Better Business, Better Life

Nick and Jeni Clift are the owners & Directors of DWM Solutions, now merged with Milan Industries Group.  They have been working together in their own businesses for close to 25 years.

Nick is Director of MIG, and holds the role of Visionary.

Jeni is Head of People & Culture at MIG. She also has a consultancy business, Tenassia, working with her clients as an EOS Implementer and providing Business & Leadership Coaching.

DWM Solutions opened for business in February 2002. We provide proactive IT support services for Local Government, Water Authorities, Education and Health entities as well as small to medium Commercial organisations. In a nutshell, we think about your IT so you don’t have to!

Our clients are located across Victoria, we support them from our offices in Melbourne, Bendigo and Echuca, and in January 2017 we relocated our Geelong office to Torquay.  We currently employ 16 staff.

Prior to founding DWM Solutions, Nick held various roles within the computer and information technology industry. These included Director and General Manager of TriTech Computer Services; and Engineer, Service Manager and National Technical Services Manager over a 13-year career with Unisys.  Nick holds Certificate of Technology in Electronics and Certificate of Technology in Computer Servicing from RMIT.  These, coupled with his extensive industry and product certifications, highlights a wealth of knowledge and skills. More than 30 years of experience in the computer industry has given Nick a sound understanding of the important role technology plays in business. His ability to keep abreast of the ever-changing pace of information technology is second to none.

Jeni’s background is in Human Resources & Administration, she has worked with many of Australia’s best known brands, including Morgan & Banks, P&O, KPMG, NAB, Unisys and Phillips. Jeni is a Professional EOS Implementer and works as a Business Coach specialising in Leadership and Personal Development.  Jeni is a regular speaker at IT industry events and internationally, sharing her experiences in running a family business and managing the “people” side of a business.

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

Maurice is the Executive Director of Q4 Associates, the digital workforce specialists. He’s dedicated the last 25 years to bridging the gap between IT and business, and more than a decade to project and program remediation across businesses in the USA, New Zealand and Australia.

During his time holding multiple senior-level and executive positions, Maurice has developed an eye for what’s critical and what’s not. He sees the potential of technology not for technology’s sake, but for its potential to bring about lasting, meaningful change for businesses, people, and society.

It’s the thought leadership, a global network and experience that Maurice has bought to his years spent at the coalface helping accelerate the establishment of digital workforces in some of the most significant organizations across Australasia and the world. He is part of ongoing global conversations about the optimal adoption of this technology and the next evolution of work.

In addition to multiple industry-specific qualifications, and being a certified Blue Prism ROM (Robotic Operating Model) Architect, Maurice also holds a Postgraduate qualification in International Strategy and Leadership, and a Masters in Management from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. He is also a member of the Institute of Directors.

For Maurice's Top 3 tips, please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

For nearly a decade, Seth Gleeson and Datum Projects have been making life easy for brands, consultants, and contractors alike. Born from a desire to work in a more client-centric and solutions-driven environment, the business leverages Seth’s 25+ years of retail and commercial fit-out experience to run a business focused on great people and great service.

Datum is very much an extension of Seth and his career. After serving a shopfitting apprenticeship post-school, he spent 14 years in the industry over in the UK before making the move to New Zealand. By the time he started Datum Projects a couple of years into his time here, he’d had enough of below-average workplace cultures. He set out to create a client-centric, solutions-driven business – and create an awesome place for other shopfitters to work.

After nearly a decade, Seth’s grown the business to encompass 50 awesome staff, a 2,500sqm factory space, and projects across the country. With a specialist team across various trades and a thriving in-house joinery factory, Datum Projects offers full-service solutions and expert advice on all areas of the fit-out process.

Although his main role now is ensuring that the team has everything they need to succeed, Seth is still very much part of the fit-out process. He loves working with clients and the team to ensure every fit-out is successful.

For Seth's Top 3 tips, please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

In this episode I am talking to Suzi McAlpine on the launch of her new book - "Beyond Burnout - a New Zealand Guide. How to spot it, stop it and stamp it out."  

