Proposed change to RDC rates based on capital value
Why is the Council trying to hurry the change?
 The Chamber of Commerce continues to voice its concern about the undue haste with which Council is trying to push through the change to rates based on capital value. This will have a detrimental impact on larger businesses and the economic drivers of our community.
With the move to capital value as the basis for rates, the Council is also proposing 2.5 differential for rates for businesses. This means that a business with a capital value of $1 million will be paying 2.5 times as much rates as a residential property with a capital value of $1 million.
RDC’s rating proposal, called model CV 234, will result in a considerable increase in the rates of those business ratepayers that have invested heavily in Rotorua with high value capital improvements on their properties. As examples, under model CV 234 three of the major hotels and two large tourist attractions will each have an average rates increase of over $100,000 per year.
 Businesses such as these are continually increasing their investment in Rotorua through planned refurbishment and product development.
Pressures on their profits from big increases in rates will result in a review of their discretionary costs. Among these discretionary costs are wages, training, repairs and maintenance, and marketing. At a time when Rotorua is trying to position itself for increased international visitor traffic, such a move is inappropriate.
The trans-Tasman capability of the Rotorua Regional Airport will provide opportunities for economic growth. The attraction of new hotels to Rotorua will be essential. The introduction of a capital rating system with a 2.5 business differential together with the current development levy will act as disincentives to the capital investment needed in Rotorua.
The Chamber of Commerce understands that Council has been provided with substantial background information on the criteria for rating tools, the legislative requirements covering Local Authority funding and a number of different models for rating application in the Rotorua District.
Although there has been considerable discussion on equity of rates being charged across residential, farming, business and utility sectors, there has been minimal consideration of the economic impact of the introduction of model CV 234 on the economy of the district. The Council has acknowledged this and has commissioned an economic impact study.
The Chamber wrote to all Councillors asking that they defer the decision on changes to the method of calculating rates until November 2008 for the following reasons:
- The re-valuation of Rotorua properties is currently under way. This will provide the values on which future rates will be calculated. The proposed change to capital value is to be introduced in 1 July 2009 and will use the new valuations for rates calculations. The Chamber of Commerce acknowledges that changing the basis of rates calculation will not result in an increase in the overall rates take. But there will be a reallocation of the rates with some increases and some decreases. For some, the revaluations will result in increased rates. The Chamber suggested that a more meaningful comparison would be possible if land based and capital based rates are compared using the same new property valuations. It is our understanding that the new valuations will be completed by October.
- We applaud Council’s move to commission an economic impact report on the proposed move to capital value rates. . The Chamber of Commerce expects this economic impact report, to be available in July, to be a public document. It will provide ratepayers with valuable information in forming an opinion on the proposed changes and enable them to use the findings in submissions on the rates proposal. .
- The Shand report on local body rates is currently with Cabinet. The Hon Steve Chadwick, MP for Rotorua, has indicated that Cabinet’s response to the report may be released in July or August 2008. The Chamber continues to lobby her to request an earlier release. Cabinet’s response may address issues such a land vs. capital value and differential rating. Cabinet’s response will provide an indication of possible future legislation on rating methodologies. Should RDC make a decision to include differentials in its new rating system, and then Government recommends the removal of differentials, it could mean that Rotorua will be required to make two changes to its rating methodology in a short period of time. The Chamber of Commerce recommends that the decision on rating methodology is postponed to allow time for Cabinet’s response to the Shand report to be considered.
- The submissions received by RDC as part of the current consultation will include a number of alternative models. The Chamber of Commerce model is among those. Discussions between RDC and the Chamber indicate that some of the features of the Chamber model have considerable value in providing an alternative approach to capital value rating. RDC has provided reports on the Chamber’s model that summarise impacts on the various rating sectors.
- RDC currently has a locally imposed cap on the level of the Uniform Annual General Charge of 21% against an allowed maximum of 30% of the total rates take. The Chamber suggests that lower cap is a limiting factor when considering alternative models of rating. The Chamber has recommended that Council consider removing the 21% cap.
RDC has been approachable in discussions on the rating proposals with business leaders and the Chamber of Commerce. However, there are still a considerable number of unanswered concerns among the business community. Business and Council need to work together on a solution that will increase business confidence and the willingness to invest in the district.
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HOME ENERGY SAVINGS FORUM
Would you like to find out where you use the most energy in your home and then learn ways you can reduce your home energy costs? Why not attend the up coming Home Energy Savings Forum to be held at the Rotorua Convention Centre.
