Mixing Business and Pleasure!

I have just got back from a trip around the state of Victoria.  Hired a Camper Van for the first time and travelled with Lynda and the two kids on a circuit round Great Ocean Road, the Grampians, and back to Melbourne through Bendigo.  It is a beautiful part of Australia and the family have really enjoyed the trip.  We were fortunate to tag this on at the start of a trip for a conference in Melbourne as part of Campbell Tyson Cooper White membership with NZCA.   NZCA is an affiliation to which we belong where like minded accountants can share ideas, strategies, and knowledge in a casual and relaxed environment.  The Melbourne seminar is focussing on networking strategies and techniques, something most accountants ordinarily struggle with!

CTCW is the principal sponsor of the Business and Innovation Expo that was planned to be held on the 7 May.  While there has been incredible interest and early involvement from many organisations in the Franklin district (as well as some outside of the district), there is also many businesses who expressed their difficulties with preparing exhibitions for the 7 May date on which the event was planned to be held.  In order to ensure that the maximum participation possible can be achieved, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the event until an as yet undecided future date.  This new date will be set after consultation with interested parties to ensure that they have additional time to prepare their exhibitions as well as incorporate the cost of the event into their marketing budget.  With the difficult recessionary times, CTCW fully understands the difficulties of funding and staffing expo events and as part of our commitment to the community we are seeking to enable as much participation as possible with our clients and their related business community.

If any of you would like to consider putting in an exhibition at the Expo, or are keen to register your interest to attend, please do not hesitate to contact either our reception or Niru at Enterprise Franklin Development Trust.

Have a great week.

Lincoln

Lunching with the Prime Minister

Had a superb lunch with the Prime Minister John Key on Friday. John was invited to the Franklin District by local MP Dr Paul Hutchinson for a wide range of community activities and visits, one of which was a luncheon put on by Enterprise Franklin Development Trust. To give him credit, John fronted up to some vocal locals protesting the Super city plan. John then joined the 110 guests for a speech on his view of the economy and current affairs. This was followed a lovely three course lunch.

What impressed me about John Key was, well, several things:
• He’s not in it for the money. No one can accuse him of being motivated solely by money, and he wasn’t impressed with the MPs caught up in the credit card claims.
• He’s passionate about New Zealand doing better. Everything he mentioned centred on improving New Zealand’s collective lot.
• He doesn’t suffer fools. His comments on the management of Auckland’s opportunities by previous/current councils were to the point and clear.
• He was willing to debate any point and had confidence and clarity in his answers. New Zealand’s mineral wealth, our natural resources and the tax system envisaged by the Government all point to us being able to target Australia as the benchmark for improvement.
• He wants to get things done. His actions and comments all centred around removing roadblocks and empowering the right people to make decisions and get the job done.
Before you label me a National Party Member, reread the logic above. It appeals regardless of the party that would be expressing it. John delivered it in a relaxed, confident and knowledgeable way that obviously hit the mark with those that were listening. This is the first time I have listened to John Key in person and would recommend that if the opportunity came up, you should have a listen too.

Have a great week.
Lincoln