A leadership coach, award-winning blogger and keynote speaker, Suzi works alongside CEOs, managers and executives to facilitate clarity, direction and optimal performance in the areas people need it most.  

Suzi McAlpine is a Leadership Development Specialist and author of award-winning leadership blog, The Leader’s Digest. She writes and teaches about accomplished leadership, what magic emerges when it’s present, and how to ignite better leadership in individuals, teams and organisations.  

Suzi has been a leader and senior executive herself, working alongside CEOs and executive teams in many guises. Her experience has included being a head-hunter and executive coach, and a practice leader for a division at the world’s largest HR consulting firm.  

Suzi provides a range of services as a Leadership Development Specialist, including executive coaching, leadership workshops and leadership development programmes for CEOs, leadership teams and organisations throughout New Zealand. She has worked with IAG, Weta Workshop, The Department of Conservation, Contact Energy, Merchant (Overland) Footwear, BDO Accounting, and Nelson Airport to name a few.  

In 2012, Suzi started The Leader’s Digest, now an internationally acclaimed blog, which provides tips and insights to CEOs and executives around the globe. The blog has been named in CMOE’s Top 100 Socially-Shared Leadership Blogs, Serve To Lead’s Best 21st Century Leadership Blogs, Charles Specht’s Top 50 Global Leadership Bloggers, Hubworks Global Top 25 Leadership and Management Blogs and MP Star Financials’ global Top 25 Leadership Blogs for Small Business.  

In 2018, she launched an online leadership programme for emerging leaders, The Leader’s Map. The programme fills a void in the leadership arena, teaching leadership skills and providing support to people who are thrust into roles in which they must lead. The programme gives emerging leaders the necessary tools to succeed in their role.  

Suzi has used her expertise in the leadership space to write a book on burnout and how leaders can create environments in which people, as well as profits, thrive.  

In this podcast, she shares some insights, actionable tools & practical tips for Leaders & businesses of all sizes.  

For Suzi's top 3 tips & a link to her new book, please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

A Kiwi born entrepreneur, who grew up between the bush in the Waitakeres, and working on an organic farm in his teenage years. Dave’s connection to the land and his Maori heritage, has seen him bring a unique set of sustainability value into a variety of businesses.

Dave has owned over a dozen businesses and a charity, as well as holding several board positions. Each with (or under pressure from Dave to have), triple bottom line reporting.

Most have won environmental (such as SBN) and business (such as Westpac) awards. Philanthropic focus saw Dave’s attention move to charity and supporting startups, particularly those that improved environmental outcomes, which is where his current journey with the other co-founders of CarbonClick began.

Dave was a founding trustee of Sea Cleaners Trust, but has since channeled all his focus into CarbonClick. When Dave handed over the reins at SeaCleaners, they had removed over 200 shipping containers worth of plastics from NZ's marine environment. A testament to his values of just doing it rather than talking about doing.

Dave sees the struggles people have, when they aren’t connected to the environment around them, and his concern is that the disconnect is becoming stronger as we are left with less of it every day.

The very environment that supports every one of us. Dave is on a mission to restore these opportunities, through supporting projects that have strong biodiversity and social outcomes, and sharing these stories with individuals, encouraging them to reconnect. This is why he is so passionate about CarbonClick’s potential in this world.

In this episode, Dave shares how to create better profit through better business.

For Dave's top 3 tips & links to resources please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

Verity Craft is an entrepreneur, writer, consultant, speaker (and musical theatre nerd!) based in Auckland, New Zealand. Together with founder Christina Wedgwood, she’s built content agency Intelligent Ink into the experts on thought leadership content in New Zealand.

In this podcast with Debra Chantry-Taylor (Professional EOS Implementer & Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach), she talks about how you can use thought leadership to become a true authority. She gives examples of what to do & what not to do, as well as tips for how you start on your better-thinking journey.

For Verity's top 3 tips & links to resources (especially her free download on "Unpacking your thought leadership position") please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

Grant runs the vert successful Waking Giants Business. The business describes how it helps as "We work alongside you to develop purposeful strategy that enables you to make it happen."

Grant describes what motivates him...

