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In New Zealand, the Government declared a climate emergency and launched a major new initiative to combat climate change that will require the public sector to achieve carbon neutrality by 2025. In January this year, New Zealand’s Climate Change Commission released draft advice and recommendations on a pathway to reduce national emissions and meet our Paris Agreement goals. Read the executive summary (PDF). However, most of our greenhouse gases stem from agriculture, and these initiatives have been criticised by many as not going far enough. 

We list three resources to try today, no matter where you are in the world. And one special bonus resource for the fashion and apparel industry, courtesy of sustainable footwear and clothing brand Allbirds.

  1. Find easy ways your business can reduce carbon emissions with the Climate Action Toolbox. Launched in April by the Sustainable Business Network and supported by MBIE, BNZ, NZTE and other partners, this free, easy-to-use online tool lets businesses identify key areas where they can reduce emissions, and gives step-by-step guides and links to information to help. Businesses can save their climate action plan and return to it anytime.
  2. Reduce the impact your website has on carbon emissions. The internet consumes more electricity per year than the entire United Kingdom. Data centres, transmission networks, mobile devices all consume electricity, in turn producing carbon emissions. The average web page tested by the Website Carbon Calculator produces 1.76 grams of CO2 per page view. For a website with 10,000 monthly page views, that’s 211 kg CO2 per year. Test your homepage on the calculator and find out more about sustainable web design principles. 
  3. Generate the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) profile for your business. Agreed by 193 countries in 2015, the 17 United Nations SDGs are underpinned by 169 targets and 244 indicators. They are the world’s to-do list for the next 10 years and form the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. Achieving SDGs requires global coordination between governments, businesses, philanthropy and civil society. Generate your SDG profile by choosing topics and actions related to your organisation’s work.

And the bonus resource for those in the fashion and apparel industry:

  1. Calculate the carbon footprint of your fashion products using Allbirds’ suite of Carbon Footprint Tools. To celebrate Earth Day, Allbirds have made their Lifecycle Assessment Tool (LCA), the manual guiding its use and its Carbon Footprint Labels all open-source to help brands document their carbon footprint, and to help the public make better buying decisions for the planet.

What toolkits or resources does your organisation use to benchmark, measure or reduce carbon emissions? Share your most practical resources by getting in touch at [email protected]

For more information on SDGs, read Kate Sutton’s take on using innovation to target some of the worlds biggest problems.

CONTRIBUTOR

Saya Wahrlich

Global Director Government & Industry

Kea New Zealand

Kea member

HOW KEA CAN HELP YOUR BUSINESS GROW

Kea Connect

Kea Connect is a free service that will help your business grow offshore. We connect you personally with regional, sector-specific experts and peers.

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Resources

Kea is here to help New Zealand businesses grow offshore. Be inspired and hear advice from businesses who have created their export path.

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Jobs Portal

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Before you leave

Go to websites:

Helpful articles:

Once you’re here

Kea member stories of coming home

For businesses resources to help you start your business in New Zealand, or manage your global business from New Zealand, click here.

Facebook groups to join

Here is a list of relevant Facebook groups to help you connect with the Kiwi community migrating back to New Zealand.

COMING HOME?

Join

Join the Kea community, NZ’s online home for returning Kiwis.

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Resources

We’re here to support returning Kiwi. Here’s our list of resources to help you plan your return and next steps.

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Jobs

Looking for a new role in New Zealand? Visit the Kea job portal and find your next career opportunity.

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Government help

Stories and resources for offshore Kiwis:

  • Kiwi Kids Abroad – Connect with other Kiwi families living all over the world and provide your little ones a taste of home with the Kiwi Kids Abroad newsletter.
  • New Zealand’s European Correspondents – Kea spoke to TVNZ’s Daniel Faitaua and Newshub’s Lloyd Burr on reporting on the pandemic from London.
  • Piha Pies: Home Away From Home – We spoke to Jeremy Hewson, who, along with his wife Susanne founded Piha Pies, the Kiwi pie company using an old family recipe that’s taking London by storm!
  • Nurse Jenny: Doing Her Part -We spoke to Jenny about what it was like being thanked by the UK Prime Minister, how she’s coping, and how she’s staying connected to her New Zealand roots.
  • Clair Mills: Médecins Sans Frontières – Clair Mills is no stranger to working in health crises. We spoke to her about her role at Médecins Sans Frontières, and how they’re dealing with the impact of COVID-19.
  • Dream Catchers – A dynamic broadcast and online series about inspirational New Zealanders making an impact in the United Kingdom.

