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We look forward to welcoming you, and others in our wonderful UWA community, on Friday morning at the UWA Alumni Career Summit. You'll have the opportunity to talk with graduates who can offer you insights across a range of industries and roles.

It's not too late - you can still register for the webinar live stream!


What you need to know

Arrival

Registration opens at 7.30am with a firm 8am start. Please ensure you arrive at the EZONE UWA Student Hub with plenty of time to enjoy light refreshments and a chat.

Order of proceedings

  • 8.10am Keynote Speaker - Ross Warren BCom '00, Google's Area 120
  • 9.10am Panel 1 - How to get comfortable with being uncomfortable
  • 10.10am Panel 2 - Do it your way: mastering your own destiny
  • 11.10am Online networking in Zoom breakout rooms

Parking information

If you don’t have a UWA parking permit, you will need to park in a paid bay on campus. Paid bays are indicated with a green dot on the UWA parking map. The closest paid parking zones to the EZONE building are: P17 (Cooper Street), P20 (Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery), or P3 (Law School). There is also paid roadside parking on Fairway and Hackett Drive. Please note that it can be difficult to find parking on campus after 9am. If you plan to arrive after this time, we recommend using public transport or taxis to avoid disappointment.

Zoom networking breakout rooms

Following the second panel, attendees are encouraged to network with leading alumni in a series of themed Zoom breakout rooms. Login details and room hosts are listed on the event webpage.

This is your opportunity to ask some of our most successful grads your burning questions and get their tips and strategies for your own success.

Queries

If you need assistance, please contact the Alumni Relations team via alumnirelations@uwa.edu.au.

Keynote speaker

Ross Warren BCom '00, Co-Founder at Google's Area 120

Ross Warren BCom '00

Founder in Residence at Google's Area 120 and Advisor for The Anti-Slavery Collective & Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts, The University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Ross joined Google’s Creative Lab in 2010, leading creative production on global initiatives like ‘Web Lab’, a year-long digital/physical interactive robotic experience at the London Science Museum; Life in a Day, a feature-length Ridley Scott film; the crowdsourced YouTube Symphony Orchestra; YouTube Play at New York’s Guggenheim Museum; and the Summit Against Violent Extremism in Dublin. The latter sparked his interest in tech-led social good movements.

In 2013, he helped launch the YouTube Music Awards, and made YouTubers like Lilly Singh and Epic Rap Battles of History mainstream phenomena, with campaigns featuring Creators across US, Europe, Australia, Japan, Brazil and South Korea. Ross then marketed ad-funded Originals from Ellen DeGeneres, Demi Lovato, and Kevin Hart. As Head of Brand Operations, he led the 2017 launch of YouTube’s new brand identity, before pursuing an entrepreneurial role with Area 120 in 2018. His remit at the Google-funded start-up incubator spans Strategy, UX, Product Management, Operations and Marketing.

Australian-born, Ross’s extensive travel helps bring a global perspective to his work alongside his passion for creativity and innovation.

Panellists

Attendees are invited to network with leading alumni in a series of themed Zoom breakout rooms. This is your opportunity to ask some of our most successful grads your burning questions and get their tips and strategies for your own success.

All via Zoom meetings, from 11am-12noon.

Password for all breakout sessions is summit

Room 1. Clever ways to stand out and boost your personal brand

The way you look, interact, operate and communicate create your personal brand. In a post-COVID world, it’s critical to make sure you stand out, but for the right reasons. Our alumni speakers in this room will help you to analyse what your brand is, how you can enhance it and build missing components.

Join this breakout room

Room 2. Embrace the fear of career transition

In this room we’ll discuss how to make that crucial shift into another role or sector from your existing role. What’s the best way to find a new role in 2020? How do you deal with the anxiety of changing your role in a period when many may be viewing the working landscape as essentially insecure?

Join this breakout room

Room 3. How to build resilience

2020 hasn’t been much fun for any of us and professionally, it has presented a whole new set of challenges as unexpected events hit us one after another. Coping with change –specifically the unexpected things we can’t prepare for– is a key part of protecting our own mental health. In this room, we’ll discuss resilience, how to optimise it, and how to build your own resilience.

Join this breakout room

Room 4. How to futureproof your career

Gone are the days where we can do one degree and remain in same job for life. The 21st Century is about needing to constantly evolve to stay ahead of changes in technology and its impact on industry. Alumni in this room will discuss how to keep yourself ahead of the game and how to assess your own adaptability and readiness for change.

Join this breakout room

Room 5. How to grow your network digitally and in person

Sometimes we forget about networking as a key career-building strategy. We’ve all heard it all mentioned by career advisers, but do we all do it effectively? In this room we’ll discuss how to build a network that will best serve YOUR needs, in person and online and; how to be strategic about who you’re connecting with, but still remain authentic. This room will also include discussion on building overseas networks if you’re planning to leave Australia to advance your career.

Join this breakout room

Room 6. How volunteering prepares you for success

Not every role is remunerated and it’s sometimes in your interest to consider unpaid work, or an unpaid role in tandem with your main role, in order to leverage your career and take things to the next level. We’ll discuss what this could mean for you and provide examples.

