Controlling your destiny

Professional engineer Warner Cowin built plenty of experience and success managing construction projects in New Zealand and overseas, but he had one strong feeling. He wanted to control his destiny, rather than rely on others and clamber up the corporate ladder.

In 2013, Warner and his wife Liz founded Height Project Management, helping organisations buy and sell services for mostly complex and high-risk projects across the construction, defence, technology and power generation sectors.

The Auckland-based business has gone on to become Australasia’s leading technical tender and procurement consultancy. For Height to reach this level of success, Warner knew that he had to do things differently saying, “The trick for me of growing a small business was to work on it, rather than working in it.”

Help from ATEED

Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) Business and Innovation team played a strong role in helping Height grow. ATEED connected Height to a business coach, Adrian Pickstock of Quad Consulting and facilitated Capability vouchers over three years under the Regional Business Partner Network (RBPN).

Pickstock coached Height to develop business systems and processes including key business performance metrics, execution planning and long-term strategic thinking. Warner says Adrian’s guidance was instrumental in helping the company reach new heights.

"At the early stage I wondered whether to spend money to co-fund the coaching but soon realised we were spending money to invest in the future."

   

   

Looking back, we would not have got there as fast without the help of a business coach. ATEED was the catalyst to providing that support.

Proven results

Over the past two years, Height has been involved in $10.8 billion worth of deals and procurements. Height’s revenue increased by 42 per cent on the previous year for the 2018/19 financial year, with a similar amount expected in 2019/20 and turnover close to $2.8 million projected.

Height has offices in Mt Eden, Auckland and Brisbane in Australia, and it has tripled its team from five to 15 staff in three years. The bulk of its business is in New Zealand and Australia, but fast-growing Height has supported clients’ tender opportunities in the Middle East, South East Asia, Pacific islands and South America.

Warner says one of the benefits of Height’s success is becoming increasingly involved in delivering sustainable outcomes for communities through procurements.

“Our clients impact our communities every day, in all sorts of sectors. Whether we’re co-developing an open-source tool enabling organisations to embed sustainability outcomes in contracts, or empowering Māori and Pacific business through clever delivery of big projects, in realising Height’s full potential, we can help others achieve theirs.”

Looking to take your business to new heights? 

Contact the ATEED Business Support Helpdesk. We can point you in the right direction to find people, resources and programmes to support your business on its growth journey. Our service is free. 

Need business support? Contact us

Whether you’re looking to start, grow, innovate or export, our Business Support Helpdesk can help. 

We can point you in the right direction to find people, resources and programmes to support your business on its growth journey.  Our service is free.

 

 

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