NZIM 2006 Outlook – Bright, busy and bullish

New governance arrangements at national board level have brought greater shared vision to directors, management and staff throughout New Zealand, according to New Zealand Institute of Management national chief executive David Chapman. Looking back on 2005 and ahead at plans for 2006, Chapman believes NZIM is working better at the national level and now produces more comprehensive and coordinated range of services and programmes to its national customers.
NZIM began review of all its resources and qualifications last year to ensure that “what we were delivering was up to speed and timely”, says Chapman. “And this work will continue in 2006. We have made significant improvements in the tracking and reporting for all of our qualifications. We are very proud of our quality management system which ensures customers get the best possible service and, most importantly, quality learning outcomes.”
NZIM developed and/or registered number of new specialist management qualifications last year including diplomas in frontline management, project management, supply chain management and health and safety management. “We have now developed reputation for providing high quality specialist professional management qualifications and new ones are planned for 2006,” says Chapman.
“We promised at the beginning of last year that we would focus on our central strategic objective of building outstanding managers and leaders and there is no doubt that we made tremendous progress last year. We will continue to build on this programme of new initiatives and activities in 2006.”
NZIM is significant contributor to the Business and Management Capability partnership initiative managed by the Ministry of Economic Development. NZIM’s key areas of interest include work into what can be achieved through both formal and informal learning, action research, the impact of coaching and mentoring, and input into research projects which help define how to achieve better organisational performance through improved management and business capability. Other initiatives include identifying international best practice management benchmarks and how best to adopt them in New Zealand.
NZIM will celebrate 60 years of management development and service in 2006. As part of that celebration it is planning to stage number of high profile events, including management week of activities and major management conference.
“The concept of management week will provide an opportunity for organisations and managers to think about the key issues and challenges which lie ahead for managers and leaders and come up with some new ideas and pragmatic solutions to some of our rapidly evolving and long-term organisational and economic performance problems,” says Chapman.
NZIM is, for example, working to establish knowledge and information centre for management excellence in 2006. “This will include processes to recognise experience, expertise and excellence in terms of both [learning] qualifications and credits, the recognition of competence, recognition of prior learning and professional conversation,” he adds.
“One of our priorities is the development of self-assessment tools for managers which will link to our NZIM qualifications, NZIM development programmes and career development and business information services advisory services.”
NZIM’s national mentoring programme is the only accredited programme of its kind for managers in New Zealand and, says Chapman, “we expect to continue to grow it in 2006 in response to its popularity”.
NZIM signalled its intention to be leading voice in business learning and performance development with its pre-election published briefing paper for the incoming government.
“Since the election we have been engaged in number of discussions with ministers, Members of Parliament and officials,” says Chapman. “Our engagement with government, business and industry groups on questions of education policy will continue in 2006.”
NZIM also expects greater uptake of its popular Certificate in Management programme in senior secondary schools in 2006. “Success with the recognition of the programme for university entrance and the NZQA reporting of results for NCEA will ensure this happens,” he says.
“We are now working with several polytechnics on new ways of delivering our certificate programmes, including the development of new marketing strategies. Many polytechnics are also interested in our new diploma qualifications, the Diploma in Management, the Diploma in Management (Advanced) and the Professional Managers Award. Work on all these programmes will continue in 2006,” says Chapman.
The past two years has also seen dramatic increase in the registration of language schools and other private training establishments (PTEs) – many of which are interested in delivering NZIM’s Diploma in Management and Certificate in Management.
Enrolments have, so far, been low but Chapman expects this market to firm up in 2006 as PTEs start offering the NZ Diploma in Business and the NZIM Diploma in Management, which is part of the programme.
The NZIM Diploma in Management will become one-year programme in 2006 and so offer staging point for students who would like to exit study for career reasons or go on and complete degree.
NZIM last year developed new Certificate in Language, Culture and Management which will be offered from July 2006. “The early draft has been well received and we believe this could become the baseline qualification for language schools throughout the country,” says Chapman.
The Government’s review of the Maori University, Te Wananga O Aotearoa, began just after NZIM negotiated major partnership with Te Wananga.
“It is not entirely clear how the review will impact, but there are early signs that we may be able to consolidate and advance that relationship in 2006 at several levels, including small business management, middle management and governance programmes,” says Chapman.
“And with our new programmes approved and our overseas contacts consolidated with the establishment of NZIM Asia Pacific, we will push in 2006 for the delivery of our courses in Malaysia and other Asian countries, including China.
“And as part of completely different initiative, NZIM is also engaged in discussions with various parties to manage the Business School at the Christchurch College of Education. The school is very well run and respected unit but will not be part of the upcoming merger with Canterbury University.
“In summary, we have very full agenda of activities to take NZIM into future that is increasingly dependent on lifting management and business capability.”