Hi

We have some lovely farewell functions going on at the moment for our CEO Helen Down, who is leaving the Hutt Valley Chamber in just two weeks time. Hutt City Council Mayor, Campbell Barry hosted a farewell at Council this week (photos below). Next week Helen's main farewell function will be taking place at Lower Hutt Events Centre. If you did not receive an invitation to Helen's official farewell next week and you would like to attend, please contact annette@hvchamber.org.nz.

On that note, we are still looking for our next CEO, so if you are interested in the role we encourage you to touch base with our President, Mark Skelly in the first instance, by email: president@hvchamber.org.nz.

COVID-19 & Business Updates

Just announced today: extended essential skills visas being rolled out
Quarantine-free travel from Victoria to NZ paused for at least four days from Friday, 16 July
Resurgence support payment for reduction in revenue as a result of Alert Level 2 change on 23 June - applications close 29 July
This week's information about travel between New South Wales and New Zealand

Upcoming Events

New Members Function: 22 July 2021
5:30-7:30pm at Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce

We look forward to meeting our new members

Invitations have been sent

This is a wonderful opportunity to meet other new members, along with our Chamber team and Partners. This event is supported by Gold Partner, Spark Business Hub Hutt-Porirua.

If you became a new member in the last year and have not received an invitation, please contact Annette at annette@hvchamber.org.nz, or call 04 939 9821.

Livestream: Work Well, Be Well
11am, Friday 23 July

Do you need help implementing wellbeing practices into your work environment?

A healthy team has a significant positive impact on business productivity. Employee wellness programmes (or wellness plans) are a form of health benefit many employers now provide.

During this short Facebook livestream, Chamber Member, Victoria Fraser will walk you through the how and why of wellness plans for yourself and your employees and you can ask her questions directly. Put this one in your diary and join us live on Facebook on Friday, 23 July at 11am to take part.

Join us on Facebook on 23 July

Tech After 5: 28 July 2021
5:30-7:30pm at BNZ Partners Centre, Lower Hutt

We are extremely proud to showcase three fabulous local businesses who are leading the way worldwide in technology and innovation.

Hear from Nick Long from The Paihau-Robinson Institute, part of Victoria University. They are currently developing technology to revolutionise spacecraft propulsion
Wellington is on track to become the first city in the southern hemisphere to boast its own Kiwi designed and built fully electric marine transport, thanks to Wellington Electric Boat Company. Hear from Managing Director, Fraser Foote
NZ's Young Engineer of the Year 2019 Terry Miller of EIGHT360, will introduce you to his world-unique NOVA platform, giving defence and commercial organisations an immersive virtual vehicle experience

This is a fantastic line-up of Hutt Valley businesses, brought to you in conjunction with Platinum Partner, BNZ as part of the Hutt Valley Chamber's Manufacturing and Technology Programme for 2021.

This is a popular, always very inspiring and interesting evening, uncovering some of the hidden gems of our local business community. There is no cost for members, with a small charge for non-members. Book today.

BNZ Tech Series - book here >

Women in Business Lunch:
Leadership in a Covid World

12 August, 12:00pm-2:00pm

The Women in Business Lunch has been postponed due to recent changes to alert levels. It will now be taking place on 12 August at the Lower Hutt Events Centre. We do hope you can make it.

Reconnect over an informal lunch with Keynote Speaker, Kristen Lunman, Co-founder and General Manager of Hatch. Kristen challenged the status quo by opening up US sharemarkets to all New Zealanders with her modern investment platform, Hatch.

Nominated for the NZ Women of Influence Innovator of the Year awards in 2018, Kristen is passionate about providing New Zealanders with faster and more affordable access to world-class financial tools. Kristen is a strong advocate for financial independence through smart investing. Book now to join us for this relaxed lunch.

Women in Business Lunch >

Upcoming Training & Development

Driving Traffic to Your Website: 4 August 2021

Silver Partner, Synthesis Marketing is running the first of a series of workshops aimed at helping SMEs with their digital marketing.

This first workshop will focus on driving traffic to your website. You'll gain an understanding of:

Making gains by linking website and offline marketing
Search engine optimisation (SEO) and the keywords that matter
Paid online advertising
Writing content that works
Understanding website backlinks
The value of Google's "Near Me" searches.

Places are limited, so book today. There is no charge to attend this event. Find out more and register here.

Register here >

From our Members

Psychological Safety, presented by Chamber Member, Dale Carnegie

Free Breakfast Seminar: 27 July at 7:15am

How Confident is Your Team at Sharing Ideas?

Research suggests psychological safety is the number one driver of team effectiveness.

At this fast-paced and dynamic workshop, you will:

1. Discuss the concept of psychological safety and why it is important

2. Examine recent research by Dale Carnegie and others related to psychological safety and its importance for genuine inclusiveness, resilience and organisational agility

3. Look at ways to assess a team’s level of psychological safety

4. Assess the impact of psychological safety on employee engagement

There is no charge for this event but you must register as places are limited. Find out more and book here.

Register here >

Welcome new Gold Partner

A warm welcome to our new Gold Partner, Youth Inspire. Youth Inspire is committed to getting youth engaged in meaningful employment, training or education.

We look forward to working more closely with Youth Inspire to help young people gain local employment opportunities, as part of our Education to Employment Programme. More information to come next week.

In case you missed it ...

Helen's Farewell from Hutt City Council

Hutt City Council Mayor, Campbell Barry invited Helen and the Chamber team to Council for an official farewell on 12 July. Helen was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation for services to Lower Hutt's business community and gifted a pounamu. See more.

See all the photos >

Climate Change Workshop, 7 July 2021

As part of Hutt City Council’s goal of reducing carbon emissions to zero by 2050, we hosted a workshop in conjunction with Hutt City Council.

As the voice for business, the Chamber was keen to provide a forum for Hutt City Council and their project team to get direct feedback from the business community and get their perspective on climate change and Carbon Zero. Read more ...

The Last Word ...

... Help us Advocate on your Behalf

Thank you to everyone who has completed the latest Business Confidence Survey. Upper Hutt and Lower Hutt combined is a substantial business base and together, we are all a very loud voice into local and central government. By taking the Quarterly Business Confidence Survey, sponsored by Bronze Partner, Red Hot Business Coaching, you are helping us to help you.