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As leaders, the COVID-19 crisis has presented us all with unexpected challenges. Facing these unprecedented circumstances head-on has led to many stories of great leadership across all industries and sectors in Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough. Our 'Leading Through COVID-19' interview series is designed to inspire and support a sense of togetherness as our region moves through and beyond this challenge.

In this interview, we talk to Craig Orr, CEO of NZ Hops. Craig shares his experience with us leading his team through this challenge, operating as an essential service supplying hops to the brewing industry.

How has COVID-19 affected your business overall?

As an essential service supplying hops to the brewing industry, we’ve seen a significant decline in demand, clearly a direct result of the lockdown within the hospitality trade. These same measures are in place in our key export markets like the USA and UK also. There’s been a ‘lag’ effect as those breweries able to pivot toward packaged and retail channels have kept some demand.

Despite my personal dedication to ensuring demand for packaged craft beer remains high, I’m not performing well enough to offset…

As a leader, what has been key in keeping your team engaged?

We’ve committed to keeping digital connectivity for all, not just the WFH’ers but also on-site. We’re all connected twice weekly via Zoom briefings, along with WhatsApp group messaging. Some work-related, other just for light humour and sharing.

What has been your biggest personal challenge leading through COVID-19?

Probably the biggest is getting out of the house and switching off. The ‘office’ is only 10 steps from the ‘cafeteria’ or 10 steps the other way to ‘commute’ home to sleep. Great for productivity but no so great for work/life balance and general downtime.

Any learnings or advice you can pass on to other leaders? 

Keep (over) connected with your team, including informally, just as if you were making a cuppa in the staffroom. The whole 'Level’s' deal has been a learning curve for all, so having an open forum to discuss safety steps and agree protocols has meant widespread engagement.

Have you been able to identify any opportunities for your business as a result? 

Like many businesses we’re geared up now to pivot toward an improved e-commerce model – rotating the business and opening up the invitation to enquire, engage more readily. The new normal…this is here for some time yet.

Any thoughts on what will change for your business as a result of this disruptor?

Developing a more agile and responsive business model. Which, being in the horticultural sector means adapting to some shorter horizons than has been the norm.


Enjoyed this interview? Read more from our Leading Through COVID-19 interview series here.

As leaders, the COVID-19 crisis has presented us all with unexpected challenges. Facing these unprecedented circumstances head-on has led to many stories of great leadership across all industries and sectors in Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough.

Our 'Leading Through COVID-19' interview series is designed to inspire and support a sense of togetherness as our region moves through and beyond this challenge.

In this interview, we talk to Marina Hirst Tristram, Managing Director of Tasman Bay Food Co. She shares her experience and learnings of leading a food production business through the challenges of Alert Level 4.

How has COVID-19 affected your business overall?

We have lost all of our foodservice and a lot of our export business - we expect this to be about 40% of our revenue over the COVID-19 period. However, we are lucky to have a multi-channel distribution so we continue to have revenue streams to support our cashflow.

As a leader, what has been key in keeping your team engaged?

We quickly developed an 8-week plan that reassured our factory teams about the weeks ahead (as a food business we continued manufacturing but in small ‘bubble’ teams). For our team working or isolating at home, we have continued our daily morning meeting (now using Microsoft Teams). We have also created a group exercise challenge to walk the length of the South Island.

What has been your biggest personal challenge so far?

Working in isolation in a very quiet office has been hard. Keeping a trading mindset, actively looking for opportunity and connecting with others has been hugely important to continue to be productive and positive.

Any learnings or advice you can pass on to other leaders? 

People come first and are looking for honesty and clarity through what is a very anxious time for many. Repeating a consistent message is important.

Talk to others and take advice. As business owners, we often feel isolated and simply talking to other professionals outside of the business often presents ideas, opportunity or is purely a chance to share your challenges with others who are facing them too.

Have you been able to identify any opportunities for your business as a result? 

Yes, productivity has been tested in our new physical distancing environment. It has forced us to explore different ways of doing things and we have come up with some initiatives to test.

Any thoughts on what will change for your business as a result of this disruptor?

It has been great to test more flexible working arrangements and prove they can work. We want to invest more than ever now in automation to improve our agility in manufacturing. We'll also continue to diversify our sales channels, especially connecting, collaborating and working together with other local food businesses.


Enjoyed this interview? Read more from our Leading Through COVID-19 interview series here.

As leaders, the COVID-19 crisis has presented us all with unexpected challenges. Facing these unprecedented circumstances head-on has led to many stories of great leadership across all industries and sectors in Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough.

