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Leadership: The difference between the plan you have and the results you get

Adam Harvey, Business Performance Partner – Manufacturing , The Learning Wave You can feel good leadership before you see it. A strong shift hums. There’s a rhythm: Clean handovers, problems solved where they happen, and a team that knows what “good” is. Output is steady. Waste is controlled. The team owns it. You can feel a weak one too. The plan exists…somewhere. Standards are vague. Rework builds without anyone asking “why”. And when you’re in it, it feels like you’re constantly chasing your table. Most manufacturing businesses don’t have a strategy problem. They have a leadership one. The productivity illusion Right now, the industry is full of intent. We’re chasing efficiency with everything we’ve got. New systems. Dashboards. Automation. Continuous improvement programmes. Everyone is chasing that extra 2% of output. It feels like progress. But if your leaders on the floor can’t lead performance, none of it sticks. If they can’t set clear expectations, keep the team focused on what matters, and have the tough conversations when standards slip, you haven’t improved performance. You’ve just made inefficiency faster. It’s like putting a faster engine into a car with no steering. It moves. But not where you need it to. Where the performance actually leaks Most leaders can’t pinpoint where the operation is losing performance because it doesn’t show up as one big issue. It leaks. A missed standard. A shortcut. A conversation avoided. A problem escalated that should never have left the floor. Individually, small. Across a shift, expensive. The biggest leak is “silence on standards”. Every time a leader sees something off and says nothing, the standard drops. And once it drops, it spreads. Most frontline leaders aren’t underperforming because they don’t care. They’re stuck. Reacting. Firefighting. Being the best operator instead of the best leader. But the moment […]

Data, Decisions, and the Drive for Productivity, A Digital Path to World Class Performance

Article 3: V2 –By Neil Robinson, a Senior Business Consultant with Argon & Co (Auckland) specialising in productivity improvement, Lean systems and capability building. If you’re reading this third article in the series, you already know that New Zealand manufacturers face a difficult reality: our productivity lags many of the countries we compete with. Labour is tight, costs continue to rise, and customers expect more value delivered faster and with fewer errors. This situation demands stronger, more reliable processes. Many operational leaders feel this pressure daily. The question is no longer “Should we improve?” It’s “How can we improve quickly, sustainably, and with the people we already have?” The good news is that there is a practical way forward. More leaders are turning to hands-on capability building, such as the 4×4 Simulation, to lift performance from the inside out. In Article 1, we explored how teams experience the shift from chaos to flow. In Article 2, we looked at how the deeper two-day version helps participants understand why improvements work and how to apply them in their own workplace. Now we arrive at the next evolution: the Digital 4×4 Simulation, where participants combine practical learning with real-time operational data to accelerate improvement. 1.1 Why New Zealand Needs This Now New Zealand’s productivity challenge is well documented. We work hard, often very hard, but too often our processes let us down. Unreliable flow, inconsistent standards, firefighting, quality escapes, poor teamwork, unbalanced workloads, and slow changeovers all eat into profit. Software alone is not the answer. Automation alone cannot fix this. Even continuous improvement programmes struggle if the foundation of process stability is not in place. This is why the Digital 4×4 matters. It helps teams see, understand, and improve the behaviours and systems that control productivity, then strengthens that learning with […]

EMEX is with us again

From May issue, NZ Manufacturer magazine The latest version, EMEX 2026, is mere days away. The most focussed trade fair for manufacturing businesses in New Zealand continues to display the latest and advanced equipment and technology which our companies require to improve their levels of Productivity and to make better their chances of success on local and export markets. There is no getting away from the fact that New Zealand’s future depends on continuing to find avenues overseas for our quality products. We can’t, of course, guarantee markets. We strive to be product perfect and cost competitive, in a cluttered world where it is everyone for themselves. And the technology and expertise from EMEX 2026 can help your company get there. There is a real plethora of events for your interest, including the Make NZ Industry Conference; the Epicor Knowledge Theatre; Harnex AI Workshops; the Minister for Manufacturing Awards; plus, a host of Industry Speakers, including Ian Walsh from Argon & Co and David Altana from The Better SMB, to bring you up to date with expert advice for better business. Enjoy the trade show, savour in the experience, make new business contacts and make every second count as you network for your company’s future. -Doug Green, Publisher, NZ Manufacturer magazine

