Uptake of technology critical to NZ business

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15 April 2025

Uptake of technology critical to NZ business

Research has found that more than half of Kiwi’s have improved their productivity after their companies implemented cloud-based tools. Many small businesses in New Zealand however feel that it is expensive and time consuming to implement new technology and are held back by a lack of information on how to properly use new technology.

Small business platform Xero partnered with the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research to explore how using technology might help New Zealand to increase their productivity. The company found that if there was a 20% uptake of New Zealand businesses using cloud-based technology it would likely add $6.2 billion to the GDP growth of the country.

Small to medium businesses account for close to half of the country’s GDP, so increasing their capacity for production would hugely improve the growth of New Zealand GDP. Xero has said that the challenge lies in trying to encourage small businesses to invest in technology.

Research has found that around half of small business owners think that the cost of cloud-based systems is too high for their businesses to implement and a number of others felt they did not have the knowledge or the time to properly implement them.

Xero has pointed out that it is necessary to help businesses overcome barriers to technology uptake as for many businesses it will be integral to their survival and to help New Zealand’s economy grow. Cloud-based technologies can help businesses to become more profitable and adaptable, helping them to diversify the way they do business and make their money. Research has also shown that many businesses that have implemented new technology wish they had done it sooner. To continue to grow, it’s essential that New Zealand small to medium businesses implement and use new technologies.

Why work-life balance in NZ is effective

By

Cornelia Smith

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15 April 2025

Why work-life balance in NZ is effective

Good work/life balance arrangements can great for both employees and businesses. Good work/life balances is about businesses and people effectively managing the balance between work activities and the things that are important to people such as time with their family and friends, time for hobbies or time to relax.

Maintaining a good work/life balance for some people could involve more flexible working arrangements, such as adjusted start or finish times or it could mean ensuring that work tasks don’t bleed into out-of-office hours or even just mean limits to overtime. When it comes to maintaining a good work/life balance, there is no one-size-fits-all approach.

There are some good reasons for companies to prioritise creating a good work/life balance for their staff – it makes it simpler for companies to find and retain the best talent especially in New Zealand’s sometimes very tight job markets, it also improves work place culture and makes it easier for employers to get the best from their staff. A bad work/life balance can cause stress for staff which can lead to absenteeism and lower productivity. When work/life balance is improved the health, happiness and overall motivation of staff tends to improve. Happy staff will be more productive and more committed to doing good work.

Good work/life balance is also a great way for companies to improve their reputation and ensure that they are seen as an employer of choice which will help to widen their recruitment pools and help to attract better employees. Providing more flexible work opportunities and a better culture will help to improve employee satisfaction and shows staff that they are trusted and valued. Many New Zealand companies offer wonderful work environments and a fantastic work/life balance for their employees which is why it’s such a great place to live and work.

New Zealand property bubble could burst

By

Amber Mobsby

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15 April 2025

Economists have warned that New Zealand’s property bubble could be set to burst. The housing market has grown to the point that the average house price in New Zealand is now $700,000. Now leading economist Harry Dent Jr is predicting that house market is on the brink of bursting and says that it’s time for the house market to return to reality.

In the past the economist has impressed with his accurate predictions, having previously accurately predicted that the Japanese economy would dramatically slow down for over a decade in the 1980s. Dent has pointed out that New Zealand has been experience some of their greatest growth in history but it is now time for the bubble to pop.

Over the last decade house prices in New Zealand have considerably outpaced income growth and have risen rapidly to unsustainable levels with many buyers now unable to get into the market due to over-inflated prices. With an economic downturn on the horizon it is likely that property prices will begin to reduce.

The countries banks will be vulnerable when the bubble does burst. Dent has predicted that the next boom time for the world will fall between2023 and 2036 but says that prior to then we will likely experience an ongoing recession.

Economists have said that although New Zealand and the world at large is likely to experience a few tough years ahead, a correction the property market is a good thing and long term will make it easier for new home owners to get into the property markets. Economists like Dent have pointed out that recessions are healthy and bring positive change to markets but have warned people to get as financially safe and secure as they can ahead of a long few years of downturn.