Join this breakout room

Room 7. The post-pandemic paradigm: gearing up for the new normal

This room will discuss how the pandemic and changing expectation of the workforce will create a shift away from the standard office-working environment. This paradigm shift in what it means to “go to work” may mean employees choosing a working model that is fully online, or a custom hybrid of office and remote working.

Join this breakout room

Program structure

Attend for the whole morning or join only the sessions that interest you. Either way, the Summit gives you access to the first hand knowledge of UWA grads at the forefront of industry and entrepeneurship across two practical panel discussions and a series of networking sessions so you can future proof your career.

7:30am: Registration
In person attendees are encouraged to arrive and register on time to avoid interrupting proceedings and the live stream audience. Light refreshments will help you settle in.
8am: Welcome and opening remarks
Our MC will welcome attendees and introduce our keynote speaker.
8:10am: Opening keynote address – The Challenge of Change
Ross Warren BCom '00, Co-Founder at Google's Area 120 and Advisor for The Anti-Slavery Collective & Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts.
9:10am: Panel 1: How to Get Comfortable With Being Uncomfortable (According to UWA grads)

The new world will require us all to re-invent ourselves - perhaps multiple times – during our careers.

In this session, our panel of UWA alumni business leaders will discuss how the career landscape has been permanently changed by COVID-19, the importance of adaptation and what you can do to ensure you thrive in the face of change.

Our panelists will cover:

  • Why feeling uncomfortable is the key to success
  • Maximizing your agility in the workplace
  • Why adaptation and flexibility are key to keeping your career moving forward
  • How to free yourself from your own expectations of what your future should be
  • COVID-19 and the workplace: new opportunities
  • Embracing change and building a new normal
  • How sitting within your comfort zone can stunt personal growth and stifle creativity
10:10am: Panel #2: Do it your way: entrepreneurship made easy

There is an abundance of quotes telling us that opportunity exists within every crisis. It may seem counterintuitive, but recessions really do present amazing opportunities for entrepreneurs to find inspiration, identify gaps in the market and create something new.

Our panel of alumni entrepreneurs, each with a track-record of leadership in the start-up environment, will discuss what you need to make it on your own. They will provide practical advice about the soft skills you need AND what you can do to take charge of your future, including:

  • What are the most important skills entrepreneurs need?
  • How to analyse your own skillset and suitability for an entrepreneurial future
  • Hard skills you can acquire
  • Soft skills to work on or find a business partner who has them!
  • Don’t Let A Pandemic Stop You: 4 Things To Successfully Launch Your Start-up
11:10am: Networking – in person with attendees or in themed breakout rooms

In person attendees can chat informally with panelists and network fellow attendees over light refreshments OR log into Zoom meetings on their phones (please bring headphones for this purpose). Live stream attendees will be prompted to join the breakout room of their choosing.

Breakout room topics

Room 1: The post-pandemic paradigm: gearing up for the new normal

This room will discuss how the pandemic and changing expectation of the workforce will create a shift away from the standard office-working environment. This paradigm shift in what it means to “go to work” may mean employees choosing a working model that is fully online, or a custom hybrid of office and remote working.

Room 2: Embrace the fear of career transition

In this room we’ll discuss how to make that crucial shift into another role or sector from your existing role. What’s the best way to find a new role in 2020? How do you deal with the anxiety of changing your role in a period when many may be viewing the working landscape as essentially insecure?

Room 3: How volunteering prepares you for success

Not every role is remunerated and it’s sometimes in your interest to consider unpaid work, or an unpaid role in tandem with your main role, in order to leverage your career and take things to the next level. We’ll discuss what this could mean for you and provide examples.

Room 4: How to grow your network digitally and in person

Sometimes we forget about networking as a key career-building strategy. We’ve all heard it all mentioned by career advisers, but do we all do it effectively? In this room we’ll discuss how to build a network that will best serve YOUR needs, in person and online and; how to be strategic about who you’re connecting with, but still remain authentic. This room will also include discussion on building overseas networks if you’re planning to leave Australia to advance your career.

Room 5: Clever ways to stand out and boost your personal brand

The way you look, interact, operate and communicate create your personal brand. In a post-COVID world, it’s critical to make sure you stand out, but for the right reasons. Our alumni speakers in this room will help you to analyse what your brand is, how you can enhance it and build missing components.

Room 6: How to futureproof your career

Gone are the days where we can do one degree and remain in same job for life. The 21st Century is about needing to constantly evolve to stay ahead of changes in technology and its impact on industry. Alumni in this room will discuss how to keep yourself ahead of the game and how to assess your own adaptability and readiness for change.

Room 7: How to build resilience

2020 hasn’t been much fun for any of us and professionally, it has presented a whole new set of challenges as unexpected events hit us one after another. Coping with change –specifically the unexpected things we can’t prepare for– is a key part of protecting our own mental health. In this room, we’ll discuss resilience, how to optimise it, and how to build your own resilience.