For businesses resources to help you start your business in New Zealand, or manage your global business from New Zealand, click here.

Business meeting in New Zealand

Before you go

Go to websites:

  • Business.govt.nz – Tools, tips, visual guides, and case studies to help you get your business started in New Zealand, growth, tax and accounting, hiring, doing business online, risks and operations, and more.
  • Investment options in New Zealand – Practical guides from New Zealand Now on various ways to invest in New Zealand, from starting a business to buying a business.
  • Managing an overseas company in New Zealand – If you have a business incorporated in an overseas country, the New Zealand Companies Office has prepared a set of advice and key considerations, including how to set-up your company as a New Zealand business, and how to transfer incorporation to New Zealand. 
  • New Zealand Start Up Pack – Prepared and designed by DLA Piper, this Start-up Pack provides assistance and support to early stage start-ups and high growth companies in New Zealand, to ensure they create the right legal framework and protect their business.
  • KPMG Private Enterprise – The KPMG Private Enterprise team provide a range of services that are designed to connect your business to opportunities and drive success at every stage of your business lifecycle. 

How you can help

The COVID-19 pandemic will have a massive effect on New Zealand’s most vulnerable. We understand not everyone is in a position to help, however, if you want to give back during this time, here are a few ways you can donate.

COMING HOME?

Join

Join the Kea community, NZ’s online home for returning Kiwis.

READ MORE

Resources

We’re here to support returning Kiwi. Here’s our list of resources to help you plan your return and next steps.

READ MORE

Jobs

Looking for a new role in New Zealand? Visit the Kea job portal and find your next career opportunity.

READ MORE

Home Recruitment

Having been away from NZ for a minimum of two years and often over 7 (this is how long it takes to get a British passport), these returning Kiwis have learnt to be the new kid on the block. They have heard all the sheep jokes, had their accent (badly) copied every time they say fish (‘fush’). They have restarted their careers often for a lower salary or in a role they are more than capable of doing, because they have had to compete with their new local market. They have demonstrated they are willing to put themselves outside their comfort zone, be flexible, learn quickly and adapt to a new culture. Having done all of this and often multiple times for those who have worked in more than one country, now they want to come home. Trust me, they can fit into your organisation – we are New Zealanders after all, and these are some of our best traits. We love our country, have been patriotic and passionate about supporting anything home-grown while away and now we are home we want to add value in helping our Kiwi brands and business grow.

  • Many returners come home out of choice for lifestyle and family reasons, so have a vested interest in staying. If they came home after their 2 year Working holiday Visa expired, then they have done their OE and are more likely to be ready to settle down and commit to a role and employer.
  • They have often had exposure to organisations that work on a larger or global scale, so have garnered a range of experience and insight to potentially share with a new employer or team.
  • In the UK in particular, returners often become specialists in their field or industry and have in depth knowledge of their subject matter. In a larger marketplace a niche skill set sets you apart from the crowd and companies generally have specific role functions.
  • Taking a risk by moving to a new country requires a person to possess attributes of adaptability, flexibility, resilience, and desire to work hard to prove themselves as many have to start at a lower level to compete with the local market
  • Having experienced and developed a different view on the world brings fresh ideas and approaches and when combined with working in diverse organisations strong communication skills have evolved to speak to a broader audience or team.
  • The talent across our London and Auckland teams have often had experience in the London market place which is a financial services and technology hub with ex-patriates from the US/Europe/Asia and Australasia all working together in some of the globe’s most innovative, fastest-growing companies and markets. This is all valuable experience New Zealand employers can benefit from to compete on a national and global platform.
  • Many Kiwi’s initially return to regional areas be near and spend time with family but are often under the impression that they will have to move to Auckland to find the best work opportunities. There is a real opportunity for regional employers to tap into the talent who would like to stay local and maximise on ‘out of Auckland’ property prices and lifestyle opportunities.

Samantha Webster is a proud Kiwi, a London returner, and a Recruitment Professional with experience across both of these markets over the last 30 years. She is passionate about supporting and connecting talent to the best job opportunities in the New Zealand and UK markets.