The Forum is one of the objectives for Kevin McGrath Rotorua Energy Champion and has been arranged in conjunction with the Rotorua Economic Development Unit. The Energy Champion position is an initiative set up by the BrightEconomy Advisory Board and fully funded by the Environment Bay of Plenty. This first Forum is targeting home energy use with another Forum planned for later in the year that will cover commercial and industrial energy use. You may wish to view the Energy Champion website at www.energychampion.co.nz to research energy saving tips and information that can assist in reducing energy use at your home or business.
The Home Energy Savings Forum will be held on Wednesday July 30th with doors opening at 4.30pm. The Forum will include displays and specific presentations including home heating, hot water heating options, insulation and lighting. Also if you bring along your latest electricity bill, an on the spot check can be performed to see if you are purchasing electricity at the cheapest tariff. The first hour will provide the opportunity to discuss specific energy saving tips, appliances and information from a number of specialists, view the displays or have your electricity rates checked.
The Forum presentations will be held from 5.30 to 7.30pm focusing on the areas within homes that consume the most energy. Home heating that typically consumes over 30% of your energy use options will be a feature and very topical with the onset of winter. You will hear from specialists about effective use of wood, wood burners, pellet fires, natural gas heating and heat pumps with specific tips relating to there use in the Rotorua environment. One of the most effective ways of reducing heating energy is to ensure that your home well insulated in ceilings, walls and floors. The options and benefits of the various types of insulation will be covered. The presentation will include hot water use that accounts for approximately 30% of domestic energy use covering options such as solar hot water, gas instantaneous hot water through to how you can reduce hot water use. Lighting generally consumes about 8-10% of domestic energy use therefore you will hear from a lighting specialist about the benefits of compact fluorescent lamps, new technologies and other ways that we can reduce lighting energy use.
Attendance at the Home Energy Savings Forum is free. You will gain useful information that will help reduce your energy use in your home. It will however be necessary to register which can be done online on the Energy Champion website http://www.energychampion.co.nz/. Just look for the Forum registration tab on the home page or alternatively you can phone the Rotorua Economic Development Unit on (07)3500196. There will be giveaways for the attendees as well as spot prizes drawn on the night from the registrations as long as you are there to claim them.
Put a note in your diary now to book 4.30 – 7.30pm Wednesday 30th July for attending the Home Energy Saving Forum.
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Are we in a flat world… Or is it still round?
small.gif) The phenomenal changes in how we do business is unprecedented and unmatched. Globalization is well and truly upon us as terms like efficient, fastest and cheapest without the constraint of boundary have taken on a whole new meaning.
The change is lasting, affecting our businesses, our consumers, our countries, our world. Competition changed from local and national to an incomparable international scale. The labour force has changed from a locally driven labour force to an unsurpassed international one. Where once a job was low level, ordinarily paid, the same job, switched to another country, becomes high paid, high level.
During the past few months, we have come to realise the impact of globalization: high food prices, high oil prices, housing slumps and the melt down of financial markets. Why does it feel like we all had a short sleep and suddenly woke up to this immense change?
According to Thomas Friedman, globalization 1 started centuries ago and was lead by discoverers like Christopher Columbus, followed by globalization 11 which was driven by multinationals, and finally, globalization 111. Where globalization 1 was lead by countries, globalization 11 by companies, now globalization 111 is lead by individuals.
The impact of globalization can clearly be felt in the national and local employment market as the best of New Zealand talent are lured overseas, especially across the Tasman. More than 1,000 jobs in the manufacturing sector have been lost in 2008 alone. Internet businesses have expanded exponentially and social networking sites like Bebo, Facebook and YouTube are on everybody’s lips. The world is living with a new found freedom and more than ever, companies are no longer the sole charge of the labour force - individuals are, more than ever, in the most powerful position.
During February and March 2008, New Zealand Diploma in Business students at Waiariki explored the topic ‘it’s a flat world’ and the impact on individuals, businesses and countries. They examined the following flatteners of the world and their impact on New Zealand and world economies:
- The fall of the Berlin Wall
- The invention of Netscape
- The development of free workflow software like TradeMe, PayPal, Skype and Outlook
- Open sourcing, which allows businesses from all walks of life access to free software like Moodle and everybody can contribute to the development of the software
- Outsourcing, which started with the Y2K crisis and only Indians could crack the code
- Insourcing, an area of growth for small business where the business will take on functions closely associated with its core competencies
- Supply chaining
- Offshoring, which allowed businesses to take local designs and have it manufactured off shore
The students found this a fascinating experience as they investigated the impact, opportunities, and pros and cons of the flatteners.
Although the fall of the Berlin Wall and the invention of Netscape had significant impact around the world, it’s the extraordinary advances along the technology highway that impact supply chaining, free workflow software, open sourcing, outsourcing, insourcing and offshoring. This impact is relentless, ever-increasing at a faster pace.
