October 28, 2010

Executive Update Edition 6

Notching up a phenomenal revenue growth rate of nearly 1900% over the past three years earned niche finance provider Telecom Rentals top placing on this year’s Deloitte’s Fast 50 – ahead of web-based retailer Nature Shop (1106%), lighting technology company Energy Light (1081%) and mobile software company Mobilis (1078%). Showing little evidence of being dampened by a flat economy, this year’s Fast 50 have collectively delivered more than 800 jobs and grown the Kiwi economy by $761 million over the past three years.

Global employment may not now recover until 2015 – two years later than originally predicted – according to the just-released ‘World of Work’ report issued by the International Labour Organisation.

Managing a colleague with 10 or 15 more years of experience than you can present unusual challenges of motivation, boundary-setting, and leadership. Here are some tips to get the most out of senior managers.

As expected, the Reserve Bank left the Official Cash Rate unchanged yesterday. But as economic correspondent Bob Edlin reports it has done nothing to appease exporter concerns about the NZD’s continuing climb against the USD. This is also the real reason behind Warner Bros uneasiness about producing the Hobbit movies here, according to one commentator.

Entrepreneur and 42 Below founder Geoff Ross says there are two distinct business cultures in New Zealand – accelerated and “ball & chain”. “You can sense which culture businesses fit into – with the accelerators, you can feel the sense of urgency and energy as you walk in the door.”

Every second Sunday evening, high flying global managing director Helen Robinson catches a late night plane from Auckland to either London or New York. She returns the following Friday, works for a week from her Auckland home base and then repeats the exercise. Her exposure to the international business world means she has some strong views on what New Zealand needs to do succeed in this environment.

Thousands of investors in failed finance company South Canterbury Finance have just got their money back under the Government’s retail deposit guarantee scheme. But retailers aren’t counting on seeing much of the taxpayer bailout of just over $1.5 billion as Executive Update’s economic commentator Bob Edlin reports.

Despite increasingly widespread belief that there is a direct connection between a company’s gender diversity and its business success, this is still not reflected in top management makeup – because it’s just not seen as a priority.