Indholdsfortegnelse for January - February 2018 i NZBusiness+Management

Let’s face it – the smooth running of most public events comes down to expert management of ticketing and data capture – and this is where technology plays a critical role. At the recent Build Auckland trade show I was fortunate to see the leading-edge technology of Event Solutions in action and catch up with the company’s founder and managing director Claire Webber. Claire is a 20-year veteran of New Zealand’s event technology solutions industry. Her journey in the industry began in 1997 working for a number of professional conference organisers (PCOs) and on the 1999 APEC CEO Summit in Auckland, gaining proficiency in event software, and gaining further experience through the Conference Company, looking after registrations and seating for NZ Fashion Week in its early days, followed by the…

Located on the first floor of the historic, rebuilt Christchurch Arts Centre, Shopology is a retail business dedicated to showcasing a wide range of home-grown products sourced from around Canterbury. The business was built on necessity. Business partners Sarah Gamble and Sally Paterson were both running small, but growing, online businesses and looking to branch into retail – however they couldn’t make the leap to selling into existing stores. In Christmas 2016 Sarah signed a temporary lease at Re:Start, the temporary mall built from shipping containers in central Christchurch – but the space was too big for the two of them. They ended up filling the space with products from other selected local suppliers and had a very successful three months trading. “It was a win for the suppliers but…

Caspar, a ginger-haired man from the Netherlands, stands nervously in front of his fellow guests as a young Maori brave, spear in hand and stripped to the waist approaches across the grass. Rob, his Maori tour guide, stands by his side, whispering in his ear and tapping his shoulder to move forward or to stop. Suddenly an older warrior, near naked, with a full moko and tattooed buttocks, leaps from the underground shouting loudly and waving an axe and a wooden cudgel. Caspar quivers; this wasn’t in the script, but he survives the very vigorous and impressive challenge, and his group of Dutch travellers from the huge cruise ship in the harbour off Paihia moves safely onto the marae and into the whare. The group has come in a waka,…

New Zealand workplaces are no strangers to issues of bullying, harassment, and violence, but the arrival of cyberbullying presents certain unique challenges and complexities for organisations to navigate. Workplace cyberbullying can be broadly described as "unwanted or aggressive behaviour(s) perpetrated through electronic media, that may harm, threaten, or demoralise the recipient(s) of these behaviour(s), and can occur beyond work time". There are two points worth noting here. First, these behaviours can range anywhere from receiving abusive texts or aggressive voicemail messages, to having false allegations or your personal information shared on social media, by colleagues, managers, and even customers or clients. Secondly, although these behaviours can occur beyond work time or the work premises, this still remains a workplace issue and falls under the primary duty of care remit, as…

ONLINE SECURITY AND privacy has been a point of concern since the advent of the internet. And in a broader sense, communications technologies have always had unintended consequences in the form of making people vulnerable to exploitation. This goes back to the early 20th century when cunning conmen would cut telegraph wires that reported race reports, allowing them time to place winning bets before the ‘results’ arrived. Modern-day scams can be much more sophisticated and with security vulnerabilities in digital communications, there are plenty of opportunities. These can range from Facebook trading scams, to Ashley Madison extortion scams to simple cold-call scams. Some can be quite convincing and lead to huge financial losses every year. When looking at phishing alone, an astounding $12 billion is lost annually around the globe.…

A COLLEAGUE RECENTLY joked that “Once we had got through the current round of change then there would not need to be any more changes in the business school for a couple of years.” Yeah, right! The reality is that change is our constant companion. Not for its own sake, but because we live in dynamic times. We need to anticipate trends and also be able to respond to them. We are wired for a degree of sameness and routine – and a degree of variety and change. The tolerance for continuity and change can vary across individuals and over time. Managers have quite an influence over how their teams see and respond to change. One team in our organisation tends to respond to even quite massive change proposals with…

It makes sense that without followers there can be no leaders. Likewise, without a high performing team, a leader can’t be successful. As more and more millennials enter the workforce, they’re not interested in following someone because they have a grandiose title, corner office, or long tenure - that’s more likely to garner disdain than respect. A recent study on millennial workplace preferences found that 88 percent of participants prefer a collaborative work culture, 79 percent want a manager to serve as a coach or mentor, and that 64 percent want to help make the world a better place (Asghar, 2014). Positional power and traditional hierarchies just don’t cut it anymore – 20 to 30-year-olds need something else. They want work with a purpose, and a leader who is invested…

NEW BULK FOOD STORE CREATES EXCITEMENT THE ARRIVAL of The Source Bulk Foods stores in New Zealand, selling zero-waste, natural foods, should go a long way towards encouraging Kiwis to experiment with raw foods because they can buy as little, or as much, as they like. It’s clear Kiwis want a place where they can bring their bags, bottles and jars to fill up with raw honey or kombucha on tap, mill their flour and observe the making of their nut butter from roasted nuts. When the Kumeu store opened late last year it already had a Facebook following of more than a thousand West Aucklanders. Offering unbranded, unpackaged bulk wholefoods and health foods, the Kumeu store is only the second store to open in New Zealand, following the launch…

