Waikato Business News November/December 2018

The Tiaki Promise
cares for people
and place
Anyone living in Waikato and New Zealand
over the past couple of years would have
noticed the increase in visitor numbers and
the significant growth in tourism.
For Waikato, it’s not
just international visitors
contributing to
the growth, with more Kiwis
than ever exploring their own
backyard and injecting $1.192
billion annually into our
regional economy.
To support this growth,
the tourism industry and
local government have joined
forces to launch Tiaki – Care
for New Zealand, to encourage
international and domestic
travellers to act as guardians
of this place we call
home.
Tiaki is a powerful and
diverse word in te reo Māori,
meaning to care, protect and
nurture, and to look after people
and place.
The Tiaki Promise is
a commitment to care for
Aotearoa, for now and for
future generations, by inspiring
Kiwis to protect their
land and sea, and for visitors
to become guardians of the
place they visit. It instils a
sense of responsibility within
individuals to commit to good
behaviour.
Tiaki has three guiding
principles about how to
care for Aotearoa including:
1. Care for land, sea and
nature – treading lightly
and leaving no trace (ie no
litter)
2. Travelling safely – be prepared,
drive carefully and
show consideration for all
3. Respect culture – travel
with an open heart and
mind
The Tiaki Promise will be
promoted through our i-SITE
visitor information centres,
Air New Zealand's international
services, DOC, transport
operators such as THL
and our tourism websites like
www.newzealand.com as well
as www.hamiltonwaikato.
com.
People have been quick to
judge international visitors to
our country about what they
perceive as bad behaviour.
However, we are more likely
to see our fellow New Zealanders
littering or displaying
bad driver behaviour. It is
hoped that more Kiwis when
we travel domestically will
also embrace the Tiaki Promise
by practising what we
preach.
To ensure the message is
spread as far and wide as possible
a range of Tiaki Promise
materials are available free
of charge for New Zealand
businesses to use including
a brochure, supporting video
and images. The materials
are currently available in
English, te reo Māori, German
and Chinese, with more languages
to follow. Individuals
can also show their support
for the Promise by creating
an ‘I support Tiaki’ logo and
sharing through their social
media channels and using the
#tiakipromise hashtag.
If you would like to find out
more about the Tiaki Promise
or download any of the free
collateral, please check out
https://tiakinewzealand.com/
Hamilton & Waikato Tourism
is the regional tourism organisation
charged with increasing
international and domestic
leisure and business travellers,
expenditure and stay. The
organisation is funded through
a public/private partnership
and covers the heartland
Waikato areas of Hamilton
City, Matamata-Piako, Otorohanga,
South Waikato,
Waikato, Waipa and Waitomo
Districts. Find out more: www.
hamiltonwaikato.com
TELLING WAIKATO’S STORY
> BY JASON DAWSON
Chief Executive,
Hamilton & Waikato Tourism
Getting business with the times
By DR HEATHER CONNOLLY
Academic Director for
Executive Education at
the University of Waikato’s
Management School
Are you part of the problem
or part of the solution?
That was the question posed
by Avon CEO and former
Unilever juggernaut Jan Zijderveld
to an audience at the
University of Waikato Management
School in August.
He shared his insights gained
through an extensive international
business career spanning
30 years. “You future-proof
your business by positioning
your organisation to make
a difference.”
Zijderveld’s question resonates
with local business
leaders. The 2018 KPMG
CEO Outlook Survey found
that Kiwi CEOs are conscious
that linking growth strategy to
societal purpose is an important
challenge to tackle. The
report cites that there has been
increased interest in integrated
reporting across several large
corporates, signalling a prevailing
attitude of responsible
management. However, twothirds
of them are struggling
with such a task.
It’s evident that businesses
realise the importance of their
impact on society. Factoring
in environmental and social
impact leads to smarter business
decisions. The Waikato
MBA programme recognises
the needs of current and future
leaders to manage responsibly
while driving business growth.
MBA participants are exposed
to practical business models
and case studies which illustrate
the impact of strategic
business decisions on the environment
and society at large. In
addition, participants develop
an understanding of leading
concepts such as design thinking
and circular economy as
part of their leadership toolkit.
The business leaders of tomorrow
need to understand how
innovative concepts are applied
to not only product development,
but also organisational
processes, to drive business
sustainability and growth.
It is becoming increasingly
difficult, in New Zealand and
in global markets, to accurately
predict the future of trade, commerce
and business generally.
By observing past business
trends and understanding how
technology has disrupted many
local and global industries, it’s
clear that businesses need to be
thinking about the bigger picture.
An underlying common
denominator for future and
sustained business success is
a commitment to purpose and
people. It’s linking the heart of
the organisation to its employees,
customers, competitors,
society, and the environment to
create an ecosystem that keeps
growing, avoids isolation, and
continually looks for ways to
be more responsible. In New
Zealand, we’re well aware of
it. The challenge now is to stop
the talk and start the action.
To learn more about the
Waikato MBA programme visit
exec.waikato.ac.nz/mba.
BEWARE OF FOREIGN IMITATIONS.
There’s no shortage of great ideas in New Zealand.
But for an innovative bunch, we’re not the best at
realising the full potential of our innovations, particularly
when exporting them.
At James & Wells, we can identify your competitive
edge, offer business strategies for specific markets and
help you own and leverage your intellectual property to
ensure no one steals the fruit of your labour.
www.jaws.co.nz | +64 7 957 5660