Flying Start for new Rotorua chamber executive member

HIGH ACHIEVER: Kathy Hawker, Flying Start director
Being proactive and learning how to network have proved invaluable skills for Kathy Hawker, one of two new members of the Rotorua Chamber of Commerce executive.
She puts her recent successful election down to getting out  and making herself known and getting  involved in chamber initiatives.
"I have run for the chamber twice before - the first time I wasn't very proactive with chamber events and not a lot of people knew me."
To rectify that, Kathy started going to as many BA5 networking events as she could and became a big fan of the Kik Start speed networking breakfasts.
She was also co-opted on to the membership committee and approached president Michelle Pleydell to start the Women in Business group following the demise of Her Business Network in Rotorua.
"We felt we still needed this type of event to be available to all Rotorua women."
Kathy's increased involvement not only raised her profile, it  also helped her business.
"When you are seen regularly, you are top of mind when people are thinking of using your service - be heard!"
She says attending events, such as these, and Business Swap, which she has been a member of for 10 years, provides good opportunities to pick up good business advice from other professionals.
"It has been important to me to meet a lot of other businesspeople who can help me with my business decisions, training myself and my staff, and building a rapport."
She has been the owner and director of Flying Start childcare and preschool since 1997, after looking for a change from her career in the health sector.
Having trained as a community nurse, a role later renamed "enrolled nurse", she spent a number of years working at Whangarei Base Hospital.
Kathy was working at Rotorua's Princess of Wales Health Camp as a health co-ordinator/supervisor when she and her husband Ian decided it was time for a change.
"We had no children at home and were wanting to go to our beach house in Ohope on weekends, so decided to find me a business that didn't involve weekends or late shifts."
Moving into childcare was a happy accident.
The couple spoke to a business broker, intending to buy a cleaning business, but when the broker mentioned Frances Childcare was for sale, their focus changed.
"The owner wanted out, so we had a look and thought: 'Yeah, we can do this'."
But the transition entailed a significant learning curve.
"I was taking over a team of people who knew a few things more than me in early childhood.
"Suddenly I was accountable to government agencies, education training providers and the parents of the children I was responsible for."
Kathy tackled these new challenges by applying the life skills acquired elsewhere and taking on board the  adage about surrounding yourself with the right people.
Her advice to others entering the industry?
"Ask questions and learn from your mistakes. Most of all, be honest - have integrity and be fair."