Russell Jack of Southland Reveals 7 Reasons to Practice Yoga in the Later Years of Life

By

Jamie Stein

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15 April 2025

7 Reasons to Practice Yoga in the Later Years of Life

Yoga is an excellent activity for all age groups. In this article, Russell Jack explains seven reasons why older adults should consider taking up yoga as a new fitness activity. As a yoga and meditation guru based in Southland, NZ, Russell Jack explores the physical and psychological reasons to practice yoga in the later years of life.

Yoga promotes a more positive outlook on life during menopause and increases balance, preventing accidental falls.

7 Reasons to Practice Yoga

1. Maintaining Independence

Many young people struggle to understand their parents’ or grandparents’ desire to remain independent for as long as possible. It may seem like a good idea to have mom move in with one of her children as she needs more care, but mom may resist. Staying independent is vitally important to many seniors. Yoga is a good way for older people to stay healthy enough to live on their own.

2. Improve Sleep

As we age, we often have trouble sleeping. A lack of activity or declining health may prevent older people from exerting enough energy throughout the day to create the conditions needed for a good night’s sleep. Regular exercise, including yoga, can be just what seniors need to stay alert during the day, avoid napping, and be ready to relax into a restful sleep at the end of the day.

3. Enhance Balance

A danger for older adults is injury from falling. Poor balance is common among senior citizens. It is considered by many to be a natural result of aging. One of the primary benefits of yoga for people of all ages is improved balance. It is an excellent way to combat the loss of balance typical among older people. It can help them avoid a dangerous fall.

4. Improve Flexibility

As we age, our bodies become less flexible. This inflexibility can cause significant mobility problems. Dressing and performing daily activities without help can become a challenge. The slow, measured, and incrementally more extensive range of motion exercises that are a part of yoga can help older people maintain flexible muscles and joints. Even after a range of motion has decreased from lack of use, yoga can help regain flexibility.

5. Strengthen Bones

Along with the dangers of poor balance, weak bones that can easily break due to a fall are a severe concern for senior citizens. Yoga can help seniors prevent the onset of osteoporosis. Osteoporosis causes bones to become brittle or weak and occurs when new bone creation can’t keep pace with the decrease of bone mass and density that occurs with aging.

6. Avoid Depression

A possible result of poor health, lower mobility, and decreased independence is depression. Depression among older adults is a serious problem. The loneliness often associated with becoming older is a significant contributing factor. Yoga is an excellent way for seniors to stay socially active. The evidence is growing that yoga practice is a relatively low-risk, high-yield approach to improving overall mental health.

7. Reduce Stress

One doesn’t always think of your “golden years” as stressful, but they often are. The financial restraints associated with retirement and worry about children and grandchildren will often cause stress for seniors. Yoga is widely considered an excellent stress management activity. If it works to manage stress for active young people, it will help older people too.

About Russell Herbert Jack

Russell Herbert Jack, a yoga and mindfulness teacher from Southland, New Zealand, is passionate about spirituality, the vegan lifestyle, animal rights, and living in sync with nature. Russell specializes in Vinyasa Yoga, Qigong, and guided meditations. Vinyasa yoga, or flow yoga, heightens consciousness by moving from one position to another seamlessly, using breath. Just like Vinyasa Yoga, Qigong has many healing properties to the body, mind, and spirit. He enjoys learning and writing about spirituality, meditation, and vegan lifestyle and sharing these valuable insights with his clients.

What small business owners need to know about mortgage advisors

By

Sophie Henley

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15 April 2025

What small business owners need to know about mortgage advisors

It’s difficult to get a mortgage from a bank in New Zealand, especially if you’re a small business owner. There are a lot of Kiwi’s out there looking to buy a home, but many admit they wouldn’t continue to look for a loan if they got knocked back for a mortgage from one bank.

The truth is that one rejection from a traditional bank doesn’t mean you have no lending options as a small business owner, getting the right advice and guidance could mean that you’re able to get the home of your dream. A good mortgage advisor will be able to look at your circumstances and will be able to speak to you about your lending options and mortgage.