The good news? These flatteners can be used to your advantage and to grow your business. Each of these flatteners and their impact will be explained over the next few months in the Chamber of Commerce Tabloid publications.
 Profile:
Cecile P. Hoods is a lecturer in Information Systems: Supply Chaining at Waiariki Institute of Technology, Rotorua. Her current research is in the area of Organizational Culture: Technology Natives and Technology Immigrants. She has a special interest in the impact of globalization and economics on economies around the world, and her interests include the ideas of John Ralston Saul. She is currently studying toward a PhD at Curtin University, Australia.
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Closing the skills gap – the NZ Skills Strategy
Steve Chadwick
As MP for Rotorua I see my job as one of advocacy for everyone in the Rotorua electorate. Different policies aim to make improvements for different sectors and I am pleased to write today about a strategy that will benefit us all – the New Zealand Skills Strategy.
New Zealand'scontinued wealth and economic transformation will depend on the skills of its workersand how firms and industries support New Zealanders to work to the best of their ability. Our level of skills has risen significantly over recent years and now we need to pay more attention to the skills of those already in work.
As 80 percent of today’s workforce will still be in the workforce in 2020,it makes sense to develop and raise the skills of people currently in work.
We have low unemployment and rising skills, but a persistent skills gap nonetheless. We have huge increases in industry training, rising standards in tertiary education and our 15000th apprentice trainee began his or her apprenticeship only a few months ago, but we have a persistent skills gap. The Skills Strategy will change that.
Using and developing the skills of our workforce will ensure weremain competitive in a global environment. This requires a coordinated approach to make sure that skills developmentis focused on the needs of industry and the economy. Formal qualifications must reflect the skills needed in the jobs for which they are designed, and managers need to be capable ofsupporting workers to work to reach their potential.
The proposals in the Skills Strategy Discussion Paperform what the Council of Trade Unions, Business New Zealand, the Industry Training Federation and government, believe will be effective ways to ensure the nation has the skills necessary to drive economic growth.
Skills shortages and productivity levels are not rising quickly enough. As a nation, we need more innovative ways of tackling these challenges. This Labour-led government is committed to a partnership approach to increase workforce skills.
The document lists a set of priorities for ensuring that, from management to process work, the skills of working New Zealanders will be honed to meet the needs of a complex modern workplace.
We have thought about:
- The link between skills and productivity
- Responding to skills shortages
- Making the most of our investment in skills
- Skills for Mâori and Pacific peoples
- The role of Immigration
- Making work more attractive
The document outlines four priorities for action over the next year:
- Improving literacy, language and numeracy skills
- Supporting firms to attract, retain, develop and useskills across their whole workplace
- Ensuring the tertiary education system skill supply matches the needs of industry
- Ensuring young people in workare supported to continue to develop their skills
Previous work on skills has focussed on the flow of workers out of education and training. This is the first skills focus on current workers. I know there are employers in Rotorua who understand the importance and value of raising the skill base of their workforce. High levels of staff retention and staff satisfaction compliment corresponding increases in productivity. The Skills Strategy is truly a win-win plan, and I encourage you to make the most of it.
Visit http://www.skillsstrategy.govt.nz/ for more information about the New Zealand Skills Strategy.
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Rotorua Lakes Restoration Project
The Problem
The degradation of water quality in each of our Rotorua lakes to varying degrees is caused by an over enrichment of two plant nutrients, nitrogen and phosphorus. This enrichment of the lake waters promotes the growth of blue-green algae which can be toxic, very toxic and stinks.
The Cause
In many of the lakes pastoral land use (excrement and fertilisers) and urban development are significant causes of excess nitrogen and phosphorus. To a lesser extent nitrogen also comes from plants fixing nitrogen from out of air and releasing it into ground water, rainwater and geothermal waters.
Most of the nitrogen and phosphorus that enters the lakes is carried in dissolved form through ground water, streams or from ground surface flooding. These nutrients can also be carried attached to sediment which is washed into the lakes via streams and ground surface flooding.
The Solutions
For each lake substantial science and water monitoring has been undertaken to quantify levels of both nitrogen and phosphorus already in each of the lake’s sediment and water column, and the quantity currently flowing into the lakes and future predicted inflows.
Independent scientists have calculated required nitrogen and phosphorus reductions entering each lake which will ensure long term water quality levels that are acceptable to the community.
The Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Rotorua District Council and Te Arawa are attacking the issues through three basic strategies:
Lake Rotoiti’s water quality problem is Lake Rotorua’s problem. It is the heavily nutrient enriched Lake Rotorua water flowing from the Ohau channel that is affecting the water quality of Lake Rotoiti.
