Building a Super City

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In an earlier blog we explored the concept of Housing Affordability in New Zealand. We pointed to a Massey University report which ranked Auckland as the least affordable place in New Zealand to own a house.   However, a city is not just rated on the quality and availability of affordable housing. In order for Auckland to become a world-class city, we need to have world-class infrastructure to support its economic and social growth. It needs to be paid for now, but sophisticated and complex Read more [...]

Who are your key staff?

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Recent disruptions at the Port of Auckland and the on-going negotiations at AFFCO has forced me to really consider the question of which group of workers my business couldn't do without. As managers, we often need to consider who within the team is the most valuable and what impact it might have if they suddenly left. The reality in our market is that often we do find some of our team getting better offers of work elsewhere or demanding pay hikes to stay. Other organisations, especially in Read more [...]

Sorry is the hardest thing to say

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None of us are perfect, in life or in business, and there are occasions where our experiences with a business do not meet our expectations. Yet for many organisations, “Sorry” seems to be the hardest thing to say when something goes wrong. Apologies range in their effectiveness and sincerity – from the genuine to the vaguely insulting. A quick, genuine apology for the incident that caused offence or did not meet expectations can often turn around a dissatisfied customer. The more genuine Read more [...]

Conferenz wins at Asian Conference Awards

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  The inaugural Asian Conference Awards ceremony took place last night at the Raffles City Convention Centre in Singapore. Around 200 people gathered from across the conference industry in the Asia-Pacific region. Representatives from New Zealand, Australia, China, Singapore, Japan, India and Malaysia were in line as finalists across the awards categories.     Conferenz was shortlisted as finalists for two awards - Best New Product Launch and Triumph in the Face of Adversity. Read more [...]

Paradise remortgaged: Examining housing affordability in Auckland

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80’s rock band Starship would have you believe that great cities are built on rock and roll. While that may be true of Los Angeles, Detroit, London or Seattle, in New Zealand great cities are built on effective transport linkages, quality of life, well planned urban spaces and a thriving local economy. But all of this comes at a cost. Upon the formation of the Auckland Council in 2010, Mayor Len Brown announced his vision to make Auckland “the most liveable city in the world.” It is an admirable Read more [...]

Faster, cheaper, fresher: Improving New Zealand’s supply chain

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  This morning I had the pleasure of listening to Murray Sherwin from the Productivity Commission at the 2012 New Zealand Freight Summit, which we ran in conjunction with the University of Auckland Business School. The Commission was established in 2010 with a mandate to provide analysis and recommendations on all matters relating to New Zealand’s productivity, produced a draft report on International Freight Transport services  in January this year. The report looks at factors Read more [...]

Are you in my tribe?

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We are all buying in tribes now apparently. We also want to know who's in our tribe. I've been reading a number of marketing books lately and have thoroughly enjoyed two in particular. Tribes - we need you by Seth Godin is a great little read. He argues persuasively that whilst tribes have always been part of the basic human instinct, now more than ever tribes are an instinctual part of our purchasing decisions. We not only want to know what we're getting but who we're getting it with. This is Read more [...]

The language of craving – video

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Pleasant surprise: Awards Season

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The awards season is alive and well with the announcement of the nominations yesterday for the 84th Academy Awards. Certainly it was interesting to note the blaring omission of the “Adventures of Tintin” from all of the categories except best musical score.  A disappointment I’m sure for Weta Digital’s team in Wellington. Here at Conferenz we have recently had the honour of being short listed in two categories at the inaugural Asian Conference Awards and Summit taking place in March in Read more [...]

The Role of Technology in New Zealand’s Productivity and Competitiveness

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