Our 'Leading Through COVID-19' interview series is designed to inspire and support a sense of togetherness as our region moves through and beyond this challenge.

In this interview, we talk to Christine Clark, Director of Transport & Marine Covers. They've been busy operating as an essential business throughout lockdown, producing thousands of their innovative, reuseable PVC Face Shields.

How has COVID-19 affected your business overall?

At this point, it has been an opportunity for us to innovate and produce a very different product than we normally would. It has brought the team together (whilst being physically separate) to join forces for the future of our company.

As a leader, what has been key in keeping your team engaged?

Lots of communication via text and phone calls.  I see all of them daily whilst dropping off materials to their homes and picking up completed product. I update them every morning via text with where we are at, how amazing I think they are and also daily instructions for each person so they are clear on what they are doing.

Any learnings or advice you can pass on to other leaders? 

Keep it real. Communicate on a platform that your team can relate to. Email is NOT the answer for younger people. Understand what your team actually wants to know – it is often different than what you think.

This has been a great opportunity for collaboration, too. We've reached out to and worked with two other local companies for help in extra resourcing and expanding our Face Shield production capacity.

Have you been able to identify any opportunities for your business as a result? 

Yes – albeit probably a temporary reprieve.

Any thoughts on what will change for your business as a result of this disruptor?

Who knows what is going to happen over the next 18 months.  We just have to keep innovating.  I have the team now that can do that – what happens in the future is anyone’s guess at this point.


Enjoyed this interview? Read more from our Leading Through COVID-19 interview series here.

As leaders, the COVID-19 crisis has presented us all with unexpected challenges. Facing these unprecedented circumstances head-on has led to many stories of great leadership across all industries and sectors in Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough.

Our 'Leading Through COVID-19' interview series is designed to inspire and support a sense of togetherness as our region moves through and beyond this challenge.

In this interview, we talk to Andy Leonard, Team Captain at Proper Crisps, about their experience operating safely as an essential business during the lockdown.

How has COVID-19 affected your business overall?

Proper Crisps has seen immediate changes in demand. We experienced a sudden drop in tourism and hospitality business, but have seen strong demand through supermarkets where snacking has been an essential lockdown activity.

Aspects of our operation have changed to comply with physical distancing guidelines. For example, we have made adjustments to factory layouts to ensure personnel separation.

As a leader, what has been key in keeping your team engaged?

Regular communication and remaining available to our team members. It's also important to be positive and action-orientated, despite the challenging circumstances.

What has been your biggest personal challenge so far?

Ensuring our production team feel appreciated and respected when other parts of the business are working from home and many of their friends and family aren’t working.

Any learnings or advice you can pass on to other leaders? 

If in doubt, act. Trust your gut instincts. Document your plans, your activity and your progress. Crises are a good measure of your teamwork. Stay connected to your supply chain.

Have you been able to identify any opportunities for your business as a result? 

Proper Crisps falls into the 'permissible treat' category which is key comfort in a time of crisis and stress!

Any thoughts on what will change for your business as a result of this disruptor?

Consumer buying patterns will undoubtedly change in the short to medium term - where and how people shop. Trade up or trade down is common during recessions when eating habits alter, and online buying appears to have benefited significantly through COVID-19. I’m hoping Kiwis love of potato crisps doesn’t diminish though!


Enjoyed this interview? Read more from our Leading Through COVID-19 interview series here.

 

As leaders, the COVID-19 crisis has presented us all with unexpected challenges. Facing these unprecedented circumstances head-on has led to many stories of great leadership across all industries and sectors in Nelson, Tasman, and Marlborough.

We have developed this 'Leading Through COVID-19' interview series to inspire and support a sense of togetherness as our region moves through and beyond this challenge.

In this interview, we talk to Caleb Hill, Manager/Director of Mortimer Upholstery and Nelson Shade Solutions. We have been very impressed with their ability to rapidly innovate, developing and producing PVC safety screens for essential service providers.

Has COVID-19 affected your business overall?

Yes. We are a manufacturer and service provider - 99% of our work is non-essential. We currently have nine team members at home unable to produce any income for the business.

As a leader, what has been key in keeping your team engaged?

Sincere, honest and clear communication. You must be honest and transparent with your team members and let them know why and how you are making particular decisions. If those decisions are going to affect the lives of your team they need to know sooner rather than later. 

Any learnings or advice you can pass on to other leaders? 

