Saturday 7 March 2009

Economic Crisis in Dunedin ???


Had a great business class again on Thursday evening, where everyone shared their opinions of the "economic crisis" and how big or bad it really was here in Dunedin.

Some though it to be a bit overblown in NZ, as the traffic in to and out of Auckland still looks as busy as ever, and the banks in NZ are not really in trouble, as say the States, UK or even Ireland. Although banks here seem to be looking at business cash flow and debt levels pretty closely, and people are feeling the pinch? Another student pointed out that he was busier than ever in his business with quotes and contracts booked until at least the October or November of this year. And yet another student talked of people in his industry having 6 months of steady work already contracted, with no slow down predicted even after that?

It seems as if that everyone involved in the discussion, about 20 students from all over the globe, as well as more than a few "born and bred" in Dunedin, were watching their individual situations fairly closely, and pulling back a bit on any large purchases. One spoke of negotiating tough with local retailers for the purchase, delivery and installation of a refrigerator, with the feeling he got a "very good deal" in the end.

Perhaps the most interesting point in the whole 2 hour discussion, was that so many students saw this as a time of great opportunity to either expand their business and aggressively market against their major competitors, or to pull back slightly to re-focus on what they felt to be the core values and direction of their businesses. That customer satisfaction is the key element of either expansion or pulling back, was very interesting to me, after so many years in both teaching and running business operations. All students felt that creating, nurturing and expanding their relationships with customers and clients was of the utmost importance over the near future.