The $9 million Ohau Channel diversion wall is designed to bypass Lake Rotorua water directly to the Kaituna River via the Okere Arm.
As this option does not remove the original nutrient source it is considered a short to medium term fix, but does give Council time to address the longer term solutions.
Much of the nitrogen and phosphorus entering the lakes ends up attached to bottom sediments. As the lakes warm up over summer the bottom waters are starved of oxygen causing a chemical reaction that releases nitrogen and phosphorus into the water column. This double whammy of nutrients in the water column feeds the growth of the problematic blue-green algae.
As a short term fix the application of certain natural elements to the bed of the lakes or continuously injected into streams flowing into our lakes binds the phosphorus to the sediments for up to 15 years.
The primary long term goal is to remove sufficient at source nitrogen and phosphorus before it enters our lakes to meet the required reduction totals.
Septic tanks removed from lake settlements; to be replaced with reticulated sewage treatment is removing the human originated nutrients.
Septic tank systems capable of stripping nitrogen from tank outflows are required for homes outside the reticulated areas.
Changes to farming practices that reduce nitrogen production entering ground water and pastoral land changed to lower nutrient producing activities, such as forestry, is being targeted to reduce animal produced nutrients.
The Timeframe and Cost
The works required for all but Lake Rotorua should be completed within 5 to10 years. The large quantity of nutrients to be removed from Lake Rotorua will take 10 to 30 years to complete. The final cost - about $150 million.
Photograph Captions
Under Construction the Ohau Channel Diversion Wall to divert Lake Rotorua to Kaituna River
Dosing Lake Okaro with Zeolite to bind phosphorus into the lake sediments
Utuhina in-stream Phoslock dosing plant to lock phosphorus with sediment
Business Award - Background information on the judges
 Melanie East – Convenor of Judges
Melanie specialises in event and project management. After returning from 7 years in Japan, Melanie embarked on a diverse career working for the New Zealand Dairy Board and more recently Fonterra Cooperative Group.
Melanie’s experience in project management, along with customer relationship management, facilitation and people management enables her to work with businesses, ensuring deadlines are met and relationships managed.
Melanie undertakes a variety of projects, including Relay for Life, Science in the Park, Blast and GLOBALfest. This is Melanie’s third year as Convenor of Judges for the Business Awards.
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 Pipiana Whiston
Pipiana’s career spans over 20 years in the tourism industry from a self-employed restaurateur to
Tourism Advisory Committee and has also been involved in prior Rotorua Business Awards both as entrant on three occasions, where the Millennium Hotel won the Best Hospitality and Attractions category in 2001 and 2003 and then also as a judge in 2007.
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 Alan Richards
Alan started his working life in the trades’ environment training as a Fitter Turner Machinist. He progressed through supervision into management working in a number of companies before staring his own business.
After a period of self employment he decided to formalise his qualifications and completed a New Zealand Diploma in Business, and then went on to complete an International MBA with the University of Waikato.
Having worked as a tradesman, owned and operated a 7 day dairy, started his own company and worked as a self employed engineer, managed significant projects including the construction of a cement plant, and run a number of manufacturing businesses within the engineering and timber industry Alan brings a broad base of experience to the judging role.
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 Sandra Kai-Fong
Sandra is a partner in the law firm McKechnie Quirke & Lewis and has practised law for 24 years, having lived and worked in Rotorua all her life.
Sandra is a Bay Trust trustee. The Trust makes donations to enhance the communities of the Bay of Plenty.
Interested in ensuring that Rotorua grows and prospers, Sandra was appointed to the Bright Economy Advisory Board and to the Regional Governance Group looking at developing a Rotorua and Baywide economic development strategy.
Sandra is married with two children and has been a school trustee, PTA secretary and involved in early childhood and sports club committees.
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 Paul Evans
Paul is the Branch Manager for Westpac Bank, Haupapa Street, Rotorua. He has over 20 years experience in the banking industry with a background in both retail management and business banking. In recent years
Paul has spent time working in the banking industry in the United Kingdom – returning to Westpac in 2007. He is currently completing an MBA qualification through Waikato University and has particular interests in the areas of leadership development and corporate social responsibility.
With a young family, and a partner working full-time, personal interests revolve around ensuring a balanced work-life experience – a philosophy he endorses at every opportunity.
