The 2016 Ron Shorter Memorial Award Finals
AILA is proud to present the finals of the Ron Shorter Memorial Award for Professionalism in Public Speaking. The award, which is once again sponsored by Colin Biggers & Paisley and Unisearch, was conceptualised by Mr Shorter prior to his untimely passing in 2012. It has been successfully running for 5 years in New South Wales and made its debut in Victoria in 2015. QLD has joined the awards this year.
Competition applicants initially explained how they would benefit from public speaking training and nominated the insurance-related topic they would speak on if selected to participate.
AILA selected participants, comprising a diverse mix of insurance industry disciplines, for the second stage of the competition held at Colin Biggers & Paisley's offices where Ms Jennifer Beard of Polaris Coaching delivered intense training on the key elements and nuances of public speaking.
Using their newfound skills the participants then spoke for two minutes on their topics. They were judged by a panel who selected three participants to progress to the final.
The finals dates, finalists and judging panels are as follows:
VIC - 19th July 2016
(CLICK HERE for registration)
Finalists:
- Adrian Di Pasquale from AIG: "Kidnap and Ransom Insurance"
- Erica Lawson from Logie-Smith Lanyon: "Digital Transformation and the Dawn of Social Sharing on the Insurance Industry"
- Alexis Taylor from Wotton + Kearney: "Riding in cars with… Siri? The potential legal and insurance implications of the rise of artificial intelligence"
Judges:
- The Honourable Justice John Middleton, Federal Court of Australia
- Allison Grice, National Legal & Claims Manager, CGU Insurance
- Giselle Walther, Managing Director of Growth Strategies, Aon Risk Solutions
NSW - 26th July 2016
(CLICK HERE for registration)
Finalists:
- Martin Rowney from HWL Ebsworth "Recovery, risk and reinstatement - a perfect storm"
- Natalie Donnan from McInnes Wilson "Unpacking the fairly untested waters of the rise of the drone - and the insurance implications that may flow"
- James Smorthwaite from JLT "Brave New World: Directors' duties and corporate responsibility in the changing world of cyber security"
Judges:
- The Honourable Justice Cliff Hoeben, NSW Supreme Court and Court of Appeal
- Robert Kelly, Managing Director and CEO, Steadfast
- Noel Condon, CEO, AIG
QLD - 4th August 2016
(CLICK HERE for registration)
Finalists:
- Tenniele Horton from QBE: "The blurring lines between the roles of insurers, brokers & other advisers"
- Christina Neylon from Ausure: "Underinsurance and the negative impacts on the insured in the event of a claim"
- Christopher Smith from HWL Ebsworth: "The weird and wacky things people now seek insurance for (did you know you could purchase insurance against alien abductions?)"
Judges:
- The Honourable Justice Anthe Philippides, Queensland Court of Appeal
- Tony Shaw, Director Queensland, Marsh & McLennan
- Michael Gear, Senior Claims Specialist, Liberty International Underwriters
The finalists will now receive additional coaching from Polaris to prepare them for the final where they will speak for 10 to 15 minutes in front of an anticipated audience of 100 attendees from the insurance industry, and an esteemed judging panel comprising:
The winner will receive the Ron Shorter Trophy, a Westfield Voucher worth $500 and the opportunity to speak at the 2016 AILA National Conference. The runners up will each receive a Westfield voucher worth $200.
The 2016 Award Trophies
