Carey Smith and Ray White NZ featured on TVNZ Breakfast , Newstalk ZB and NBR NZ Property Investor. The stories were also syndicated widely to other media.

Nadine Chalmers-Ross (TVNZ business and breakfast reporter) interviewed Carey about where the Real Estate is at currently including trends for buyers and sellers, stock levels and “time on market.”

October 2012 has proved the strongest month in the real estate market since the global financial crisis, at least for one major real estate group.

Figures collected today show the Ray White Group recorded sales up 29 per cent on October last year and matched the turnover high unseen since March 2007: $500 million.

The network of 135 offices finalised 1,216 sales, 21 per cent more than the previous month and the greatest number of transactions since November 2007.

The Auckland market in particular has shown a considerable increase, with double the sales recorded in 2012 against the same period in 2011.

I was invited to facililitate a half day session at the Stakeholder Communication and Community Engagement Forum 2012 earlier this year.

There was an impressive line-up of companies attenting the conference on the 24-26th July including :

Chorus, Massey University ,JFC Limited, Ministry for Primary Industries, Auckland Waterfront Development Agency Limited, IAG New Zealand Limited, New Zealand Petroleum & Minerals, BPNZ, The Warehouse Ltd, New Zealand Defence Force, New Zealand Army, New Zealand Defence Force, Auckland Waterfront Development Agency Limited, Christchurch City Council International Association for Public Participation, Auckland Waterfront Development Agency Limited ,Kate Irvine Consulting Limited, NorthTec ,JFC Limited , Fulton Hogan, Sovereign, Westpac, Origin Energy, New Zealand Vodafone, The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand ,New Zealand Petroleum & Minerals, Hawkins, Counties Manukau, District Health Board NZ ,Transport Agency, AUT University, New Zealand Steel.

My topic on the third day at the half day workshop was: Communication Strategies and New Media

What are some essential skills that are necessary for effective stakeholder communication and engagement professionals?

The challenge of communicating clearly is ever present for companies both internally and externally. As individuals are becoming increasingly overwhelmed with information, flexibility and collaboration in communication is required. Social media is already an engagement rather than a broadcasting tool, and an important part of the arsenal for communication, however good old fashioned one to one communication and the power of “traditional media cannot be ignored.

This session covered:

• Selecting and synchronizing appropriate communication tools
• How to effectively utilize and monitor social media
• Why “Traditional media” and one to one communication are still vital
• Effective online communication
• Case studies illustrating the above

My Own Learnings

One of my main learnings in interacting with participants (many of whome were in companies that could potentially become targets online for “issues” and negative opinion and digital chatter) was that many companies, senior and middle management within them are very cautious and were looking for a “safe system” of putting their “toe in the water” without exposing themselves to unneccesary risk. This made sense to me. There are after all ways of reducing risk while engaging online. I did however also gather that they were open to using digital tools to build relationships with stakeholders and also gather a support netowrk of new ones around them. I sensed a genuine willingness to take teh next steps.

As an Aside

I enjoyed my session and it was rated “very good” with scores in either the”Excellent” or “Very Good” categories by the audience in attendance. Claudia Lo from Liquid Learning , who invited me , was professional , very well organised and also recommended me on Linkedin . Thanks Claudia. My only negative comment for the day was that Sky City as a venue was let down by their “Very Poor” internet connection – especially given the topic. Fortunately I had back-up plans but the conference centre let itself down in that respect.

Campaign Overview

Space Studio is an award winning New Zealand design and procurement firm. Director, Vee Kesner, has over 20 years of both national and international experience. Their projects range from the Intercontinental Golf Resort and Spa Hotel in Fiji, to the new Whanau Ora Maori Health Centre inHenderson. Their work is based in New Zealand and overseas.

They have completed work overseas in high-profile hotels and in the refurbishment sector. Retail stores throughout New Zealand have also benefited from Space Studio’s expertise, with both Bendon and 3 Wise Men outlets winning interior design awards.

Kesner originally approached Alexander Communications director, Dwayne Alexander, about the possibility of sharing some of the high quality projects with key interested markets . Dwayne worked with Vee to build a strong platform of media interviews by developing credentials and helping to get Space Studio’s story published.

Throughout the recession, Space Studio enjoyed substantial growth through local New Zealand projects and a strong presence in the overseas market. This was complemented by great media coverage in both industry and business publications, as well as in the New Zealand Herald and on TV.

Results

The media coverage generated for Space Studio helped to achieve new business opportunities and enhanced the overall awareness of the high quality projects completed by the business.

