November 27, 2001

From time to time, few variables come together that mean your job is in jeopardy. Sometimes you don’t have lot of control over their existence, but you can control what

This March marked the l00th staging of NZIM’s Executive Staff Course, now known as ESCO, The Discovery. From humble beginnings in 1966 when 23 participants from throughout the South Island

Gartner Group has identified the following questions, to help prioritise what must get done on the Internet, identify costs and manage the risk of doing e-business.

Knowing how to think, not what to think is the key to survival in today’s fast changing environment.

In Rules of the New Millennium, Winston Marsh outlines few guidelines: 1. Be better marketer of what you do, than doer of what you do. 2. Focus on winning bigger

.The external environment; to antici-pate changes in markets, technologies, deregulation, currencies and the like. *Competitive strategies of traditional and non-traditional competitors — joint ventures, industry alliances, industry consolidation and blurring

NZIM launches its qualification to help school leavers prepare for employment.

Confidence in the Canterbury economy has faltered recently, but the region remains blessed with a diverse business base, sound infrastructure, and a strong will to pull together for growth.

Doug MathesonAs leaders, CEOs and management have to move from managing staff to managing an environment.As leaders, CEOs and management have to move from managing staff to managing an environment.

In Life’s Pitch: Then you Buy, marketing consultant Don Peppers offers some principles to help you determine whether particular action is ethical or not. Full disclosure is the best policy.

(Source: Brooker’s) ? The Companies Act: Directors may be fined up to $10,000 for failure to comply (ss 373, 374). For more serious offences the penalty is up to five

“The Practice of Project Management – a business approach”

Air quality is vital for our lifestyle. If you doubt it, just hold your breath, and see how long you last without good air. Imagine 500 people standing on rooftops

Cindy Mitchener Mitchener was recently appointed chief executive of eVentures, the new firm that provides investment and incubation services — capital, location and facilities — for both new and established

Sarah Trotman Business in the Community, the business mentoring organisation, has appointed Trotman as chief executive. She has background as an independent business consultant and was former general manager of

Lana Hart To celebrate International Women’s Day, the Human Rights Commission has announced the appointment of Hart as Women’s Advocate. ——————————— Keith Woodford Lincoln University has appointed Woodford as its

Gavin Mitchell Mitchell is the new business development manager at WEL Technology part of the Spectrum Resources Group, which develops and markets billing software for large utilities throughout the world.

Trevor Eagle Prominent business-man Eagle is the new chairman of the NZ High Tech Council. The founder and managing director of Eagle Technology, he is also chairman of Aquagas International,

Heather Riley Dynasty Hotel Group has appointed Riley as its new general manager of CityLife Wellington. She will also oversee the opening of the CityLife on Bolton project, complex of

Much writing about senior management focuses on leadership.

Labour’s planned cancellation of the F16 lease-to-buy deal doesn’t meet with universal approval.

This month we’re pleased to announce winners of the first ASB Women Business Leaders Awards. Through these awards we hope to promote excellence by women in business as well as

Whether you’re hopping on a jumbo jet or the city’s free bus to get to the company conference this year, chances are the choice of venue had organisers in a quandary.

Auckland rugby fans can now email their favourite players. The web site, www.aucklandrugby.co.nz is part of technology strategy to respond to expectations of fans, officials and players. “Four years ago

The Australian economy passed its 100th month of uninterrupted expansion in the December 1999 quarter according to the WestpacTrust Economic Overview. If it continues as expected, it will become the

Lemmings. Why do they do it? Every three years or so they migrate en masse, often killing themselves in the process.

The world didn’t come to a sticky end some time after midnight on December 31, 1999.

One New Zealand firm believes you can’t beat living in the US as the best way to grow the business.

Successful governments use the megaphone, not the piccolo, to talk to the public.

Increasingly it seems, salaried staff are getting bonuses, often at the sacrifice of salary increases according to the latest NZ salary survey from Cubiks, formerly PA Consulting’s assessment and development

“The time has come,” Nobilangelo said, “to speak what’s on my mind: To give some thanks – and helpful hints – and ask for tests online.”

New Zealand’s pioneering spirit can be a mixed blessing.

Wayne Hartner built one of the country’s largest construction firms on a foundation of quality and relationship management.