Your business and energy are needed in the 'now' - but it’s also important you keep playing the long game, working towards long term goals and things that are important to you. 

Through my experience adversity has always been a blessing in disguise. It has forced me to make decisions I would have never made in normal circumstances.

Have you been able to identify any opportunities for your business as a result? 

Yes. We manufacture products locally using soft textiles and I am sure that the new economy will present us with new opportunities. We have already adapted to develop a new product - manufacturing and supplying PVC safety screens to essential service providers.

Any thoughts on what will change for your business as a result of this disruptor?

I am estimating a 20-40% decline in turnover. We will have to adapt our company structure to suit. This is an opportunity to become a smarter, leaner and meaner business. In this process, I am 100% confident that our level of service and quality of product will not be sacrificed. We will have to improve these things to be more competitive in the marketplace and like many others will also have to adapt our business to meet new COVID-19 safe workplace guidelines.


Enjoyed this interview? Read more from our Leading Through COVID-19 interview series here.

How’s your 2020 vision for your organisation? Do you have clarity of purpose? Can you see what the future holds?

From a sight perspective 2020 vision is about visual acuity.  Visual acuity is determined by the sharpness, clearness and focus of a person’s vision.

So maybe for businesses 2020 is the year of acuity - about the sharpness and focus of your organisation's vision?

Vision ➡ Purpose

One of the basic building blocks of any business is to be able to articulate your vision. It’s your sense of future state, what you hope to become. It sets the scene in determining and communicating the purpose of your business to your team.

This then provides the motivation and inspiration for your team to achieve that purpose.

Vision statements give direction for employee behaviour and help provide inspiration. A vision statement is a view into the future with hope and a positive outlook. It describes a company's inspirational, long-term plan for what they'll be able to accomplish, who they will help, and how the company will then be perceived. It's often out of reach for now, but not so far out of reach as to be unattainable. The vision statement gives everyone a description of what they're working towards, they will often be aspirational.

Vision + Values = Culture

If your business vision is then combined with strong company values that your team are aligned behind then you have the beginnings of a really good culture. Vision and values together create alignment and purpose, and everyone needs a sense of purpose (proven by many scientific studies).

Maybe your aim for 2020 is to review or create a vision along with some values that inspire, motivate, and drive the right day-to-day behaviours in your team. This will not only drive engagement but also assist in talent retention.

Are your team living the values of your organisation? Do they align with your 2020 vision?

What’s your 2020 vision for your organisation looking like? Is it time to refresh, re-plot?

Written by Julie Baxendine, General Manager

Guest Post from Suzi McAlpine of The Leader's Digest, an award-winning leadership blog.

Building trust is now one of the major concerns keeping CEOs awake at night. That’s according to the recently released World Economic Forum 20th annual CEO survey.

“As we become more interconnected and interdependent, concern about a business trust gap has grown: 58% of CEOs worry that lack of trust in business could harm their company’s growth, up significantly from 37% in 2013.”

CEO’s are worrying, and with good reason. If you don’t have trust – with your team, your customers and other stakeholders – you’re in for a very bumpy ride.

Despite this ‘burning platform’ around the power of trust, I’m often surprised at how many leaders are coming unstuck when it comes to building trust – especially with the team they lead.

Here are five ways you could be BREAKING TRUST with your team as quickly as you can say “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” These pointers will allow you to recognise these faults in yourself, and hopefully help you remedy them.

1. Do as I say, not as I do.

One of the quickest ways you’ll erode trust is to NOT model what you expect from your team. If you stridently pronounce that everyone’s got to be on time - and then always turn up late to meetings yourself, your people will doubt your sincerity (as well as think you’re a bit of a plonker). Ditto with more important things like ethics and company values. If the thought of anything you’ve said or done being made public makes you squirmy, then take the hint and shift your behaviour in the right direction. The best leaders don’t expect anything from their own team that they’re not willing to do themselves.

REFLECTION:

What is one specific way you can model what you want within your team, starting today? 

2. Being secretive.

‘Transparency is the new black’. Some things need to remain confidential of course, but always be as transparent and upfront as you can. This transparency applies to information, your intent, performance and the challenges facing the team. Things can change in a nanosecond, so let your team know as much as you can, as soon as you can.

REFLECTION:

What information are you not currently sharing with your team which you can be more transparent about? (It’s always smart to check what’s confidential first, so share your ideas with your boss first)

3. Not delivering on your promises. 

This behaviour not only erodes trust, it builds apathy and a lack of confidence in your team. Be careful about what you promise – people have memories like elephants when it comes to what you say you’ll do, especially in times of strife or change. If you don’t know, say so. If you’re not sure, fess up. As with customers, you’re better to under promise and over deliver than go back on your word.

