Getting here has been the result of hard work and determination with a large smattering of luck and a great deal of support; support from each other and support from family, friends, clients and many other people involved in the spatial industry in New Zealand and around the world.
A friend of mine said “He who dares, wins” and today at least, I think we dared [to be different] and have on the whole come out as a winner.
As many of you know, we were kind of forced to make the step to becoming company owners and as I sit here now, thank goodness that we were. The unshackling from being “owned” was a relief in so many ways – being able to carve your own path and develop your own ideals and philosophies is incredibly therapeutic. Leaving any baggage behind, even more so.
I can’t say that it has been plain sailing! I think there is a stark lesson to anyone thinking about becoming their own boss which relates to timing. New Zealand is possibly unique in its single mindedness about Christmas and the Summer Holiday season. Everything and everyone all but stops for almost 6 weeks. Starting out in November we hit that very real brick wall and it was only in March that we managed to do some real work. We weren’t idle over the summer; there was a lot of Business Development to be done in order to line up that March contract – but it was hard and stressful having almost 6 months with nothing. Building a pipeline always takes far longer than you expect or hope for – but that is the reality of business. My advice, start-up in March, when everyone is back to work!
As we sit here and look forward we can only see interesting times ahead. Our strategic and independent consultancy has certainly been appreciated by the customers we have worked with; that ability to enter in to a conversation purely focused on what is best for the customer and not what is best for product sales is a breath of fresh air. Our no nonsense, tell it as we see it approach has also been well received [by most]!
In front of us we can see a number of really interesting projects on the immediate horizon and through 2014 we expect to be able to grow adding highly capable and experience individuals to our team as Partners. Who knows, we may even need an employee or two!
Our Partnership model is working well. It is great to be challenged by one another and being able to work in an environment where risk taking, learning to fail fast, flying by the seat of our pants and knowing our own limits really makes for an interesting day.
So thank you all who have in some way contributed to what has been a fascinating journey for us. We appreciate all of your friendship, support, advice and interest in what we are doing and we hope that we have the opportunity to continue to deliver value to you as individuals and your organisations through 2014 and beyond.