EDANZ Conference - Speakers

onetitle

Keynote Speakers - 30 April

Jane Hunter - OBE, Hunters Wines (NZ) Ltd, Marlborough Jane Hunter is the driving force behind the Hunter’s Wines (NZ) Ltd reputation for consistently producing the highest quality wines year after year. Not surprisingly, Jane has been described by the London Sunday Times as the star of New Zealand wine. In 1993 she received an OBE for service to the wine industry, in 1997 was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Science from Massey University for her outstanding contribution to the industry and in 2003 Jane received the inaugural Wine and Spirit Competition Women in Wine Awards (UK), an international accolade recognizing the contribution she has made to the wine industry in New Zealand and overseas. Jane is a patron of the Arts and is currently a Board member on New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, amongst her other activities. Approximately 50% of Hunter’s production is exported, particularly to the UK, but also to Switzerland, Ireland, Denmark, Australia, the USA, Canada, Singapore, Hong Kong, Denmark and Brazil. To date, Hunter's Wines has won more than 100 gold medals at wine competitions, including London, Sydney, Hong Kong, Switzerland Australia and New Zealand. Jane is committed to supporting a sustainable export culture and leads the way in developing markets for New Zealand wine. This has not always been a straightforward process and she has had to overcome a number of obstacles along the way. Her story is both an inspiration and a lesson for us all. Jane will formally open our conference with a focus on the importance of Sustainable winegrowing as a tool to enable NZ Winegrowers to provide the best environmentally secure production of wine grapes in the world.


The Hon. Phil Goff, Minister of Trade Phil Goff first entered parliament in 1981 after winning the Auckland seat of Mt Roskill. The Labour Party's election win in 1984 saw him become New Zealand's then youngest-ever Cabinet Minister at the age of 31. Over the next two terms he handled at various times the portfolios of Education, Employment, Tourism, Environment and Youth Affairs. Labour's defeat at the 1990 election saw Phil Goff lose his electorate seat, and he became a lecturer in political studies at the Auckland Institute of Technology. However he returned to Parliament in 1993, after regaining his Mt Roskill seat, and he has been an MP continuously since then. Labour's return to Government in 1999 saw Phil Goff named Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Minister of Justice, portfolios he retained for six years. After the 2005 election, Phil Goff's considerable experience in international affairs saw him made Minister of Trade and Trade Neggotiations, and Minister of Defence. He also continued as Minister of Pacific Island Affairs, a portfolio he took on in 2003. He is ranked 5th in the cabinet.


Andy Lark, LogLogic and No 8 Ventures Andrew Lark is a global marketing and business leader with more than 20 years experience of technology, Internet, telecommunications and consumer sectors where he has led award-winning programs and teams for Fortune 500 and Times 100 companies, technology leaders, start-ups and the world’s hottest advertising and communications agencies. During his career he has built and led teams recognized as the best in the industry, worked and lived in the majority of the world's major markets and developed a reputation as a highly creative marketer and thought leader on communications and blogging. More on Andy can be found using this link ...


Steve Tew, Deputy CEO, New Zealand Rugby Union As Deputy CEO, Steve was part of the team which delivered New Zealand's successful Bid to host the Rugby World Cup 2011. He is in an ideal position to be able to give us the background to the principles of New Zealand's bid, and in particular to the critical success factors behind the planning. The All Blacks are now well on the way to the final countdown for the Rugby World Cup and it is obvious that this planning includes benchmarking against the worlds best. Steve will highlight the critical success factors in his talk. Steve grew up in Lower Hutt and has a strong rugby background having played club rugby for Hutt Old Boys and Victoria University. He did a Masters degree in Sports Management at Victoria University. His career highlights include roles as; General Secretary of The New Zealand Universities Sports Union (1982 – 1987), General Manager of The Hillary Commission (1990 – 1995), Chief Executive Officer of The Canterbury Rugby Union and Crusaders Franchise (1996 – 2001), General Manager Rugby, Acting Chief Executive Officer and since 2001 Deputy Chief Executive of the New Zealand Rugby Union


Keynote Speakers - Tuesday 1 May


Mike Burrell, CEO, Aquaculture New Zealand Mike Burrell is the Chief Executive of Aquaculture New Zealand – the new industry body for the aquaculture sector. He has a background in economic development and was previously with LECG Ltd where he led the development of the aquaculture industry’s sector strategy. Mike has advised industry, government, and international agencies on industry development, strategy, and public policy. He has advised clients in New Zealand, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and the Pacific. Mike is originally from the West Coast. He has a master’s degree from the London School of Economics.


