ADVOCATE COLUMN 1st WEEK AUGUST 2012

We are now beginning to see the first physical signs of the roll out of UFB and RBI in Northland. Anyone who has visited the CBD lately will have seen Northpower Fibre technicians carrying out installation work connected with the Whangarei UFB roll out, while at the same time Bayley’s Beach residents have already benefited from improved connectivity bought about by the new cell phone tower which is part of Vodafone’s commitment to the RBI. Broadband is the new essential utility and is as vital to economic growth as clean water and good roads. UFB will provide every business the capability to access to reliable and ubiquitous broadband. It is the ability to do what you need to do, when you want to, where you are, and without having to compromise on quality. Northland has a two year competitive advantage during which we can exploit this utility to deliver better health, better education and more productivity and in doing so promote our region as progressive and business friendly . We will all need to embrace this technology in innovative ways. We need to consider what the outcomes are that this technology can provide and how will this change the way they operate? This is not just about doing things faster but about providing a platform on which rich content can be developed and used. For many businesses it will require a major change in behaviour for this to occur. Presently only 17% of New Zealand businesses sell direct to customers online via their own websites. At a regional level only 30% of Northland businesses have websites suggesting traditional businesses here have shown a reluctance to adopt new technology and innovation. With 80% of New Zealanders searching online first for products or service and 44% buying products, services or paying bills direct to websites, those businesses with websites must experience a competitive advantage. As more retail service providers come onboard with competitive and relevant supply offers for the consumer there is no reason for Northlanders not to take advantage of technology and grow their market. When accompanied by consistently high quality service and products this connectivity allows access to a national and global market not currently available to at least 70% of their regional competitors. Just as we as a region have an opportunity to benefit nationally from being early adopters, so to do individual businesses have an opportunity to be more competitive than other local businesses that fail to see the advantage that technology and innovation have to offer.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 4th WEEK JULY 2012

Congratulations to Mike Sabin for organising his recently held the Whole of Northland Economic Summit. This consisted of two separate seminars at which over 200 attendees from various sectors throughout Northland met to discuss those things that could enable economic growth and those things within our control that currently inhibit growth. The objective being to develop a plan of action that will allow Northland to lift its economic –and social- performance to a level that is comparable to the rest of the country. While it would be unrealistic to expect that at the completion of these two seminars the participants would have arrived at a fully resolved plan of action, it was encouraging to see the progress made and the level of support that Mr Sabin had garnered from his parliamentary colleagues for this projct. The presence of a number of key cabinet ministers was evidence that there is a willingness from central government to work with regions to grow their economies. There were a number of underlying themes that emerged during the two days and these were reasonably consistent across sectors. Foremost among these was the need for Northlanders to adopt a more collaborative approach to raise their performance and the for local government regulations to be business friendly and enabling of economic development. Neither of these was a surprise and they are regularly seen as critical drivers to us achieving our potential. It is also timely that they have again been raised as the subject of Northland’s future structure of local government is under scrutiny. While the existing structure of three districts and one regional council do not preclude collaboration and although all councils express a desire for it to occur, in last year’s “Local Government Options for Northland” report prepared by Sir Peter Trapski and Dr Don Brash, Sir Peter stated they saw little evidence of collaboration. There was also overwhelming support amongst those I spoke with during the seminars that there be a single plan for the whole of Northland that provides certainty and enables development. When considering changes to local government it will be important to examine all options available with an open mind and a strong focus on what we wish to achieve. Neither collaboration nor a single plan is reliant on structural organisational change within local government but in many cases it may be easier to bring about if there was a change.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 2nd WEEK JULY 2012