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 Ian Piebenga
Ian is originally from the King Country, where he comes from a farming background. He studied forestry at the University of Canterbury, where he completed a Bachelor of Forestry Science with First Class honours. Subsequent to this he has spent his career in forestry and wood processing with Fletcher Challenge Forests, where he heldmanagement rolesin areas as diverse as Forest Harvesting and Planning, Wood Processing, Marketing and Salesand Biotechnology.
For the last 4 years he has worked in his own business, PermaPine Ltd, which is involved in timber processing.PermaPine were awarded the Supreme Award in the Westpac Rotorua business awards in 2007.
Ianhas been a Finalist in both the NZIM Young Entrepreneur of the Year, andNZIF Young Forester of the year. He is married with two children, and involved in community activities through his children which include Scouting and various sports.
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 Don Gunn
Don Gunn joined Tourism Rotorua (now Destination Rotorua Tourism) as General Manager in October 2003.
He has been involved in the tourism industry for 26 years and has worked for several major inbound tour operators, and as Executive Director of General Travel New Zealand.
He is a past President of the NZ Inbound Tour Operators Council and a former board member of the Tourism Industry Association of NZ.
Don is a member of the following boards, Destination Rotorua Tourism, Rotorua Education Network, Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter , Rotorua Luxury Group and the Great New Zealand Touring Route. He is a trustee of the Regional Tourism Organisations of New Zealand.
Don, along with his team, enjoys the challenge of marketing Rotorua as a fantastic destination that has so much to offer.
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 Cathy Cooney
Cathy Cooney is a Registered Nurse and a Registered Midwife, with a background in public health, community development, nursing leadership and general management. She holds a BA Hons (first class) from Massey University.
Cathy is the CE of Lakes DHB and the lead CE for the New Zealand Workforce Group and for Maori Health. She is a Fellow of the College of Nurses Aotearoa (NZ), an Associate Fellow of the Australian College of Health Service Executives, a member of the NZ Institute of Directors and a JP.
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 Ken Buchanan
Ken has over 30 years experience in the tourism and hospitality industry, including managing a number of leading hotels and resorts as well as owning and operating his own restaurants.
He has been Operations Manager at Rotorua Museum since 1999, contributing to the development and success of the museum in winning five New Zealand Tourism Awards since 2000.
Ken is passionate about customer service and strives to develop a strong teamwork environment at the museum. His leadership, motivational skills and innovation along with entrepreneurial flair have resulted in an interesting and successful career.
Ken is a Board member of the Rotorua Sustainable Business Charter and Vice President of the Rotorua chapter of Skal International.
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 Dr Tom Richardson
Dr Tom Richardson is Chief Executive of New Zealand Crown Research Institute Scion. Scion has 350 science and support staff providing research services and new technologies to support the development of sustainable new materials and energy.
Tom’s scientific background is in genetics. He established the genomics research group at Scion and a spin-out company “SignaGen”, which brought high-throughput DNA testing to the NZ ag-bio sector. His experience as a practicing scientist, new business developer and science manager has led to frequent assignments on advisory boards, external review panels and international science and trade delegations.
His directorships include New Zealand’s Foundation for Research, Science & Technology (FRST).
He holds a BA in Biology from Bucknell University and a PhD in Botany from Pennsylvania State University.
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 Deryck Shaw
Deryck recently celebrated 25 years in business. After completing programmes at Waikato, Lincoln and Canterbury universities he worked in Wellington for a year and then started APR Consultants (formerly DJ Shaw Associates). He has completed more than 600 projects in economics, market research, resource management, business development and research.
Deryck has advised many companies and organisations on business structures and development initiatives. He has also significant governance experience in the tertiary education, tourism, not for profit and property sectors.
He holds a number of professional memberships and enjoys working with people to achieve long term enduring solutions. Deryck is committed to using his knowledge and skills to build capability in organisations and companies.
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 Allison Lawton
Born and bred in Rotorua, Allison began her career in the Public Sector where she held a variety of senior management positions before moving into the Tourism Industry. During her time in the Public Sector Allison decided to recommence her formal education and obtained an MBA at Waikato University.
Allison’s foray into tourism started with her own business venture, a start up accommodation business, with a shift to Te Puia where she worked for six years leaving as the Chief Executive in 2002. Allison has continued to expand her careers horizons by working in large businesses, notably SKY City and currently is the Director for the Business and Tourism School at Waiariki Institute of Technology.
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 Deborah McCarthy
Deborah is the Centre Director and owner of Earlybirds Educare in Whakarewarewa. The first centre was opened in November 2002, followed by a second in December 2005, with both centre’s now catering for 100 pre-school children and employing 25 full time staff.
Her role is the day to day management of the centre’s, including resourcing, personnel functions, administration, and overseeing staff training and professional development for the teaching staff.
