Grant Kilby: Be part of the solution

It was summed up nicely at a meeting to brief councillors on the progress of the Rotorua Growth Strategy last week by a prominent business leader, inferring Rotorua has been a very well kept secret and now we need to let it out of the bag that this city is a great place in which to live, work, invest and play.
The vision of Rotorua - World Class in Every Way - is a heady goal, one that will take some strategic planning and determination to deliver but, in my view, unless you put in front of yourself a measure that will challenge us to change, you may as well resolve to be just another city somewhere in New Zealand.
The last four years of heading up the economic development unit for the city have been a pleasure. Some may think there has been a fence jumped back into private enterprise, but this is not the case as I now firmly believe Rotorua has step-changed into public and private working together for the betterment of our city. In a sense, we are both on the same side of the fence. The key for Rotorua is the passion of its people and the diversity of our economy. Rotorua is ranked sixth most diverse economy out of the 72 territorial authorities in New Zealand, meaning we are not wholly reliant on one sector to hold or drive our economy.
The group charged with identifying and ranking the sector drivers for our economy for the Rotorua Growth Strategy made it quickly evident there is marginal difference between sectors and drivers. This means there are no clear winners and we will have to really focus on the barriers and opportunities to grow sustainably, which will have an extraordinary effect on our economy.
The actions for the Rotorua Growth Strategy will be developed through focus and consultation during the next couple of months. Having business leaders contribute to identifying those actions offers ownership and partnership value to the strategy.
Business leaders are providing their valuable time free and this is testament to their commitment to the economy and, equally, the vision Rotorua can deliver.
I think it is appropriate to close off two and a half years of writing weekly columns for The Daily Post with a final observation.
Ask not what you can do for me but what I can do for you. Be part of the solution - it's a hell of a lot more rewarding than being part of the problem.
Thanks again for reading my weekly ramblings. Living the dream with you all.
- Grant Kilby is the general manager for Destination Rotorua Economic Development