LAST month, a survey by the Western Mail to identify the "Seven Wonders of Wales" voted for the Norman Foster-designed Great Glasshouse at the National Botanic Garden of Wales as the leading candidate.
Yet, less than two years ago, the future looked very bleak when serious financial difficulties looked, at one stage, like closing the Garden for good.
There are considerable lessons to be learnt from the early management of this publicly funded body, especially as much of which transpired at the time could have been avoided. According to the National Assembly's audit committee, which examined the issue in detail, it was a lack of adequate checks by the public bodies which led to the financial problems that nearly closed the Botanic Gardens down.
Perhaps the most important lesson is that millions of pounds of public funding was spent without any adequate examination of the business plans for the project. Many small firms will know that their projects are rarely funded by banks unless their business plan is robust and understands the risks involved in developing a particular product or service.
Yet, the report from the Audit Committee seems to suggest that little was done to identify and manage the risk until it was almost too late.
I would not be surprised if there are many more projects funded from the public purse, or from funds such as Objective One, which have also not had their business plans fully assessed before public funding has been committed. As a result, many have already "failed" before they have even begun their operations because the financial and market basis for their existence has not been adequately established.
For example, a number of people have pointed out that the business plan for the Celtica heritage centre in Machynlleth, which has recently been shut down, was unrealistic in terms of visitor numbers.
Therefore, the Lazarus-like comeback of the Botanic Gardens - which posted a 40% increase in visitors over Easter - can be largely attributed to the simple fact that better management will always result in better business performance.
Much of the credit in this instance should go to Roy Thomas, who took over as interim chief executive last year, and who has moved to change the whole management structure of the Garden to reflect its business needs for the future. For example, the appointment of seven new trustees had strengthened the overall strategic management of business. In addition, the Garden has hired the former director of finance of the Wales Tourist Board as chief financial officer.
To an extent, this demonstrates the importance of strong leadership to the development of any major project, either in the public or private sector. Roy's prior experience as one of the youngest partners of a leading Cardiff law firm, and his subsequent board level experience as the legal director of the Welsh Development Agency, has given him the background and skills which has taken the project from the brink of disaster to a far more stable position than could have been imagined at the beginning of 2004.
Much remains to be done to ensure that this national treasure is firmly established within Wales, and I am sure the management team being put together by Roy will help to take this project forward successfully in the future. However, I hope that all of you reading this article will also head westwards during this summer to visit a real wonder of Wales, and to help make a small, but significant, difference in securing its future
Yet, less than two years ago, the future looked very bleak when serious financial difficulties looked, at one stage, like closing the Garden for good.
There are considerable lessons to be learnt from the early management of this publicly funded body, especially as much of which transpired at the time could have been avoided. According to the National Assembly's audit committee, which examined the issue in detail, it was a lack of adequate checks by the public bodies which led to the financial problems that nearly closed the Botanic Gardens down.
Perhaps the most important lesson is that millions of pounds of public funding was spent without any adequate examination of the business plans for the project. Many small firms will know that their projects are rarely funded by banks unless their business plan is robust and understands the risks involved in developing a particular product or service.
Yet, the report from the Audit Committee seems to suggest that little was done to identify and manage the risk until it was almost too late.
I would not be surprised if there are many more projects funded from the public purse, or from funds such as Objective One, which have also not had their business plans fully assessed before public funding has been committed. As a result, many have already "failed" before they have even begun their operations because the financial and market basis for their existence has not been adequately established.
For example, a number of people have pointed out that the business plan for the Celtica heritage centre in Machynlleth, which has recently been shut down, was unrealistic in terms of visitor numbers.
Therefore, the Lazarus-like comeback of the Botanic Gardens - which posted a 40% increase in visitors over Easter - can be largely attributed to the simple fact that better management will always result in better business performance.
Much of the credit in this instance should go to Roy Thomas, who took over as interim chief executive last year, and who has moved to change the whole management structure of the Garden to reflect its business needs for the future. For example, the appointment of seven new trustees had strengthened the overall strategic management of business. In addition, the Garden has hired the former director of finance of the Wales Tourist Board as chief financial officer.
To an extent, this demonstrates the importance of strong leadership to the development of any major project, either in the public or private sector. Roy's prior experience as one of the youngest partners of a leading Cardiff law firm, and his subsequent board level experience as the legal director of the Welsh Development Agency, has given him the background and skills which has taken the project from the brink of disaster to a far more stable position than could have been imagined at the beginning of 2004.
Much remains to be done to ensure that this national treasure is firmly established within Wales, and I am sure the management team being put together by Roy will help to take this project forward successfully in the future. However, I hope that all of you reading this article will also head westwards during this summer to visit a real wonder of Wales, and to help make a small, but significant, difference in securing its future
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