Century Richard J. Pech Robert M.Pech David M. Tweed Dunmore Press This book attempts to demonstrate how to manage and adapt in the fast moving and aggressive new economy. To

Turning business savvy into investment savvy.

Two years ago the Department of Conservation realised its IT infrastructure would fail the millennium test and its systems were growing haphazardly and becoming difficult to maintain. It was time

Rollex Group wanted somewhere to give information to people about its new product range of ozone generators. These are machines that purify the air and can be used anywhere you

By the year 2011, there will be eight women to every 10 men in the New Zealand workforce. The question is, where will those women be in the organisation? In

Imagine carrying your presentation around on CD the size of your calling card. As method of keeping in touch with existing and prospective customers, the tiny CD is breeze. “It’s

If creativity is about finding ideas, and innovation is about making money from them, how do you bring the two together?

Outsourcing is about to become major headache under the Government’s new Employment Relations Bill. Many employers are just beginning to understand the Bill’s serious implications for contracting out, or outsourcing.

The new Benchmarking Club helps deliver world-class performance.

Last December I waxed wrathfully about ISPs that charge for connect-time, but have response-times that are so variable that a lot of the charge is generated by them.

Do you know when your directors are in conflict of interest?

Local authorities are pitting themselves against each other in the management stakes with the help of the New Zealand Post management excellence awards. These encourage councils to search for innovative

Charismatic leaders need more than just an abundance of charm to be effective. They also need vision.

For those wanting to put the theory of innovation into practice, help is at hand. Auckland University of Technology is running seminar called “Developing Innovative Organisations”, to be held at

* have an appropriate reputation * good negotiation skills * the ability to get things done * good emotional competence * an awareness of yourself * learn to stay poised

Roberta Cava Macmillan As the title suggests, this book outlines useful techniques that will help anyone, especially front-line staff, ‘keep cool under fire’ in wide variety of situations – including

Underpinning any success are the increasingly sought after treasures, resilience and stamina.

Are bricks and mortar universities about to become extinct?

At the end of the century we could celebrate lots of things — but probably not our tolerance of diversity.

I read with interest Paul Smith’s article about diversity in the workplace. It’s great that the issues are being addressed. However I was unpleasantly surprised by how little progress has

Some Internet humour: “You know you work in corporate America in the ’90s if…” “You’ve sat at the same desk for four years and worked for three different companies,” “Your

For decades managers have tried to work out the relationship between good leadership and the bottom line. We attempted to find some answers to this question in the New Zealand Leadership Survey, conducted in 1999.

As with any group or collection of peo- ple, organisations possess, and are influenced by, specific cultural norms. Therefore in any investigation of leadership it is necessary to understand culture

The death of growth opportunities is the modern curse of chief executives. Research shows that from 3000 business ideas, just one survives to become a successful product or service.

The great Kiwi OE is part of our national psyche. Unfortunately what was once a rite of passage for our youth is increasingly becoming a brain drain Ñ should we panic?

The US Senate recently approved bill allowing the use of digital signatures in many types of contracts and business transactions done on the Internet. The move will open up the

Everyone talks about the opportunities afforded by e-business, and they are indeed vast, but what about the challenges? How will e-business impact on your organisation’s most valuable asset Ñ your people?

Improve all aspects of your trading ? Information exchange and product pricing. ? Billing and accounting. ? Inventory management. ? Online ordering. ? Supply chain management. ? Shipping and logistics

Business is paying a price for running out of spare capacity.

In November voters achieved a change of government, just like in the old first-past-the-post (FPP) days. But will that save MMP?

Email may be wonderful invention, but it’s mixed blessing according to Walt Disney chairman Michael Eisner. He wrote recently that in the ?hard-paper world’ he’d write down problem in memo,

Kiwis who rely on property investments must jump out of their comfort zone and look at options.

801Employment Relations 802Introduction to Marketing 803Human Resources I: People at Work 805Introduction to Management 806Applied Economics 807Introduction to Financial Services 808Introduction to Accounting 809Human Resources II: Personnel Practice 810Introduction to

When you talk global business scandals and ethics, it’s easy to think of Wall Street and insider trading of the mid ’80s. Since then the subject of ethics has developed

How do you measure up in the ethics stakes? Now’s the time to start thinking about entering the Brookfields Business Ethics Award in this year’s Deloitte/Management Magazine Top 200 Awards.

