2022 Conference Review

IT IS wELL documented that this year’s conference will be held in conjunction with the Civil Contractors of NZ. We believe this will provide greater opportunities for our members whilst retaining the essence of a HIANZ conference experience. Here’s 4 good reason why we believe that in 2022 this one will be the most successful yet. 1. Civil Contractors are one of the biggest customer groups for hire companies. They can, and do hire almost every type of item you have in the yard or on the shelf. They even extend into marquee hire and portable toilets/ temp fencing. This isn’t just for the big hire companies, it’s also a fantastic opportunity for small hire business owners to come along with their local contractor to enjoy a mutually satisfying experience. 2.CCNZ members are very practical, well-paid people and hire a lot of equipment for personal use as well. These 2 reasons alone show that as an industry, we need to get and keep close to this market segment. Networking, partying, and sharing stories is an excellent relationship building strategy. The opportunity to conference with this customer base should not be underestimated. To be able to hear the same presentations, be involved in the same

business workshops and network with others, will create further business opportunities. 3.Our supplier network exhibit every year at our conference and then at the Civil Contractors conference. In previous years, these conferences have been close together in time but not geographically. This makes it difficult to manage time and

resources, with large costs. This year we save a huge amount of money by being together at the same time. Our exhibition hall is now fully sold out, and we are considering opening up further areas to maximise opportunities for our supplier members. How great is it to see the same gear your clients are looking at and even having conversations with them about making it available for hire. 4.TePae Christchurch Convention

Centre is the newest conference venue operating in NZ currently.

This is a uniquely, impressive venue, situated as close to the middle of

Christchurch as you can get without displacing the Cathedral. It’s massive and can accommodate a huge number of people. On its own

HIANZ, could never afford to use this venue or fill most of the space. But, by partnering with CCNZ we get the chance to fully experience it. These reasons should be enough to excite you but if you’re not yet convinced, hang on to your hat, because it gets better: We have listened to feedback from last year and have worked hard to plan and implement a conference programme full of interesting and relevant sessions to help you in your day-to-day business life. You can find the full programme on our conference website, with enough detail to allow you to understand the subject matter. At the beginning of the conference, we have 3 “Masterclasses”. These are educational, business improvement related classes, where experts present ways to help you in your business. We have a couple of great speakers, ‘Seven Sharp’ host Hilary Barry is our MC and our range of 25 minute breakout sessions will give you even more business insights. Did I say party? For some of us, networking and socialising is the biggest reason and the most fun part of the conference. This is where we enjoy each other’s company, bury some hatchets, and sink a few drinks (in a responsible manner). Last year we even had Rugby lineout lifting plays as part of our socialising experience! This year, the dress up theme is ‘Steam Punk Masquerade.’ Weird and crazy you say, and yes it will be very scary to see the creative juices flowing and how risqué it gets to win the prize. I look forward to the evening and I challenge you to try and get funkier than me! The HIANZ Hire Excellence Awards night is on the final night and is this is what it’s all about. We will start out having shared pre dinner drinks with the Civil Contractors but then separate to our own Awards Dinner. We‘ve had a substantial change up to the awards system this year and it seems a few of you are still hesitant to enter, possibly because of time constraints or fear of not hitting the mark. I want to assure you, under the new system, its about promoting what you are doing great and celebrating that. If you have one area at least you think you are good at, enter just that. All we need is a few words on how good you are. ■ Conference registrations are open, so please sign up and get along, learn, network, and socialise. Get on the phone now to your local contractors and get them to come along with you. I really am looking forward to sharing this experience with you and showing you the true value of the association. ■

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