Media coverage was across a number of channels and helped to raise awareness of the overseas projects Space Studio was involved in such as the Grand Papua Hotel and Windward Apartments in Papua New Guinea.

Space Studio has had widespread coverage in a number of publications. As well as print coverage, Vee Kesner was also interviewed on television by Corin Dann as part of the TVNZ NZI Business programme. The footage of this interview can be found here. 

As evident from the comprehensive ‘In the Media’ page on the Space Studio website, the published coverage has been offset by high quality images of the work they have completed and of Vee herself. Through this exposure, quality business leads were generated and the profile of Space Studio was lifted.

Along with other valuable media coverage, Space Studio had front page coverage in the NZ Construction News as well as significant articles in Idealog and Interior magazines.

Social media evangelist Jon Leland, one of the keynote speakers at the Lowndes Associates’ second Business Intelligence Series workshop for 2011, featured on TVOne’s AMP Business this week.

Lowndes Associates have been running their Business Intelligence Series workshops for over nine years, with the latest focusing on the importance of social media for businesses. The workshop took place at the Telecom Conference Centre on 25 August with more than 130 senior business people in attendance

During the AMP Business interview, Jon highlighted the practical relevance of social media to businesses and the opportunities offered by social media, as well as the risks of failure to engage with it. Jon emphasised that in not engaging, businesses risk being left in the dust.

Duncan Shand, from digital marketing agency Young and Shand, also appeared in the interview and shared his insights into the benefits of social media.

Click here to view the full interview.

Youdrive featured on the front page of the Eastern Courier this week. The article, ‘On course for learners’, was also published online and includes a video about the Youdrive programme.

Youdrive is a new road safety and driver education programme that is being offered to secondary school students throughout New Zealand. Kevin Wall, the founder of Youdrive, identified a gap in the market for delivering driver education and training to young people and saw opportunity to work with schools to develop a programme that would deliver positive outcomes. Students from Edgewater College, which was chosen as the pilot school for the scheme, have responded positively to the programme and what it offers. The course is delivered on-site at the school and is also NZQA approved which means it can be taught through high schools as part of the NCEA curriculum.

On completion of the Youdrive programme, students will have obtained higher order driving skills and road safety education. They will also leave school with a practical life skill that will open up a whole range of opportunities for them in the future.

Click here to read the full article and to watch the Youdrive education video.

Minnie Baragwanath, the chief executive of Be. Institute, features in the September issue of MiNDFOOD magazine where she talks about a new initiative that is making New Zealand a more accessible place for those with a disability.

In a step towards highlighting disability issues and enabling a 100% accessible society, Minnie Baragwanath founded Be. Institute, a social change enterprise that is that is making a difference in the lives of disabled Kiwis throughout New Zealand.

Ms Baragwanath, who is legally blind herself, acknowledges that New Zealanders are by nature inclusive and socially aware, “we are seeking to build on this through specific practices in our program. Our view is that if we get our country working right for disabled people, we get it right for all people”.

Click here to read te full article in the MiNDFOOD September issue.

Campaign Overview

A new social change enterprise, Be. Institute, was launched at the Auckland War Memorial Museum on 6 May 2011.

Three innovative national campaigns were introduced on the evening: Be. Accessible, Be. Leadership and Be. Welcome. All three are highly significant for New Zealand. Be. Accessible is the country’s first nationwide accessibility programme, and Be. Leadership, New Zealand’s first national disability leadership programme. Be. Welcome is a unique location accessibility assessment programme.

Be. Institute aims to inspire and enable a 100% accessible society for all New Zealanders. The driving force behind the programmes is to improve the accessibility of the physical environment, enable better access to information, promote the inclusion and leadership of disabled people in employment and the community, and change social attitudes and behaviours.

Alexander Communications was briefed to assist with building the profile of Be. Institute and raising awareness of the three programmes and the recent Be. On The Road national tour.

In June, Be. Accessible launched a nationwide tour, Be. On The Road. The three-week roadshow visited the 12 Rugby World Cup host cities to introduce the Be. vision and accompanying programmes, and to discuss the current and future accessibility of each city.

Results

The Be. On The Road tour received a warm welcome from each host city and the Be. team met with passionate advocates who shared and supported the Be. vision.

The news of Be. On The Road caught the attention of local media, which were curious to learn more about the Be. Institute and supporting programmes. Reporters attended the presentations, and face-to-face interviews with Be. Accessible chief executive Minnie Baragwanath were secured.

