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August 2021 - Bay of Plenty Business News

From mid-2016 Bay of Plenty businesses have a new voice, Bay of Plenty Business News. This new publication reflects the region’s growth and importance as part of the wider central North Island economy.

From mid-2016 Bay of Plenty businesses have a new voice, Bay of Plenty Business News. This new publication reflects the region’s growth and importance as part of the wider central North Island economy.

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<strong>August</strong> <strong>2021</strong> BAY OF PLENTY BUSINESS NEWS 13<br />

BALLANCE AGRI-NUTRIENTS – MARK WYNNE<br />

Building on Covid learnings<br />

What does it take to be an<br />

exceptional business leader?<br />

Pivot is the catch word <strong>of</strong> <strong>2021</strong>,<br />

when exceptional leaders trust in and<br />

support their people, the ability to pivot<br />

and create great stuff from what at the<br />

outset appears to be a massive roadblock<br />

(like Covid) is immense. We have all<br />

learnt about the value <strong>of</strong> flexibility over<br />

the last 18 months, making minor, but<br />

significant changes to the way we think<br />

about the traditional way <strong>of</strong> working.<br />

The leadership opportunity is to<br />

build on the learnings from Covid, which<br />

brought to the fore how important<br />

connection is to people’s wellbeing<br />

and sense <strong>of</strong> belonging. We all need<br />

to encourage greater empathy around<br />

what is happening outside <strong>of</strong> work and<br />

the importance <strong>of</strong> people being able<br />

to balance the two. We are walking the<br />

talk with our own health and safety<br />

programme, which is driven by care and<br />

ownership, and is called C.O.W.S – Care,<br />

Ownership, Wellbeing and Safety.<br />

What tips do you have for other BOP<br />

business leaders?<br />

The core behaviours <strong>of</strong> good leadership<br />

haven’t changed:<br />

• Leaders need to trust their instincts,<br />

then test their thinking with people<br />

you know think differently to you.<br />

• Be transparent and operate with<br />

integrity.<br />

• Be a valued member <strong>of</strong> your<br />

employee’s community – your people<br />

are part <strong>of</strong> the community outside<br />

<strong>of</strong> work, so it’s equally important<br />

for them to feel that they are part<br />

<strong>of</strong> a business that is making a real<br />

difference.<br />

• Always be prepared to front, no matter<br />

how difficult the challenge/issue.<br />

What are the big opportunities you see<br />

for new business growth?<br />

Tauranga city and the <strong>Bay</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Plenty</strong> region<br />

is facing some exceptional challenges,<br />

but the opportunities to attract talent<br />

are boundless. You no longer need to<br />

live in a big city to have access to great<br />

jobs. The changes to the way we work<br />

means we can live at the beach and work<br />

MARK WYNNE<br />

CEO – Ballance Agri-Nutrients<br />

Mark Wynne is the CEO <strong>of</strong> Ballance<br />

Agri-Nutrients, a 100% Kiwi owned<br />

co-operative. The head <strong>of</strong>fice<br />

is based in the <strong>Bay</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Plenty</strong>,<br />

with six manufacturing plants<br />

located through-out New Zealand,<br />

employing approx. 800 people.<br />

Mark has extensive experience in<br />

agribusiness, including 20 years<br />

in the dairy industry. He was<br />

previously President South Asia for<br />

Kimberly-Clark, growing the United<br />

States multinational’s market<br />

share with brands like Kleenex and<br />

Huggies.<br />

remotely, it’s incredibly easy to work with<br />

people from all round the country and<br />

all round the world from your own home.<br />

With more flexibility, and awareness that<br />

people don’t need to be at a desk in the<br />

<strong>of</strong>fice to do great work, this opens up a<br />

huge breadth <strong>of</strong> talent, as there is not<br />

the same pressure to relocate as there<br />

used to be. That said Tauranga is a great<br />

location, easy access to other major<br />

cities, the Port, transport efficiencies for<br />

freight, availability <strong>of</strong> land and people<br />

want to live in our beautiful city. There<br />

is very little you couldn’t do here. The<br />

opportunities are only as limited as your<br />

imagination!<br />

OUT<br />

NOW<br />

YEAR<br />

BOOK<br />

C E L E B R A T I N G B A Y B U S I N E S S | 2 0 2 1<br />

See the Ballance Agri-Nutrients <strong>Business</strong> Pr<strong>of</strong>ile<br />

