Boundaries are there to be pushed says F&P CEO

John Bongard keeps a hands-on approach to running Fisher & Paykel Appliances. Picture / Dean Purcell

When welcoming young graduates to Fisher & Paykel Appliances, John Bongard always asks: "How many of you, within the next year or so, think you're going to make a reasonably serious mistake?"

The loaded and "slightly dumb" question helps the chief executive make his point that the only way to truly innovate, no matter whether you're an accountant or an engineer, is to push the boundaries.

"If you're not making a few mistakes, you're not really testing those boundaries," he said. "The key though is to not make the same mistake twice."

Go back 33 years and it was a 19-year-old, long-haired Bongard who arrived at the appliance manufacturer under similar circumstances.

After early jobs delivering the Herald in Papakura and after-school shifts in a local menswear store, Bongard aspired to be an engineer "but the social scene at the University of Auckland got the better of me, so I wasn't that successful".

Having failed to finish his degree, in 1973 Bongard was taken on as a cadet by F&P chairman Gary Paykel, then in charge of purchasing, who later encouraged Bongard's return to university for his bachelor of commerce in economics and management.

Ending up at the helm was something Bongard never foresaw back then and it is "very humbling to be honest".

Having known founders Maurice Paykel and Woolf Fisher before they died and still being in touch with former managing director Don Rowlands and Gary Paykel have made taking over the reins a bit easier.

It's possible Bongard will be the last chief executive with that link to the company's pioneers.

"Maybe, but I hope that isn't true," he says.

"I believe at this stage we've got the talent for the next chief executive to come from the inside, but that's obviously an issue for the board to decide. I see it as part of my role to promote within our business so they're able to show the board they could be capable of taking over from me."

The lessons passed down from the founders are numerous but the importance of treating people fairly is the one he holds most dearly.

"You've got to have a tough attitude these days in business, but you've always got to be fair. I think that's probably the biggest influence of the founders."

The other thing they instilled is the vision.

"Right back when I first started, Maurice and Woolf were saying this company had to export to survive, and if we didn't innovate, we'd get run over by the big guy.

"So when people talk innovation, it's not a new thing for this business. The team here have been doing it long before me."

Where F&P is pushing the boundaries is in North America, where the company is on the brink of becoming a household name.

"Who knows how big that [market] can get. We're testing some boundaries there ourselves in terms of new products and prices. There's more to come from there yet."

During the 10 months to January, US sales rose 43.5 per cent and volumes are expected to jump further when the new factory in Clyde, Ohio, ramps up to full output.

The first US-produced washing machine rolled off the factory line there early last month and the 2005 decision to shift the line of Smart Drive washing machines and Smart Load dryers there from Australia and Auckland makes F&P one of the higher profile exporters creating a beachhead on foreign shores.

But this hasn't worried Bongard.

"It's not a statement. We're not saying, 'See-ya later New Zealand' - far from it. We're still dedicated to doing and making what we do make here in New Zealand, but it's got to have good long-term business sense."

And shipping the bulky appliances to the US "full of good clean New Zealand air" - costing a fortune in freight and money tied up in working capital - didn't make sense.

"It's just part of becoming more international. I'm just pleased we can afford to do it because if you become too focused on only having manufacturing facilities in New Zealand, I don't think the business would be able to grow like it is."

With the company's technical and R&D resources here, Bongard still sees New Zealand as a good place for manufacturing and the hub for design and innovation.

As F&P's borders expand, Bongard is spending more time offshore.

But when he's behind his desk at the East Tamaki factory, where he arrives around 7:30am, there's not much that escapes his knowledge: He knows what the factory produces each day, what was sold and how much money was made.

It's from the team there that Bongard draws the inspiration to keep driving the company forward.

"I suppose I've over-emphasised it, but I really do enjoy working with the people I work with. I feel as if we've got a mission and know where we're going and I enjoy watching it unfold."

He's got some good friends around the site.

General manager Brian Nowell, who has worked with Bongard since he started, said Bongard's "humble background" meant he had stayed in touch with the working man's culture still prevalent in the company today.

"John's always borne in mind where other people come from. I think that's stood him in good stead in terms of dealing with the factory-related issues," he said.

Undoubtedly, Bongard's mark on the company has been unlocking the offshore markets.

"He's immersed himself in the culture and understanding the business. And really, he was the guy who did a lot of the pioneering work in the early days breaking into Australia. John would probably never lay claim to that but, certainly, he was instrumental in spreading us offshore," Nowell said.

"But we have to keep going - that's the key - and I think he sees that better than most too."

His greatest talent?

"A huge propensity to get his mind around numbers. He reads fastidiously and is pretty in touch with what's going on," said Nowell.

Bongard was someone who enjoyed the basics of life.

"He enjoys his sport, his family and a few tipples here and there."

At work, Bongard spends most of his time on the where-to-next questions, thinking strategically where he wants to take the business.

"It's not just about markets and factories; it's about product plans, product strategies and those sorts of things. So I'm pretty lucky, actually. I've got a pretty exciting job," Bongard said.

"When I do retire or get told to move on, I'd like the company to be in better shape than it is today. It's improving all the time, but I want it to keep getting better.

"We've got a plan and we've got a vision for where we want to be. The biggest challenge is just keeping to that plan. I think you have to be careful that you're not so blinded by your own plan that you can't change it as circumstances change."

And after 33 years in the business, there's another thing the feet-on-the-ground chief executive knows.

"You have to be patient at this game."

John Bongard

Chief executive, Fisher & Paykel Appliances
Age: 52
Family: Married to Diane, with two children, 19 and 15.
Education: - Papakura High School.
- Bachelor of commerce, the University of Auckland.
Career: Joined F&P in 1973 as a a purchasing cadet.

Roles since include manager of group purchasing, marketing manager, commercial manager, general manager of whiteware.

2001: Managing director.
2004: Managing director and chief executive.

Fisher & Paykel Appliances

Founded: Auckland 1934 by Woolf Fisher and Maurice Paykel.
Products: Refrigerators, freezers, clothes washers and dryers, dishwashers and cooking products.
Markets: US (No 1), Australia (No 2), New Zealand (No 3), Singapore, Europe.
Staff: New Zealand 2200; US 700; Australia 650; Singapore 50; UK 12