Trevor Mallard, Minister, State Owned Enterprises and Economic Development Trevor Mallard's tertiary education began at Victoria University where he completed a BCA, before attending Wellington Teacher's College. He taught in Wellington and Taumaruni before becoming involved with politics. His parliamentary career began in 1984. He is the MP for Hutt South. When Labour came to term in 1999 he was given the role of Minister of Education a post he held for six years until 2005, when he was given the Economic Development and Industry and Regional Development portfolios. He is currently the Minister of State Owned Enterprises, Associate Minister of Finance, Minister for Sport and Recreation, Minister for the Rugby World Cup 2011. Outside the Beehive, Trevor Mallard often can be found practising what he preaches in his Sport and Recreation portfolio, by keeping active. He is a keen mountain biker, and is a frequent participant in some of New Zealand's toughest mountain bike races. When not in the saddle, he enjoys reading, walking his neighbour's dog in the local hills, watching sport and spending time with his family.


Ken Stevens, CEO, Glidepath Ken describes himself simply but significantly as an “Exporter”. As Business Champion for Export Year 2007, he has more than earned that title. Ken started Glidepath back in 1972 when he bought a small 5 man Auckland general engineering business, Thompson Engineering Ltd. He is an Indentured Tool and Die Maker by trade. Glidepath designs, manufactures and installs Baggage Handling Systems for airports. Glidepath is able to count 449 Baggage Systems in 38 countries. Glidepath is well positioned in the USA market and opened a manufacturing unit in the Dallas - Fort Worth region in 2004 where it employs 54 staff and growing. Glidepath has offshore establishments in Sydney, Dubai, Kunshan China, Toronto, Dallas, Santiago and Lima. Since 1990, Glidepath has won 14 business awards mainly for its exporting successes. The most recent award was the KEA – World Class New Zealand Award for Manufacturing. Ken’s other business interests all revolve around exporting and he has invested in 3 companies that have great export potential for New Zealand. These are:- Emech Control Ltd – a fluid and flow control product. Omni Life Sciences Inc – an orthopaedic brace and surgical instrument designer manufacturer. Protemix Ltd, a treatment for type 2 diabetes that is being fast tracked through FDA right now. He spends 105 days a year in his markets and has logged more that 3 million air miles.


Tim Gibson, CEO, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise Tim Gibson took over as chief executive of the newly established New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) in July 2003. Before joining NZTE, Tim held senior positions in the NZ Dairy Industry, both domestically and internationally. Tim has degrees in German Literature and Law and has studies at several overseas business schools.


Workshops: Tuesday 1 May

Prashanta Mukherjee, Principal, Prashanta dot Com & Director, India Horizonz Limited Prashanta is the Principal of Prashanta dot Com and a Director of India Horizonz Limited. He is a graduate of the University of Delhi (Gold Medal),and has worked for NIIT, CMC in India and Oracle, Ernst and Young and IBM in New Zealand. He is an alumni of the Ernst and Young Darden Executive Programme (class of 1999). He has many business interests ranging from working as a strategic IT consultant to government and private sector to providing assistance to New Zealand businesses do business with India. He has been recently invited to address the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2007 (www.pbd2007.org), the peak annual event of the Indian diaspora at Delhi, India on NZ-India trade issues. His work with the government and private sector has enabled him to establish an extensive network across the New Zealand business environment. He is a professional company Director and member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors. Some of his key professional interests and achievements outside the core business are as follows: Appointed member of the New Zealand government’s Digital Strategy Advisory Group established by the Minister, Hon David Cunliffe to provide advice on strategic issues relating to all aspects of New Zealand’s Digital Strategy (www.digitalstrategy.govt.nz) Director on the board of Smartlinx 3 Limited (www.smartlinx3.co.nz) – a public-private partnership to provide new broadband infrastructure in the Wellington region. Invited speaker at APEC Workshop on e-Commerce and Supply Chain, Jakarta, Indonesia in September 2002.


