I've witnessed enough conflict between businesses and customers, personally and professionally, to have a good idea of how to avoid it and if it occurs, to resolve it. Firstly, and most importantly, differences are endemic to human beings. We see things,...
Responding to an unreasonable review is essential
I worked in the hospitality industry in various capacities when I was much younger and while I loved being in a kitchen, I quickly worked out that I didn't quite have the patience or the quick thinking required to be successful when dealing with the public. Perhaps I...
Cricket needs honest leaders as much as it needs ‘stars’
Late last year, or nearly a week ago, former Australian cricket captain, Steve Smith was named test player of the decade by the ICC (International Cricket Council). Now, don't get me wrong, Smith is a fantastic cricketer, with an incredible record of amassing a huge...
Consumers expect to see challenging reviews – embrace them!
For some businesses owners, challenging reviews are a huge obstacle and sometimes end up being a stumbling block that they just can not get past. While there is obviously a human element to dealing with and accepting criticism - fair or unfair - there are some things...
2020 – we’ve seen the best of people in the worst of times
In 1992 the Queen defined one of the more challenging 12 months of her reign with a handy Latin phrase that summed it up perfectly - an annus horribilis (horrible year). She was referring to a string of divorces in the family, a fire at Windsor castle, and a litany of...
Come together
This week the very first Covid-19 vaccination was administered to a 9o year old in the UK. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was created in record time and offers a real sense of hope of being able to defeat a virus that has held the world to ransom for most of this year....
The whole truth and nothing but the truth
Reviews are only valid and worthwhile if they are honest, transparent and real but more than that businesses need to be aware that in New Zealand, there is a legal requirement to present reviews accurately, and consequences if those obligations is not met. This...
Too little, too late?
Since last Wednesday when the US held elections for president, congress and half of the senate, as well as a myriad of other public positions, the world has focused on the results as they came in, in fits and starts, until at the presidential level, Joe Biden had won...
How good it is to be lost in a crowd again
It's certainly been the strangest year most of us have experienced and much of how we go about our lives has changed. The Covid-19 pandemic has dominated our thoughts and actions and there is every sign that we still have a way to go, before vaccination and opening up...
Overcoming a recession will take more than great leadership
While it was surely one of the strangest election campaigns in living memory, postponed by a month because of the the Covid-19 epidemic, New Zealanders voted on Saturday (and in huge numbers beforehand) and exercised one of the most abiding elements of our personal...