So first of all, what exactly is a mortgage advisor? Basically, they’re someone who arranges for the purchase or sale of a home on your behalf. They’re experts in their field and they can help small business owners to get into their own homes, even if a bank has said no.

Trying to find a mortgage on your own can be overwhelming and so finding a mortgage advisor is a good idea, they can help to alleviate the stress of dealing with the banks. So what should you ask them? The first and most important thing to know is whether they are accredited on the Financial Service Providers register.

You should also speak to them about which banks they like to work with – its better if they work with a variety of lenders as it means they can find you better deals and finance options. You should also speak to them about their fee structure and ask them about how they earn their money – being aware of the kind of commissions they’ll earn is important.

New Zealand scientists baffled as rare bird colony vanishes

By

Monica Striegel

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14 April 2025

New Zealand scientists baffled as rare bird colony vanishes

The shore plover is the world’s rarest species with only 250 left in existence. A team that specialises in the recovery and searching of these rare birds has set off to recover the lost species. The remaining population was situated on an island with no known predators but during the coronavirus lockdown, they had all disappeared.

The team behind the conservation of the species have been hard at work trying to reintroduce the rare species to main land New Zealand since rats and cats had nearly wiped them out completely in 1880. For the next 100 years the small population of the birds lived on the Chatham Islands which are located east of New Zealand by 800kms.

Shore plovers or tūturuatu are renowned for their friendly attitude. This in conjunction with nests that sit on the ground have made them an easy prey for predators such as rats and cats. Their population is highly volatile with a single predator being able to wipe out a large percentage. Off the coast of the North Island Kapiti is Mana Island. This island was a successful home for a colony of shore plovers that was introduced in 2007. However a couple of years after their introduction to the island, a single rat was able to wipe out half of the entire population.

After the failed attempt conservationists have been hesitant to try again but in April and May of this year they did. 29 birds were introduced to the island where no predators had lived. The birds were banded but not GPS tracked which has led to them all disappearing. The working hypothesises of their disappearance at the moment are an avian predator known as the ruru has wiped them out, or they have migrated back to the mainland.

Warnings over Lake Horowhenua water quality

By

Amber Mobsby

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14 April 2025

Lake Horowhenua — Landscape view of Lake Papaitonga, Horowhenua, New Zealand.

Exemptions for the water quality of the most polluted lake in New Zealand could lead to protests and legal action. The exemption on the quality of the water in the lake shows a poor understanding of the history and issues surrounding the lake, according to The Office of Maori Crown Relations.
Lake Horowhenua is located near Levin and has become very polluted due to wastewater, storm water and farm run-off being funneled into it for many years. In the past the lake was a very good source of mana and was considered a taonga but the water has now become so toxic that scientists have warned that it could kill a child if too much water were to be swallowed.

The bottom of the lake is the final resting place for a number of iwi members who were killed in a massacre by Te Rauparaha in the 1820s. New Zaland’s environment minister David Parker had agreed to the exemption of the Horowhenua Lake from the new freshwater standards implemented nation-wide in New Zealand. He acknowledged that trying to enforce the standards at Horowhenua where a large proportion of the countries vegetables were grown would lead to a big decrease in production.

Since the exemption came to light there have been warnings that it could breach good faith and relationship agreements with the iwi and could cause legal issues down the line. Te Arawhiti has said that the exemption showed a lack of understanding about the history of the lake and past work in trying to clean up the lake. In 2017 it was found that the Crown was complicit in the activities causing the pollution of the lake and it was recommended that a body be appointed to oversee the cleanup of the lake. Since then no steps have been taken to improve the condition of the lake.

The first food waste to bioenergy plant is underway in New Zealand

By

Monica Striegel

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14 April 2025

The first food waste to bioenergy plant is underway in New Zealand

New Zealand is set to build their first large-scale plant that aims to convert food waste into bioenergy. With construction set to begin, the plant is to be housed in Reporoa. The new facility is estimated to remove up to ten thousand tonnes worth of carbon dioxide which is the same as planting 218,400 trees annually.