"After a life of being a shy kid into my mid-30s I finally realised that I have something important to contribute to the world. It also comes with an unrelenting truth that can be hard to deliver and hear but I believe that that’s what we need to grow.

Waking Giants is more than just a business for me it’s a vision to ensure that no one feels that they can’t achieve beyond their current thinking… no hype bullshit, but deep desire to be more in tune with what’s possible. We work with people who want to unlock that space, primarily focused on leaders.

I love my team, it has taken 10 years to understand what kind of people I want around me and that’s the sauce of my passion and inspiration. I would rather three great people than a team of 20 for ego.

I am proud of my ability to do things my way and challenge everything I see in front of me… I do that in sport last year running New Zealand’s toughest Ultra Marathon in the Southern Alps, I do things that push me physically so I can push mentally… this then translates into my vision. If I am going to teach this stuff, I have to live it."

Grant talked to Debra Chantry-Taylor about how 2020 was a tough year but after a 'Clarity Break' realised that there was a different way forward.

This epiphany caused them to review their business entirely, looking for ways to do things smarter. There were some tough decisions to be made but it resulted in 2020 being a very profitable year for Waking Giants & more importantly it strengthed the team.

Learn how Grant now views business & why he believes that having a better business & not a bigger business leads to better profit.

For Grant's top 3 tips & links to resources please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

Richard started his first business as a teenager & has had 7 businesses since then.

He has pioneered bottled water sales in NZ, designed and launched Virgin Kiwi, Crew and Edge brands of mineral water. He also relaunched the Alexanders brand.

He recognised early on that the best way to start a business is to work hard at it whilst you still have your well-paying day job.

In this episode, he shares how he manages to keep ideas fresh, simplify the business & still travels the world, despite Covid.

When he travels he manages his business from a mobile phone. 

His passion is sustainability & to achieve this he mandates simplicity & just in time.

Find out how he does this along with 3 invaluable tips to Keep it Simple in your business.

For Richard's top 3 tips & links to resources please visit the website - https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

On our latest episode of Better Business, Better Life, I am joined by Tony Falkenstein who will be sharing his experiences with the Topic of ‘Managing the People Issues’.  

Tony was born in Auckland, and has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Auckland. 

He is a serial entrepreneur, who has started over 50 companies. 

He is the CEO and majority shareholder of Just Life Group Ltd, a publicly listed company which he founded 32 years ago. 

In 2003, Tony established New Zealand’s first Business High School, at Onehunga High School, with a view to include ‘business and entrepreneurship’ as a subject in the National Curriculum. 

In 2011 this goal was attained, and he has assisted the Ministry of Education with establishing Business High Schools throughout the country. 

In 2008, he was inducted into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame. 

In 2010, he was appointed as an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for services to business. 

In 2011, Tony received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Auckland. In 2012, he received the World Class New Zealand Award for ‘New Thinking’. 

Tony has been married to Heather for 39 years, and has one daughter.  

In this episode we learn from Tony:

https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership

Warner describes himself as a business development pro, social outcomes champion, Maori Entrepreneur, Veteran and Engineer.   

He and his wife, Liz set up Height Project Management nearly 8 years ago and it is now Australasia's leading technical tendering & procurement consultancy, employing 20 staff.  

“Simply put, they help organisations buy and sell complex, expensive and risky stuff!”  

Warner was a late bloomer as an Entrepreneur - spending his early years in the air force, in corporate life (such as Downer and Metronet rail ) and travelling the world.   

What he has learned is that all of this experience helps when it comes to scaling a business so it's a myth that you have to be young to start your own business.  His business is thriving, even with Covid, and his team won 2 significant awards last year.

We took a deep dive into how these roles have enabled his topic of Happy Wife, Happy Life or more specifically how he creates space for his personal and family life, as Warner is the first to admit that he may not always have been a role model husband but he did  say, "thinking of some great things we have done, are generally born out of things that have gone wrong."

In this episode we cover:

You can find the 3 tips & full transcript here:

https://www.debrachantry-taylor.com/podcast

Debra Chantry-Taylor

Professional EOS Implementer | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Business Owner

#betterbusinessbetterlife #entrepreneur #leadership