Issues
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Steady As She Goes, For Now
By Murray Jack What a difference a year makes! Last year’s budget was full of optimism with the most significant tax changes in 25 years targeted to provide a platform for productivity and economic growth. A year and two Christchurch earthquakes later and the Government’s accounts are less rosy in the near term. The earthquakes and a slower recovery coming out of the GFC enhanced long recession have exposed prior assumptions. The economy hasn’t grown and won’t grow much for the rest of this year. Beyond that there are hopes for a rapid growth...
read moreLooking Towards Christchurch’s New Future
Bob Stewart is a business recovery team leader at Recover Canterbury, part of a team of experienced and skilled business recovery coordinators helping earthquake-impacted businesses get back on their feet. To find out more visit www.recovercanterbury.co.nz The statistics show that most of us love it, some of us like it and, as with any announcement of this scale, some aren’t keen on it at all. What am I speaking about? The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan. One hundred days in the making, the plan gives us a glimpse of our city of the...
read moreState Of Default
The rising rate of loan payment failure By Sandy Galland The toughest of times might be over for many, but latest figures on loan defaults show a marked rise in the number of businesses failing to meet financial commitments. Recent data from leading credit bureau Veda Advantage shows the number of commercial defaults increased by 38.46 percent in 2009, compared to 2008. By comparison, consumer defaults were up by only 8.86 percent. Reserve Bank Governor Dr Alan Bollard believes these figures are to be expected and are likely to rise in the...
read moreEmotional Intelligence
By Kate Pierson In life we are taught the virtues of maintaining holistic balance in day-to-day life. But at times, sustaining that balance can be a challenge. Social, emotional and professional tides of change can disrupt our preferential patterns and propel us forward into unfamiliar territory, requiring us to re-establish the equilibrium. Being emotionally aware and content is part of achieving balance and requires emotional intelligence — something we acquire naturally through our existence and through life’s experiences. EI/EQ Emotional...
read moreMarketing’s Future
By Bridget Gourlay Predicting the future is always a risky affair, but in the world of marketing keeping your finger on the pulse of where and how to advertise is crucial. TBWA Group CEO David Walden says there has been a ‘seismic change’ in marketing with the advent of social networking, the digital age and the change in when and how people watch TV, with programmes being available on network websites, able to be watched any time of the day or night for weeks after they’ve aired. “The world’s changed. It used to be...
read moreDiscount Dangers
By Kate Pierson It’s a sensory stimulant for consumers and can break budgets on a whim. With the ability to bend the will of even the most avid window-only shopper, it’s one of the most attractive concepts to the human eye – the discount. Making the eyes wide, the sales salivary glands water and the heart pit-a-patter in anticipation, it’s one of the most powerful signs in commercial language. Yes, the discount, be it in malls, minimarts or markets, in the form of dollar deductions, percentage reductions, or...
read moreXYZ Generation Wars
By Sandy Galland Is there a war going on in your office? Does your workplace culture succumb to the insidious cycle of ageist generalisations which compartmentalise your colleagues, based on nothing more than when they were born? In today’s workplaces, the war between generations seem to be getting more attention than any other time in history. Relations among the generations seem to be at a low point: Gen Y thinks Gen X are a bunch of whiners. Gen X sees Gen Y as arrogant and entitled, and everyone thinks the Baby Boomers are...
read moreIs Bigger Better?
By Kate Pierson For some, the prospect of expanding their business is not a possibility or even on the objectivity radar to begin with. For other companies, growth is a natural or intentional development. Some believe growth is the formula for success — but is it really that simple? And is it fact or fiction that bigger is better when it comes to business? Yes and no. There are many variables to consider when evaluating the relationship between business size and success. It is not as black and white as saying yes or no — both answers are fair...
read moreMaking Effective Messages
By Melinda Collins In sport, most amateurs stumble along grabbing the occasional win with no clear action plan. Professionals, on the other hand, march in with an effective strategy and take out the game. In business, as with sport, strategy can make all the difference. When promoting your business, this strategy is known as marketing. As simple as this seems, it is still where confusion is often found. Advertising is a single component of the marketing process. It is the part that involves getting the word out concerning your...
read morePaying For Performance
By Melinda Collins ‘You can’t manage what you can’t measure’ is an adage that has been around since forever. One of the most common, and increasingly controversial, manifestations of a connection between measurement and management, is performance-related pay (PRP). It’s not a new concept. Ever since ancient Mesopotamians were paid by the basket for picking olives, there’s been some variation of incentive pay. In the modern day the term is used fairly loosely with commissions and bonuses often thrown into the...
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