CEO, Cluster Navigators Ltd Wellington, New Zealand
Since establishing Cluster Navigators in 1997, Ifor has been active across Europe, North America, Africa, the Caribbean and Australasia in introducing the relevance of clustering as a cornerstone for economic development. Ifor is a frequent speaker on competitiveness, clusters, and local innovation systems.
Ifor's focus has been on the training of economic development professionals
The World Bank | OECD |
United Nations Industrial Development Organisation | Commonwealth Secretariat |
Industry Canada | Scottish Enterprise |
Welsh Development Agency | VINNOVA and NUTEK, Sweden |
Mauritius' National Productivity and Competitiveness Council | New Zealand Trade & Enterprise |
Trinidad & Tobago's Tourism and Industrial Development Company | South Africa's Tourism Department |
Iceland's Industry Ministry | Georgia's Centre for Enterprise Restructuring (CERMA) |
U.K. | SE England Development Agency, Northern Ireland's Centre for Competitiveness |
Canada | Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency |
U.S.A | Louisiana's Department of Economic Development, Oregon's Department of Agriculture |
South Africa | Cape Town |
Australia | Queensland's Department of State Development, Brisbane City, Alice Springs, Darwin, Hervey Bay, Logan, Gladstone, Rockhampton, Eden, Gilgandra, Dandenong |
New Zealand | Auckland, Palmerston North, Horowhenua |
South African Sugar Association; Cape IT Initiative; New Zealand Biotech Association; New Zealand Forest Industries Council; Australian Information Industry Association.
Prior to the establishment of Cluster Navigators, Ifor was with the New Zealand Trade Development Board and over a decade encouraged New Zealand's exporters to move beyond their comfort zones in "co-operating to compete" through participation in soft and hard networks, and clusters.
Ifor is a founder and past president of The Competitiveness Institute, an organization headquartered in Barcelona, Spain that focuses on local economic development through a clustering approach. The Institute has members from 38 countries (http://www.competitiveness.org www.competitiveness.org). He has served as New Zealand Vice President, ANZRSAI (www.anzrsai.org).
Ifor is Chairman, Cluster Navigators Australia Pty Ltd, based in Melbourne. He is Welsh, and lived in Canada before making New Zealand home. He now spends over half of each year travelling the world from his base in Wellington, spreading the "cluster gospel".