New Zealand Leaders develops pathways for business success

New Zealand Leaders is driving support for the country's business leaders to new levels as it begins its first programme in 2015.

“We have developed a programme to support the owners and managers of ambitious growth companies in a structure similar to an investment banking platform,” New Zealand Leaders founder and executive director Ben Marris said. The focus is to support established mid-sized businesses access the knowledge, networks and equity to fast-track their ambitions.  

The Leaders Series is based on the successful model that has been operating in Queensland for the past ten years. It is now in Melbourne and Sydney and is due to start in Perth and Adelaide next year. 

One of its strengths is the foundation of collaboration built into the model. A number of New Zealand’s leading 'expert organisations', including a mix of Government, academic and commercial businesses, come together to share insights, provide expert advice and connect members to opportunities.

This includes ASB, AUT Business School, Crowe Horwath, Spark Digital, Crombie Lockwood, Forsyth Barr, NZTE, Callaghan Innovation, Institute of Management New Zealand, Maurice Trapp Group, Claymore Law, The CFO Centre, HR Shop, Ocean Design Group and Creditworks.

Members not only get to benefit from the support and insight of these experts, they also get to work with a number of founders and leaders of similar mid-sized businesses from a variety of industries – 90 percent of whom trade internationally.

NZBusiness magazine is an industry partner to NZ Leaders as part of its ongoing commitment to business owner managers in New Zealand.

Marris says the entire Leaders network was benefitting from the innovation and new potential markets that came with careful expansion. A key part of this is providing established networks in other markets which New Zealand companies can access as they look to expand to Australia and beyond.

The organisation is also underpinned technologically by a versatile and rapidly developing online Leaders Resource Centre. Apart from the online communication and networking capabilities of the system, its expanding information resource – in a mix of video, text and special report presentations – was proving to be a boon for members and partners alike. Special offers for products and services among members are also introduced through the Leaders Resource Centre.

“This platform is interconnected, so its content develops and becomes even more useful to the network as Leaders expands,” Marris says.

New Zealand Leaders is supported an Advisory Board of Marris, Peter McClure, Brett O’Riley, Michelle van Gaalen and Michael Ahie.