According to Michael McQueen, one of the nation’s foremost social researchers and trend forecasters, the Gold Coast was at the leading edge of change to establish the new work “normal”.

McQueen, founder of the Nexgen Group consultancy and author of ‘The New Now’ that examines trends that will dominate a post-Covid world and how leaders and organisations can gear up for them, said the Gold Coast was one region that was embracing transformation.

With overseas arrivals escalating, international students returning in droves and the southern migration to the Gold Coast showing no signs of waning, McQueen said Gold Coast businesses and workplaces were experiencing accelerated change.

Featuring as the keynote speaker at Gold Coast Business Week 2022 from 29 August to 2 September, McQueen said the idea that workplaces would return to a pre-Covid state was a myth.

“We’ve seen the rise of lifestyle locations for work.  In the past, people have said they may have to be near Brisbane, for instance, for work, but they’d love to live somewhere with more of a beach lifestyle vibe.

“Now they can work two or three days a week from home, and you’ve seen the lifestyle appeal of the Gold Coast really coming into its own. It’s really going to continue and grow.”

Presented by City of Gold Coast, Gold Coast Business Week 2022 offers 11 events, connecting leaders, professionals and entrepreneurs across the Gold Coast, Australia and globally.

Mayor Tom Tate said the city had emerged from Covid as a business powerhouse.

Still one of the world’s favourite holiday destinations, he said the top four industries currently contributing to the local economy were health care and social assistance, construction, manufacturing, and retail trade.

Employment and business productivity over the past 10 years for the Gold Coast had both exceeded growth rates for the state and national economies, he said.

Tate said Gold Coast Business Week 2022 was an opportunity for businesses and leaders to learn how to take advantage of the Gold Coast’s economic growth.

“This is our fourth year, and we are thrilled to be returning to in-person events at locations across the Gold Coast, from the north to the south,” he said.

“The events will focus on emerging trends, innovation and opportunities to grow businesses right here on the Coast, across industries such as sport, screen and technology.”

McQueen said businesses and leaders needed to harness the change and what the new economic landscape would look like.

“That old saying is so true right now, ‘You can’t find a new treasure using an old map’,” he said.

“We can’t apply the same thinking and the same strategies that were working in a pre-Covid world and expect to get the same result.

“It’s important to know the trends and changes for any savvy business leader to be focused on or dialling into and so they will be ready for those things. It’s about how to be more future fit than the competition and gain an edge.”

McQueen said the solutions to finding and keeping staff and creating an engaging workplace that was attractive in terms of what employees were now expecting was part of the new challenge.

“One of the most important things, especially after the last two years, is to avoid this temptation to snap back or go back to the way things were done in the past,” he said.

“That’s predictable, it’s safe. It’s the way we’ve always done things.

“So, my encouragement will be to focus far more on progress than precedent as we move into the future. It’s especially dangerous right now to stay still in a time when there’s been so much rapid change.”

Register to attend Gold Coast Business Week 2022 here.