Speed Interview

Tenby Powell is an entrepreneur, director and the driving force behind the New Zealand SME Business Network.

He fields 10 questions in 10 minutes and his time starts… now.

Q1: What makes you think the SME Business Network can succeed in giving business owners a voice, considering previous attempts by other parties?
TP: The NZ SME Business Network is exactly that – a New Zealand-wide ‘Network-of-Influence’ designed to give small business owners a voice; one that they have not had before. It is not another fragmented group seeking funding or fees. We are doing this pro-bono because we believe in it and believe in the country’s future. Small business growth can positively change New Zealand economically and socially – but, ultimately, it needs to be centrally managed with active Government intervention. For this to occur Government needs to hear from engaged small business owners seeking positive change; this network provides exactly that. 
We have had successes in growing small businesses into large ones – in particular, PC Direct and Hirepool – and, together with other successful entrepreneurs, we want to share this experience at a strategic level for small business owners.
Our advocacy is fundamentally about nurturing the old ‘Kiwi No 8 fencing wire’ attitude through a transformation that will see recognition and acceptance of the significant positive impact that entrepreneurs could have on our economy. There is considerable overseas evidence that SMEs can make an impacting difference to a country’s economy.  

Q2: Why now? Has the recession had anything to do with the timing of the Network? Or is it more about the new social media technologies?
TP: Sharon and I first talked about what we can do to support SME growth early last year. Yes it had a lot to do with the recession.
We felt that Government needed encouragement to take a greater interest in small business at an earlier stage, given that 97 percent of all New Zealand businesses are SMEs, employing 19 or fewer people, and yet accounting for 38.6 percent of New Zealand’s total economic output (on a value-added basis) and employing 31 percent of the workforce. And the Honourable John Banks, Minister for Small Business, has indeed taken an active interest.
As for the black art of social media – it turns out that it is a bright, white spotlight that illuminates a virtual podium from which small business owners can speak with a clear and resounding voice. And they do! After only eight months we have over 1300 members. We’ve proved that through the effective use of social media platforms, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, even micro-companies can be reached and, importantly, be given a voice via discussion threads.

Q3: What’s your ultimate goal on numbers, and how are you going to include the large number of business owners who don’t engage with social media?
TP: We’ve set a goal of reaching 10,000 owner/managers in two years – which, in true entrepreneurial style, will be a challenge. Knowledge about the importance of social media in businesses of all sizes is spreading rapidly; it will become the norm one day. In the interim, we’re engaging with traditional media sources and delivering a number of speeches to professional and special interest groups.

Q4: You and Sharon are obviously passionate about helping other business owners – why do we not give our SMB sector enough support in this country?
TP: Yes, we want to see small business owners grow and succeed en masse given the positive macroeconomic, and therefore social, impact this will have for New Zealand. To be fair, successive Governments have attempted to support small business with varying degrees of success. However, this is a new era, potentially with a new economic baseline. Old templated solutions will no longer work; we need a new strategy that engages with New Zealand’s SME owner/managers.  

Q5: What sort of feedback are you getting? Have there been any great stories come out of the Network so far?
TP: The feedback has been overwhelming. It seems an idea and its time have arrived together. Many group members actively engage in the discussion threads and their contribution is mostly intelligent, insightful and, at times, innovative. 
A by-product of this group for small business owners is education. It’s like being a member of an online graduate business school. Many members have expertise in certain functional areas which they share freely. Similarly, many have access to information and resources that would otherwise not be available to many small business owners. In time I can see ‘practical education’ becoming a significant part of the Groups’ activities.       
 
Q6: Apart from the Network, what other business projects are you engaged in?
TP: In October 2011, we invested in a start-up called Envoy360, a maritime security company, headquartered in Dubai, specialising in embarked maritime security, offshore security for the oil and gas industry and security consultancy and training. Fundamentally, we provide a service to protect our clients’ employees, their assets and their brand from piracy in the world’s high-risk maritime zones. 
Our business partners are all New Zealanders with extensive commercial experience in private security and risk management, including Tier One Special Forces experience. We are the only maritime security company to offer a Business Continuity Guarantee based on the premise ‘Safe Passage; Zero Harm’.

Q7: What are your thoughts on how the country is being steered economically right now?
TP: This is a very difficult time in the world’s economic history and we believe that Government is doing a good job amidst significant global and domestic pressure. However, we believe there are other options available to Government, some of which involve small business growth.    
Our view is that the recession may be the new normal. If this is the case, we need a new plan. We live in an era where discovery is the new currency and the success with which nations can foster the climate for innovation will determine their future prosperity. New Zealand is no different. We just need to be world-class at backing ourselves. The bottom line – literally – is that we need to significantly increase the execution of commercially viable ideas. 
Austerity measures are a stop-gap tactic; certainly not a strategic growth plan. New Zealand must plan to grow economically. Living in the trenches is psychologically destructive and bad for morale. We have the opportunity to climb out and start lifting our innovative capacity and increasing our business sophistication.
Q8: What was the best piece of business advice you ever received?
TP: The best advice I ever got on any subject was from Sergeant Musky Hadden on Basic Training (Army) in 1983. During a Battle Fitness Test he overheard me bitching and moaning as we jogged up a hill with packs on. He said, “Powell – lean into the hill and let the hill do the work.” Half the platoon fell about in fits of laughter and we all got the point: “when the going gets tough, the tough get going.”
Translated into a business application, the vast majority of strategy fails due to poor execution. While planning is very important, I’d rather have an average plan and a team of executional experts than vice-versa.            

Q9: What question would you like to put to the current Minister for Small Business?
TP: Will you consider meeting with Dato’ Hafsah Hashim, CEO of the National SME Corporation of Malaysia, to learn how they lifted Malaysian SME performance into double growth figures?
If it can work administratively for a population of 30 million, surely it can work here.
Some will argue that a larger population equates to larger markets and therefore larger sales volumes. And proximity to wider Asian markets with lower labour costs enables greater competitive advantage.
The fact is that we live here in New Zealand. We need to maximise our competitive advantage by creating a better, more competitive, environment for SME development. Easing the way for owner/managers to grow and create economic value by eliminating the impediments to growth must surely rank highly on the Minister’s agenda.   

Q10: Looking back over your extensive business career – what has been the biggest standout moment?
TP: Without doubt, leading the Hirepool growth strategy as CEO of New Zealand Rental Group. I was privileged to lead a team of intelligent and pragmatic industry specialists who executed a strategy that saw Hirepool grow from 14 branches and 72 staff to a nationwide network of 86 business units and 515 staff.