She brings her experience and training as an accountant to this role, including time spent in government, corporate organizations and chartered accountancy firms in both New Zealand and the UK. And in early childhood, experience as mother of her two children (now teenagers) has been invaluable.
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 Shane Robertson
Employee of the Year Award
Shane has worked for NZCU Rotorua, formerly Credit Union Lakeland, for 5 years. Prior to this, he worked in tourism and hospitality. He is responsible for customer service and latterly, community relations and marketing. NZCU Rotorua initiated the Employee of the Year Award and Shane has been involved in its promotion and judging for 3 years. In 2006 he passed a training Australasian programme in Credit Union Development Education. Shane is a representative on the NZCU Marketing Committee which coordinates and promotes the NZCU brand nationally on a cooperative basis, and he recently received commendation for his “Bombay” promotion focusing on the Rotorua ownership of NZCU Rotorua.
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 Grahame Hall, QSO, JP
Rotorua Energy Charitable Trust Chairman
Grahame Hall, enjoys a high profile in the local community having recently retired as Mayor of Rotorua, a position he held for 12 years.
With 27 years local government service to his credit, Grahame’s community involvement has been wide ranging. He has had a lifetime commitment and involvement in education, farming and local government, as well as holding a number of executive positions on youth, recreation, educational, vocational, church and sporting bodies.
A former director of Rotorua’s world-renowned tourist attraction, the Agrodome, Grahame is also a past president and district chairperson of Rotary International, becoming a prestigious Paul Harris Fellow in 1989. The Lions Foundation has also recognised his work in the community with a Melvin Jones Fellowship.
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 Judy Keaney, QSM.
Rotorua Energy Charitable Trust Trustee
A former speech language therapist, Judy is passionate about education and continues to take an active and special interest in this area, as well as in the needs of women and rural people.
Judy is a past district governor of Quota International a service organisation whose area of interest is the deaf and speech impaired as well as disadvantaged women and children. She was a former member of the combined Rotorua High Schools’ Board of Governors, where she represented Rotorua Girls’ High School and chaired the Board’s “At Risk” committee.
The Mayoress of Rotorua for almost 14 years, Judy was involved with a large number of community organisations and is currently patron of the Rotorua Little Theatre, the Special Olympics and the Breath of Heaven Trust. She was awarded The New Zealand Commemoration Medal in 1990, The Queen’s Service Medal in 1992 for services to the community and the Zonta Community Award in 2003.
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 John Walls
John Walls is Section Manager of Automotive and Engineering at Waiariki Institute of Technology. He is an A Grade Automotive Engineer and has been teaching at Waiariki for 20 years. Prior to this he had 23 years in the automotive industry here in Rotorua. He is passionate about teaching and learners, and passing on knowledge to the young people interested in the automotive industry. John’s hobbies include fishing, speedway and motor sports.
John has been a judge for the Chamber of Commerce Apprentice of the Year Awards for the past three years.
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 Grant Colbert
Grant Colbert is Section Manager for Applied Science (agriculture and horticulture) Carpentry and Electrical at Waiariki Institute of Technology. Grant is a trained teacher and has taught horticulture at Waiariki for 8 years. He comes from a horticulture background with 18 years in the fruit growing industry.
Grant enjoys gardening, cycling, tramping, and is a dedicated family man. He has been a judge for the Chamber of Commerce Apprentice of the Year Awards for the past three years.
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 Rod Meharry
In 1997 I joined forces with my present business partner Barry Purcell to form PhotoArts. A business that started as a retail business producing canvas prints.
Barry and I have been the main stay of Business Swap, a club that has a mission to educate, motivate and provide experience to business people.
My passion these days is creating and editing video DVD. I love capturing people’s life stories and creating a DVD to hand on to future generations.
I have high computer skills in graphics, databases, direct marketing, web design and spread sheeting.
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Get more ROI for your ICT – ASAP!
 Almost all companies need Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to conduct their business – that’s a given. But almost all companies also need to see a return on the cost of that ICT – and that’s often a little harder to achieve.
Maximising Return on Investment (ROI) on your ICT investment is one of many areas where Gen-i can provide expert help to businesses of all sizes, according to Gen-i Bay of Plenty account manager Ian Gray.
“Small and medium-sized businesses are in many cases just as complex, just as reliant on, and just as demanding of ICT products and services as larger organisations,” says Mr Gray.
“But they have limited resources in terms of people and money and they often have to be more careful about how they apply those resources to gain maximum effectiveness.”
As businesses prepare to weather the current uncertain economic climate, the question uppermost in many people’s minds is: “How do we deliver improved productivity without increasing costs?” As the cost of raw materials increases, savings must be made in other areas to ensure continued business profitability and achieve ROI.
