Changing Gears is the essential guide to growing your Kiwi business. Rooted in the success stories of real New Zealand companies, the book explains in plain language the key business principles that will enable you to drive growth, profitability and market penetration. Easy to read and illustrated throughout with diagrams and exercises, Changing Gears encourages readers to apply the insights to their own enterprises. Changing Gears gives Kiwi business owners and managers answers to their most critical questions: How do you identify business models and financial drivers? How do you become a leader who can see the future for your business? How do you build a team, share information, and delegate effectively so that you are not waking up at 3am? How do you develop resilience so that you can get things done without burning out? And how do you weigh options for the future of the business and pursue growth opportunities to scale up your company? This book celebrates the vision, determination, and tenacity of New Zealand's owner-managers and gives them the tools to do their business better. From start-up entrepreneurs to established family businesses, from farms to factories, Changing Gears provides New Zealand owner-managers with the keys to growth. Drawing on their own business careers, international research and experience coaching owner-managers in the successful ICEHOUSE programme, the authors have developed this essential guide to leading and growing a business in New Zealand.
Table of Contents
Prologue -- Introduction: Paying your own wages -- 1 Making money today: Your business profile -- 2 Being at the top: Lead, follow or get out of the way -- 3 Management matters: It's people, people, people (and systems, finance, marketing, operations, etc) -- 4 Keep on going, you'll be dead soon: Staying alive and healthy in your business -- 5 Where to go; how to grow: Your way forward -- 6 Where to go when you don't know: Perspective, advice and wisdom -- Conclusion: We're on your side.
Author Biography
David Irving, Darl Kolb, Debbie Shepherd and Christine Woods come from extensive business backgrounds and are now based in the Business School of The University of Auckland, where they coach owner/managers in the very successful ICEHOUSE, a collaborative learning environment and growth centre for New Zealand businesses.