The regional publications supported the campaign by including stories about Be. Accessible visiting their city to address local accessibility. Articles were featured in the Taranaki Daily News, Southland Express, Manawatu Guardian, Nelson Mail, Waikato Times, Northern Advocate and Manawatu Standard among others.

Local radio stations and television also showed excellent interest in the campaign and several interviews with Minnie Baragwanath were secured. The news of Be. On The Road and the accessible campervan featured on Dunedin’s 9 Local News, and interviews with Ms Baragwanath were broadcast on The Breeze Manawatu, Newstalk ZB New Plymouth, More FM Rotorua and Classic Hits Whangarei.

Most recently, Next Magazine featured Minnie Baragwanath as the Change Maker personality in its August 2011 issue. The full-page spread includes a Q&A session with Ms Baragwanath and references the Be. Institute and its founding origins. In positioning Ms Baragwanath as an industry leader, the article also discussed why a social change enterprise such as the Be. Institute is necessary for our community.

Earlier in the year Simon Collins from the New Zealand Herald sat down with Tony Howe of the Disability Resource Centre. They discussed Be. Accessible and the vision of the campaign for a story which featured in the New Zealand Herald metro section.

To find out more about the Be. Institute and the supporting programmes, visit www.beaccessible.org.nz

Ted Jordan, the chief executive of leading software company ActionStep, was interviewed by New Zealand Herald reporter Hamish Fletcher this week to discuss the phenomenon of ‘cloud computing’.

Jordan describes cloud computing as a technology that enables companies to source computer software and services from an off-site or even offshore provider. With cloud computing, companies no longer have to install a suite of software onto individual PC’s, instead users only need access to the internet where they can log into a web-based service which hosts all the programmes they require for their job. This means companies need only pay for the software their staff actually use – a major benefit for small business that are struggling to stay afloat.

Despite the success and popularity of cloud computing overseas, Jordan explains that many New Zealand businesses are unaware of the IT model and its benefits. Of the 250 small-to-medium businesses asked about cloud computing, 70 percent do not use or are unaware of “the cloud” services. Jordan says that the results are surprising considering the advantages that the cloud provides, “You’d think businesses would be looking for anything that could make their lives easier…they are missing out on straightforward ways to grow productivity and profitability, which are challenges for Kiwi companies at the best of times”.

Click here to read the full article and learn more about cloud computing.

Waikato Times reporter, Louise Risk, met with Minnie Baragwanath, chief executive of Be. Institute who was in Hamilton this week hosting a nationwide campaign Be. Accessible.

Be. Accessible is part of a social change enterprise that aims to inspire and enable a 100% accessible society for all New Zealanders. The driving force behind the campaign is to improve the accessibility of the physical environment, enable better access to information, promote the inclusion and leadership of disabled people in the community, and change social attitudes and behaviours within the community.

As part of the campaign, Be. Accessible recently embarked on a nationwide tour, Be. On The Road, with the ‘accessible’ campervan which visited 12 cities around New Zealand, including the 11 Rugby World Cup host cities. The Be. Accessible team held an informative seminar in each city to introduce the Be. vision and to identify what is and isn’t working access-wise, so that changes can eventually be implemented. 

Ms Baragwanath said the data that was gathered from the seminars is extremely important as being aware of existing issues is half the battle, “If we know the details we can work around them. Not knowing is the biggest problem”.

Click here to read the full article.

Ginger Group, a leading support services company for financial services organizations and advisers, has recently appointed a new industry professional to its team.

Leighton Langley joins Ginger Group as the new National Sales and Distribution Manager from a role at Sovereign, where he was credited for the creation and growth of Sovereign’s aligned distribution channel, Sovent.

Mr Langley brings with him more than 30 years’ experience in all facets of financial adviser sales and development business. He has worked in a variety of distribution models and complementary management roles and as a result, has a comprehensive understanding of exactly what advisers seek and need.

David Whyte, CEO of Ginger Group praises Mr Langley as great asset to the team and says, “He is driven by a desire to help advisers operate productively and fruitfully as they grow their own businesses, which accords with Ginger Group’s goals.”

Mr Langley’s new role will involve assisting advisers to adjust their businesses and services to the new regulatory environment. He says, “I welcome the new regulations and believe they present tremendous opportunities for forward-thinking practitioners. Helping to foment all this will be part of my work with Ginger Group.”

Find about more about Mr Langley’s appointment on goodreturns.co.nz and btob.co.nz.