World-First construction tech could cut building emissions by 80%

-Mark Devlin New world-first technology developed to prevent design errors from cascading throughout the country’s most complex construction project to date could reduce cost overruns in New Zealand’s $275bn infrastructure pipeline by millions of dollars, as well as cutting new building emissions by up to 80%, according to new data. Modelling from the Government’s $290m Te Rua National Archives shows that if digital twin technology is introduced from the design stage of large-scale projects to identify and address flaws across the infrastructure pipeline to the levels achieved on Te Rua, where contingency spend was held to five percent against an industry average of up to ten percent, New Zealand could potentially avoid millions of dollars in construction cost overruns. Data also shows that the preventative maintenance capability of the technology could reduce operational carbon emissions of a building by up to 80%. It is believed that with the integration of AI, the methodology could also be adapted for use in New Zealand’s planned multibillion-dollar healthcare infrastructure programme to produce clinically safer environments for patients. The recently completed Te Rua Archive in Wellington is the most technically demanding building ever constructed in New Zealand. Designed to remain operational after a one in 1,800-year earthquake, it must maintain temperature and humidity within a one degree tolerance for at least 48 hours in a power failure to protect taonga and government records held under UNESCO Memory of the World obligations. Phill Stanley, portfolio manager for ASX-listed Dexus, says these performance requirements meant the project could not rely on traditional construction methodologies, as even minor errors would have compromised the stability of the collection. “When you are managing irreplaceable taonga and national records, there is no margin for error. Any design flaw that affects temperature, humidity or structural performance directly threatens the integrity of […]

World class is not optional

From May issue, NZ Manufacturer magazine Ian Walsh, Partner, Argon & Co While there are industries — car assembly, for example — where the economic case for local production can be debated, food is different. Producing food is something we should be doing. More than that, it is something we must do well. The story of Heinz — and by association Wattie’s — is one that is very near and dear to my heart. I have worked in this business on and off since the 1990s, in the UK, the US, and across ANZ. That lived experience matters, because this is not a theoretical discussion about ownership structures or ideology. It is a practical lesson in how value is built over decades — and how it can be lost just as surely. Under the leadership of Tony O’Reilly, Heinz became one of the great global food companies of the late twentieth century. Through the 1980s and early 1990s, the strategy was clear: disciplined international expansion, strong brand investment, and relentless focus on cost and productivity. The acquisition of Wattie’s in 1992 — for approximately NZ$565 million — fit this pattern perfectly: a category‑leading local brand with deep trust and export potential. Markets rewarded this approach. By the early 1990s, Heinz’s market value had grown to roughly US$10–15 billion. Scale, brand power, and operating discipline reinforced one another. But acquisition‑led growth is never free. Each successive wave of M&A expanded the footprint and lifted shareholder expectations. With every deal came aging assets, capital‑intensive manufacturing plants, and increasing complexity. To sustain growth and fund further acquisitions, the base business had to extract more productivity and cut costs. Over time, this narrowed the margin for error. Many manufacturing sites were already under‑capitalised when acquired. They required sustained reinvestment simply to remain competitive. Too […]

Free 60-minute webinar

$144K recovered. 18% more output. When literacy improves, performance follows. As an operational or HR leader, you see the issues every day. Downtime that shouldn’t have happened. Instructions that were acknowledged but not followed. People waiting around for instructions, not sure of what’s next. And a strange silence during safety briefings or shift handovers. Most leaders call it “poor engagement”. Some call it “poor attitude”. But what if it’s not the real problem? The real constraint holding us back In Kiwi operational environments, at least 50% of frontline teams lack the literacy and numeracy skills to thrive in increasingly complex workplaces. Think manufacturing, construction, and logistics, and that figure is closer to 70%. This isn’t an HR issue; it’s a literacy issue showing up as lost performance. And it’s quietly draining your bottom line. What you’ll experience in 60 minutes: The redacted reality: We’ll apply a “CIA-style” redaction tool to a real-life induction document to show you exactly what a worker with an average reading age actually sees. What looks “clear” to you isn’t always readable to them. Connecting the “performance leaks” to the literacy gap: Connect the dots between downtime, rework, missed targets, and silence in meetings. You’ll see literacy gaps where you once saw attitude and engagement issues. How we start with the numbers, not textbooks: Learn how we build capability around your targets, your operational challenges, and your numbers, and strengthen literacy and numeracy to make it stick. What happens when it clicks: We’ll share real Kiwi case studies where teams built the literacy to read and respond to the work, they delivered an 18% lift in output, and recovered $144K in waste. The Operational Performance Diagnostic: You’ll leave with a high-level Operational Performance Diagnostic to pinpoint exactly where your plant is leaking performance Stop guessing. […]

(I wonder) What is in the Budget for manufacturers?

