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a) General Business Appraisal. This provides a general overview of the applicant’s business in relation to the scheme’s other target areas. This involves a comprehensive evaluation of the applicant’s performance in key management areas, and recommends where the applicant would get most value from engaging further specialist assistance.

b) Business Planning. This helps the applicant apply appropriate techniques to its business planning processes. It may help applicants to:

• understand their strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats
• to evaluate what business they should be in, how they should be positioned in that business, and what research and development, production and marketing is required to attain that position
• develop strategies to achieve more immediate goals and secure a sound basis for future growth.

This includes the ExcelNZ World Competitive Manufacturing (WCM) and World Competitive Services (WCS) approaches to business planning. It also includes the preparation of a presentation to a financial institution in cases where the overall thrust of the project is to improve the applicant’s business planning processes, rather than simply to obtain a loan; the maximum grant component for the preparation of a presentation to a financial institution would be 25% of the grant for preparation of a business plan up to a maximum of $2,000.

Assistance is not available for a plan:

• on an activity new to the business (ie a feasibility or viability study)
• which is produced in isolation.

c) Marketing Strategy. This assists the applicant to develop an overall marketing strategy. Under the terms of the Australia New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement (ANZCERTA) assistance cannot be provided in this area for activities directed at the Australian market. Assistance is not available for aspects of marketing outside the context of an overall marketing strategy - eg an advertising or public relations campaign, a sales promotion, market research/development, a pricing strategy.

d) Product Design. This involves comprehensively reviewing an applicant’s design strategy, or developing a strategy where there is not one in place. This requires the input of research and development, production and marketing.

Assistance is not provided for design work undertaken outside the context of a comprehensive design strategy, eg:

• graphic design (logo, letterhead etc)
• product packaging design
• promotional material etc.

Where design work forms a part of the design strategy qualifying costs do not include:

• those beyond the finished artwork stage (ie production or printing)
• those associated with registering patents or trademarks.

e) Quality. This is aimed at improving the applicant’s overall approach to quality, and includes review of the quality management strategy and systems. This includes:

• the ExcelNZ Total Quality Management “How To” approach
• bringing quality systems up to one of three NZS 9000 series standards - 9001, 9002, 9003 (ISO 9000 series and Australian 3900 series)
• the development of a strategy to introduce, for example, TQM into the applicant’s business.

This area does not provide assistance for:

• a “one-off” quality seminar or other quality programmes
• staff training programmes
• preparing or revising operating manuals
• audit and registration fees associated with accreditation to a quality standard.

f) Operations Management. This assists the applicant to develop and implement an overall operations management strategy which will lead to increased productivity through improvements in:

• production methods, systems and techniques
• productivity improvement
• production planning and control
• inward and outward goods, including procurement, inventory management, material handling, warehousing and distribution.

Assistance is not available for:

• regular or ongoing operations management work
• projects which relate to the purchasing or testing of plant, equipment or products
• projects aimed at introducing a new product or technique
• staff training.

g) Research and Development. This assists the applicant to develop an overall research and development strategy. This may contribute to:

• concept evaluation and screening
• project planning and monitoring
• transfer of new technology into operation
• selecting a project to carry through to commercial production.

Assistance is not available for carrying out the research and development itself.

h) Human Resources Management. This assists the applicant to be a good employer and ensure productivity through the development of strategies and programmes which will attract, develop and retain staff, pay staff appropriately, and contribute to staff training and development.

Assistance is not available for “one-off” activities, such as staff training, recruitment, or negotiating pay rates.

i) Financial and Information Systems. This assists the applicant to develop a financial and information systems strategy where there is not one in place, or review an existing strategy.