Mitchell Pham - AUGEN NZ Ltd. Vietnamese born Mitchell Pham, together with partners Peter Vile (NZ born), Stephan Koch (German born) and Robert Kang (Korean born) were final year commerce and technology students when they founded Augen in 1993, to custom-build individually designed software applications for business organisations. Today, Augen provides a comprehensive range of ICT development and consulting services to a selection of industries, each tailored to meet the specific needs of individual customers. In New Zealand, the company now employs 16 staff and has the governance board and management structure in place to support its rapid growth into a sizable organisation over the next few years. Mitchell has spent years building business networks and relationships in Asia. This led directly to the company setting up an office in Vietnam over two years ago. Subsequently, Augen Vietnam Ltd was officially opened in Ho Chi Minh City on November 2005 by the then NZ Governor General, Dame Sylvia Cartwright. Today, Mitchell works as a strategy advisor to a number of NZ organisations of high-growth potentials, as well as participating/advising in a number of NZ-Asia/Vietnam government initiatives, trade missions and research projects. His personal passion is to bridge the knowledge and business gaps between NZ and Asia, particularly in ICT. As a result, Augen is leveraging its Asian connections and its resource base in Vietnam to support NZ software companies and internet businesses in growing their products and services for exporting, as well as expanding their business into Asian markets. Asia:NZ has proudly sponsored Mitchell Pham and Augen to present at the conference to share their experience and some key challenges in setting up business in Asia. He will explain the need to practice different business etiquette; to develop strategic working relationships with Governments, trade offices, potential channel partners, and well-connected experts who can help develop strategies & tactics as well as execute them with precision in the field - all vital parts of expanding a kiwi business into Asia.


Glen Senior, CEO, The Small Business Company Responsible for all activities of The Small Business Company. Glen writes, presents, invents, advises, designs, develops and shares his accumulated 20 years of business experience with small business people and organisations around the world. He has started 8 successful small businesses and is still a director of 2.


Derek Rankin, Director, Bancorp, Treasury Services Limited Derek is a director of and shareholder in BTSL. Responsible for managing a portfolio of clients, Derek advises on a range of treasury related risks. Derek also is a regular presenter of training seminars on treasury risk management to a wide variety of audiences, presenting both public and in house-training seminars. Derek has provided treasury risk management services to New Zealand companies since 1987. He has worked at a senior level in treasury risk management for many years. Derek is a Certified Treasury Professional member of the Institute of Finance Professionals New Zealand Inc, and the Australian Finance and Treasury Association.


Keith Phillips, Partner, QLBS.com Keith Phillips has had an international business career spanning Europe, USA, Middle East, Africa and Asia with companies such as Unilever, Gillette and Apple Computers. He was International Marketing Manager for Gillette for a group of 54 countries, Managing Director of Apple UK, and a Director of Marketing for Apple USA. Significantly Apple UK was Apple’s ‘Country of the Year’ during his tenure. Keith is now a Director of a number of technology companies and a partner in QLBS.com. In Economic Development he was a founding trustee of Competitive Auckland, has participated in Science Park and Incubators Worldwide, and has assisted Investment New Zealand in two significant Investment conferences. Keith has worked closely with New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) in taking a number of companies international, and has run various “Business Building and Capability” workshops for the Economic Development Agency Association of New Zealand (EDANZ), and the ICT and Marine Industries. His international experience includes work in Singapore and with the World Bank in Bangalore, India. In October 2004 Keith accompanied the Prime Minister to India as part of the small business delegation, where he met the Prime Minister of India. Keith has recently been invited by the Commonwealth Secretariat to speak at their November conference in New Delhi entitled “Public Policy on Governance”. In July 2004, Keith was involved in training EDANZ consultants in SME business development needs and assessment systems, utilizing a workshop approach with hands-on business assessments as part of the curriculum. Jas Brands (Singapore) invited Keith to distribute brand awards at the Golden Brand Awards Ceremony following a brand assessment workshop. Keith is currently liaising with Microsoft to begin running QLBS. com- facilitated assessment workshops as part of their partner programme. Keith has had an early interest in QLBS.com since he strongly advocates their principle of measuring for continuous improvement.


Right Honorable Jenny Shipley DCNZM, NZFIM The Rt Hon Jenny Shipley is a Director, Advisor and Keynote Speaker with a special interest in business and economic development opportunities in East Asia and the ASEAN. She is a regular visitor to China in her role as a director, a keynote speaker and in association with her consultancy. She is on a number of advisory boards including the International Economic Advisory Board of the City of Rotterdam and Chairs the Advisory Board of a family business, a new branding and marketing company, Confucius Says, based in Shanghai. Her son Ben is the Managing Director. She also chairs Mainzeal Construction Company in NZ and is a Director of its parent, Richina Pacific which owns the China based SLC and SRL, a major leather cluster of businesses employing 6000 in Shanghai. SLC was acquired as a result of an SOE sale which was part of the Chinese Governments SOE divestment programme. She was an Initiator of the Education Forum for East Asia, now held in Beijing annually and for the last 4 years has chaired the Ministerial Session at that event. Jenny Shipley is married to Burton Shipley who after 15years in the finance sector now manages the family business, investment and development interests. They have two adult children, Anna 30, a communications Manager for Nokia in London and Ben who is 28 and is the managing Director of his own research, branding and marketing company in Shanghai.