Although the playing field for economic development remains extremely uneven local government throughout New Zealand is trying, with limited resources, to play a meaningful economic development role in shaping the future of their communities. New Zealand Chambers of Commerce Northland strongly believe local government can make an important contribution to grow local economic activity by providing ‘business friendly’ services – responsive regulatory and consent regimes, low competitive rates - efficient infrastructure, positive promotion of the local area, attracting tourists and events. Councils rely on their local business sector to generate jobs, invest in the local economy and support the industries like tourism that benefit their whole community. As recently as May this year a MYOB Business Monitor quarterly survey reported that 64% of owners of Northland small to medium enterprises expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of their local councils in what was described as an environment of rising rates and arduous consenting processes. When it comes to identifying why business is dissatisfied with local government I would imagine it could be for a wide range of reasons. There may well be a sense of frustration around difficulties in resource consent processes, a sense that they are not getting value for money from ever-rising rates or that they just want councils to perform with the same level of efficiency and good governance as has been required of businesses during these difficult economic times. Equally when people have seen their lifetime endeavours put in jeopardy by influences beyond their control they may just be looking for someone to blame and councils can be an easy target. A common issue that arises when business talk of frustration with local government is the barriers that they perceive are in place around resource consent and compliance. However there is often little empirical evidence available to support this assertion and anecdotal evidence is often third or fourth hand. The Chamber is interested in hearing from business people who have directly experienced difficulties in obtaining resource consents. What their problems were and how they believe it impacted on our economy. We believe by sharing these experiences the private sector can then work collaboratively with local government to improve systems and to remove barriers that currently result in dissatisfaction with local government performance. This should not be about apportioning blame as all parties involved seek a prosperous and vibrant district. An evidence based solution will create a business friendly environment that enables economic development and benefits all communities.

BUSINESS ADVOCATE COLUMN JULY 2012

If existing markets are crowded and population growth limited, how do we grow new business? It seems like a tall order for an emerging enterprise to shoulder its way in amongst existing competitors or for existing local companies to compete against larger national operations. Yet for our regional economy to grow, it goes without saying that existing businesses must develop and grow and new businesses must enter the market. For these things to happen requires a high level of business capability, financial literacy and governance. The start point may well be for existing businesses of all scale to undertake a critical audit and establish what their current levels of the above attributes are. The challenge is how a business can examine their enterprise within a sufficiently rigorous and impartial framework that allows for them to develop a meaningful way forward. There are many very competent business consultants who can assist you to do this and this is a perfectly valid path to pursue. In most case this should result in an improved level of capability although the level of understanding of how your business works may still vary depending on the methods used in this process. The understanding of how your business operates across many aspects, of how it responds to change, of how it makes decisions on future direction and of how the result of these actions is confirmed by results is critical in being able to develop and grow in an ever-changing market. The Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards have been developed to provide the first step in the process of understanding how your business operates, what its strengths and what areas you could work on to further develop and grow the enterprise. The entry form and accompanying workshops walk the business owner through the process of understanding your business and will quickly identify how your business is truly operating. Exposing yourself to this level of examination requires a degree of courage as the results may not always be pleasant. However where this is used as a start point from which a plan can be formulated that will develop and strengthen a business then the benefits will always outweigh any discomfort. New Zealand Chambers of Commerce is still accepting entrants in this year’s awards and would encourage all Northland businesses to consider entering as the first step in developing a competitive and sustainable business.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 4th WEEK JUNE 2012

New Zealand Chambers of Commerce Northland has long advocated for businesses to provide consistent and high quality service. It is all about exceeding the customer’s expectations. We are all aware of businesses that offer poor or inconsistent quality of service and how consumers react to them. I raise this because recently I experienced the same low level of customer service that so many of us have to endure all too regularly. My wife had given the local branch of a national department store a reasonable sum of money in return for them supplying us with a bed. The bed wasn’t in stock at the time so they advised they would have it in stock within seven days or at the very least let us know when we could collect it. Needless to say none of this happened and was accompanied by total lack of interest in us once we had parted with our money. This column is not long enough to detail the various ways our expectations were not met. However I know money is important to them because I stood in front of one counter for several minutes waiting to enquire about the whereabouts of the bed while the assistant did her best to pretend I was not there while she discussed her own personal finances with someone on the other end of the phone. A customer has the right to expect a consistently high quality of service from well-informed; well trained people who are enthusiastic about the product or service that they are delivering. These values will be driven by the business owner. They will be the ones who make who ensure the right staff are hired and are given the appropriate training. That training will focus on developing confident service staff who recognise the importance of selling to the consumer and creating an ongoing relationship with them. The owner must also construct a business framework that enables the staff to fulfil their potential and do their job without physical and procedural boundaries. That is that customer relations are managed and supply chains are robust enough that the business can do what it says it does. Finally the owner is tasked with ensuring all within the business understand his or her vision and what it is that they want the customer to experience. This is the story that the consumer will take away with them and tell their friends.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 2nd WEEK JUNE 2012

