October 2014: Employment – Trial period on trial
Ashleigh Nelson highlights the importance of knowing and understanding the strict interpretation of 90-day trial periods. Ninety-day...
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Opinion
121 Articles
Marketing Maestro – Maori wisdom and marketing
When it comes to finding, building and nurturing relationships with customers and potential customers, Brian H Meredith reminds us...
Franchise File – The dangers of do-it-yourself
The dangers of do-it-yourself Franchising can be a great way to grow your business – but, asks Simon Lord, how do you set up...
Customer Excellence
The essentials of great customer care I have been writing this Customer Excellence column for eight years and I am...
Business Employment Matters
How to handle a bully Ashleigh Nelson reviews the new guidelines on workplace bullying recently released by WorkSafe NZ. Along...
Export report
Epic export adviceThe 2014 Go Global conference is a unique opportunity to tap into a large pool of export knowledge. Catherine Beard has...
Marketing Maestro
Build it and they will come. Or will they?Marketers are failing to assume leadership roles within commercial enterprises, which leads to...
Employment Matters
The unexpected costs of trying to buy a resignationBrandon Brown uses a case law example to examine the issue of “without...
Export Report: If you’re going to San Francisco
San Francisco, home of the Kiwi Landing Pad, is an ideal staging post for New Zealand tech firms into the US market. Catherine Beard offers...
Employment Matters
Managing the holiday break Ani Bennett provides some useful advice on how to help your employees switch off these holidays. Holidays offer...
On Accounts
To trust or not to trustDebbie Haddon examines the background to Trusts and highlights their obligations and responsibilities. Are they...
Employment Matters
Employee pinged $50k for flagrant disloyaltyBrandon Brown uses a recent ERA case to highlight how disloyal employees can breach their...
‘Aluminium porn’ demand outstrips supply
Catherine Beard discovers an export business built on good old-fashioned Kiwi pride and workmanship.In true Kiwi innovative style, Surtees...
Franchise file
Helping people help themselvesFranchising is too important to the economy to be damaged by legislative tinkering, says Simon Lord. So how...
Customer Excellence
A little Turkish delight On Turkey’s Old Silk Road Dr Ian Brooks is reminded of three age-old lessons on customer service and sales....
Issues with Balls
Poor decisions at the top Government involvement in business in this country is sending some very strange messages, says Ashley Balls.The...
Managing your Brand is everything
Brian H Meredith offers a five-point checklist on Brands and the way in which business owners must manage them.When we get up in the...
Employment Matters
The case for SkypeMatthew Dearing reminds business owners that caution should be exercised when using Skype in employment disputes....
On Accounts
Time for a business health checkFor the majority of business owners, April 1st is the beginning of the new financial year and it’s a...
Export report
High performance exportsWhere is the growth coming from in the export sector? Catherine Beard has been tracking the numbers.Exports have...
Prepare to meet thy doom?
Does online shopping mean the end for retail? Simon Lord explains why today franchises face particular challenges.Traditionally, one of the...
Customer Excellence
New thinking for the New Year A New Year requires new thinking about how you interact with your customers. Dr Ian Brooks offers a powerful...
Marketing Maestro
Small business gets it; big business doesn’tIt’s New Zealand’s smaller businesses that lead the way when it comes to...
Employment Matters
Erin Burke considers some of the cases where employers have successfully taken action to address absenteeism problems. The minimum...
Export Report
Catherine Beard reports on why the sky’s the limit for tech start-up exporter WhosOnLocation. While in San Francisco recently I...
Franchise File
Franchisors need to be prepared to defend their brand against one-sided media, says Simon Lord.If I run a headline on my website that reads...
Employment Matters
Great CV? Check the ‘netprint’!Going online can be extremely useful for pre-employment checks.Erin Burke takes you through the...
Don’t buy a lemon
Michelle Malcolm explains the importance of a thorough due diligence process when buying a business. Recently I was approached by an...
Ask, listen and learn
Your staff may be good at answering customer questions, but if they don’t ask questions, they’re just order-takers. Dr Ian...
Budgets and bottom lines
A lack of budgeting is often a likely contributor to business failures. Paul Moodie outlines what every good budget should have.Alarming...