W.R.( Blue ) May, General Manager, N.Z. Business Division, Sumitomo Australia Ltd. Blue May is General Manager , N.Z Business Division , Sumitomo Australia Ltd , a 100% owned subsidiary of the Sumitomo Corporation of Japan. Blue's illustrious forty year career has given him a wealth of experience in exporting across a wide range of products and industry sectors, from incubator to traditional, and from commodities to new technologies. Blue's hand on experience in exports was given another dimension during the years he served as Secretary of a branch of NZ Export Institute. Blue is well known for his long standing committment and work within the New Zealand wool sector and the NZ Manufacturers' Federation, now Business NZ. That committment took a higher priority during his years as Chairman, and G.M. Sales & marketing at Summit Wool Spinners , Oamaru ( a subsidiary of Sumitomo , Japan). Blue is married to Margaret and has two sons, Andrew and Brendon. Andrew is following in Dad's footsteps and is a rising star in the exporting business.. Blue's passions outside of work are golf, his grandchildren and his mates.


Susan Houston, EDANZ Susan's fifteen years experience in economic development has been gained within both Australia and New Zealand. Her roles have been diverse but typically focused on creating change at a grass roots level. They range from senior executive with one of the largest local government authorities in Australia, to CE of a NZ economic development agency and regional tourism authority, and more recently, policy analyst with EDANZ. Susan also served in a senior executive role with the New South Wales Department of Industrial Relations prior to migrating to New Zealand seven years ago. The past twelve months have been devoted to developing a web based monitoring and evaluation framework for NZ's EDAs, Councils and tourism authorities - www.provingit.org.nz Whilst CE of an EDA, Susan served as a Director of a NZ power company and an irrigation company. Her spare time tends to be taken up by her business "Kiwi Favourites Ltd" - a niche website design company; and her grandchildren, Aiden Sam and Emily Jane.


Trevor Laughton, Chief Technical Officer and Executive Director, Tait Electronics Ltd. Trevor Laughton has worked for Tait for over twenty years and is the Chief Technical Officer and an Executive Director of Tait Electronics Ltd. Trevor began his career as an RF development engineer and has had various roles in engineering, marketing, and corporate management. Trevor holds both engineering and marketing qualifications and amongst other duties, has been involved in the development both European and North American private mobile radio standards for many years.


Tim Robertson, EDANZ Tim has been responsible for the NZTE Escalator Service Client Advisory function since its launch in November 2003 - a role that is contracted to the Economic Development Association of New Zealand (EDANZ). The NZTE Escalator Service is delivered by a consortium of private sector advisors, Deloitte, I Grow NZ Ltd, Realize Group and Ignition Partner alongside EDANZ. Escalator aims to make it easier for SMEs and entrepreneurial startups access independent specialist advice and raise the capital or complete the non-equity deal needed to grow a firm. The Escalator Services provides expert evaluation of selected business opportunities and access to a national network of private sector advisors. Prior to working for EDANZ Tim was involved in the Industry New Zealand BIZ Investment Ready Scheme as Help Desk Adviser and Web Site Project Manager (www.vcapital.co.nz) from the launch in July 2000. He started his career working for the Canterbury Employers Chamber of Commerce. With an in-depth knowledge of the early stage capital market in New Zealand and the role quality advisors can play in assisting firms become investment ready, Tim is an advocate for the role equity investors can play in a firms growth.


John Atkins, Marketing Director, Lean Meats Ltd. Lean Meats Ltd. was set up to market the lamb from 103 farmer shareholder members from the lower half of the north island. Atkins Ranch Inc. is a subsidiary of Lean Meats Ltd. based in Oakland, California and conducts about 50% of total lean meats business. Atkins Ranch Inc has expanded in to a cold storage and distribution company that now also purchases products from USA meat companies and processes for onsale. In 2005 a satellite office was established in New Jersey and containers are shipped to both coasts of the USA weekly. The target market is high end supermarkets and restaurant distributors North America wide. As marketing director for Lean Meats Ltd. John is responsible for the marketing and sales success of the company. This means ensuring that all products are sold to best advantage in the international markets in which Lean Meats (Atkins Ranch) operates. This is currently 50% to North America and the balance mainly to EEU, with Japan, and middle eastern markets balancing the rest. Responsibilities also include research and action of new products and markets. Also participating in trade shows and food fairs and judging which products we should look at aiding or dropping from the sales list.