According to studies undertaken in recent times, it is understood that in general Maori land in New Zealand is underperforming and underutilised. MAF states that about 1.2 million hectares of the 1.5 million hectares of Maori land is not realising its true potential. Maori land makes up 11% of Northland’s land area and of this almost 41,000 hectares are in developed pasture. Past surveys have shown have shown Maori-owned farms in Northland operated at a significantly lower profitability than of non-Maori owned farms. A number of reasons have been identified for this such as, conservative stock policies reducing gross farm revenue, lack of education and training in new technologies, governance issues, trustees being slow to respond to market signals and restricted access to development capital. So why is this important? Maori are an integral part of New Zealand Inc. The Maori economy contributed $37 billion to New Zealand’s economy in 2010 and although in recent times this economy has been diversifying it is still strongly linked to land related primary industry. About 60% of Maori assets are in the primary and tourism sectors. These are also two key economic drivers for our region. So when people speak of low hanging fruit within the Northland economy it should not be underestimated the difference a shift in the performance of this land would make to all our communities. It would be of great benefit if Northland’s public and private sector can work with Maori business to enable them to be as big an influence on our economy as they already are on our culture and unique character. There are many challenges that need to be resolved for these businesses. They are often assets rich and cash poor as a result of the legislative framework of their land holdings, they also have the difficulty of separating commercial and non-commercial activities held by trusts and problems in raising sufficient capital for infrastructure investment. As it is likely that these land holdings will increase over time, it is important to realise that the implications of this underperformance impacts on all Northlanders. It is also necessary to recognise the complex relation of the people and this land and that this relationship goes well beyond economic matters. This land is a key component of who Maori are and their past. Hopefully through partnership it will also be a key component to realising Northland’s future economic and cultural potential.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 4th WEEK MAY 2012

There can be no doubt that the decision by Refining NZ’s shareholders last month to support investing in Continuous Catalyst Regeneration Platformer will be of a fantastic benefit to Northland. Through improved energy efficiency and reduced fuel losses, Refining NZ will be able to process more crude oil to produce more oil products. Setting aside the anticipated return for investors this project is significant for several reasons. It has provided an opportunity for investment in a project that will strengthen New Zealand Inc’s supply chain. At the same time it will benefit the national economy as the projected increase in production capacity and improved efficiency will result in fewer imports and a large saving over time in foreign currency. Obviously at a regional level this investment will create high quality employment and a chance for Northland companies to improve their capabilities in international technology and engineering. Since its establishment, the refinery has played an important role in Northland’s growth. Not only is it a significant contributor to the regional GDP, it has also supported a wide range of community initiatives to the benefit of all Northlanders. There are many businesses which through their relationship with various refinery projects have been able to grow their capability and reputation to a level that has allowed them to compete on the international stage. This may not have happened if various refinery projects had not taken place. Given the significant role that Refinery NZ does play and will continue to play in New Zealand’s supply chain and that a majority of the nation’s fuel will be processed and distributed from Marsden Point, this development could provide the impetus for yet another component required in changing Northland’s economy. Is it prudent to rely on a single mode of delivery –the current pipeline- of this fuel from Northland to New Zealand’s largest economic centre or should more thought be given to securing an alternative line of supply in the form of upgrading the North Auckland rail line? This in turn could act as a further catalyst for other infrastructure development such as increasing the capacity and capability of North Port or other commercial growth such as the relocation of manufacturing from around the upper North Island to Ruakaka’s industrial land. Quite apart from the obvious and direct economic benefit that the CCR expansion will have, it will be interesting to see what indirect benefits will also occur for Northland.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 2nd WEEK MAY 2012