After establishing Australasian Recruitment Company to provide exciting opportunities for New Zealanders and Australians arriving in London in 2003, which now has long-standing relationships with clients such as Google, Facebook, Imperial College, Mace Construction, Net-A-Porter, Deliveroo and Science Museum to name a few, she returned to Auckland and set up HOME Recruitment with another London returner, Minta Smith, in May 2018. HOME’s mission is to help returning New Zealanders make a smooth career transition and connect them with employers that recognise the value of their overseas work experience.

HOME Recruitment has spoken with over 800 people recently who are looking to return or have come home, and this number is set to increase over the coming months. Fortunately NZ employers are starting to recognise the opportunity this presents . This pandemic will be one of the biggest opportunities for New Zealand employers to hire some of the best talent coming back to New Zealand..

COMING HOME?

Join

Join the Kea community, NZ’s online home for returning Kiwis.

READ MORE

Resources

We’re here to support returning Kiwi. Here’s our list of resources to help you plan your return and next steps.

READ MORE

Jobs

Looking for a new role in New Zealand? Visit the Kea job portal and find your next career opportunity.

READ MORE

Forced adoption

In a recent publication by The University of Auckland, it was noted that the pandemic accelerated trends that were already underway, including the increased influence of digital and other technologies on the way we as individuals and a society function. As people around the world were forced to isolate and lock down, technologies that facilitate modes of communication such as Facetime, Skype and Zoom were adopted by the masses as a way to stay in touch. Businesses that typically had their employees together in an office every day quickly had to shift operations entirely online. In a recent survey of New Zealand small businesses by Xero, 73% of respondents had to make quick changes to the technology they used to keep their business functioning during lockdown.

This sink or swim mentality was noted by Katherine Corich, the London-based chair of Sysdoc Group, who observed that Covid-19 caused a rapid adaptation of new technologies in a range of industries, and the adoption of remote and collaborative working styles. Allen Qu, the Beijing-based founder and CEO of online marketing solutions company Netconcepts identified that many companies and brands were shifting their focus from offline to online operations, especially around e-commerce and online reputation management. Allen anticipates this shift will continue post-Covid as consumers get used to online consumption.

Greater resilience

As observed by KPMG, while businesses were already working hard to maintain resilience in the face of relentless technological innovation, amid Covid-19, businesses needed to urgently assess all aspects of their resilience to ensure their survival. Robert Genieser, Managing Partner at London-based investment capital firm ETF Partners noted that a trend he has seen Covid-19 accelerate in technology is a greater resilience in supply chains. Covid-19 revealed supply-chain vulnerabilities that many businesses didn’t realise they had. Building flexibility and resilience in operations became critical, and so did the adoption of digital tools to do so. In fact, 47% of businesses surveyed by Xero said the adoption of technology to increase productivity in operations was now a matter of survival.

Retention over creation

During Covid-19, businesses focused on maintaining contact with existing customers, to strengthen brand loyalty in trying times. Craig Fenton, Director of Strategy and Operations at Google, UKI & Southern Europe, observed that every business in some way had to pivot their service or product to online, and that necessity proved to be a great trigger for innovation. Kirsty Traill, VP of Client Solutions at American Search Experience Cloud Platform Yext noticed a significant increase in focus towards the retention and renewal of existing customers. With net new business becoming more difficult, Kirsty has seen Covid-19 accelerate the shift in focus on optimising existing customer value and engagement, and foresees this trend lasting post-Covid.

The Government’s economic plan relies heavily on investing in new technology and digital innovation, and recognises a thriving digital technology ecosystem will be a necessary condition for a more productive, sustainable and inclusive economy. With the various ways Covid-19 has accelerated the tech industry, we look forward to seeing how New Zealand further enables businesses to maximise technology gains, innovate, and build resilience.

The next installment of this series will be on Consumer Goods and Services. At Kea, we pride ourselves on aggregating the thought leadership of Kiwis making waves around the world. If you would like to hear more from us, please join us as a member here.

HOW KEA CAN HELP YOUR BUSINESS GROW

Kea Connect

Kea Connect is a free service that will help your business grow offshore. We connect you personally with regional, sector-specific experts and peers.

READ MORE

Resources

Kea is here to help New Zealand businesses grow offshore. Be inspired and hear advice from businesses who have created their export path.

READ MORE

Jobs Portal

Looking for the right talent for your team? Reach our global Kiwi community through the Kea international job portal. 

READ MORE

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Kea nurtures a vibrant and diverse community who share a strong passion for New Zealand and the success of its people and businesses