What a cool weekend. I spent yesterday helping Sonya and Lorraine prepare for last night's Fire Brigade Christmas party. That in itself was lots of fun, but the party was even better. It's always great getting together with this group, but last night was particularly special as it was held at our house. The food was amazing, a few people drank a little to much, but that was harmless, and we sat outside around the fire until the wee hours of the morning talking. Very nice. At 9 am however it was back into professional mode, as we had the important task of transporting Santa around the neighborhood To View More >>

Finally the OCR (Official Cash Rate) in New Zealand has been dropped to 8.0%. As an exporter we have been doing it tough for years now and maybe this is the relief we need. http://www.rbnz.govt.nz/news/2008/3376920.html I used to joke, in a black humour kind of way, that what exporters needed was a "mad cow" to take the edge off the economy. Nothing else seemed like it would work ... Then with some sadness I realized we already had one, but she was running the country, time would not be on her side forever ... Unfortunately our relief comes only because the economy overall seems to be screwed. To View More >>

In my last blog entry I mentioned our ambition to be a "legendary" company. This may sound shallow to some, especially those skeptical of company "vision statements" and empty promises from the board as to how "life is going to be different now" For us however we hold this desire very close to our heart, and although growth is important to us, growth without quality and a focus on sound profitability becomes just an issue of ego. We are a family based company, and some of our focus comes from a division of responsibility, but really it comes from a desire to be exceptional in all aspects of our To View More >>

It was with real sadness that I learned of Anita Roddicks death this morning. In truth my reaction was quite unexpected. It is strange that while she was alive I could be quite self righteous in my disregard for her, but suddenly in death my earlier criticism seems petty. In truth whether of not you agree with everything she did, the world and commerce is better off for her being a part of it. I only ever shop in a Body Shop store if the girls want to buy soap for there mum so am not really a fan of the the "brand", but even so I know that my own values have been influenced for the better by as To View More >>

On Thursday I called our Prime Minister, Helen Clark a mad cow, and I want to say sorry. LOL Ok I was going to say that's not fair on real cows and their unfortunate condition, but that would just be another cheap joke at someone else's expense. Funny thing about my blog is not many people leave comments, in fact almost never, but I get quite a number of emails directly and comments from friends and family. On Friday at a party Dad told me I was being a "tough customer" and my Sister said that it "wasn't my style, and would come back to bite me when I was Prime Minister." Something about Karma? To View More >>

The New Zealand Herald ran a story this morning about Kevin Roberts joining the board of New Zealand's Telecom. Some stories honestly just make me go, OMG, what? Here is one of my business heroes joining the board of a company (Telecom) that "I hate to love". I continue to support them despite myself, and despite the way they present themselves to their clients. But I would love to love them. In the interests of full disclosure, our company are pretty big telecommunication users. We are heavily dependent on Telecom for our international telephone presence, and we're big users of high speed internet. To View More >>

I was walking the dog this morning and it occurred to me how much of the last week has been full of paradox . In no particular order ... 1, Do you find as often as I do that food that's good for you isn't usually as good for your wallet as food that's not? 2, Business is like a snow ball rolling down a hill: it grows faster the bigger it gets. So why don't we focus on getting the small snow ball right and rolling first? 3, I was shocked to realise a while back, and was reminded often last week, that the information (learning) we most need to hear is often the stuff that irritates us the most. 4, To View More >>

If you are in or running a disfunctional team, maybe it is a simple as people do not know who is the boss? Not an unusual situation but one that needs to be quickly and consciously resolved. Here I share my experience with this in the fire service and what can be learnt from it. One of the things the Fire Service does exceptionally well is make it clear not only that there must be a boss but also who that person is. In an emergency situation, control needs to be quickly put in place and priority given to the tasks needing to be completed. Your OIC (officer in charge) might be your best friend at To View More >>

There is a saying "Get in Line, Stay in Line", basically it means if your start something keep at it until the end. Some people however give up just before the finish line. Below I share what we can learn from Kids when it comes to persistence in negotiation, once you start don't stop. Does No really mean no? Some children left to their own free will, can out last an adult in a verbal argument or negotiation. Kids are built with the extraordinary ability to stay focused on the goal and be so much more persistent than we can be bothered being. This hyper negotiation can happen angrily during a tantrum To View More >>

It's Sunday morning so I want to go back to bed ... It's a bit of a worry since I have been up since 5.30 am and its now 10, but that's another story. My father in law, who unfortunately passed away earlier this year loved this piece of Shakespeare ... It was truely his lifes inspiration, so today I borrow from him. We miss you Alan. "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all" hmmm Interesting! Enjoy x To be or not to be, that is the question; Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing, end To View More >>