In April I was lucky enough to attend an event marking the Kauri Museum at Matakohe’s 50th year. This was the first time in a while that I have been to the museum and was once again struck by how much progress an organistaion and community can make in a relatively short period of time when it is driven by passionate management and volunteers and has competent governance. This establishment has a strong and sustainable relationship with its community. Over the years it has become a “must do” for many visitors to Northland. If our people are one of those things that gives us a real point of difference then places such as this are critical in telling our story. The event also included a short presentation by the Tourism Development Group on tourism in Northland. They outlined the role tourism plays in Northland’s economy and the challenges facing this sector in order to grow the industry and increase the value of the product delivered. It highlighted that a recent Roy Morgan Research survey found that Northland is New Zealand’s most preferred domestic tourist destination and is consistently rated highly by various international travel organisation surveys. The speaker Jeroen Jongejans identified three low-cost actions that central government help with that would be of benefit to Northland as a destination. The first was the designating Waipoua Forest as Kauri National Park and giving recognition to this natural and cultural treasure. Many overseas travellers consider this as the highlight of their visit to New Zealand and the role Kauri has played in the nation’s economy and cultural diversity should not be underestimated. Secondly there are a number of cultural and natural locations within Northland identified as potential World Heritage sites. The formal designation of one or several of these locations would further strengthen Northland’s attractiveness to both domestic and international tourists. Finally the development of a Marine Recreational Park along a small portion of Northland’s east coast would send a strong message to world the we are passionate about our environment while at the same time allow us to add real value to a natural resource to the benefit of local businesses. Tourism is not the only answer to changing our economy but it is certainly part of the solution. Where opportunities to improve our reputation and attractiveness to others exists, and where it can be done with only minimal investment it should be actively pursued.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 4th WEEK MARCH 2012

The Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards provides an opportunity to celebrate business excellence and the role it plays in our community. Through business, countless individuals can apply their talents to achieve their own aspirations and provide service for others. If we can celebrate and respect these people, and foster a better understanding of the contribution business makes to the wider community, then this will go a long way to inspiring more young people pursue their own aspirations. Business is a competition between various enterprises vying with each other to give the customer better a service or product for their money. Their main function is to be efficient producers of goods and services responding to market demands. In the process of doing this there are often other benefits to society and the community. Business assists in the provision of an economic environment that allows us to live and work where we chose. Many businesses support a wide range of community and not for profit initiatives. Preparation for this year’s Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards is now well underway and Northland businesses can register their expressions of interest to be part of this event. Many of Northland’s prominent business people past and present have played an active role in shaping the region through both their commercial enterprises and through their civic activities. These awards provide a great opportunity for Northlanders to celebrate those amongst us who have made significant contributions to making our region a better place. Unlike in the marketplace, in the awards businesses are not so much competing against other entrants but against a set of performance indicators. An entrant’s performance will be rigorously tested against a number of key criteria and that business’s vision and strategic plan. Success cannot be measured without a business first having set clear goals. In many cases these are closely aligned to the personal aspirations of the people and families who own these businesses. For administrative purpose past entrant categories have been grouped around sectors and the products or services they provide. A major change in this year’s awards will see entrants grouped together based on the size of their workforce. This will mean that entrants within each category will be of a similar scale and should in theory be doing similar things in relation to business excellence. If anyone wishes to know more about the awards or the changes we are making this year please feel free to contact our office at info@northchamber.co.nz.

ADVOCATE COLUMN 2nd WEEK MARCH 2012

Local government is once again a hot topic both within Northland and at a national level. While debt in most sectors is declining debt in the Local Government sector continues to rise. Minister of Local Government, Nick Smith has commented that Local Government have increased rates a 6.8 percent of the last ten years compared with the average inflation rate of just 3 percent. I would imagine that this discussion will continue to be of interest to many people over the coming months and that there will be a wide range of perspectives offered on how we can achieve affordable and sustainable governance at a district or regional level. This will come to the fore as Northland’s various councils release their Draft Annual Plans for submission. These plans are intended to be a community’s long-term goals and priorities for a 10 year period. They will contain information about the activities provided by the council including the level of service the community can expect and their contribution towards each of the community outcomes. More importantly it will outline how much this will cost over the same period and detail how it will be paid for. This tension that exists between low rates and a high demand for amenity will be an issue of much discussion. Local councils are in an unenviable position of already high levels of debt and demographic profile that may challenge the traditional framework of infrastructure investment funded by trans-generational debt. At the same time community expectations have increased and external influences have raised the performance level required of many of services they provide. Leaky buildings, earthquake strengthening, water quality waste treatment will all put additional pressure on debt and require that careful balance when allocating spending. A natural consequence of these issues of debt and community expectations is likely to be the rekindling of discussions as to what is the most appropriate structure of governance for Northland. There needs to be informed debate around how many territorial authorities do Northland -or New Zealand for that matter- really need. Also what is an appropriate level of debt for local authorities to carry and how much of this debt should be placed on future ratepayers as opposed to today’s ratepayers. This should be interesting because affordable and sustainable local government may not necessarily be the same as consultative and inclusive local government.