“There are three main ways to achieve these savings: improving productivity, increasing adaptability, and reducing costs,” says Mr Gray. “Gen-i Bay of Plenty is ideally placed to help your business hit these goals.”
Firstly, productivity and workforce flexibility can be increased through mobility solutions that reduce the need for all resources to be provided at a centralised office. Far-flung customers, partners, and colleagues can be communicated with via video and audio conferencing thus reducing travel costs. Business communications can be unified to reduce ‘human latency’ and improve efficiency in business processes.
Secondly, ICT investment can increase your business’s adaptability through the use of ‘Virtual Technology’, ‘Software as a Service’ facilities, and improved ‘IT Service Levels’ to ensure that whatever changes need to be made to your systems to maintain your competitive advantage can be made quickly, seamlessly, and cost-effectively.
And finally, your costs can be further reduced via leasing options, improved security that reduces downtime due to cyber attacks, and the use of ‘Thin Client’ computing where IT services are centralised to reduce administration costs and protect your business Intellectual Property against potential data loss.
“Gen-i Bay of Plenty is already helping several companies in the Rotorua area to improve their business capability and achieve ROI,” says Mr Gray.
“And we’re hosting a breakfast seminar on ‘Reducing IT Costs For Small Biz’ on 22 July at the Rotorua Distinction Hotel. Contact me today to book or to talk about our free IT assessment for your business.”
Please contact:
Ian Gray
Gen-i Bay of Plenty account manager
07 571 2633
ian.gray@gen-i.co.nz
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Rotorua Retail Promotion Board
MAJOR PROMOTION PLANNED FOR JULY
Cath Weston, the Rotorua Retail promotions coordinator, has announced a major promotion for the month of July. Supported by MORE FM, the ‘BIG SPENDER’ promotion, this promotion will be offered throughout the month and will be an opportunity for all retail outlets in the CBD to participate.
Shoppers throughout the month will be able to enter their purchase dockets in to a daily draw. The lucky shopper drawn on each day will be offered the choice of the ‘Money or the Bag’. Many shoppers will remember Selwn Toogood and the very popular ‘It’s in The Bag’ television programme. As with that icon of television entertainment, the prizes option for this promotion will feature a number of great prizes ……. and, of course, a number of booby prizes.
All daily winners will also go in to a draw for a major prize of a $10,000 Shopping Spree.
SUCCESSFUL TARGA RALLY
Rotorua during Queens Birthday weekend in June was busy with the hustle and bustle of the Targa Rally. There was a tremendous show down in ‘The Streat’ on Saturday with the parked display of the Targa Cars. Over 400 people attended the prize giving on Saturday night held at the Novotel.
The Targa Ralley brought over 1000 officials, services crews, and competitors into the city. These additional Targa visitors added to those here to enjoy their holiday break away and resulted in the city having very high hotyel and motel occupancy rates.
Feedback from participants was excellent. “It has become a favourite venue and this event has been the best one to date…Awesome, ” said Peter Martin, new owner of Targa.
Shop Rotorua supported the event by distributing Targa Posters throughout the City, arranging two restaurants to open early to provide breakfast for the rally participants (Seismic Gastro bar and Zinc), and arranging pre-promotion and awareness of the event. Targa are planning to be in Rotorua again next year for the 14 and 15 June 2009.
SHOP ROTORUA WEBSITE
Earlier this year, the Rotorua Retail Promotions Advisory Board adopted a new logo ‘Shop Rotorua’. Since then, considerable work has gone in to setting up a new website. This website will be a good resource to assist retailers and act as a strong communication medium for promotions and activities.
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Practical Steps to Remove SPAM from your life 
By Russell Holland – e-vangelist with E-C Internet Solutions
Welcome to the web..! You’ve made the move to have your web site work more effectively and it is now being found in search engines – but all of a sudden the spammers have also found your web site and email address…!
You are now clearing tens (if not hundreds) of spam emails every time you login in and check your email.
How did this happen – and what should you have done to minimise this…?
Spam email costs you money – in real terms it’s the bandwidth that you pay for that is used to deliver the spam message – and it is also the time cost of reading – and deleting each and every spam email that you receive.
It’s also the time that you spend going through the Spam folder in your email to check for any “false positives” – those “real emails” that have been marked as spam.
I hope you do this often – as you could be losing real business that comes off the top line of real revenue of your business…!
Save minutes each and every time you check your email – and be assured that you are not missing any important emails that could be bringing in business for you.
Reduce the overcharges on your connection account from your internet service provider and maximise the data flow through your connection to the internet.
