Facebook unsure if it likes ‘likes,’ Qantas poaches key Virgin rewards partner, and more top news
The news Australian professionals are talking about now, curated by LinkedIn’s editors. Join the conversation in the comments below.
Facebook is contemplating concealing the number of “likes” on posts. The social media behemoth confirmed to TechCrunch that it's mulling a trial that would remove the counts from its News Feed, as users increasingly complain of feeling bad or inadequate when their posts fail to attract enough likes. Earlier this year, Instagram (also owned by the social media giant) initiated a similar experiment in Canada before expanding the trial to Australia. Here’s what people are saying.
Qantas has lured BP, one of Virgin’s largest loyalty partners, to join its rewards program. From next year filling up at BP’s 1,400 Australian outlets earns drivers Qantas frequent flyer points, rather than Velocity points. The move, which follows a “fraught” period in the BP-Virgin alliance, comes amid much jostling in the Australian rewards/loyalty segment. Wesfarmers and Coles have just poured another $16M into their loyalty program, FlyBuys. Wesfarmers is working with Coles to beef up its data analytics operation. Here's what people are saying.
Australia has logged its first current account surplus in more than four decades. The $5.9 billion windfall, fueled by “booming exports of iron ore and coal,” was the largest since 1973 and the first since 1975. The notable result “far exceeded the consensus of economists,” who had predicted a $1.5 billion surplus. Iron ore prices have soared in recent months “fueled by huge supply disruptions and record Chinese steel production,” Bloomberg reports. Weaker Australian household spending has also pushed spending on imports down.
Restaurants are being cautioned against relying too heavily on delivery apps such as UberEats to generate takings. The owner of On It Burgers told the Australian Financial Review his chain of restaurants was killed off following a tweak to the algorithm which "greyed out" his outlets during periods of peak demand, due to changes to the radius settings. This was despite one of them — operated by a licensee in Melbourne — at one point earning the title of busiest UberEats restaurant in the world. Here’s what people are saying.
Judo Bank is the hottest startup in the country. Australia’s first SME-focused challenger bank takes the No. 1 slot on LinkedIn’s Top Startups list, a data-driven ranking of the Australian companies growing fast and recruiting top talent. The list is dominated by fintech and neobanks who are challenging the big Australian banks and attracting talent, with Volt Bank and Xinja claiming spots. Insurance-related startups, such as Cover Genius and Integrity Life, also claimed spots in this year’s rankings. ? See the full list and join the conversation: #LinkedInTopStartups
Idea of the Day: Make sure to recognise the people who’ve contributed to your success. You never know, it might just get you your dream job. Candidates for roles at Sonder are often asked, “What got you to this point?” Co-Founder and CEO Craig Cowdrey tells LinkedIn:
“The reality is none of us achieve success on our own. And recognising that is really important to us because it demonstrates a level of self-awareness, a humility, and a team mindset.”
What's your take on today’s stories? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Change and Leadership Excellence
5 年Had to go to the Bloomberg report to get the rest of this statement: "The result is mainly a function of the extraordinary and unexpected spike in iron-ore prices, fueled by huge supply disruptions and record Chinese steel production. Though both of these have since unwound, with iron ore falling the most on record in August, suggesting the surplus may be short-lived." Also compare and contrast with this news from a week ago. Let's not celebrate just yet.?A 'hard landing' for China could put 550,000 Australian jobs at risk (https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/andrew-murfett-055519b_a-hard-landing-for-china-could-put-550000-activity-6572556776309436416-UV8D)
Technical Planner at Maersk Drilling
5 年Good job
cryptocurrency market analysis
5 年Great
Learning to be a better human by supporting worthy causes and persons
5 年I consciously do not use any of these delivery services. They are convenient but at the cost of restaurants closing down or downsizing their venues due to fewer physical patronage. I was also surprised to learn that there are kitchens or outlets that sell food via these delivery services without physical restaurant floor or premises.
Learning to be a better human by supporting worthy causes and persons
5 年Not showing the number of likes has its merits. It helps remove the need to be validated by others in terms of pure numbers. Certainly brings self-validation to the fore as a more important measure that supports self-esteem.