Business Changing

Profit and Growth Specialist

Q&A with Xero NZ MD, Victoria Crone

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Another fantastic speaker appearing at the Nurture Change Business Retreat in Fiji in November: Victoria Crone MD of Xero NZ and rest of World. She’ll be speaking on “The cornerstones to Xero’s success: How to be innovative & make your mark on the world”.

 

(Click HERE to see the full list of amazing speakers you can learn from at the event – and book now, before early-bird pricing ends!)

 

This weekend Victoria featured in the Sunday Star Times, talking about success, supportive bosses and her secrets to success. See the article online HERE or below.

 

Can’t wait to hear her in Fiji in November! Book your spot here NOW and be inspired and recharged!

 

Victoria Crone: Be supportive to succeed

 

Victoria Crone is the innovative managing director of Xero NZ and Rest of World. In her career as a marketing and sales executive, mainly in the communications sector, Victoria has learnt you get the best results if you come from a place of inclusiveness and support – as a result, she’s big on empowering her team and helping them to get to the next level.

 

Crone’s experience spans from start-ups to mature products across consumer, small business and enterprise sectors, particularly in the comms and IT sectors. She is also director of Aura Information Security and CreativeHQ, a trustee of NZ Hi-Tech Trust and Wiki NZ, and a member of NZ Global Women.

 

She will be speaking at the upcoming Nurture Change Business Retreat in Fiji in November. (See end of story to be in to win a place on the luxury retreat.)

 

In the meantime we asked her a few questions about business and the best lessons she’s learned in her career.

 

Q: Who is a leader that you learnt something incredibly valuable from and what was the lesson you learnt from them?

 

A: I’ve learnt so much from many different leaders. The standout lesson for me is the importance of authenticity and purpose in leadership. Authenticity means that you shouldn’t try to be something you are not. Instead embrace who you are – your strengths and your weaknesses – and lead from these. And leading with purpose is so powerful because it’s inspiring, engaging and your outcomes are so much more when you lead from this place.

 

Q: What lesson in business do you try to pass on to others?

 

The importance of inclusiveness and support. This means putting our egos aside and focusing more on others: our people, partners and customers. It means listening more than talking and coaching more than telling. People love it when they feel empowered to try different things, fail fast and learn, and have the autonomy to create amazing things. As a general rule, people like to be successful, so our role as leaders in business is to create that environment for success and high performance.

 

Q: Who do you think is a great innovator (individual or company) and why?

 

Well of course I think Xero is! Outside of Xero, I find tech giants like Apple and Google incredibly innovative, and I’m really impressed with how Air NZ has transformed themselves throughout their journey. To be truly innovative is really about having a powerful vision, wanting to make a difference and putting people and design at the heart of your experiences.

 

Q: What has been your biggest learning in business to date and why?

 

Crikey, there isn’t just one! But if I have to pick one, it would be the importance of emotional intelligence in business. While it’s been talked about a fair bit it’s still incredibly underestimated. They say over 90 per cent of your success is actually driven by your EQ and not your IQ. The great thing about that? You can learn EQ. We don’t focus on this enough. EQ is applicable to all aspects of business: leadership, performance, great product design, culture and so much more.

 

Q: If you were 21 years old again and could do any career you wanted, what would you be and why?

 

I love the career I have. My initial response is I wouldn’t want to do anything different, however I’m also a curious person so maybe I’d like to try something in the area of health or sciences. They are such a big part of our futures.

 

Q: What are you most excited about in attending the Nurture Change Business Retreat in Fiji?

 

The opportunity to meet amazing businesspeople and to try something new. I love the concept of this retreat and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the whole experience goes. Things like this are often transformative – they help you get to a whole new level in life.

 

 

 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Gerry Kofoed says

    Would love to listen to Victoria Crone speak about her experience in business and beyond and would love to win a place on this luxury retreat!

    Reply

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