Jonty Ellis, Partner, EVT Law "Asset or Impediment? Your brand in the foreign market." Jonty Ellis partner in Ellis\|Verboeket\|Terry will ask the awkward questions on the relevance and suitability of your brand for foreign markets. Jonty has been a partner in a leading firm of IP practitioners for 38 years. He is a past president of the NZ Institute of Patent Attorneys and the NZ Group of AIPPI (Association Internationale de Propriete Intellectuelle). Jonty's experience in the development of the ENZA brand, the NZ Woolboard's and brand NZ's fern brands makes him uniquely qualified to comment on this important issue. "Your brand is the companies icon" he says. "If your icon brings a wry smile; or a frown, to your customer's faces, you are in trouble." Embracing a suitable brand is as essential to export success as making a quality product. This workshop will give you the tools to assess your established brand or to guide you in selecting a new brand as you gird your loins to plunge into the testing world of exporting.


Mark Lockington, Financial Controller, Westland Milk Products Qualifications: NZCE (Civil and Structural) BCM, CA Work History/Experience: 2002 to Present: Financial Controller of Westland Milk Products. Trustee of "The West Coast Development Trust". The NZ Law Society and Institute of Chartered Accountants Appointee July 2005 1999 to 2001: Contract Financial and Management Accountant (NZ and Australia). Specialised in short term assignments with TMP Worldwide assisting mining and infrastructure companies with systems, management and financial accounting. Worked with Normandy Mining Ltd, Western Metals Ltd. Buller Linew Company and other companies in Western Australia, Queensland and the South Island. 1997 - 1998: Site administrator for Transfield Maintenance at BHP - Port Hedland, Western Australia 1994 - 1996: Chartered accountant at Capon and Madden, Ashburton 1991 - 1993: Lincoln University


Peter Vitasovich, Chairman, Aquaculture New Zealand Peter Vitasovich has been involved in the New Zealand seafood industry for 30 years and has experience in different sectors of the seafood industry. He is the Chairman of the new aquaculture industry body Aquaculture New Zealand. Peter also plays a leadership role in the Coromandel Marine Farmers’ Association, and the Northern Inshore Fisheries Company, and was a member of the New Zealand Food and Beverage Taskforce. Peter saw considerable potential in the New Zealand Greenshell mussel industry in the mid eighties and has been building his mussel farming business since then. He is the Managing Director of Greenshell New Zealand Ltd, a major producer of Greenshell™ Mussels for the export market.


Joseph Stuart, Business Manager, Foundation for Research Science and Technology Joseph Stuart took up the position of Business Manager, FRST in May 2006. FRST is a crown entity with an aim to stimulate prosperity and improve the well-being of New zealanders and the environment, through investing in innovation and fostering the creation of new knowledge. Mr Stuart is responsible for delivery of the Technology New Zealand suite of schemes in the Wellington region, with primary focus on the Creative and ICT Sectors. Mr Stuart currently holds trustee positions with the Wellington Regional Arts and Culture Development Trust (Arts Wellington), and the New Zealand Animation and Visual Effects Trust. He is also a director of MOBEA, an apparel business delivering classic, stylish, comfortable and sexy maternity wear to the New Zealand market. From 2004-2006, Mr Stuart was a Business Development Manager for Positively Wellington Business, the Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency. A member of the business development team, he was responsible for management and delivery of the Ministry of Social Developments regional “Be Your Own Boss” programme. Mr Stuart also oversaw delivery of the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, “Enterprise Training Programme”, and delivery of FRST Agent relationship. Prior to this, Mr Stuart was a self employed consultant, providing business development services to SMEs. He successfully completed roles in the hospitality, fabric products, ICT and advertising sectors, as well as delivery of business start up courses for Toi Whakaari, The New Zealand Drama School and Positively Wellington Business. In addition, he also has filled various roles as a Producer for Performing Arts and Animation. Mr Stuart has a BA Major in Economic History (Victoria University of Wellington), a Graduate Diploma in Economic Development (Auckland University of Technology) and is a member of the EDANZ (Economic Development Association of New Zealand) College of Practitioners. Born (1972) in Nelson, and now residing in Pukerua Bay, with his wife and daughter, he enjoys creative works, sport, hospitality and gardening!


