Q: In your role, what’s been the most rewarding challenge you’ve tackled this year?
In my role as a business owner the most rewarding challenge has been the ability to steer my business through a very difficult time in our economy while at the same time navigating the effects of the pandemic. I have built resilience and developed a formidable plan to support the business and prepare for what appears to be the new normal with ongoing interruptions and disruptions.
Q: Has your business been impacted by covid over the past 18 months? If so, how?
My business, like many others around the country, has been hit the hardest wherein not only have we been impacted by covid but there is also uncertainty in the future with prolonged effects felt during the recovery period. There is a flow on effect, where revenue is impacted as a result of other businesses being squeezed, due to the fact that a majority of my client base are business owners with small to medium sized businesses.
Q: What are some of your coping strategies that you put in place for yourself during the pandemic?
Improving my value proposition and understanding “why I do what I do” and “why I’m in business” is the cornerstone of any coping strategy for myself and my business. The ability to diversify, pivot and develop other opportunities for growth is important as we navigate through these times looking forward into the business future. The pandemic has made me stop and take a long hard look at my business operation, whilst providing an opportunity for me to explore digital technology offerings and ways to diversify my business capabilities.
Q: What’s been your biggest learning this year on the leadership front?
Courage has been a key learning to great leadership, looking at it from a small business owner perspective but equally applicable to larger scale businesses. Leadership is such that it takes courage to make the bold decisions and often the unpopular decisions. The courage to place confidence in your own abilities and that of others, trusting the direction you are taking and not being afraid of change. True leadership is also the ability to earn the loyalty and trust of the people that you lead.
Q: Within your role, what are you most excited about achieving in the next quarter before summer break?
As we notice a drop in alert levels throughout the country, I am excited to implement some new business strategies and innovations that could benefit the needs of my clients moving forward or whether further tinkering is needed.
The advantage of owning my own business is that I can tailor it to suit my needs and that of my clients. Nevertheless, it has definitely been a busy year and a challenging one to say the least, so I am also looking forward to spending some very much needed down time with whānau and friends and do some site seeing around Aotearoa.
