Mark Balla Email & Phone Number

Anywhere Toilets Are Needed

Melbourne

We Can't Wait is a charity that aims to help teenage girls in developing countries stay in school longer. One of the major reasons that girls leave school in the developing world is that many schools in their countries to not have toilets. We Can't Wait's role is to raise awareness of this issue in the West. It is also to raise funds and then to direct these funds to appropriate sanitation projects in schools that are in need. The initial focus is on India and We Can't Wait's first projects are to be run in conjunction with local Rotary Clubs in India through Rotary networks in Australia and other Western countries. To see more about We Can't Wait, please follow us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/wecannotwait)

Global Sanitation Advocate

Richmond, Melbourne, Australia

Inspire9 empowers individuals and small teams to achieve big things by generating connections between members of the entrepreneurial and creative community; locally, nationally and globally. The Inspire9 coworking community is a compelling mix of people and teams: from individual creative entrepreneurs to established and well funded high-growth startups to the teams in the Angelcube program; an intensive startup accelerator program that commences each June. Inspire9 is located in the thriving inner city suburb of Richmond, 5 minutes from Melbourne’s CBD.

Melbourne, Australia

ImagineBooks is a Melbourne based photo book service bureau. Our primary market is in Australia, however, we have broad international exposure and a flexible supply chain which allows us to deliver to customers worldwide at extremely competitive prices. Our customer base is both retail (mums and dads) and wholesale (Corporate clients) and we are open to international joint ventures in this space.My responsibilities at ImagineBooks include development of concept, sourcing of suppliers, sales and marketing, general management, financial management, cost control and relationship management with both customers and suppliers.

Internationala

The Institute for Independent Business is an international network of business people who have been business owners or have come from senior executive positions. Members of the network work closely with business owners around the world assisting them with a full range of aspects of their businesses. Essentially, IIB Associates act as mentors and coaches to business owners who have recognised a need for change and/or improvement within their own businesses.

I was a board member of this Australian Indian joint venture in the CD and DVD manufacturing industry. I was responsible for liaison between the two JV partner companies and for assisting the factory management with sales and marketing strategies.Over the four years that I was involved with the joint venture, I visited India every three months to represent the Australian partner at board meetings and to visit major customers and prospects around India.

Following the sale of my business, MultipliCD to Regency Media on 30 June 2007, I joined the senior management team at Regency Media where I was responsible the merger of my old business with another business that had also been acquired by Regency Media. This responsibility then developed into one of full consolidation and amalgamation within the parent company. As this involved the merger of two similar businesses, the primary responsibilities here were to cut staff numbers where there was a clear doubling up of responsibilities and to build a healthy culture of co-operation among the merged team of former competitors.

I was the founder of MultipliCD. During the 8 years that I owned the company we grew from a business that started on the dining table at home to become one of the leading CD and DVD brokerages in Australia. We were included in the BRW Fast 100 twice during the 8 years. By the time of our trade sale to Regency Media we were delivering in excess of 12 million discs per year in Australia and New Zealand sourced from a broad base of suppliers in Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China and Mexico. MultipliCD is one of only a handful of CD/DVD brokerages in Australia to have successfully been sold to a manufacturer of physical media.

At Baird Publications I was responsible for a monthly ship building publication. This included filling the magazine with editorial content and paid advertising.I was also responsible for a series of international trade events. This role included selling exhibition space attending other trade events around the world representing Baird Publications' interests at these event.

My first 18 months with Lonely Planet were based in their head office in Melbourne where I worked as editor of their traveller's phrasebook series.I then spent around three years based in Hamburg and Luebeck in Germany researching and writing Lonely Planet travel guides. I was the lead writer for Lonely Planet's first foray into Spain and co-lead for their first foray into Germany where I was responsible for compiling information and writing on northern Germany.I also contributed to guidebooks on Malaysia, The Maldives, Brazil and Mexico.

Ba (Hons), Linguistics, Spanish, Portuguese

I completed a BA (Hons) in Linguistics at La Trobe University

Zertifikat Deutsch Asl Fremdsprache, German Language

I spent six months studying German

Hsc, Hsc

Activities and Societies: Cross Country Running, Swimming