So here are the steps to minimise spam:-
- Don’t get on the lists in the first place…!
Seems obvious – but don’t accept that great “free” or low cost deal and give your email address to a dubious source – some of these “low cost” operators on the web have as a business model the right to sell your address details – be warned…!
- Have a “sacrificial lamb” email address
Use an email address other than your “real” email address for posting to online forums or to use for other “public” kind of mechanisms (such as LinkedIn, Ecademy or Facebook). This could be checked every so often or if you may be comfortable to just leave it unchecked. Be cautious that some online systems do need you to receive the sign up email on a valid email address to validate an online sign up though – so don’t just invent an email that you can’t check at least once.
- Use a Gmail Address
Gmail is a free (at the moment) email account that has many features that your ISP’s email doesn’t offer. Google offers 6.5 Gb (yes that is 6818 Mb or 4870 1.4mb floppy disks…!) for free and has some great searching tools and a great spam filter. Oh – did I mention it is also free…? You can have multiple Gmail account too if you like.
- Never display your Email on your web site…
Now this needs some explanation – why have a web site that people cannot email you form…? The key is to have a fill-in form that makes it easy to have people contact you without having a public email address showing. So create a fill in form for a contact mechanism – prompt visitors for their questions – and don’t forget to get their email, phone or physical address so you can reply. The current issue with this approach is that the spammers now have robots (automated code scripts) that fill the form in on your web site and spam you that way – “CAPTCHAS” ate the answer to that problem – where you need to enter a set latter / number combination that is hard for automated robots to “read”. Unfortunately some of the world’s population work for small amounts of money and can still beat this by employing human robots to add the spam message manually. And Braille readers will also not be able to “read” the CAPTCHA to submit the form correctly.
- Have two sorts of Business Cards
Yes – I’m serious – attend all those networking events with a business card that doesn’t actually have your email address – or has an email address of your PA and so they deal with the spam. This is getting to be a preferred option after the anti-spam laws came in last year in NZ – by giving someone your business card with an email address you are giving them “inferred permission” to send you spam.
As usual with Rotorua Chamber members we are here to help you get the best out of using the web as a business tool – that could be creating a web site for you or simply ensuring you get less unwanted SPAM.
Email rus@easycontent.co.nz or visit http://www.easycontent.co.nz/
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Westpac’s new head of Business banking see small businesses as vital to NZ’s success
 Ian Blair, new GM of Business Banking for Westpac New Zealand, comes to the New Zealand banking scene from Sydney, and has worked largely in the corporate commercial banking space for the last 20 years. His last role was running commercial banking, property finance, Asian business and the business acquisition group for Westpac in Australia.
Prior to that Ian worked in a small finance company, and MLC wealth management business, spanning the gap between the bank and wealth advisors. He has also worked for NAB in Sydney, and when the bank bought the Bank of Michigan he had the chance to work in the Midwest of USA.
He was attracted to the New Zealand position by the sheer complexity and breadth of the job. “It covers the whole spectrum from corporate to SME, agri-business and government. So whilst I ran a large business in Australia (700 employees), it was just because that segment itself is so large, whereas here I think the challenges will be a lot broader. The autonomy of running a business away from Australia is quite attractive, and I’ve done that before in Michigan and really enjoyed it,” he says.
For the last year, Westpac has been focussed on being truly customer-centred, with a mission to earn all its customers’ business.
“The Westpac Brand is wonderful in the business space and for us it’s about making best use of that brand and really being seen, particularly for our existing customers, as a great business bank.“
He sees room for improvement in the SME space for Westpac. “I don’t think any of the banks at the moment do that well enough – that’s a global phenomenon. So being able to understand our customers’ business in that space and give them the service and particularly the relationships that they’re looking for is a point of differentiation. It’s obviously not that easy though, otherwise all the banks would be doing it. We need to do that in a way that gives our customers the right levels of service, but also gives the bank the appropriate level of return. It’s a real balancing act. But I see that as an opportunity.”
Ian Blair says Westpac is determined to help SMEs enter the export market, and succeed. “Understanding how SMEs make their business decisions is an art in itself. Creating a proposition or a product that is attractive and pulls clients to you is the holy grail of banking SMEs”, he says.
The company also supports 12 Business Awards through associations with Chambers of Commerce around New Zealand, and in February next year will bring together the supreme award winners for an intensive “Turbo” class presentation with leading business people.
“SMEs are vital to the success of this country, and we’ll be covering topics such as strategies, managing cashflow, and how to expand into the export market.
“It’s important for major banks like Westpac to really underpin business in New Zealand. It’s the way forward, for the success of those businesses and the success of the country.”
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