BUSINESS ADVOCATE COLUMN FEBRUARY 2012

We are well underway with planning for this year’s Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards and once again the More FM Customer’s Choice will be one of the more highly contested categories. To say that a customer’s perception of the service they receive is critical to a business’s success is an understatement. Any review of online customer feedback websites will show many examples of various Whangarei businesses with such great a range of customer feedbacks that it hard to believe that the reviewers are talking about the same business. Generally a business exists to sell a product or service in return for financial gain and because of this a company’s entire profit is derived directly or indirectly from the customer. So it is critical for any business that the leaders and the staff have the right attitude and the right systems to ensure the delivery of a consistent high quality service that reflects the company’s brand. It is important to have systems and processes in place that allows a business to ensure that the right people are employed and that the customer is listened to and feedback is responded innovatively. However it is leadership that will ensure that this becomes deeply embedded in the company’s ethos. We assume the right people have been recruited and that may not necessarily be those with the best product knowledge and skills but with a passion to exceed the customer’s expectations. If this is actually the case then the critical element will be leadership both by management individuals within the workforce. The leader needs to be able to communicate what the company is all about and what experience the customer should be entitled to. Then they must monitor and modify behaviour to ensure that these expectations are met. This will require them to give feedback and through their own actions make it clear that the customer’s experience is important. More importantly it will require management to have critical examined their business and considered carefully what their product or service is. They will have identified who is their market and what they expect. Finally they will have identified and implemented the systems and processes required to ensure the right people are recruited, trained and led that will ensure that the customers’ expectations are met on every occasion. If we as businesspeople can strive for this and we as consumers can demand this occurs, then we can develop a reputation for service excellence.

LEADER COLUMN AUGUST 2012

The local government reforms announced by central government in March are intended to address two of their priorities; continuing to build a more productive and competitive economy and delivering better public services to New Zealanders. It is not necessarily about amalgamation of existing councils but is intended to enable this to happen if there was a belief that doing so would assist in achieving these outcomes. Determining what a council should or should not do is not an easy task. The tension between democracy and providing sustainable and affordable governance means there are many demands from many different sectors of our communities. In some ways this is the strength of the four well-beings and the way they provide a council with a degree of flexibility as to what their role is. It allows them within a framework of financial prudence to cut their cloth according to the needs of their community. However this is often easier said than done. Economic development is a case in point. It operates on a continuum of those tasks that are solely the responsibility of central government to those that should be left solely to private sector. Along this continuum there are likely to be gaps or grey areas that no one is willing or capable of taking responsibility for. Council’s have a genuine role in economic development - mainly through facilitation and making the council more business friendly and open through providing secure, reliable infrastructure, accommodating business requirements, keeping barriers to doing business low, and ensuring rates are kept competitive - and in which local business organisations are identified as ‘potential’ partners. Establishing successful partnerships to harness economic development initiatives is the key. They have the potential to achieve economic development outcomes that would otherwise be unattainable. Partnerships focussed on meeting the needs of business are important for many reasons, not least of which that in the past with a few notable exceptions, EDAs have not been as successful as they could be. This may well change in Northland with the restructuring currently being undertaken by Enterprise Northland. The Chamber believes local government can make an important contribution to grow local economic activity by providing ‘business friendly’ services – responsive regulatory and consent regimes, low competitive rates - efficient infrastructure, positive promotion of the local area, attracting tourists and events. Partnerships can create a more innovative, commercially successful community. Strong-community based business organization such as the Chamber of Commerce can have a role in organizing and convening the partnership processes.

