Canterbury Business Association (CBA) founder and CEO Taz Mukorombindo talked about it as "riding the third wave of migration" - something with which he is familiar, as a leader in migrant mentoring, job placement and other business support services that bring together migrants and established companies.
Taz's work with the CBA, which he founded as a student in 2007, can serve as an example to all businesses seeking to grow in 2015 and beyond: 'Big Change Starts Small' can mean evolving how you define both your target customer and your ideal employee.
2. Do something good for your company and community. Your community may be literally the people who live in your company's surrounding physical area - but can also include staff and their families and others with a stake in the company, such as suppliers, customers and investors.
In the case of the largest shopping centre in Tauranga, Bayfair, big change started small in 2003, when centre manager Steve Ellingford and his team embarked on what is surely the most ambitious sustainability programme ever undertaken by a regional New Zealand shopping centre.
After employing advanced techniques in waste management, greywater and rainwater harvesting, retrofitting LED lighting and undertaking numerous other initiatives, Bayfair drastically reduced its environmental footprint and expenditure. The lighting upgrade alone reduced energy consumption by 62 per cent, with an estimated saving of around $100,000 per annum (including all 2,500kg of redundant fittings being diverted from landfill through recycling).
Importantly, Bayfair continuously reached out to the Tauranga community, encouraging all shoppers and residents to take their share of the credit for the centre's national leadership in this area. They made it clear that when you visit Bayfair, you're making a positive contribution that goes far beyond retail.
3. Reach out to the experts. New Zealand is full of passionate people who are vastly experienced in driving social change. Take Minnie Baragwanath, the CEO of the social enterprise Be. Institute, which operates a series of initiatives directed at creating a fully accessible New Zealand that is as inclusive as it is diverse.
Recently, Minnie and her team inspired big change by announcing a Fab 50 Network of Kiwi business and social leaders who are promoting accessibility in their own organisations and networks.
I was honoured to be asked to join the likes of the aforementioned Steve Ellingford and senior leaders including ATEED CEO Brett O'Riley, ACC chair Paula Rebstock and CEO Scott Pickering, AUT University rehabilitation professor Kathryn McPherson, World Vision New Zealand's Tara Pradhan and Auckland deputy mayor Penny Hulse.
My inclusion in this group allows me to learn from the best and share my company's experience of expanding our service and mission to more New Zealanders than ever before. Look for similar opportunities to network and brainstorm for the benefit of your own organisation and its social evolution.
4. Make it an evolution, not a revolution. This is a fancy way of saying that any big change you implement must be a logical next step for your business.
Cottonsoft, the toilet tissue and paper towel manufacturer, generated chuckles with its Christmas-themed and celebrity-filled 'I Give a Crap' video, the heart of a viral campaign in support of Beat Bowel Cancer Aotearoa. That the company, as a toilet paper producer, would back the mission to conquer bowel cancer makes sense - but even more compelling is the personal story of Cottonsoft's CEO, who lost his father to the disease.
Whatever change or CSR initiative you implement, don't be afraid to start small: this gives you the opportunity to galvanise support among your staff and customers and help everyone understand how they can play a part.
5. Find partners to help you realise big ambitions. A great example of a symbiotic relationship bringing about change is that of Be. Employed and ACC, which together created an internship programme to promote accessibility in the workplace. In the case of ACC, it shows what benefits an organisation can derive from a willingness to change and an open-minded approach to inclusivity and diversity.
For all New Zealand business leaders, it opens up a new pool of talent that can be tapped into by companies prepared to make changes to improve their own accessibility. If change can help you attract more customers and even better employees, why wouldn't you go for it?
6. Bring your staff along for the ride. This is crucial - your staff are the people who drive your enterprise, and your job is to help them believe in and support any change you make. In the case of AIA, we have used our long-time sponsorship of TV series AIA Marae DIY to get our people involved with communities around New Zealand.
Myself and dozens of members of the AIA team have mucked in on multiple four-day marae renovations over the past several years, and this season we have people going to help out on all seven marae, from Hokianga to Kaikoura.
As change goes, for the iwi, whanau and their communities to see us there helping out is huge - it sends the message that our company is for all Kiwis. At the same time, our people are reminded of the real-life value of their work. (Keep an eye out for AIA Marae DIY, screening this year on TV3!)
As Race Relations Commissioner Dame Susan Devoy says, "Positive race relations don't just live in a document at the United Nations, they must live in our communities, suburbs and lives." On this Race Relations Day, take a little time to consider the many benefits your company and its people may reap by starting small.
Wayne Besant is the CEO of AIA New Zealand, part of the AIA Group, and a member of Be. Accessible's Fab 50 Network.