It was a childhood dream to fly a plane that eventually led Troy Bilbrough to a career in the burger business. Flying lessons are expensive, so post-Uni he needed a job, and quickly, to pay for them. He’d noticed the boom in city markets after the quakes had severely damaged the hospitality sector, and that Cantabrians loved a good old bacon buttie. So Troy roped in older brother Jai and younger bro Luke and opened a stall. It was 2012; Bacon Brothers was on its way to becoming a local legend. “On the first day we sold out, customers loved how we made the experience of buying a burger amazing,” recalls Troy. “As the weeks went on we hired staff, went to every market in town, did private functions, weddings…

“Business is all about managing risk, embracing risk, working to defy and minimise risk, and yet respecting risk.” PART 1: THE BIG IDEA Starting a new business is a big undertaking, requiring all sorts of things like inspiration (a “Big Idea”), market knowledge, research, analysis, advice, planning, execution, money, supporters, backers, customers, suppliers, hard work, determination, self-confidence and lots of ‘grit’. Another way of putting it is: “One percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.” You will have to work long hours for little or no income while you get things started. It might look like a big backward step, particularly if you’re moving from a secure well-paid job into the abyss of a new venture. People may ask why you would put yourself through all of this to start a…

Amazon.com.au’s opening in Australia is anything but a threat to New Zealand’s SME (small and medium enterprise) manufacturing sector. In fact, it could turn out to be one of the greatest boosts to our food and beverage, specialist clothing, hi-tech and other locally derived and targeted product producers in decades. Certainly since the global financial crisis. And it can simplify any Kiwi company’s first foray into the prized Aussie market; always a daunting task for a first-timer. One man voicing these optimistic predictions (“Amazon will be transformative for Australasia, given the relatively small size of the regional market”) knows what he is talking about too. Paul Grey has made a great success of guiding similar product producers onto the Amazon marketplace – which has been described as “the Western world’s…

SEO IS DEAD, RIGHT? No, far from it. SEO may have changed, but it is more alive than ever. In today’s landscape, SEO has become a rich, nuanced art. And now this artform has been made even more important by Google’s recent innovation called RankBrain. Based heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, RankBrain looks at a user’s intent when searching, and automatically customises the user experience based on that. It’s rapidly becoming one of the most important factors in search engine marketing, so it’s best we understand it quickly. But first, let’s have a brief refresher of AI and machine learning basics. AI AND MACHINE LEARNING: THE FOUNDATION OF RANKBRAIN AI and machine learning have taken the world by storm over the past decade and they’re now being…

New Zealand is seeing a major shift in its workplace culture, not only on a technological front as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things gain traction, but also in the way that people want to work. They want to work when and where they want, they want flexibility and mobility and they want their employers to empower them to work in these new ways. But are New Zealand organisations stepping up the plate? A recent study by Microsoft has found that the changing face of the Kiwi workforce has resulted in a need for organisations to foster a new culture of work to achieve digital transformation success. But 72 percent of those surveyed felt that more could be done by their organisation to invest in culture development. Microsoft’s Asia…

Businesses have long appreciated the value of investment diversity but it has taken many decades to come around to the value of workplace diversity. This is changing as the public focus on the disparity between society, where barriers of race and gender are eroding, and the workplace, where European men are still over-represented in senior leadership positions. Many companies are speeding up efforts to appoint senior female executives and people from different ethnic backgrounds as pressure to disclose the make-up of boards and leadership teams mounts. Pay equity is also an issue that is increasingly gaining attention, especially as robust research exposes remuneration bias in the workplace. There is also a broader drive to encourage greater diversity of thought inside organisations that transcends traditional demographic groups. This is commendable on…

PUT SIMPLY, VISION setting is a set of goals or a mission statement that a business uses to make decisions and plan direction moving forward. Every business journey should have a destination, although one that will evolve over time. While this destination might be years, or even decades, away it's vital that business leaders are always looking to the future and positioning their company exactly where they need to be for growth. Of course, constantly thinking about the years ahead can be tricky for even the most ambitious leader. This is where the concept of vision setting comes into play. Business goals set the path for the future. And vision setting is a set of goals or a mission statement that a business uses to both make decisions and plan…

ONE OF MY core philosophies when enhancing leadership capability and capacity is that self-awareness is the root of good leadership. Whether in coaching work or leadership development programmes, I believe that a good leader truly understands how they think and what their values are and they have a good understanding of how these come into play – positively or negatively – in their role. Many of my coachees have made significant strides in their roles as a result of being willing to expand their self-awareness and reflect on their biases and drivers. For many, the interesting thing is that they have always known they were ‘like that’ but more in-depth insight gives them an understanding of ‘why’ and that’s what empowers them to change. But not everyone is willing to…

