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There is a crack, a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in
                                    - Leonard Cohen
 

We believe that creating your future has to come from the future, not your past.

 

Our passion to support age services change-makers navigate through the sector’s fast-changing and, often ambiguous, reform landscape through coaching led us to start Youtopient. 

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We believe that creating your future has to come from the future, not your past – and through structured and short-term engagements, we can help you:

  • Improve performance in your current job.

  • Uncover solutions to your innovation and transformation roadblocks.

  • Recognise how you can best make use of your skills and knowledge to implement change in your organisation. 

  • Identify opportunities for further growth and development. 

  • Create meaning for your personal and professional self. 

About our Founder, Merlin Kong

Merlin started innovAGEING (iA), Australia’s national innovation network for the age services sector in 2017. This paved the way for him to collaborate, advise, and coach key sector leaders on their innovation and transformation challenges. 

 

Merlin spent 5.5 years running iA for Leading Age Services Australia (LASA) and then the Aged & Community Care Providers Association (ACCPA), and grew it into a hub for age services innovation with approximately 4,000 participants. This got iA listed in the Australian Financial Review’s Top 50 Most Innovative Companies list in Australia and
New Zealand. Merlin was also recognised as an Association Influencer by the Australasian Society of Association Executives.

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Concurrently, he was the Director for LASA's Centre for Workforce Development and Innovation, where he oversaw the organisation's workforce training and leadership programs, including:

  • Designing and delivering Australia's first age services innovation manager training and coaching program.

  • Starting up and establishing Australia's largest aged care online communities of practice.

  • Delivering Australia's first innovation and commercialisation mini-incubator program for the age services sector.

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Prior to joining the age services sector, Merlin was an Executive Director for Community Support Services at Community Services #1, Executive Director at the ACT Property Council, and held Director for Policy Strategy and various Senior Adviser roles in the ACT Legislative Assembly. He has also taught innovation and entrepreneurship at The Australia National University. 

 

Merlin's experience is backed up with extensive tertiary and postgraduate
qualifications which includes an MBA from Australian National University, an MA from University College London, and executive education from the Harvard Medical School in healthcare digital transformation, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in AI and business strategy, and Stanford University in innovation and entrepreneurship.

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Youtopient enables Merlin to use his experiences and passion to support age services change-makers navigate through the sector’s fast-changing, and often ambiguous reform landscape through coaching. 

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We encourage you to reach out to discuss how we can help you.

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