News

July 2023

Lead with Hope

Wed, 2023-07-05 14:19

“Lead with hope” is one of Alexia Hilbertidou’s guiding principles. The CEO of GirlBoss NZ says one of her career highlights was meeting Jamie Oliver, who she says lights up a room and shines that light out to those he meets. It was Jamie who posed the question to her: who is the leader in a room? And his answer? It is the person with the most hope, so be that person with hope, vision and optimism. Get people on board with an exciting goal that generates energy, believe that you can achieve that goal and connect with the people you are trying to engage.

Vision and Optimism

Wed, 2023-07-12 14:34

Shay Wright is of Te Rarawa, Ngāpuhi and Taranaki descent, and he grew up in the rural Far North. He has gone on to develop global connections with leaders through his role as a previous Obama Foundation leader, through the Forbes Asia ‘30 Under 30’ list of Social Entrepreneurs, and as an Edmund Hillary Fellow.

Shay’s contribution to leadership focuses on excellence in governance, particularly within Māori and community organisations. His work with these entities around Aotearoa enables them to be more effective and more impactful.

Stepping into the Gap

Wed, 2023-07-19 08:19

One of the constant themes of our leadership stories with rangatahi was people stepping into gaps to take the lead when no one else was willing or able. Barney Wikitera-Kuki is no exception.

Barney is a proud Westie, moulded by his humble Niue nena and staunch Ngāpuhi kuia. Barney calls his journey one of redemption. Following an involvement withyouth gangs he was sentenced to prison and while inside he studied to graduate with a bachelor’s degree on release.

Bathing Others in Light

Wed, 2023-07-26 08:28

“How might I bathe others in light?” This was the question that pierced conference thinking from the opening kōrero to the final closing notes. The question is one that opening speaker Precious Clark applies to her role as a leader and it struck such a chord with participants that it’s fair to say it formed a central conference theme.