Business congratulates Rod Drury

Media Release

18 October 2013

Business congratulates Rod Drury

Business Central and the Wellington Employers’ Chamber of Commerce congratulate Rod Drury on being named EY Entrepreneur of the Year for 2013. 

Chief Executive Raewyn Bleakley says it’s a feather in the cap of Wellington and the central business region that Mr Drury, founder and CEO of cloud-based accounting company Xero, has won the top award.

“This is a fantastic achievement.

“Given that Rod is a member of the Chamber and splits his time between Havelock North and Wellington – when he’s not somewhere else in the world developing new markets for his company – we are proud to claim him as our own. He’s a great champion of Wellington and the region.”

He was selected as the winner of Technology and Emerging Industry in August, and was one of five category winners in competition for the ultimate prize in Auckland last night. He will represent New Zealand at the EY World Entrepreneur of The Year Awards in Monte Carlo in June next year, joining national winners from 55 countries.

“He’s taking on the world in cloud accounting and now he’s off to take on the best entrepreneurs the world has to offer.

“Rod’s story of perseverance is one we can all learn from, and both Business Central and the Wellington Employers’ Chamber of Commerce have been doing just that.

“For someone who is running a multibillion-dollar company and 600 staff spread over four countries he has been very generous with his time in passing on his experiences, ideas, and advice to both the Chamber and to Business Central members, most recently in Whanganui and Hawke’s Bay.

“In addition, the Chamber jumped at the chance to partner with Xero to run four free workshops for members earlier this year all centred around its area of expertise – building a global-class website, building a best-in-class product team, using ‘cloud’ tools to best advantage, and global recruitment and opening offices around the world.

“They were a fantastic opportunity for business to learn first-hand from the people behind an extremely successful company, and were extremely well received.

“This is a perfect example of business helping business, and Business Central and the Chamber look forward to furthering this extremely valuable partnership into the future and to developing similar partnerships with other companies.”

ENDS

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