REFLECTION:

Where are you currently delivering on your promises to your direct reports? Where are you delivering on your promises to your direct manager or peers? Where might you be overpromising? Take a nonjudgmental but honest look at your own practice around delivering on your promises in your work environment.

4. Never showing any vulnerability, and hiding your weaknesses and flaws as if you have none at all.

Want a surefire way to botch people’s trust in yourself? See any of your team member’s vulnerabilities or weaknesses as career ending. As Patrick Lencioni says in The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, “trust is all about vulnerability.” Research shows us that expressing vulnerability in an appropriate manner is an important leadership component when it comes to connecting with others at a basic human level. Leaders who show a bit of vulnerability can build trust with their teams far more quickly than those who don’t.

REFLECTION:

Often the best and most useful areas that a leader can show vulnerability are if they are in the context of lessons learnt. Where have you struggled before in the areas that your current team members are also struggling? What did you learn? What were your insights? Where have you made mistakes in your career and what did they teach you? What are your current weaknesses that you are working on? Can you share some of these with your team members?

5. Not spending any effort on building trust within the team.

A charge in and task mode approach towards ‘doing the work’ will guarantee poor results. Instead a ‘how we are going to work together’ attitude will ensure success. Building a high-performing team means making group dynamics and team creation a priority. People have questions that need to be answered before they can turn their attention to the work at hand. Questions such as:

REFLECTION:  

How would you rate yourself currently on the balance of building trust and focusing on the task at hand? What steps could you take to ensure that these questions are sufficiently answered for all the members of your team?

Think this blog has some useful tips for building trust within your team? Then check out The Leader’s Map, an online accelerator programme for emerging leaders. In it you’ll find many more video lessons, exercises, resources and tools to build trust and a high performing team.

A high performance team is your organisation's ultimate secret weapon. Imagine if you could get all the people in your organisation rowing in the same direction - you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time!

Patrick Lencioni is a well-known business management author, who has coached thousands of management teams and CEOs. His 'Five Dysfunctions of a Team' framework is very relevant for understanding how to build a high-performing team. By looking at what makes a dysfunctional team, we can understand how each behaviour leverages off the next and that by doing the opposite, we can build a world-dominating team.

Lencioni's Five Dysfunctions of a team:

1)    Absence of Trust

The fear of being vulnerable with team members prevents the building of trust within the team. Vulnerability-based trust is characterised by such things as saying ‘I need help,’ ‘I screwed up' or 'I made an error.’

Solution: Build trust into your team culture by creating an environment of being open and honest, sharing problems, admitting mistakes and assisting each other in a collaborative manner.

2)    Fear of Conflict

The desire to preserve artificial harmony stifles productive, ideological conflict. This creates two problems. Firstly, stifling conflict actually increases the likelihood of destructive, back channel sniping. Secondly, it leads to sub-optimal decision-making because the team is not benefitting from the true ideas and perspectives of its members.

Solution: Welcome productive conflict in your team. Challenge paradigms, encourage others to speak up or out, get input from the team and confront issues quickly.  But remember, productive and constructive conflict cannot happen without trust!

3)    Lack of Commitment

The lack of clarity or buy-in prevents team members from making decisions they will stick to. People give up or check out because either artificial harmony on one extreme, or destructive harmony at the other extreme leads to an environment of either fear or fantasy.

Solution: With trust and healthy conflict built into your team culture, engage your team by ensuring you are aligned on common objectives and being clear on direction and priorities.

4)    Avoidance of Accountability

The need to avoid interpersonal discomfort prevents team members from holding one another accountable for their behaviours and performance. It’s too hard and emotionally draining to be constructively direct with a peer.

Solution: By now, you should have trust, productive conflict and commitment in your team. Accountability is the natural next step. Implementing the same standard for everyone and having clarity over these standards is essential. Team members should be made to feel comfortable to take accountability and to hold each other accountable, even if it is difficult. Likewise, a high performing team also recognises each others' performance with praise or rewards.

5)    Inattention to Results

The pursuit of individual goals and personal status erodes the focus on collective success. By not focussing on results, you're more likely to see poor performance and higher team turnover.