on pages 56 and 57<br />

https://bopbusinessnews.co.nz/year-book/<br />

TAURANGA CITY COUNCIL – ANNE TOLLEY<br />

Being honest about decisions<br />

A successful outcome is not measured only in the ‘bottom line’.<br />

Tauranga City Council is a significant<br />

business, managing assets worth<br />

more than $4.7 billion, but it is<br />

also a community organisation,<br />

charged with representing the interests <strong>of</strong><br />

150,000-plus residents.<br />

Having now served for five months as<br />

Chair <strong>of</strong> the Commission which provides<br />

the council’s governance function, I can<br />

tell you that making decisions which<br />

provide the best possible outcome for<br />

the entire community is not always a<br />

simple task.<br />

Looking at my role in the governance<br />

team, which is effectively that <strong>of</strong> a Mayor,<br />

there are a number <strong>of</strong> requirements.<br />

While it’s simply not possible to please<br />

everyone, it’s essential that anyone who<br />

wants to express a view on a Council<br />

matter is heard and treated with respect.<br />

That means being honest when<br />

a decision is not likely to satisfy the<br />

individual or organisation involved, but it<br />

also means listening with an open mind<br />

and making changes where they will<br />

create a better outcome.<br />

Governance also requires decisiveness,<br />

making good decisions based on<br />

evidence and then sticking with those<br />

decisions and being ready to advocate<br />

for them in the face <strong>of</strong> criticism, where<br />

necessary.<br />

I hesitate to <strong>of</strong>fer advice to the<br />

region’s business leaders, but I would<br />

say that a successful outcome is not<br />

measured only in the ‘bottom line’ – it<br />

also considers whether the interests <strong>of</strong><br />

stakeholders (i.e. everyone affected by<br />

our business activities) have been wellserved;<br />

and whether we’ve done the right<br />

thing by our environment.<br />

It may be something <strong>of</strong> a cliché, but<br />

there really is no ‘Planet B’, so let’s do our<br />

best to leave our world in a better state<br />

than we found it.<br />

Again, my take on opportunities for<br />

ANNE TOLLEY<br />

Commission Chair – Tauranga City<br />

Council<br />

Anne has been deeply involved<br />

in local and national politics for<br />

the past 35 years, highlighted by<br />

nine years as a Cabinet Minister –<br />

holding the portfolios <strong>of</strong> Education,<br />

Police, Corrections, MSD and Local<br />

Government. After retiring as<br />

East Coast MP in 2020, she was<br />

appointed Chair <strong>of</strong> the Commission<br />

which fulfils the governance role at<br />

Tauranga City Council.<br />

regional business growth is shaped by<br />

my role. It’s my job to make Tauranga a<br />

better place to do business, by building<br />

upon our natural strengths – climate,<br />

fertile hinterland, great environment, the<br />

country’s best deep-water port, etc.<br />

The successful business <strong>of</strong> the future<br />

will be sustainable and will want to<br />

establish here because we understand<br />

and implement sustainable practices; and<br />

because we have invested wisely in the<br />

community facilities and infrastructure<br />

that make Tauranga a great place to live.<br />

Affordable housing for staff and their<br />

families is a big part <strong>of</strong> that picture.<br />

If that resonates, we hope you will find<br />

your place in our wonderful part <strong>of</strong> the<br />

world.<br />

OUT<br />

NOW<br />

YEAR<br />

BOOK<br />

C E L E B R A T I N G B A Y B U S I N E S S | 2 0 2 1<br />

See the Commissioners’ <strong>Business</strong> Pr<strong>of</strong>iles<br />

on pages 8 and 9<br />

https://bopbusinessnews.co.nz/year-book/

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