When you talk about vision in your corporation, can you also translate that into an e-vision?

A series of free half-day seminars on how to exploit business opportunities in China while avoiding the risks, is being organised by the Asia 2000 Foundation of New Zealand. The

Convergence and merger; it’s all coming together for an easier life. Or is it?

When it comes to developing HR systems, New Zealand firms need to be aware that the one size fits all approach isn’t the best. “Most HR systems need to be

Size discrimination is alive and well in the New Zealand workplace. That’s finding from reader survey conducted by New Zealand Bella magazine which shows 87 percent of nearly 400 female

Does anyone remember the last time they saw or used typewriter? In the last few years, typewriters have silently disappeared as they were replaced by computing technology. Those of us

A fascination with the sea, and penchant for collecting information on shipping companies, led to successful Internet business for Napier man. Former marine engineer Graeme Etheridge runs travel company specialising

As we head into new century suffixed clearly by dot.com, it’s worth remembering that when we crossed the threshold of the last century the world was linked by the dot-dash

A Modern Morality Tale Bob Jones Hazard Press Few are spared in Bob Jones’ latest novel treatment of life’s pecking order. Scientists, academics, conservationists, doctors and the clergy, and of

Giving HR responsibility to line managers creates a flatter organisation, but it has its own risks.

Are boards overstepping their mark in their day to day involvement of a business?Are boards overstepping their mark in their day to day involvement of a business?

Committees are variously criticised for being costly, time-consuming, unable to reach decisions, and for producing mediocre decisions.

Increased sales depend on a unified marketing programme, and advertising is one of the major components.

I do like Jeeves. Not just the sterling gent from the pen of Sir Pelham Wodehouse, but the American search-engine named after him (www.askjeeves.com).

Good faith bargaining soon to replace the Employment Contracts Act is already feature of workplace relations in Canada, South Africa and the US, and has its share of supporters and

Hunting

Innovation and creativity set us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom and successful companies from mediocre ones. Outstanding businesses and organisations are invariably led by visionary individuals brave

“If you do everything right, nobody will notice. If you do something wrong, everyone will notice.”

A new study by the Boston Consulting Group reveals that one out of every three enterprise application initiatives is successful. The BCG studied 100 executives in the US who had

The trouble with the future these days is that it’s always present. Take e-tailing, or just about anything beginning with that ubiquitous lower case letter. We have, the pundits say, e-merged from the gee-whiz stage and graduated: e-tailing can now be capped.

Remember company loyalty? The economic forces that wore it down and gave rise to freelance, consultant workforce are now being felt way down at the entry level. According to ‘first

It’s only June but already your diary is full and space is scarce on the year planner.

The handful of insurance companies (QBE, HIH, American Home Assurance, ACE and GIO) that specialise in litigation insurance can generally provide as much cover as companies want on two primary

Employment Relations Bill provisions that hold directors liable for failing to, or acquiescing in paying holiday pay or “allowances of real concern”… add to the litany of personal risks in over 30 pieces of legislation.

Without a vision of the future, your organisation will lose direction, purpose and control. Here’s a way of spelling out a vision.

The rules for rising to the top of any organisation.

Not all bosses are perfect. Like other people, they too can be lazy, incompetent, bullies or arrogant. Coming up with ways of coping with poor performing bosses can tax the resources of the most talented managers. Here are some suggestions:

An open door policy may well be a noble intention. Total accessibility however can be counter-productive in terms of your valuable time. Unless you’re prepared to control the extent to which unexpected visitors consume your time, your efficiency will suffer. Limiting the time taken up by drop-in visitors demands courtesy, good judgement and tact.

1. Understand motivation There are only two types of motivation — love motivation or fear motivation. People do what they do either out of love or fear. Many go to

There’s no such thing as a free lunch Ñ or any other meal for that matter, so be prepared to pay in some way. Whether you’re the guest or the host, mealtime meetings are the business of doing business. With today’s hectic schedule and work loads combining meetings and mealtimes can be a productive and enjoyable use of your time. All you need to do is choose the type of meeting that will deliver the out comes you want.

From the stable of big blue and deep blue comes Blue Gene.

It’s not news that first impressions count. The old saying, you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression, is true but what’s even more frightening is how much it matters.