Solution: With a team now built on trust, healthy conflict, commitment and accountability, the final tip of the pyramid is focussing on results. Results-focussed teams are more highly motivated. Of course, there are a multitude of benefits to having a highly motivated team - one being that you'll be likely to see reduced staff turnover.

So now, if we step back and look at the flip side of each of these five dysfunctions, we can see the characteristics of a High Performance Team:

  1. High levels of trust
  2. Constructive and productive conflict within the team and between peers
  3. Deep commitment and engagement with the cause or strategy
  4. Good levels of a willingness to hold each other to account
  5. Strong and enduring results orientation

If you're a leader of a team, commit to addressing the five dysfunctions and see what an enduring difference it makes to your team's culture, performance and motivation.

For more information, ask us about how we can help improve or boost your team culture.

This post was originally written to advise employers around supporting their employees during the devastating Nelson fires in February 2019, but remains relevant for many disaster and crisis scenarios.

The impact of environmental disasters and traumatic events tends to result in feelings of insecurity and collective vulnerability. Some of your employees may experience a range of reactions to an unsettling event like this, including anxiety and worry about the consequences and aftermath of the disaster.

In the case of the Nelson fires, many will be concerned about the damages or potential damage to their homes and/or property, and the impact on their families. Some people may become distracted, anxious, and less productive in their day-to-day functioning. These feelings are all perfectly normal and understandable.

Employers will find some employees are more affected than others. Employees’ reactions also depend on their current life stressors and their association with previous natural disasters or traumatic events. It is natural that during this time, and for some ensuing period, collective productivity of your staff may diminish. At the same time, a crisis tends to bring people together.

Typical Stress Reactions

Employees are resilient; however some will exhibit more reactions and may need additional support in order to cope.

Typically, some people experiencing stress do not openly communicate their anxieties. Often, the only observable signs may be behaviours such as:

 

How Employers can support Employees

Disasters are strongly related to a loss of control and influence over what is happening. Therefore, a primary consideration for employers is to provide a supportive environment in which control, confidence and competence can be regained. It is helpful to:

 

Key Considerations for Managers

 

What if the crisis mean I can't provide my employee/s with work, or they can't get to work?

If you are unsure about your ability to provide employees with work due to evacuations, quarantine/isolation, fire risk and/or health and safety concerns, or if your employee/s may not be able to work due to these events - we suggest you:

 

If you're unsure, seek advice - you can contact our team here.

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For the last 2 -3 years we have been predicting transformational changes in the workforce, workplace and the technologies that enable work. This subject is commonly referred to as the ‘future of work’.

International firms Deloitte and Accenture/Fjord have recently released their insights on global changes in workplace composition and practices and areas businesses need to focus on.

They predict:

New ways of leading

We will see fundamental changes in the way leaders will need to lead to grow, seize market opportunities faster, respond to the increasing trend to develop agile and adaptive workplaces and leverage diverse workforces straddling multiple generations.

In other words, traditional command and control top down hierarchical leadership styles will be reserved for dinosaurs who want to become extinct!

Different ways of ‘working’

There is increasing growth in contingent workforces such as contractors, temps, leased, ‘freelancer’ and ‘gig’ workers.

This is a response to talent market shortages, a willingness to entertain different forms of engagement other than traditional employment arrangements and younger workforces choosing how, where and who they work for.

Getting older is now good

We'll see the rise of the importance of older workers in the workforce. Workplaces will need to develop strategies to leverage longevity and loyalty to impart knowledge and experience to others.

Take pay off the table

We are already seeing shifts in the traditional concepts of remuneration and rewards to match diverse talent pools and differing attitudes to what motivate people at work.

This includes expansion of benefits to promote physical, mental, spiritual and financial well-being in response to the blurring of work/life. It's all about well-being!

Brand is everything

We'll see citizenship, brand strength and a company’s reputation for creating positive social impact becoming core components of talent attraction. In other words, what your company does needs to fulfil the meaningfulness of work aspirations of your future talent.

Don’t do everything and don’t be alone

Collaborate to get ahead! Think outside existing business models and join forces with others to solve problems collectively.

Get Real

Avoid greenwashing and spin - people want to engage with organisations that are authentic.

Simple is Good

Clear the data smog, minimise data and channels of communication. Collect only data that is needed and mix human insights into data which is often black and white.

As businesses we can choose to ignore what is happening globally and stick with how we have always done things. But our take on the future of work is striking the balance between holding on to the things that have worked well, whilst preparing ourselves to meet the challenges and waves of change that will inevitably hit our shores.

Written by Paul Bell.

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