ServiceNow NZ country manager Kate Tulp.
Business leaders have a lot on their plates with global economic growth slowing sharply as more countries slip into recession.
Inflation pressures are proving broader and more persistent than anticipated, forcing central banks to raise interest rates much more aggressively.
Trade disruption from the war in Ukraine and continuing supply chain issues aren’t helping matters while increasing regulation and compliance is adding more burden to businesses.
But if there’s one thing keeping CEOs up at night right now it’s the acute labour shortages gripping almost every industry in this country and abroad.
The recent Herald Mood of the Boardroom survey showed skills and labour shortages as the biggest single domestic concern when CEOs were asked to rate issues affecting confidence.
“We’ve all been talking about the war for talent for years. The slow-moving crisis has now hit us with full force and finding the people to keep your business running has become an urgent and daily activity for many leaders,” says ServiceNow NZ country manager Kate Tulp when asked to comment on the 2022 CEO of the Year finalists for the Deloitte top 200 Awards.
Spark’s Jolie Hodson, Fletcher Building’s Ross Taylor and Vulcan Steel’s Rhys Jones have been named as finalists in the category.
Tulp says with everything that’s happened in the past few years, the strategies, and priorities to successfully run a business have changed.
“Leaders need to have a flexible vision for their organisation. You need to be able to confidently flex the organisation at speed and have the technology, systems, and processes that let you adapt quickly.
“This requires more focus on the five-year plan, and the workforce you will need to execute that plan.
“In the meantime, the organisations who are embracing more automation will be the winners – they will have kept themselves in motion while building a more competitive and scalable operation for future years.”
Tulp cites the Department of Corrections as a good example. The organisation has automated a lot of administrative work and reduced the time taken to execute payroll tasks by more than 50 per cent.
“The priority should be looking at ways to make employees as productive as possible, by reducing repetitive work and admin, and streamlining the multiple steps and processes that make work more time-consuming than it needs to be.
“For example, NZTE has transformed its employees’ experience by digitising processes around hiring, switching teams, approving leave, onboarding contractors and when staff leave. This has automated several steps, enabled easier access to key information, and improved tracking and measurement. As a result, employee satisfaction increased by 53 per cent.”
Workplaces are becoming increasingly complex. So how do good CEOs deal with labour force changes, immigration issues and increasing demand for work/life balance?
Tulp says good communication is essential.
“CEOs who really deliver for their businesses are able to communicate clearly with a wide range of people, on priorities, opportunities, and potential challenges. Effective CEOs need to communicate information about operations and change in a way that makes sense to the whole team and that takes people on the journey with them.
“Good CEOs have shown they’re able to brief everyone from the suppliers they want to engage with to the stakeholders they know they’re going to need to collaborate with to help solve complex issues.
“We’re facing new problems we’ve never had to solve before and Kiwi businesses will need to work together to fix them.
“We’re facing unprecedented supply chain challenges and issues around exports and cybersecurity - this has created a trend for organisations who wouldn’t traditionally collaborate, to come together to discuss how best to solve problems. These processes don’t just allow businesses to keep moving forward, but it also supports the communities that rely on these businesses.”
One question the Herald is exploring in a new series is how do we rebuild better following the Covid crisis.
It’s a question CEOs are mindful of as they try to insulate their organisations from future shocks.
Tulp says radical organisational change is dangerous and prone to dramatic failure if the people and processes aren’t ready to absorb the volume and pace of change.
“Ensuring that you’re ‘fighting fit’ first is critical,” she adds.
“There are so many factors to take into account when you’re starting digital transformation, particularly being conscious of the market that you’re operating in and what that future might look like. Business models are being disrupted faster than ever, new competition is emerging all the time, and the best businesses need to adapt and change to respond to new challenges.”
With this in mind, Tulp has three things CEOs must do to get on top of the business and thrive:
1. Succession: Knowing the key roles and people in your organisation, who would make the business lose momentum and struggle if they left. Closely followed by what’s your plan to retain or replace them, if needed. CEOs will need to be prepared to go to remuneration levels and options that they haven’t had to consider before if they want the organisation to remain strong through the next three years.
2. Agility: The constant change has made many CEOs realise it’s important to be flexible and to equip teams with the ability to weather multiple storms at the same time. This includes implementing technology for flexible and safe off-site working, simplifying systems and processes your customers have to navigate, and providing ways to connect teams and functions at pace.
3. Governance: CEOs need to prioritise good governance, particularly around data, privacy, and cyber security. Today, trust equals loyalty. Getting the basics right can be the most challenging task, especially when there are significant skills shortages in this area.
The Deloitte Top 200 Awards were established in 1990 and are held annually to recognise and applaud outstanding individual and management team performances among New Zealand’s largest companies and trading organisations.
Last year’s winner of the CEO award was David Mair of Skellerup.
Click here for a full list of finalists.
All the Deloitte Top 200 winners will be revealed at a gala event on December 8.
CEO of the Year finalists – Sponsored by ServiceNow
Zespri must sell 190 million trays of kiwifruit from record crop.