Another Budget, another election year. Lots of hand wringing? I hope not. The business community needs government to invest more and assist to make life better for all of us. Through these challenging times, we are not hearing from Ministers, expressing concerns, or sharing ideas to address the difficulties businesses are facing. When companies are challenged in moving forward, there needs to be options that can assist. Take for example Wattie’s and McCains, where are the Minister for Regional Development and the Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing? If they are working on a plan to improve the lot of these two companies, they are sure not letting business and communities know what is going on. If there are meetings going on, share the outcomes. Regions like Hawkes Bay are renowned for the quality of their products. Growers all over the country too. Rural business is holding the country together, financially, with their ginormous returns for high quality hort and agricultural export products. It is not the Queen Street farmer driving these efforts! In the Budget, we need to see investment into Manufacturing for companies to go forward, with confidence, and continue to grow. Manufacturing companies need the ability to invest in technology to do better and to enhance our market share. Improved technology can result in improved productivity, which can result in an improved bottom line. We cannot have a budget like the one in 2025, when to balance the books, the Finance Minister needed the money that was to be used for equal pay! I get it that in an election year members of Parliament may not want to comment or share ideas with the population because their words may well be remembered, affecting their chances of re-election. However, they work for us; with business, to bring about […]

NZ‑India free trade deal: were early fears about immigration and investment justified?

by Rahul Sen, Senior Lecturer, Department of Economics and Finance, Auckland University of Technology Depending on which side of the argument you listen to, the recently signed New Zealand-India free trade agreement represents either a huge economic opportunity for New Zealand or a risk to its economic sovereignty. In an election year, we can expect political positioning over something as significant as this deal, given the broader context. India is a huge market of 1.4 billion people, migration is a burning issue globally and economic growth has been elusive during a period of inflation, war and fuel price hikes. Broadly, the agreement reduces barriers to trade in goods, services, capital and skilled labour. It’s not surprising exporters are excited about the opportunities. India is projected to grow at 6.5% this year and the next – faster than New Zealand’s other existing trade partners. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s national interest analysis estimates trade, output and real wages will increase due to the market access for New Zealand goods in the deal. The economic benefits projected by 2050 may even be conservative estimates, given higher-than-modelled gains were seen once the New Zealand-China free trade agreement was in place. But the India deal goes beyond trade in goods and encompasses services and investment liberalisation, which was where the most political opposition was faced. First, it was feared New Zealand could be penalised for not investing enough in India. Second, according to NZ First’s Shane Jones, the agreement opens a door to “unfettered immigration”, displacing local jobs. The hyperbole notwithstanding, then, what does the text of the agreement tell us about the likely economic impact of the deal on New Zealand? Can NZ be penalised for not investing enough? The major sticking point for the Labour Party – whose support for the deal was needed because government coalition partner NZ First opposed it […]

Three Ministers for Small Business and Manufacturing in Three Years

Andrew Bayly, Chris Penk and Cameron Brewer have been the ministers for Small Business and Manufacturing in the past three years. How has this happened? Manufacturing in New Zealand requires a strong focus and a minister in the position for the long haul (or three years as the political term permits). To get to know how businesses function and the support they need for success. First there was Andrew Bayly, Chris Penk has been moved up in cabinet and Cameron Brewer is a brand-new appointment. How does the manufacturing community feel about this constant change? Because if National loses the upcoming election, there will have beeen four ministers in a short period of time…but let us not get ahead of ourselves. Manufacturing – all that is made – is consequential to our way of life. It goes without saying that if NZ does not have a manufacturing sector, it does not have an economy. If businesses are concerned about how long a minister is in the position, to do the position justice, they need to make their voices heard. Ministers need time to get to know how manufacturers function – familiarity -and the assistance they require, to enhance our standard of living and celebrate innovation.

Better thinking, better results: The two-day world class productivity simulation that builds capability

By Neil Robinson, a Senior Business Consultant with Argon & Co (Auckland) specialising in productivity improvement, Lean systems and capability building. Welcome back! If you joined us for Article 1, you’ll remember how the World Class Productivity Simulation gives teams a powerful, hands-on experience of what helps — and what hinders — operational performance. Many participants leave that first session with a renewed sense of possibility. “The only sustainable competitive advantage is an organisation’s ability to learn faster than the competition.” — Peter Senge In manufacturing, it’s easy to fall into a trap: when performance dips, the organisation responds with speed — quick fixes, point solutions, and local optimisation. Sometimes that helps. Often it creates new problems elsewhere, because the symptom wasn’t necessarily the system driver. A more reliable approach is to build the capability to think well about improvement — to see what’s really happening, understand what the customer needs, consider the organisation’s direction, and make decisions that improve the whole system rather than one corner of it. That’s the purpose of the two-day World Class Productivity Simulation. Day one creates an unforgettable experience of flow, waste and performance. Day two builds something more enduring: the ability to learn as a team and apply a repeatable method for choosing improvements that stick. Even if you never attend the simulation, the principles below will strengthen your own improvement conversations. The difference between activity and improvement Many sites have no shortage of improvement activity. The real question is whether that activity is producing better system performance: more reliable output, improved quality and delivery, lower cost, safer work, and less firefighting. A simple test is to ask: What problem are we solving — and how do we know? What customer need does this improvement protect or enhance? Which part of the system […]

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