About the Facilitators

Ruth Le Pla, Editor, Management magazine (Asian series) Ruth Le Pla is editor of Management magazine, for more than 50 years a must-read publication for New Zealand's most influential business decision-makers. She also edits sister publication The Director which provides in-depth coverage of leadership and corporate governance issues. Ruth has 25 years' experience as a business communicator working in Europe, Asia and New Zealand. She is keen to explore stories surrounding New Zealand's role in a rapidly changing global economy.


David Ferguson, International Marketing Manager, Solid Energy (Manufacturing, morning session) David returned from Japan in 2006 to take up the role of International Marketing Manager for Solid Energy, working with Solid Energy's customers in Japan, China, India, South Africa and South America. Prior to that, he spent 10 years with New Zealand Trade & Enterprise as Trade Commissioner based in Japan and Korea, assisting a wide range of New Zealand exporters. David graduated from Lincoln University with a Science degree and has a Marsters degree in Marketing and International Business from Auckland University.


Suse Reynolds, General Manager, Investment, Positively Wellington Business (Primary sector, afternoon series) Suse has been General Manager, Investment at Positively Wellington Business for just over a year. Prior to that she was Executive Director for the business lobby group, The Trade Liberalisation Network. This followed a ten year career with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade which included three years in the Foreign Minister's office and a posting to London as New Zealand's trade and economic representative. Suse has a wide understanding of the issues involved in this sector and will bring an informed overview to these sessions.


Bob Walters, CEO, Export New Zealand (Manufacturing, afternoon session) Robert (Bob) Walters is CEO of Export New Zealand reporting to the National board. He is a very experienced exporter with over 30 years business involvement through having International General Manager of Building products for Alex Harvey Industries (now part of Carter Holt Harvey and Fletcher Building), General Manager of Feltex Carpets, Corporate Brands Manager and later Regional Development Manager, European Region for the New Zealand Dairy Board. The experience gained with initially exporting companies, extensive overseas travel over many years, development of export business, partnerships, joint ventures and lately with "not for profit" organisations means that he brings a unique range of skills to the development of exporters.


Greg Williamson, Partner, Concentrate NZ Ltd. (Marketing series) Greg Williamson is a partner in Concentrate - NZ Ltd - a marketing company that specialises in enabling New Zealand technology companies to fulfil their vision by successfully marketing their products. Greg has a 15 year marketing background covering the private and public sector. A former senior manager at Jade Software Corporation, he has also worked as a consultant for government and corporate public relations firms. Concentrate helps New Zealand technology companies realise their potential by successfully marketing their products. Based in Christchurch, Greg Williamson and partner Owen Scott have worked with many of Canterbury's leading technology brands including Tait, Skope Industries, WhisperGen, InFact, AuCom Electronics, Eaton, Connexionz, Designline CitiBus, DataCol, Insite Technology, Industrial Research Limited, Wellnomics and SLI Systems. Their company Concentrate was a finalist in the 2006 Canterbury Champion Awards.


Suzanne Snively, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers (Intellectual Property) Suzanne has been with PricewaterhouseCoopers for 14 years and has been a partner for 11 years. She provides strategic advice to people, government agencies and business to increase added value. Prior to joining PwC, she served as a Director of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand between 1985 and 1992 (during the development of its price stability focus), of Wellington City Council's LATE Capital Holdings Limited and of a private company which managed the largest shoe retailing operations in New Zealand. She was an economic forecaster with the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, Chief Economist/Investment Analyst for Jarden and Co (now First New Zealand Securities) and has worked as an economic consultant to various government departments including the New Zealand Planning Council, the Department of Social Welfare, the Housing Corporation of New Zealand and the Department of Health.


Honorary Luncheon Guest - Tuesday 1 May

Sir Angus Tait, Chairman, Tait Electronics Ltd. Sir Angus Tait is one of New Zealand's most innovative business leaders and a cornerstone of this country's flourishing high-tech sector. His schoolboy interest in electronics led to a remarkable 60 year career in radio communications. He left Oamaru Boys High School to work in a local radio store and later served with the RAF in radar and airborne communications during the Second World War. Returning to New Zealand he put that experience to good use, going into business designing and building mobile radio equipment. He recovered from the setback of receivership in 1968 to create his second company, Tait Electronics Ltd, which has grown to become one of the world's leading suppliers of a complete range of mobile radio equipment, with product in use in almost 100 countries. Sir Angus has grown his company around the unusual business philosophy of reinvesting virtually all profit in research and development and the latest manufacturing technology. "Our technology is our sword. We keep it sharp and bright." Sir Angus has rejected offers for his company from several international industry giants and has ensured all of the company's manufacturing is carried out here in New Zealand, rather than Asia where labour rates are cheaper. Several of New Zealand's other leading technology companies were founded by Tait people branching out on their own, promoting one such entrepreneur, John Croft, to term Sir Angus, "the giant oak of the New Zealand electronics industry." Sir Angus continues to play a hands-on role with Tait Electronics in his capacity as company chairman.


