BusinessNZ Wellington Seminar
Influencing Policy in Wellington
The Wellington Seminar helps executives make connections and gain influencing skills in the place where laws, regulations and policies are made.
The Wellington Seminar is a one and a half day course led by BusinessNZ experts, business leaders, relevant politicians and top government officials with real experience in creating the policy environment.
The Seminar is designed to raise awareness of and create an understanding of the political environment, and how it can be engaged with to help achieve an organisation’s mission.
The Seminar focuses on developing executives’ external influencing skills, providing participants with the ability to deepen their networks with other participants and with key people in Wellington.
Our Pledge
The BusinessNZ Wellington Seminar will:
- Develop executives’ awareness of and ability to constructively influence the political environment.
Strengthen executives’ peer-to-peer network. - Develop executives’ understanding of their organisation’s contribution and responsibility to society.
Who should attend?
Participants from a wide variety of backgrounds and positions, including:
- CEOs
- Senior executives/leaders
- Business organisations
- Emerging talent
- Key advisors
- Local Government leaders
- Overseas leaders with NZ operations
Overview
The Wellington Seminar involves the input of a number of experts, officials and MPs to provide participants with the views and knowledge of the people most closely involved in the policy process.
The Wellington Seminar runs for one and a half days, with the ability for additional features to be added on a demand basis. There are a limited number of spaces available per seminar.
The Seminar is primarily held at BusinessNZ’s premises in Wellington, with external visits within the Wellington CBD.
The Seminar involves three key areas:
A. Contextual Approach
Achieving public policy change – Kirk Hope, CEO of BusinessNZ
Kirk Hope, Chief Executive of New Zealand’s most influential business advocacy organisation, will provide insights, thoughts and practical tips to assist business leaders in achieving change.
Discussion includes:
- Government’s place in New Zealand/democratic process
- Identifying key decision makers in policy
- The art of proposing, not opposing
- Building key relationships
The submission process
Discussion includes:
- Choosing to submit
- Birth of a submission
- What to say and how to say it
- Life after the submission process
B. Tackling Current Issues
Today’s issues – Political communications practitioner
There are many ways in which decisions are reached within the Beehive. The Seminar equips business leaders wtih the ability to recognise and understand these different pathways and to best prepare for them.
The Seminar provides participants with the opportunity to engage with a variety of people and groups involved in the political process, including decision-makers, journalists, lobbyists and representatives from industry associations.
Discussion includes:
- Prioritising policies/political realities
- How to state the case for change
- Selling the idea to the general public
- Relationship between Ministers and officials
C. Relationship with Government
Departments & their role in policy making – Major Govt Dept Senior Officials
The relationship with officials who develop and consult on laws/regulations is just as important as that with Ministers of the Crown. The Seminar outlines how they operate and their role in policy making.
Discussion with high ranking officials includes:
- Life cycle of departments vs Governments
- Structure for policy development
- Engagement tools with the private sector
Role of select committees – Select Committee specialist
The Select Committee provides the opportunity to publicly submit your views and recommendations to a range of MPs across the political spectrum. Preparation is key to ensure a positive outcome.
Discussion includes:
- Outline of select committee process
- Preparation for select committee
- Do’s and don’ts of appearing in front of a select committee
- Strategic uses of other parliamentary processes (question time, OIA requests etc)
- Participants will also take part in a select committee exercise so that they become better prepared when attending a select committee to present their submission.
Meet the politician – Government & Opposition MP
While there are a number of similarities in the day-to-day operations of a Government and an Opposition MP, there are also clear differences. At some point today’s Opposition MP may be tomorrow’s Government Minister.
The Seminar will provide executives opportunities to build relationships with up and coming MPs from all sides of the house, so as the participant grows in their professional capacity, so does their relationship with politicians who move up the political ranks.
Meeting with up and coming Government MP
Discussion includes:
- Understanding the role of a Government MP/Minister
- When best to engage with Government MPs
- Process and preparation for meeting – what Government MPs are looking for
Meeting with up and coming Opposition MP
Discussion includes:
- Understanding the role and views of an opposition MP
- Benefits of relationship building for future policies
- Process and preparation for meeting – what opposition MPs are looking for.
FAQ’s
What is the duration of the seminar?
The formal part of the Seminar lasts for 1½ days, although participants should allow 2 days due to optional activities on the afternoon of the second day.
Who should attend the Wellington Seminar?
Attendees will come from a wide variety of backgrounds and levels of management, including:
- CEOs
- Senior executives
- Emerging talent/future leaders
- Local government representatives
- Business association representatives
- Overseas business leaders with an interest in New Zealand operations.
What all participants have in common is the desire to gain a deeper understanding of Wellington’s wider political and policy environment, along with being aware of how to influence change.
What form does the teaching take?
This is not a theoretical training seminar but an experience that develops understanding of key political and economic issues impacting your business now. Participants will engage direct with key stakeholders and business leaders to engage in thinking on issues and gain practical insights driving benefit to their businesses. The contextual approach ensures that participants learn through direct experience of different political and policy environments.
By taking participants out of the workplace and giving them direct experience of Parliament, government departments and other key places in Wellington, with process will allow participants to understand for themselves how influencing government differs depending on the context.
The Seminar is delivered by BusinessNZ experts, business leaders, relevant politicians and top government officials. This allows participants to engage in real time and to challenge directly those responsible for delivering change.
What happens to my application once it has been submitted?
The Wellington Seminar team will contact you soon after your application about places available for the next Seminar.
What are the Seminar's dates?
