition period, move to the role of Co-Chair with a focus on the liaison with the Australian Business in Europe (ABIE) network.

Regarding value delivered to our members, we championed 12 events this year across three cities. My personal highlights being the Ambassador’s Dinner in Frankfurt at which we welcomed our Patron, H.E. Ms Natasha Smith, and the visit to the European Space Agency at Darmstadt in February.

One important facet of the Business Council is to make our voices heard in Australian policy discussions and decisions. In co-operation with the ABIE network we successfully issued a further submission relating to Free Trade Agreements. It is with great satisfaction that for the first time, ABIE, as a network, was invited to provide representation on this topic at a public hearing in Parliament House, Canberra. Fellow board member Robert Harrison and I represented the Business Council at this hearing, together with representatives from our French and British sister organisations. It is very gratifying for the Business Council to be recognised as a key organisation for business networking in the private and government sectors between Germany and Australia.

It is only with the efforts of our voluntary board members that the Business Council continues to build on our strengths to grow and evolve. The quality of our submissions and the success of our events are built on the support of our active members, Patrons, Partners, Board and staff. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each of you for your contribution this year and ongoing support. Special thanks go to our event leads Lucia Santosa and Dietrich Klusemann, for their hard work in managing the event team transition, and to our event managers, Gordana Paton and Ulrike Neumann, for looking after the smooth running of our events.

My deepest gratitude goes to our office manager, Suzanne Heim, for her unwavering support of our association. Many of you would not realise the extent and broad range of the work Suzanne is completing in the background. She is the backbone of the Business Council and the Board would not function without her. Her talent and dedication make her an invaluable and integral part of the Business Council. A heartfelt Thank You for the great work that you do, Suzanne!

It goes without saying:  A very big Thank you to you, our members and friends, for your dedication to the cause of enhancing and expanding bilateral business relations, and supporting our activities. A special thanks goes to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, our premium sponsor. We highly appreciate your support and partnership and look forward to our joint event in March next year.

In 2025, we will be primarily focused on two areas: 1. Increasing value to our members and 2. The planning of business information and networking events throughout the year, including the AGM to be held on 8 April in Frankfurt. The board will convene for our annual strategy meeting on 18 January 2025, confirming a new 2-year strategy. Your ideas and input will be most welcome. Please approach any board members or email them to info@gabc.eu.

Once again, I would like to thank you for your continued support and commitment.

I wish you and your families a Merry Christmas and a very Happy and Healthy New Year.

Best Regards,

Sabine Pittrof

Chair, on behalf of the Board