Dinner Speaker - Tuesday 1 May

Alicia Beverley, Chief IP Strategist & Co-Founder of IP Wealth Winner of the 2007 International Women's Day Leadership Award, Alicia Beverley, Chief IP Strategist and Co-Founder of IP Wealth – an intellectual property firm which identifies, protects, manages and monitors intellectual property assets will be speaking at the Tuesday night Awards dinner on “Your Leadership Legacy: Passionate, action oriented and focused”. Alicia was recognised for her leadership and innovation in business and community work at a gala dinner at The Gold Coast Arts Centre on 8 March. ”It’s refreshing to be recognised as a leader in business. Innovation is not gender specific – both women and men can be innovative. Innovation is what propels a company past its competitors and opens up new markets.” said Ms Beverley. Alicia is a long time member of the Department of State Development's Gold Mentor Panel, and serves as a director on the AB Paterson College Board and is Chairman of the AB Paterson Child Care Centre. Her community work also includes numerous formal mentoring activities with small business owners, Year 11 students during Australian Business Week and Griffith University students. She is also a prolific educator of CEOs and other business leaders in Australia. She speaks regularly at business events and also donates her time to do pro bono trade protection work for STARS – the Screen Theatre Writers Studio – and charities including the Royal Blind Foundation, Koala Kids and Rotary's Shelter Box Project.


Keynote Speakers - Wednesday 2 May

Barry Moltz "Growing Your Business Like Crazy" Barry Moltz has founded and run small businesses with a great deal of success and failure for more than 15 years. After successfully selling his last operating business, Barry has branched out into a number of entrepreneurship-related activities. He founded an angel investor group, an angel fund, and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Angel Capital Education Foundation. Barry is a nationally recognized expert on entrepreneurship who has given over 100 speeches to audiences ranging from 20 to 20,000. He was appointed by the Illinois Governor in 2005 to serve on the board of the Institute for Entrepreneurship Education (IIEE) and is also an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). Barry’s ravings can be found Barry Moltz


Dr Chris Kirk, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Lincoln University Dr Chris Kirk is currently Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Lincoln University in New Zealand. Chris has been heavily involved in setting up the business incubator movement in New Zealand and in particular, led the development of the e-Centre, an IT technology incubator at Massey University’s campus in Auckland, Creative HQ, a creative industries incubator in Wellington, and the BioCommerce Centre in Palmerston North. He also helped develop the Government’s Incubator Policy and Incubator Support Programme. He co-wrote the Feasibility Study for the Waikato Innovation Park, a Business Plan for the re-development of a private sector Technology Office Park in Auckland and in 2004, a “Science & Technology Park Scoping Study” Report for NZ Trade & Enterprise.


John Key, Leader of the National Party John Key, MP for Helensville, became Leader of the National Party in November 2006. Prior to that he held the post of National’s Finance spokesman. He brings his own inclusive and aspirational approach to politics. John was born in Auckland, but moved to Christchurch as a child. He launched his investment banking career in teh mid- 1980's, working at Elders Finance and then Bankers' Trust. After ten years working in New Zealand he joined Meril Lynch's investment banking arm, working in Singapore, London, New York and Sydney. During that time John was in charge of a number of business units including global foreign exchange and European bond and derivative trading. In 1999 John was invited to join the Foreign Exchange Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of NY and on two occassions undertook management studies at Harvard University in Boston. John entered politics in 2002 and won the Helensville with a majority of 1,589. John has risen through the ranks since then, becoming Deputy Finance spokesman and then Finance spokesman, rising to number seven prior to the 2005 election. After the 2005 election, he continued to be the Party’s Finance spokesman and was ranked at number four before becoming elected Leader on 27 November 2006. John is married to Bronagh and has two children. When he has some spare time he likes to spend time with the family, cooking, playing golf and watching rugby.


