The Pivot Pod: How the Christchurch earthquake can show us how to reopen after lockdown

New Zealanders have risen to the ocassion in the face of disaster before. Photo / Mark Mitchell

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Welcome to The Pivot Pod, where we'll figure out together what's next for small business. Hosted by Frances Cook, with a new expert on each episode.

The Covid-19 crisis came out of nowhere, and has changed everything about how we live and do business.

But this sort of situation isn't entirely unprecedented – indeed part of New Zealand has gone through something with key similarities.

Listen to the podcast episode here

When the Christchurch earthquakes struck in 2011, the area faced two tragedies; one to deal with the dead and injured, the other to figure out how to rebuild their lives and livelihoods, in a dramatically changed city.

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So what did they learn then about adapting in the face of difficulty?

On the latest Pivot Pod I spoke to Leeann Watson, chief executive of Canterbury employers chamber of commerce.

We discussed the similarities and differences between the quake and Covid-19 impacts, strategies that helped business get through the quakes, and why hoping that life will go back to normal is doomed to fail.

For the episode, listen to the podcast on the player above.

If you have a question about this podcast, or question you'd like answered in the next one, come and talk to me about it. I'm on Facebook here, Instagram here and Twitter here.

You can find new episodes on Herald Premium, or subscribe on iHeartRadio, the Apple podcasts app, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website