Mood of the Boardroom: Kim Campbell- Most of us are doing well

Kim Campbell, chief executive, Employment & Manufacturers Association. Photo/ supplied

KEY POINTS:

• We talked to Kim Cambell of the EMA

Has the corporate outlook (or outlook for your organisation) improved and if so what are your growth and investment plans?Campbell says the corporate outlook has not improved but it also hasn't got any worse.

"If I look across the sectors we cover, with the notable exceptable of dairy farmers, everybody is doing well."

He says the fall in the New Zealand dollar had seen an almost instantaneous trade response and businesses that were marginal were now profitable. While the dairy sector was down, other sectors were flourishing. Whether that was enough to fill the down-turn in dairy was unknown but businesses were a lot more resilient than they used to be, he said.

The EMA itself had experienced a "ripper of a year". Membership was going well and it was building a new $20 million head office which would open in February.

What is the disruptive technology you fear most, how will you beat it and name the three other biggest challenges and opportunities?
"I don't like the term disruptive technology. We have always seen technology as an enabler which benefits those that embrace it and is a challenge for those who don't."

Campbell said new technology meant that a whole lot of entry level jobs no longer existed and that was part of the reason for higher levels of youth unemployment. "What is important is we continue to up-skill. Disruption requires higher levels of skill and education."

One of the biggest opportunities for New Zealand's manufacturing sector was 3D printing. "3D printing is transforming manufacturing. But it is also very challenging to older poorly invested manufacturers."

That was where job losses were coming from as businesses failed to keep up and were superseded by others.

Manufacturers were also now having to compete as part of a global supply chain. While that was a challenge for small businesses those that tapped into it got access to large numbers of customers, he said.

One area where he believed New Zealand needed to do better was in communicating information like what was happening with the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
What are the top three issues facing the nation and how should they be resolved?
Campbell said New Zealand was a pretty competitive country but with one major exception -- housing.

"The biggest challenge facing New Zealand is housing costs."

He said accommodation was taking too big a chunk out of people's disposable income and it was holding the economy back by cutting growth by around 1 per cent. He said planning laws needed to be addressed along with the Resource Management Act. Regional growth was also a concern.

"As much as we have pressure on the population in Auckland we have got as many principals [regions] struggling to survive. Out of 38 councils 25 were depopulating. There is latent capacity in the regions."

Campbell said Auckland was already an expensive place and if everything drifted there New Zealand ran the risk of becoming less competitive globally. There needed to be an integrated strategy for the regions not just a political one.

The third issue was national transportation. "We have allowed coastal shipping to disappear, roads are falling apart and rail is a terrible business. We need to have a plan driven by government."