Registration invitations have been emailed for this year’s annual Unimutual Conference to be held  Wednesday 5th to Friday 7th September at the Parkroyal Hotel, Darling Harbour, Sydney.  Registration close 1 August so please register asap to confirm your place.

The Conference is an opportunity for members and other interested parties to come together and hear industry news and topical updates from education, risk, governance and insurance professionals.

This year we are arranging a Members Only Forum which will be held prior to the start of the conference on the Wednesday morning from 11am to 12pm.  This follows from the success of the Online Member Forums established by the Technical Committee this year.  The purpose of the Forum is to create an environment in which Members come together to discuss and exchange ideas on a variety of issues and topics without any external influences, such as emerging risks, education or operational issues dealing with risk management or claims.  The Forum will be restricted to Unimutual Members and will not involve Unimutual Managers or brokers.

Please contact Belle Truelove at belle.truelove@rmml.com or 02 9247 7333 regarding flight bookings, or Kerry French at kerry.french@rmml.com or 02 9250 2823 with any other registration enquiries.

Conference Theme – Taking the Big Risks

Since the founding of the University of Sydney in 1850, to meet the higher education needs of the Australian colonies, our sector has been taking the big risks. The creation of a new, Australian Model of university education, was a path extremely different to those traditional English institutions of Oxford and Cambridge. The Australian Model, was designed to meet the specific requirements of the thriving, pioneering colonies and eventually designed to serve the entire Commonwealth. In the mid-19th century, it was a risky decision, but proved to be the formula for the rapid creation of world class institutions.

Since 1850, the number of domestic universities has grown, as has their practice of taking the “big risks.” Many new universities have been created, opening numerous new campuses, in all states and territories.  They currently engage in world class research, investigating the health and welfare of the planet and it people’s.  In today’s university environment, institutions are still taking considerable risks as they navigate the modern competitive environment. They are embracing new teaching tools such as digital technology and sharing much of their knowledge with the world.

Our institutions are changing the face of pedagogy, communication, and even their very physical forms, to remain sustainable in today’s environment. We see institutions expanding overseas and to underserviced regions of Australia.  We see institutions physically relocating campuses to better serve their local communities and improve their branding. We see institutions outsourcing substantial aspects of traditional institutional activities, such as student housing. Finally, we see universities blazing paths in the digital universe, while confronting cybercrime and the dark side of the Internet.

At this year’s conference, we will explore some of the “big risks” our sector is taking, to better understand the drivers of these risks and how they are managed and mitigated. We will hear from our Members, as they discuss their changing risk profiles and the opportunities the hope will arise from taking the big risks.

Download a copy of the Program here