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Umbrella Club AU We are committed to supporting you and your career journey!

We are the Best Of Both Worlds For IT Contractors
We offer the best of both worlds, with the typical benefits of contractual IT work plus the security of continuity of work and career growth.

Meet Richard, ERP coach and Umbrella Club member.He's spent years guiding manufacturing businesses through the leap from...
03/10/2026

Meet Richard, ERP coach and Umbrella Club member.

He's spent years guiding manufacturing businesses through the leap from basic accounting software to full ERP systems, work he's done in the trenches, not just advised on from a distance.

In his member profile, Richard shares the project that energises him, his advice for IT contractors starting out, and what keeps him coming back to Umbrella Club.

Read it now. Link in the comments.

'You end up with people willy-nilly building stuff, and you'll end up with six different people building the same thing....
02/10/2026

'You end up with people willy-nilly building stuff, and you'll end up with six different people building the same thing.'

That's ERP Advisor Richard Serpell on what happens when AI adoption outpaces AI governance. Cybersecurity contractor Robert Lintun sees a similar gap from a different angle: most companies aren't yet mature enough to trust AI with more than entry-level tasks.

Two specialisations, one consistent pattern: the technology is ready before the organisation is.

This is exactly the kind of ground-level insight Umbrella Club members bring to the table.

Read the full article, link in the comments.

Cloud environments don't stand still, and neither do the threats trying to get into them.Meet Robert, a cybersecurity co...
01/10/2026

Cloud environments don't stand still, and neither do the threats trying to get into them.

Meet Robert, a cybersecurity contractor and Umbrella Club member, specialising in Azure Security, DevSecOps, and turning reactive security operations into proactive ones.

His advice for contractors starting out? Be brave, be flexible, and don't wait until you feel completely ready.

30/09/2026

Choosing ERP software isn't just about features. Richard Serpell, ERP Coach and Umbrella Club member, shares what else gets overlooked:
☂️ Not canvassing enough vendors suited to your industry, size and geography
☂️ Support that doesn't match how you actually want to be supported
☂️ A culture mismatch between your business and the software company behind it

Hear Richard's take.

Most ERP projects don't fail because of the software. They fail from poor requirements, messy data, and lack of planning...
29/09/2026

Most ERP projects don't fail because of the software. They fail from poor requirements, messy data, and lack of planning, the same causes ERP coach Richard Serpell has seen for two decades, AI or no AI.

In his latest for Umbrella Club, Richard breaks down where AI genuinely helps inside ERP systems, the governance gap most businesses aren't watching, and the vendor selection mistakes that have nothing to do with features.

If an ERP decision is anywhere on your radar for 2026, this is worth the read.
Access this blog via the link in the comments.

28/09/2026

Independence doesn't mean going it alone, and Steve, Enterprise & Business Architect, puts it simply: Umbrella Club is like a firm he can always call back on.

Hear what that means to him.

25/09/2026

Most ERP projects don't fail because of the software. They fail before it's even chosen.

Richard Serpell, ERP Coach and Umbrella Club member, breaks down two of the biggest mistakes he sees:
☂️ No clear idea of why the business wants new software, or what it actually needs to do
☂️ Messy, duplicated data nobody's cleaned up — vendor masters, customer masters, chart of accounts, and the spreadsheets quietly holding half the business together

Hear more from Richard.

63% of Australian business leaders rank new technology as their top concern this year, ahead of every other business cha...
25/09/2026

63% of Australian business leaders rank new technology as their top concern this year, ahead of every other business challenge. And there’s no surprise that the technology they’re referring to is AI.

The real story isn't hesitation with AI, it's what's causing it.

☂️ No clear business case before the tools get switched on
☂️ No single owner accountable for how the pieces fit together
☂️ Data readiness skipped, governance treated as an afterthought

Our members say the gap isn't usually access to AI. It’s actually access to people who've seen enough project rollouts and security incidents to know where it goes wrong.

Are companies investing in AI right now too early? Are they fully aware of the risk?

Or are companies who are waiting to invest in AI still missing opportunities?

We explore these questions and more in our latest article, ‘The AI waiting game’. Read the full piece via the link in the comments.

Would your contractor arrangements survive a Fair Work audit?The ATO and Fair Work Ombudsman have confirmed sham contrac...
24/09/2026

Would your contractor arrangements survive a Fair Work audit?

The ATO and Fair Work Ombudsman have confirmed sham contracting is a major enforcement focus this year, and it's not just construction and transport in the firing line. Simply calling someone a contractor doesn't make it true in the eyes of the law, what matters is the actual substance of the working relationship.

☂️ Penalties of up to $99,000 for small businesses, and up to $495,000 (or 3x the underpayment) for larger ones
☂️ An ABN or invoice doesn't settle the question, courts look at how the arrangement operates in practice
☂️ Genuine independence, control over how work is done, ability to work for multiple clients, is what regulators are actually testing for

This is exactly why genuine independence matters, and why it's worth getting the structure right on both sides.

02/09/2026

Struggling to get your CV read?

Automated screening is a standard part of recruitment now. Which means if you're not using the right keywords or the right format, your CV won't get looked at.

And even once it clears that first filter, the average employer spends around six seconds forming an impression.

For most IT contractors, that cuts you out of consideration before a single conversation happens.

At Umbrella Club, we help contractors skip that process entirely.

Our referral-based model means you're introduced through networks and relationships, not filtered by software. You're known before the role exists, not queued up behind everyone else.

The work is out there. You shouldn't have to fight a screening tool to reach it.

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Melbourne, VIC

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+61466157331

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