It’s a simple concept taking an old-fashioned idea, so why is there a lack of understanding when it comes to Bartercard? Putting the record straight, here are some of the most common myths about Bartercard and the truth behind them. I WON'T BE ABLE TO SPEND MY TRADE DOLLARS Probably one of the biggest objections to joining the network. When you join the network, a comprehensive business analysis is conducted so we can identify potential suppliers already available in the 6,000-strong member network. If there are insufficient suppliers available to suit your specific business requirements, we will work with you to bring on additional new suppliers to satisfy your needs. Many of Bartercard’s top trading members have successfully improved their business profitability by being proactive in their recommendation and referral…

You have to be something of an overachiever to win six business awards only 18 months after starting a business. But that is just what Logan Whitelaw and Paul Rodgers have accomplished with the business they set up in April 2016 – providing comprehensive development services for the early childcare sector. In 2017 their business, Establish, won a total of six gongs in the Westpac Business Awards (North); the David Awards; the Property Institute’s awards and the Designers Institute awards. Logan says the slew of awards so early in the business’ life is testament to having had a previous business before. “So we know what not to do.” A qualified town planner, Logan started his earlier business in 2011 and by the time he wound it down had about eight…

When graphic designer Charlotte Bebbington met e-bike manufacturer and enthusiast Ken Ching in Shanghai it was a match made in heaven for the future of cycling in Christchurch. Having both lived in Shanghai for a decade, they knew that getting around by bike is the best way to navigate a city, make friends, keep fit and encourage a good lifestyle. The couple relocated to Charlotte’s home town of Christchurch in 2015 with the dream of designing their own bicycle and pursuing their interests in health, the environment and liveable cities. From a distance they had seen the societal impact of the Canterbury quakes, but as the years passed and things started moving on they could also see the opportunities emerging. “With a fresh pair of eyes and no emotional baggage…

To be the voice of Kiwi exporters, it’s vital we keep up to date with an accurate picture of what they’re experiencing. This is why the annual ExportNZ DHL Export Barometer is so important. It gives a true gauge of how the country’s exporters are doing, what their biggest issues are, where they need help and what their future expectations are. The 2017 Barometer shows some surprising and encouraging results, especially given the global political changes that happened last year. Overall Kiwi exporters are feeling confident and expecting orders to increase in the next 12 months. Optimism is very positive with 71 percent of New Zealand exporters expecting international orders to increase – a jump from 63 percent in 2016. The research shows that overall 2017 was a good year,…

If I was to mention the word ‘Sales’ to you, what would your immediate thoughts be and what image would come to mind? Would it be of a professional, successful business person helping clients to find a solution, or an unsavoury character trying to ‘close the deal’ and make their commission for the month? We know sales is the lifeblood of every business and there is no money without it, yet a lot of business owners don’t seem to wake up in the morning with excitement and passion to ‘sell’ something every day. If sales is one of THE most important money generating activities in business, then let me ask you a question: how much time are you spending each week dedicated to closing more sales? I’ve worked with hundreds…

Each year phones get faster, more powerful and smarter. They do more and they play an ever more central role in our lives. Despite phone-maker claims, there were no important breakthroughs in 2017. Instead we saw yet another round of steady, incremental improvement. It's been that way for at least the past two years, and there have been no rumours of a great leap forward in 2018 either. You can expect to see more incremental improvement. The familiar phone format has evolved to a stylish, near featureless glass and metal slab. The main design challenge is to further reduce the buttons and external features. Any radical change now would lead to a different class of device. The result would not be a phone – at least not as we know…

Why does Microsoft see collaboration as so important in the new culture of work? Today professionals work in twice the number of teams compared to five years ago and we’ve seen a 50 percent increase in “collaborative” work. In addition, organisations that embrace collaboration are five times more likely to be high performing. The workforce is diverse and expectations, preferences, and tool demands have evolved. The workforce is also fragmented geographically and people need different tools to connect across locations and time zones. There are internal and external members involved in collaboration, with external members sitting outside the firewall who need unfettered access, while the organisation needs to maintain control of the IP and keep its teams secure and protected. Collaboration drives and supports diversity and inclusion, which is important…

The Tesla S is for a start quite luxurious, which you would expect with the price of the top of the line model tested, which with all the options being an eye-watering $273,132 ($236,100 without options) while the “base” model S starts at $117,000. The P100D has the highest capacity battery (100kwh) and the twin motors with rear performance motor (providing AWD). It also gets the famed Ludicrous and Ludicrous Plus modes for warp speed acceleration and a claimed range of 612km between charging. Lesser models get variations of 75 kwh batteries, a single motor and no Ludicrous modes. Walk up to the S and the flush door handles pop out to greet you (assuming you have the Tesla-shaped remote on you). Get in and you are cosseted by ultra-comfortable…

I love the beginning of a year. It’s a great chance to set the scene for what I aspire to learn and achieve in the coming year. We’re sharing the lunch room with robots and AI is everywhere – which got me thinking, as a human, what can I dial up to best ensure a successful leadership career? Two key areas that stand out for me are the rise of creativity as a key leadership skill and the continued importance of innovation. By 2020 creativity will become one of the top three skills leaders will need. The unrelenting and unprecedented changes in today’s world present problems and opportunities never before faced – by anyone. We cannot expect success by applying old solutions to new problems. More than ever before, creativity…