Personal File: Marnie Adams

General manager of Haines Auckland, a recruitment advertising and employment branding firm.

Born September 21, 1956, Belfast. Widowed, with two sons.

Why is what you do important?

Some of our work can change people's lives - we get people to make decisions about their career. It's great fun.

What excites you about it?

Working with the people I do. They're fantastic - left-field, creative, brave enough to say what they want.

What annoys you about it?

Really not a lot. Sometimes, slowness to progress. It takes a little bit longer than I imagine.

What were your best moments in management?

When I ran my own newspaper in Christchurch - the mass-market, free tabloid Christchurch Shopping Guide for seven years. I started it at 24 and sold it at 31, to Brierleys.

Worst moments in management?

When you have to say to people: there's no longer a job.

What was your first career aspiration?

To be a teacher. I did a degree in teaching, but I decided I was more interested in business than teaching.

How would you describe your management style?

I'm an autocratic democrat. I don't believe in management by committee.

When a decision has to be made, I have no problem making it.

How do you describe your personality?

Strong, pretty forthright. I have no hidden agendas.

If there was one thing you could change about your life, what would it be?

Not to have the need to go on diets at least twice a year.

What do you find most annoying in your staff?

Sometimes some of them give up too easily.

What lesson would you pass on to budding managers?

To be themselves, if they really want to be leaders. Don't play games, and self-promote.

Which management guru do you believe in?

Myself, usually! John Wareham, an ex-Kiwi in New York who wrote Escaping The Judas Trap and Diary of a Corporate Headhunter.

Who is your business hero?

Bill Gates because he is focused, and he has determination. He just does it.

Who is your favourite politician?

Bill Clinton, despite his shenanigans. When a guy can drop his pants and still give his country the sorts of policies New Zealand should be looking to do, then the guy's great.

If you could change one aspect of NZ business, what would it be?

Inertia. Many people suffer from a "what if?" philosophy rather than looking forward.

How do you relax?

Books. Walking along beaches and drinking beautiful sauvignon blancs. New Zealand makes the best sauvignon blancs in the world.

What is your favourite city?

Sydney. I like the cosmopolitan nature of the city.

What is your biggest fear?

I don't have one, I really don't. Many people would say death and public speaking, but neither of them bothers me.

Had you not been a general manager, what would you like to have been?

To have been a speaker - I do some work through (speakers' booking agency) Celebrity Speakers - or run a company of my own.

Do you have a view about whether NZ should become a republic?

I think it should become a state of Australia. We have nothing to lose.

What's the key to managing staff?

Let them be themselves and lead by example.

If you could live in another country, which would it be? Why?

Australia. I love the people's attitude: gung ho, go-for-it. Kiwis are great but they still have that tall poppy thing.