LEADER COLUMN JULY 2012

During the first weekend of July I was fortunate enough to attend the Northland Chef’s Association annual Matariki Hospitality Awards. Apart from the opportunity to sample dishes prepared by some our region’s best chefs it was once again a reminder of number of issues that are important to Whangarei and Northland. Firstly, tourism is a major economic driver for the region but it is generally a low value product. If we are to transform this product to a higher value then consistent high quality service from our hospitality sector will be crucial to our success. This is a difficult industry with often complex supply chains, an inconsistent workforce and seasonal variations. All of which require skill, experience and a high degree of business capability to manage. Secondly, it showed what a difference an individual’s passion and leadership can bring to a business community. All the participants in this year’s event showed a high degree of passion and pride in what they did. This was also evidenced in their passion for the region and their desire to improve Northland’s reputation as a destination of choice. The fact that they have been operating in difficult times had not diminished their desire to maintain high standards and to strive to make their businesses something special. Furthermore, when we look at what makes the towns of our region different from other parts of the country, these locally owned and operated businesses are a key component. Many out of town visitors will associate the restaurants and cafes where they have enjoyed a dining experience with the places they have visited when recounting their journeys to their friends. This strengthens our reputation and provides an opportunity to express Northland’s unique character. It takes a degree of courage to put your business performance up to be evaluated against others within your own industry but perhaps the hospitality sector above all sectors is more inclined to do this. Every day when they open their doors for business they are going to judged by their customers in a manner that is more critical most other enterprises. They will be evaluated based on the quality of their service and food, their menu and their value for money within the context of the occasion. The consumer is more likely to share their good or bad experiences and these businesses live or die by their reputation. Based on what was on display at the Matariki Awards these leaders have set a high standard for others in the industry to aspire to.

LEADER COLUMN APRIL 2012

Having someone to listen to you, occasionally challenge the way you do things and offer guidance based on their own experience can give a business owner the confidence that they are doing things the right way or at the very least are not missing out on potential opportunities to develop. Business Mentors New Zealand (www.businessmentors.org.nz) provides a mentoring service to businesses that have been operating for at least six months and is the owner’s main source of income. A registration fee of $100 + GST applies, which entitles you to use the mentoring service for two years. This is the only cost to you. The Northland Chamber of Commerce assists businesses in a number ways including on occasions using its network of members to help operators who may not meet the registration criteria of Business Mentors New Zealand. When a business is struggling they need all the help they can get. Using a mentor allows an independent perspective that may not be apparent to the owner. Many people do not engage a mentor until they notice things starting to go wrong with their business. There is merit in getting a mentor or outside assistance before you think you need it. Early involvement helps avoid pitfalls and gives the business the best chance of succeeding from the start. Mentors may have many different reasons for giving up their time to assist struggling businesses. Apart from a desire to help Northland’s economic development it provides the opportunity for people who may are no longer be active in the business community to stay in contact with an environment that has been a large part of their life. Although all find the experience rewarding, the Northland Chamber of Commerce is always in search of new mentors to reduce the burden on these volunteers to assist new clients. We are currently seeking people Northland’s business community who would like to use their experience and skills to help succeed with their enterprises. If you think this is something that would appeal to you then we would love the opportunity to tell you more about how you can help grow Northland’s economy. Growing Northland business is as much about ensuring existing businesses succeed and flourish as it is about encouraging inward investment and new business. The trickle-down effects from a business failing, impact on the entire community. Equally all Northlanders benefit from the presence of robust and sustainable local companies consistently providing quality service and products.

LEADER COLUMN MAY 2012

The 2012 Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards are now open for entrants and details of categories and timings can be viewed on the Award’s website http://northlandbusinessawards.co.nz/. New Zealand Chambers of Commerce Northland urges all Northland businesses to seriously consider entering and we are willing to do all we can to assist businesses in the process. It is free to enter and is open to any Northland businesses not just those who belong to the Chamber of Commerce. The big change with this year’s Awards is that we will no longer be clustering entrants based on the sector they represent but will be grouping them based on the size of their business. In the past there has been feedback that businesses would prefer to be evaluated against businesses of a similar scale as they believe that this would give them a better comparative indication of how their organization is performing. We will be running a series of workshops to assist potential entrants understand the evaluation process and what is required from them when completing their entry form. Following these workshops, the Chamber will also be in a position to provide additional tutoring to entrants if required. All entrants receive feedback from the judging panel focused on identifying areas of their business that may benefit from being revisited and improved. Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards provide a great opportunity for businesses to celebrate what they have achieved to date and to plan where they want to be in the future. They are also a great business development tool. In recognition of the business development component of the Awards, all entrants will be eligible and encouraged to participate in a training needs assessment undertaken by Northland Business Grow Team. Following this assessment an action plan will be prepared for that business and in some cases the individual businesses may be able eligible for funding to assist in developing their business capability. The entrants will, be evaluated using a modified Baldrige criterion based closely on a standard developed by the New Zealand Business Excellence Foundation. The judging process combines a desk-top business study followed up by on-site judging from the Westpac Northland Business Excellence Awards judging panel. While every business person will ultimately judge the success of their own business on its bottom-line, past entrants have consistently commented that, the entry process provides real value to systematically examine their businesses and identify opportunities to improve what they do.