After the land has been blessed by Ngāti Tahu-Ngati Whaoa, construction is expected to commence. The facility is owned by Ecogas which is a collaboration between Ecostock Supplies Ltd and Pioneer Energy Ltd. The land on which the facility is expected to be built is owned by one of New Zealand’s largest fresh produce suppliers, T&G Fresh.

Andrew Fisher, the director of Ecogas, stated that the facility will help New Zealand deal with 327,000 tonnes of annual food waste that normally goes to landfills across the country. Harnessing that wastage and turning it into bioenergy is not only efficient but puts money back into the pockets of the public.

Not only is the facility addressing the food wastage issue of the country, it aims to power local farmlands, glasshouses, the community and even create jobs throughout the region. The goal is to have the facility operational in 2022 with an estimated initial turnover of 75,000 tonnes of organic waste. This waste will be collected from local businesses and food scrap collections from the side of the road throughout the Northern Island.

Fisher stated that the facility will create enough energy on an annual basis to power 2,500 households in the region as well as producing bio-fertiliser for around 2,000 hectares of farmland. The carbon dioxide and heat that it will also produce will go towards the growth of locally grown tomatoes in the T&G Fresh glasshouses.

What we can learn from past recessions

By

Edward Welch

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14 April 2025

As the world enters a new recession, it’s worth reflecting on what we’ve learnt from past experiences with economic downturns. The most recent economic recession in living memory was the 2008 economic crisis, but it’s also worth taking lessons from the Great Depression which first began in 1929. What can we expect to happen over the next few years?

Well, let’s take a look at what happened during the more recent financial crisis first. The 2008 crash saw a huge reduction in the profits of the financial sector, although that had almost completely recovered by the second quarter of 2009. In later years, finance profits actually experienced growth and by 2017 the sector was making a great deal more than it was pre-crisis.

Profits were slower to grow in other sectors but they did experience growth because many companies now had less employees and lower wages following the crisis – wages dropped during the recession and were not quick recover. By 2013 the stock market had made a full recovery but unemployment was high and household wealth was still lower than it was pre-recession whilst the wealth gap for minorities widened.

In comparison the Great Depression saw a restructuring of the way the financial sector worked, reforms held banks accountable for risky investments and the New Deal began by helping workers in order to help banks and other financial institutions, rather than protecting banks and organisation first.

Newer approaches have seen a ‘trickle down’ approach being taken but this is proving to be ineffective. Banks and other institutions will prioritise their interests first. The effectiveness of our recovery from the latest recession will depend on the approach governments choose to take and whether they decide to take lessons learnt from past recessions to protect unemployed workers and vulnerable groups, or if they will once again prioritise banks and company interests.

New Zealand exploring the 4 day work week

By

Cornelia Smith

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14 April 2025

New Zealand is eyeing off the four day work week with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern encouraging employees to give the shortened working week a try. This comes after trust company successfully trialed the four day work week and opted to offer it permanently to their 240 staff after discovering that it both boosted productivity and the well-being and happiness of their staff.

Other companies in other countries such as Japan have had similar success with the four day work week and now Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is suggesting that New Zealand businesses give it go, suggesting that the four day work week could be a great method to boost domestic tourism in the country. The Prime Minister is however leaving the choice to try the four day work week up to companies, saying that it’s ultimately their decision. She was quick to point out that many companies have now witnesses the benefits of flexible working arrangements for themselves. It seems likely that many businesses in New Zealand will now be ready to more permanently adopt shorter working weeks or work from home arrangements for their staff.

In New Zealand domestic tourism is a crucial industry and is responsible for generating a large proportion of the country’s GDP, longer weekends for staff could help to promote domestic travel and could help to keep the hundreds of thousands of tourism workers in the country employed.

The four day work week has received praise from the companies who have tried it with almost all of them finding that employee satisfaction and productivity increased. New Zealand has been celebrated in past years for it’s great work/life balance and shorter working weeks could also be a way for companies to attract and retain great talent, even from overseas in the future.

7 Reasons to Practice Yoga

1. Maintaining Independence

2. Improve Sleep

3. Enhance Balance

4. Improve Flexibility

5. Strengthen Bones

6. Avoid Depression

7. Reduce Stress

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