What’s on the horizon in 2024

What’s on the horizon in 2024

As we kick off the new year, our Senior Leadership Group shares what they’re most excited about for 2024.

Keep reading to learn more about what’s coming to Australia’s integrity systems over the next few months and how these new developments are going to benefit users of the red meat industry.

Irene Sobotta
Group Manager – ISC Strategy & Planning

This year is going to be an exciting one, with two major projects coming to fruition after years of hard work behind the scenes.

First up, on 1 March we’re going to see the eNVD website brought into alignment with the app, allowing users to enjoy the same functionality across both platforms. At the same time, we’ll be launching an upgraded version of the eNVD app with 13 new features, many of which are going to widen the app’s appeal across the supply chain. This is the culmination of two years’ work and we're hoping to see increased adoption of digital consignments as a result. Our team remains ready and willing to work with producers and red meat supply chains across the country to support their uptake of eNVDs.

In the second half of the year, we’ll see the Australian Agricultural Data Exchange (AADX) finally launch after more than three years’ work behind the scenes. A foundational piece of digital infrastructure, the AADX will provide many benefits across Australia’s agricultural sectors, including improving the availability and flow of data for regulation and compliance purposes. It’s also going to help foster industry transparency and innovation, as well as aligning Australia with other leading agrifood-exporting nations.

Importantly, the linking of disparate data sets across different agricultural sectors is going to provide new opportunities for traceability, benchmarking and streamlining of compliance processes. Integrity Systems Company (ISC), together with Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA), will continue working to ensure our systems and processes are well-prepared for the launch of the AADX, so the red meat industry is able to leverage the benefits of the new exchange as soon as possible.

Julian Moorhouse
Chief Technology Officer

Like most technology teams, a lot of what we do tends to happen out of sight, so it’s great to be able to share some insights into the work we’re doing on the big technology, digital and data initiatives ISC has underway.

One of the Technology team’s major priorities this year is continuing to support the National Sheep and Goat Electronic Identification (eID) rollout. This follows 18 months of hard work behind the scenes where the team worked on more than 40 projects and initiatives designed to improve the stability, performance and scalability of the NLIS. These upgrades will ensure our national traceability system is ready to handle what is expected to be a massive increase in the volume of data received.

Our users are always top of mind for the Technology team, so I’m delighted the Digital team is working to bring a stronger User Experience capability to our software design process. We recently completed an accessibility and usability audit of our web and mobile applications – information that will help inform the development of more efficient (less mouse clicks) and easier to use systems.

We’ve also been looking at how we can improve the analytical capabilities within the NLIS system. To this end, our Data team analysed around 700 NLIS reports with a view to creating more intuitive and interactive dashboards.
Leaving the biggest project to last, the three-year NLIS Database Uplift Project is now entering its third phase (Architecture and Design). Over the next few months, the Technology team will take a deep dive into key areas such as the complex technical architecture and prototype visual designs – work that will underpin the future software build. Together with the enormous volume of work already undertaken and the extensive industry feedback received, stage 3 will be key to shaping the future state NLIS and it’s incredible to be part of such a transformational project.
Having recently returned from the Christmas break feeling refreshed and rejuvenated, my team and I are looking forward to a jam-packed 2024.

Natasha Tere
Group Manager – ISC Operations

As ISC’s new Group Manager – Operations, my key priority for 2024 is making it easier for red meat producers and stakeholders to meet and exceed the needs of global consumers. At an operational level, my team’s focus is on improving producer experience and satisfaction with our integrity services and ensuring all stakeholders have the information and support they need to meet our program requirements.

I’m thrilled to be starting just as we’re on the cusp of some new product launches. On 1 March we’ll see a series of new features go live across the eNVD web and app platforms. Later in the year a new LPA Self-Assessment tool for accreditation will be launched. This new tool replaces the existing quiz format and offers greater educational benefits for producers. It’s going to provide tailored value-added information which producers can then use to help manage animal welfare, biosecurity and food safety risks on-farm.

My team is focused on ensuring these programs are fit-for-purpose when it comes to quality and compliance, while also ensuring our customers have the support needed to understand how to use them.

There is also a lot of great activity underway in our customer service team throughout 2024. Besides providing online resources, how-to guides, videos and webinars to help our customers understand and use our systems, we’re currently working on a major project to add a 24/7 Chatbot to the mix. (Of course, if you want to chat to one of our friendly customer service agents, they’ll still be available from 8am to 7pm (AEDT) Monday to Friday.)

Our customer service team is also developing a journey-based Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) monitoring tool which will make it easier for customers to provide feedback and highlight specific areas of frustration. I’m particularly looking forward to seeing this tool come to life because it’s going to help us identify and rectify the pain points our customers are experiencing.

Personally, I’m most looking forward to getting to know my colleagues across the organisation and working with them to serve our stakeholders in 2024 and beyond.