LEADER COLUMN MARCH 2012

The release of Northland’s 2011 Economic Profile (Infometrics Limited) once again highlights both the challenges facing Whangarei District, the importance of Whangarei to Northland’s overall economy and future opportunities to grow. GDP in Whangarei measured $1,897m in the year to March 2011, up 1.4% from a year earlier. This growth ranked us at number 34 compared with the other 72 territorial authorities in New Zealand. Manufacturing made the largest contribution to overall growth with 21.3% of total GDP. The other major contributors were business and property services (10.6%) and wholesale and retail trade (9.8%). Industries highlighted as having the largest comparative advantages were petroleum, chemical, plastic, rubber manufacturing, non-metallic mineral products manufacturing, and forestry and logging. This report outlined the performance of individual sectors and industry compared with last year and the overall performance over the last ten years. For example Whangarei's agriculture sector declined by 1.8% in 2011 compared with growth of 1% in the sector nationally. This sector contributed 4.6% to the district's economy in 2011, down from 6.8% ten years ago. The agriculture sector employed an average of 1,926 persons in Whangarei in 2011 which was down from 2,002 in 2010. Forestry by comparison contributed 2.7% to the district's economy in 2011 and grew by 17.8% in 2011 compared with growth of 10.5% in the sector nationally. There was an average of 205 jobs in forestry up from 172 in 2010. We still have one of the more diverse economies in New Zealand and once again we have experienced a decline in business growth with 9,195 business units were recorded was down 2.2% from a year earlier. The number of business units in New Zealand declined by 0.6% over the same period The total employment in Whangarei averaged 33,682 in the March 2011 year, down 1.9% from a year earlier. Employment in New Zealand increased by 0.2% over the same period. Tertiary industries accounted for the largest proportion of employment (72%) in Whangarei, which is lower than in the national economy (74%). Communication services made the largest contribution to employment growth the industry adding 44 jobs over the last 12 months. Not surprisingly construction was the largest detractor from growth a decline in employment of 319. I would suggest that anyone interested in what are the potential key economic drivers for Whangarei read this document and consider how this is likely to affect them and their business.

LEADER COLUMN FEBRUARY 2012

Several recent articles in national newspapers have once again highlighted the opportunities that could exist for Whangarei because of its location in close proximity to New Zealand’s largest city. Obviously there is potential for our deepwater port to benefit in the future as Port of Auckland meets its capacity, struggles with reverse sensitivity and considers whether storing several hundred thousand containers is the best possible use for a world class city. But it is more likely that it will be issues around quality of life and the challenges of living in a large metropolitan centre that may make Northland attractive alternative to Aucklanders in the near future. While not wanting to view Whangarei through rose coloured glasses and recognising that we still have a number of issues that need to be resolved, we do have a lot to offer those disaffected with living in an overcrowded city with an infrastructure stretched to near capacity. Two factors that could potentially affect the quality of life of people living in such a large city are pressure on housing supply and traffic congestion. Neither of these is easy to overcome and both can lead people to question what they are doing there. So we need to ask what would encourage these people to move here and contribute to our economy and our communities. It should go without saying that these people would seek a reliable and resilient way to ship their goods elsewhere around the country and world. They would want surety around power and water supply. But these are things that people in all communities aspire to have and are hardly a point of difference in a competitive market. If someone’s motive for moving from one place is related to their perceived quality of life in that location then this factor will be important to them when deciding on where they go. We have a relatively compact, walkable central business district, we have large areas of industrial land in close proximity to State Highway One and a deepwater port and we have a variety of wonderful residential areas that suit a range of lifestyle choices. There is possibly some negative outside perceptions about Whangarei and possibly the lack of amenity to encourage inner-city living. This is why the work that the Whangarei District Council is doing in the place making projects and their “Love It Here” campaign are so important. There is opportunity for the community to participate and contribute to this work and ensure we can fulfil our district’s potential.