Waikato Business News July/August 2019

WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS July/August 2019
15
All about people, says 40-year stalwart
Long-serving Life Unlimited chair John
Dobson remembers selling roses on
a windswept Victoria Street in the
organisation’s early days, and realising
things needed to change.
Since then the organisation
has become more businesslike
and extended
its reach throughout New Zealand,
providing services for
people with disabilities.
Life Unlimited Charitable
Trust marked its 40th birthday
in July with more than two
thirds of its staff attending a
two-day in-service programme
at Hamilton Airport’s Hotel Jet
Park.
Dobson has been a trustee
since the organisation’s inception
as the Disabled Living
Centre (Waikato) Trust in
1979, and became chair in
1991.
He told attendees the organisation
was founded when
three charities looking after
various parts of the disability
sector decided they needed to
work more closely together.
That goal proved elusive and
the organisation turned to identifying
gaps.
“It wasn't about repeating
what's been done; as long as
it's being done well by someone
out there and servicing a
need we didn't have to be there.
So we started off, we ran the
total mobility system around
Hamilton with vans as taxis
with ramps on the back, so we
ran that until the taxis took it
over, and we got out of it.
“That to me is one of the
philosophies that has remained
with us: don't do it if you don't
have to, but if there's a need
let's get in there, identify it and
make a good job of it.”
The approach saw them
pick up Hearing Therapy services.
“There was a need there;
the organisation that was running
at the time had got into
a little bit of strife,” he said.
“The beauty of that service is
strategically it gave us a footprint
across New Zealand, and
it's been the springboard for a
number of other services we've
been able to successfully provide.”
That kind of business acumen
has driven the organisation,
with a step shift coming
when they realised street
bucket collections weren’t
going to be sufficient.
“I remember selling roses
in Victoria St every year, and
the wind would be whistling
up bloody Victoria St and
you'd be begging people to put
some money in a bucket. We
soon realised we weren't going
to make a difference if we followed
that philosophy. So we
became more businesslike.”
The organisation made an
important appointment, Adri
Isbister as chief executive.
“Adri was a young woman
who came to us with no experience,
an absolutely amazing
person. We took a punt on her,
and we said, we want to make
this self-sustaining, go away
and get us some income-earning
businesses, which we've
done.”
The name was changed
to Life Unlimited in 1997 to
reflect the wider scope of services
provided.
In 2006, Life Unlimited
won the Westpac Waikato
Business of the Year award.
Dobson remembered looking
at the graph they put in with
their application, showing their
revenue growing over six years
from about $300,000 to $6
million, and profitability also
increasing. “We spent every
damn cent of that money on
good causes, which is great.”
It’s been a long journey
since the organisation got
its start in a house rented off
council for $40 a week. “You
would have a board meeting in
the back and if you dropped a
marble on the floor as you got
up from the table it would beat
you to the front door. it was a
shocking building, but it pulled
us all together and gave us a
home.
“We've got a lot more businesslike
about the way we do
things and I don't think that's
bad. We've got to be careful
that we're still a caring organisation.
it's all very well to be
businesslike but if you forget
about people you've lost your
plot. The people are at all levels,
they are our customers,
they are our funders, and more
importantly our people within
the organisation.”
As a not for profit organisation
Life Unlimited’s responsibility
is to people who access
its services which includes:
· Needs assessment service
coordination in the Hutt
Valley and Gisborne.
· Free and independent
national Hearing Therapy
services.
· Disability and autism information
and advice.
· Waikato community programmes
for people with
disabilities.
· An extensive range of products
through its Mobility
Centre stores in Lower
Hutt, Hamilton, Tauranga,
Gisborne and Rotorua.
“What underpins it for me
is the word ‘equality’.” Dobson
said. “I think everyone
should have the same opportunities
in this society and that's
what we've got to work to.”
Chair John Dobson, left, receives a 40th anniversary
certificate from chief executive Mark Brown.
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Life Unlimited building shortly after completion.
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