Workshops Wednesday 2 May

Scott Kerse, Leader, Emerging Business, PricewaterhouseCoopers Scott joined the firm in 1986 and was admitted to the partnership in 1999. Currently based in our Auckland office, Scott is a partner in our Private Client Services group and leads our Emerging Businesses initiative. Scott’s specialist areas of expertise include outbound investment and business acquisitions. Scott advises a number of New Zealand’s export and hi-tech success stories. Scott is a regular author, presenter and media commentator on New Zealand tax matters.


Mark Lodder, Senior Manager,Tax, PricewaterhouseCoopers Mark is a senior manager in the PricewaterhouseCoopers tax team and is based in Christchurch. Mark is originally from the UK, where he specialised in corporate taxation. He relocated to New Zealand 5 years ago and advises clients on a wide range of tax issues, taking a particular interest in international issues.


Alan Koziarski, Sector Director, Education, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise Alan Koziarski is the Sector Director, Education for New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. He is responsible for establishing where NZTE can add value to the education industry's long-term development. Prior to his appointment in July 2004, he managed NZTE's cluster and network development programme. Before that he consulted internationally on cluster development for a wide range of government and private sector clients. This international recognition led to an appointment as Vice-president of The Competitiveness Institute, a global non-profit network of cluster practitioners.Mr Koziarski has a strong specialty in business-government partnerships for economic development. His key area of focus is competitiveness development through collaboration. He has a MA (Hons) from Canterbury University in Political Science, and is based in Wellington.


Ifor Ffowcs-Williams, Chairman, Cluster Navigators Ltd. Since leaving Trade New Zealand in 1997, Ifor has been active across five continents in introducing clustering as a cornerstone for local economic development. He has trained over 3,000 economic development professionals from 35 countries in the process of cluster development. Ifor also designs and reviews cluster development and competitiveness interventions, and facilitates cluster workshops around the world. He is a frequent speaker on competitiveness, clusters, and local innovation systems. Ifor is a Founder and Past President of The Competitiveness Institute (Barcelona, Spain), the leading association that focuses on cluster-based economic development. (www.competitiveness.org ). He is Chairman, Cluster Navigators Australia Pty Ltd, Melbourne.


Peter Harris, Manager, Economic Development Unit, Dunedin City Peter is currently Manager of the Economic Development Unit for Dunedin City. He leads a team who offer business advocacy within Council, business development, industry development and economic environment expertise. He is a director of the UPSTART business incubator and is also on the Board of EDANZ (Economic Development Association of New Zealand). Prior to working within Economic Development he co-founded and was an executive director of a design - led business for 11 years.


Paul Hendry, NZ Export Credit Office Paul was NZTE’s principal advisor for structured finance, . He warns that informal investors need to decide rationally on whether to invest...not just on emotional grounds. Many enterprises use internal cash within their enterprise to expand. This might come from organic business growth, improving cash-flow through negotiating advantageous credit terms from suppliers, applying just-in-time stock management systems, or shortening the credit terms they may be offering their customers.” Often, the pressure for additional business finance comes when a business gets its first big export order. “Getting that substantive order is only the first hurdle for a business,” says Paul Hendry. “If the order is bigger than normal, or requires a leap in scale, then most businesses will be stretched for working capital. “There are many ways to structure credit,” says Paul Hendry. “The business could try to get better credit terms from the supplier, but they will probably only grant those if they want to retain a good relationship with you – and they may put the price up to compensate.” Banks are an early port of call for most SMEs. The majority make use of bank loans in some form. But if you are already up to your credit limit, that can be a tall order. “Banks don’t care how big your order is – what they look at is their current exposure to your company,” says Paul Hendry. “They want you to have bricks and mortar assets to pledge. That can be a real problem for high-tech businesses, such as software developers, whose value often lies in their ideas and innovation. Structuring Finance can often make or break a small business opportunity. Paul Hendry has an excellent understanding of the financial needs for hi - growth businesses and will explore a range of options and clarify the role of the Export Credit office, in this session.


Caroline Saunders - Professor of Trade and Environmental Economics, Director of Agribusiness and Economics Research Unit Academic and Professional Background Member of: Agricultural Economics Association (UK) Executive Committee National Centre on Research on Europe, Canterbury University Advisory Board CSAFE, Otago University Advisory Board Royal Society Council Chair of Social Science Advisory Committee to Royal Society of NZ PBRF - Panel member Business and Economics. Immediate past president of: NZ Association of Economists NZ Association of Agricultural and Resource Economists.