Monday 31 May – Tuesday 1 June 2021
When is the application deadline?
Application window: TBA
Can more than one person from a business/organisation attend a Seminar?
Yes, although there is a limit of the total number of people that can attend each Seminar.
Is every Seminar the same?
While there will be elements of each Seminar that will be similar, the overall make-up of participants attending will assist in determining the most relevant politicians, government officials, industry leaders and communications practitioners that will be involved. Also, there is the ability to provide special purpose/tailored seminars for individual companies or industry groups.
How much does the Wellington Seminar cost?
Per participant cost for the BusinessNZ Wellington Seminar is: $2,399 + GST
All travel and accommodation costs are to be paid by the participants.
Who do I contact for more information?
Please contact Katharine McGhie for further information:
04 496 6285
[email protected]
Meet the Team
Phil has responsibility for commercial partnerships, member retention and development and policy forums including the Major Companies Group’s CEO Forum.
He is BusinessNZ’s representative on the Regional Entrepreneurial Advanced Programme with MIT Boston and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum.
Previously Phil worked in shareholder and media relations at Telecom (now known as Spark) following positions as business editor and sports journalist in print media.
Steve Summers has responsibility for tax policy, regulatory frameworks, SME issues, compliance costs, telecommunications and capital markets, in which areas he contributes to a number of Government advisory committees.
Steve has overall responsibility for BusinessNZ surveys and data analysis relevant to the business community, including the Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) and the Performance of Services Index (PSI). He also assists with the running of both the private and public sector Wellington Seminars.
His background includes labour market and income analysis for Statistics NZ.
Steve has a Master’s Degree in Economics from Massey University.
Alumni
Wellington Seminar Alumni
October 2019
(L-R) Kathryn Asare (BusinessNZ), David Song (Yashili), Kirk Hope (BusinessNZ), Stuart Anderson (Chch Casino), Leanne Newsome (Chch Casino), Katharine McGhie (BusinessNZ), Melanie McKay (EMA), Josie Hehir (ExportNZ), Stephanie Spicer (Bupa), Dee Crooks (REINZ), Sophie Hoult (DB Breweries), Alan Witcombe (MBIE), Joanna Mahon (Southern Cross), Benjamin Murray (Graymont)
Wellington Seminar Alumni
November 2017
Wellington Seminar Alumni
February 2017
(L-R) Amy Porter (Zespri), Oliver Bruce (Uber), John Pask (BusinessNZ), Sam Mackinnon (BusinessCentral), Tina Schirr (BusinessNZ), Genevieve O’Halloran (Lion), Michael Brooks (Poultry Industry Association), Todd Stephenson (Johnson & Johnson), John Carnegie (BusinessNZ), Alan Witcombe (MBIE), Paul Mackay (BusinessNZ), Sami Hakin (Imperial Tobacco)
Wellington Seminar Alumni
April 2016
Wellington Seminar Alumni
June 2015
Wellington Food & Beverage Seminar Alumni, May 2015
(L–R) Phil Love (BusinessNZ), Andrew Smith (Prolife Foods), Rachel Hopkins (Competenz), Phil O’Reilly (BusinessNZ), Aland Witcombe (MBIE), Bridget Beaurepaire (Frucor), Jo Finer (Fonterra), Gary Hartley (GS1 New Zealand), Mark Callaghan (Frucor), Kim Calvert (Cottonsoft). Absent from photo: Tracy Abbott (Imperial Tobacco), Sarah Tucker (Lion), Conrad Reyners (Red Bull).
Wellington Seminar Alumni
February 2015
(L–R) Juliet Larkin (Methanex New Zealand), Ruth Cobb (PrintNZ), Peter Rose (Ngāi Tahu Property Ltd), Alan Whitcombe (MBIE, Guest Speaker), Tracey Chambers (Chambers Strategy and Communications), John Stulen (Forest Industry Contractors’ Association), Phil O’Reilly (BusinessNZ), Phil Love (BusinessNZ), Greg Brooks (St George’s Hospital Inc), Claire Walker (Sanford), Louise Wright (Porter Novelli), Margaret Gracie (NZ Steel), David Freeman-Greene (Orion New Zealand Ltd).
Testimonials
“BusinessNZ and especially Phil O’Reilly conducted a brilliant two day program of expert advice and insight on all aspects of Select Committees. The networking and information alone was superb but the mock submission critique was invaluable. Our approach to Government has fundamentally been rethought as a result!”
“The recent 2 day Business NZ political seminar was a great investment in my time. We are very conscious at Prolife Foods that we need to have knowledge and relationships with politicians and government departments. The best component was the “mock” Select Committee training – I got a lot out of both my submission process and learning from the submissions of the other attendees.”
“If you want to learn how to effect policy change inside the beltway – either through submissions, Select Committee presentations or the need to be connected and to whom – then this Seminar is invaluable.”
“Getting some real world insights through case studies, experience and select committee training was invaluable. There were also some excellent networking opportunities with both the cohort and speakers.“
“We want to grow participants’ understanding of how Wellington works and how they can influence constructively.”
“The day after the course had finished I had to submit to another committee. While most of us believed that presenting to a committee was the most important step in the political process, the Seminar showed that there is an enormous difference in “knowing” and “hoping” you are undertaking the process correctly.”
“A fantastic programme. It provided practical information, hands-on experience and access to both business and government people to explain how the wheels of Wellington work and the opportunities that exist to influence the right people in the right way. As General Manager of a business based outside the capital this was an incredibly valuable learning experience and well worth attending.“