Award caps businessman's notable year

Deryck Shaw reflects on a career that led him to be named Rotorua's Businessman of the Year. Photo / File

Deryck Shaw is often too busy looking forward to the next big project to reflect too much on the past.

But when he does, it's likely 2014 will rank as an impressive year.

Hot on the heels of being made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in June he was last week named the Businessman of the Year at the Westpac Rotorua Business Excellence Awards.

It's an award that came out of left field.

Clocking up 30 years in business in Rotorua last year, Mr Shaw's firm APR Consultants has expanded with offices in Hamilton and Whangarei while maintaining a Rotorua base.

"We're quite unusual in that our business works all over New Zealand doing consultancy work, we're not just Rotorua."

His diary attests to that - in the week of the awards he had work commitments in Wellington, Waiheke Island and Gisborne.

With the business starting to work in Australia, Mr Shaw believed Rotorua was a great base, especially with the direct flights to Sydney,

The only major challenge was some often perceived regional-based businesses as having only regional-based capabilities - something he has set out to prove wrong.

"A lot of it is about reputation."

He had been very fortunate with the team doing a fantastic job and highlighted the work of everyone over an extended period, he said.

He's a firm believer that a business is only as good as its people and their last project and puts a lot of hard work around making sure they keep their reputation and offer competitive bids.

Among highlights of three decades of work was the Northland Regional Development Strategy, which won the firm a national award, as well as the work on the Rotorua Trust Millennium Project (which involved a number of projects including the Rotorua Arts Village, many walkways and lakes amenities), undertaking a lot of ground work around cycling, setting up systems to monitor regional visitor flows around New Zealand, work on I Zone (the largest industrial park in New Zealand) and preparing business and economic overviews for several districts. He was also significantly involved in developing The Business Hub.

"I've been involved with more than 1000 projects."

Outside of business, he has many governance roles.

One of the highlights has been his involvement as deputy chairman of New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute, Te Puia.

"[That organisation] is quite amazing in a global context."

Other governance roles include chairing the Lakes District Health Board, involvement in the Rotorua Walking Festival, Rotorua Football and previously sitting on the Waiariki Institute of Technology Board and with the Rotorua Citizens Advice Bureau.

He said the governance and consultancy work complemented each other.

"They build on each other and you can understand the dimensions from both perspectives."

One of the biggest highlights was the great people he met through business.

Among the best advice he was given was to listen to advice, "but remember the decision is your decision at the end of the day".

"I think the key is to continue to look at what you're doing. Just because you did something in a certain way yesterday doesn't mean it will work tomorrow. It's always a work in progress."

"Every day is different, no two projects are the same and I think the nature of the work had kept it interesting."

He says he's also a cup half full man.

"I think to be in business you have to be an optimist."