Her Magazine is New Zealand’s only women’s business lifestyle magazine! Her Magazine highlights the achievements of successful and rising New Zealand businesswomen. Her Magazine encourages a healthy work/life balance.
Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/54854
BABY BOOMERS Dame Jenny Shipley Former Prime Minister of New Zealand Baby Boomers Q: How do you think women in business are perceived by their male counterparts in 2012? Males like to think they view their female colleagues as equals. Partly because they need to and partly because they now understand that in order to be successful themselves they need their female colleagues alongside them. Having said that, from time to time sexism is still a reality in the workplace, although it manifests itself in subtle ways. Q: Generally speaking what do you think distinguishes women's business style from men's? Women view risk and opportunity more broadly than men, leading to Dame Suzie Moncrieff Founder, World of Wearable Arts Baby Boomer Q: How do you think women in business are perceived by their male counterparts in 2012? As equals, or lacking in competence at the higher levels? Speaking from my own experience I think things have certainly changed in the last decade, and in general the world has little tolerance for discrimination of any kind whether it's targeted at a person's sex or colour or anything else. I have always had a strong belief in myself and my vision for WOW, so I paid little attention to people (male and female) who attempted to undermine me. Q: Generally speaking what do you think outstanding performance if you have men and women at the board table, or the senior management setting. Overall performance is more sustainable and risk profiling is more manageable if you have female and male aptitude and attitude being applied. Q: What do you think is a women's most valuable asset in business? Women's most valuable assets in business are themselves. As they bring their scholarship, their experience, their entrepreneurship and their passion for business growth, which secures a successful economy. The overall momentum of the contribution that women are bringing to economies around the world is becoming blatantly obvious. This trend will only extend as women have more control over their lives in every respect, and increasingly control over significant disposable income, both in their own right and within households. Q: If you were to prioritise the top five distinguishes women's business style from men's? As woman we are often very good at multi-tasking and we tend to be intuitive and natural communicators, not that men don't have those attributes, but often I have found women in business tend to rely more strongly on those attributes. WOW has been successful because we have fostered a very inclusive business style – we are very much a family. I believe that no one person has all the best ideas, and I am very interested in ensuring every member of our team achieves at their highest potential. Q: What do you think is a women's most valuable asset in business? I think it's too hard to generalise women this way, we are such a diverse bunch. For me personally having a strong sense of old-fashioned values has served me well in business over the years. I have always been taught to value others and treat them as I would be liked to be treated. I understand the principle of hard work and I am not afraid to roll up my sleeves and get stuck in. Q: If you were to prioritise the top five activities essential to building a successful business over time, what would they be, with no.1 as the most essential business activity to get right: Believe in and hold on to your dream. It will be tested. See setbacks and obstacles as stepping stones and chances to learn. Surround yourself with like-minded people (the best and most creative), challenge and nurture them. Get the numbers right, being financially literate is very important. Get good advice and use activities essential to building a successful business over time, what would they be, with no.1 as the most essential business activity to get right: Have a clarity of purpose in whatever role you find yourself in. You define the role, don't allow the role to define you. Understand that qualifications are only half the deal, attitude and application is at least 50% determinant in how people succeed. Look up. Often women wait until they feel they're fully qualified before they apply for the next-step job. In my experience if women applied for the next step when they have the same level of competence as their male colleagues we would see far more women in senior roles. As women gain confidence in themselves and support each other as they ascend into successful positions this problem will be overcome. Love what you do! Q: Do you think customers have changed it to plan. Q: Do you think customers have changed now from 5-10 years ago, and how? What are their expectations now? I believe they have become more discerning, their expectations are higher and they are looking for a total experience, where there is more of a chance for two-way communication. We have been very lucky that our customers have become very loyal advocates over the years, and we protect the WOW brand equity that we have. We look to extend the customer experience past the show into a 12-month experience, and part of that has included the development of a touring exhibition OFF THE WALL and our museum in Nelson. We are engaging with our customers via social media and this is now part of our mainstream marketing activities. Q: What do you perceive as your marketplace: local, national or global? I had always seen WOW as an international show, even back at the very beginning, so it is an exciting time for me to see the show recently travel to Hong Kong to be a part of the Hong Kong Arts Festival, taking that first step. Nearly a third of entries every year come from international designers. I truly believe anything is possible with WOW and I would like to see it as a global awards show. Q: Do you use Social Media? Yes, we have had a social media strategy for a couple of years. We have taken a pragmatic approach and have started very small. Social media is becoming more main stream and it's important that we continue to embrace different mediums for communication.