Panel Discussion
no longer available
2
CPD
Years of global research shows cultural diversity is more commercially robust than gender alone - join us to hear why governance from a Pasifika lens matters for a more prosperous New Zealand.
International research by McKinsey shows more cultural diversity at board and executive tables is a robust commercial multiplier. In 20 years ethnic minorities will be over 50% of the population (Stats NZ).
At this event, we will talanoa (share) these findings and hear from experienced board chairs about their success with appointing Pasifika directors, and leveraging Pasifika perspectives to add organisational value.
Caren Rangi ONZM MInstD will facilitate our panel including Dame Fran Wilde DNZM CFInstD, Mark Verbiest CFInstD, and Vena Crawley with a scene-setting address by Distinguished Professor Emeritus Paul Spoonley FRSNZ.
The IoD is committed to supporting greater involvement, empowerment and visibility of Pacific people in governance and championing the value of board diversity as a key to good governance. We have engaged with aspiring and leading Pacific directors across New Zealand on some of the challenges and opportunities for Pasifika people in governance and the value proposition they bring to the board table.
FRSNZ
Distinguished Professor Paul Spoonley stood down as Pro Vice-Chancellor of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Massey University in 2019. He was then appointed as an advisor to the Commissioner of Police and in 2022, was appointed as the Co-Director of He Whenua Taurikura (National Centre for Countering Violent Extremism) by PM Jacinda Ardern.
Paul is a Fellow of the Auckland Museum and a Board member, a Visiting Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity, Göttingen, Germany and he was a Fulbright Senior Scholar at the University of California Berkeley in 2010. He was awarded the Science and Technology Medal by the Royal Society in 2009 for cross-cultural understanding.
He is the author or editor of 29 books, the most recent being The New New Zealand, Facing Demographic Disruption (2021) and Histories of Hate, The Radical Right in Aotearoa New Zealand (2023). He was Ranginui Walker’s biographer (Mata Toa, The Life and Times of Ranginui Walker). He has researched and written on social cohesion, racism, Pākehā identity, demographic change, white supremacism and antisemitism, immigration policy and settlement and the impacts of diversity.
DNZM CFInstD
Dame Fran Wilde is chair of the boards of Auckland Light Rail Ltd, Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand, Whanau Awhina Plunket and the Asia New Zealand Foundation. She is also on the Board of Frequency Ltd.
Dame Fran has been an MP and Minister, Mayor of Wellington and Chair of the Greater Wellington Regional Council. She was CEO of the NZ Trade Development Board for six years and has also chaired or been a member of multiple boards in the public and private sector, including a number of Not-for-Profit organisations. She currently chairs the Nikau Foundation, Wellington region’s community foundation.
CFInstD
Mark was awarded Chairperson of the Year 2022 and is an experienced company director, currently serving on the boards of several major companies and organisations. Mark is the Chair of Meridian and Summerset Group Holdings Limited. He is also the former Chair of Freightways Limited, Spark New Zealand Limited and Transpower New Zealand Limited.
He is a former board member of the Financial Markets Authority and former member of the Advisory Board to New Zealand Treasury. Mark has had significant involvement and experience in the energy and technology sectors, as well as capital markets, in a variety of roles, over many years.
Vena Crawley is a change agent by nature with a natural inclination towards redefining the future.
As a migrant to NZ, Vena was unable to speak English and lived off the support of charities and the NZ communities. His socio-economic journey from living below the poverty line to the other end of the continuum, has created intersectional diversity and richness of lived experiences.
A Samoan childhood and adolescence spent in Auckland, Vena speaks five languages and holds multiple governance roles, including as a non-executive director at Summerset Group, an independent board member on Te Whatu Ora sub-committee for People, Culture & Development; he is Chair of the Business School Advisory Board at Auckland University of Technology, and transitioned into governance after completing an extended term as a Future Director at The Warehouse Group.
A hybrid leader in both commercial delivery and creative leadership, his diverse background has given him a toolkit to navigate evolving challenges and stakeholder issues across a multitude of executive and governance platforms.
Vena is a disruptive accelerant known for driving proven transformational change at pace that resonates with today’s businesses - chasing market leadership with customers at the heart, using data technology and digital, as his tools. He holds an MBA and BA in Creative Leadership from Steinbeis University in Germany, has completed studies via the Darden School of Business and having studied at the NZ College of Fashion Design - he started his working career as a Fashion Designer.
ONZM MInstD
Caren Rangi is an experienced public sector governance practitioner, a qualified chartered accountant and a proud Cook Islands Māori. In 2018, she was conferred with an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to governance and the Pacific community; she is also a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and a member of the Institute of Directors.
Currently, Caren is Chair of the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa and of Pacific Homecare Services, Deputy Chair, Pacific Co-operation Broadcasting Ltd and on the boards of Te Papa Tongarewa (the Museum of New Zealand), the Hawke's Bay Regional Economic Development Agency and Recovery Agency. Her previous governance roles include Chair of the Pacific Business Trust, governor of Radio New Zealand board member of NZ On Air (Irirangi Te Motu) and founding member of the Charities Registration Board.
By registering for this event you are confirming that you agree to adhere to our Covid-19 health and safety measures. If you are unwell or have any Covid-19 symptoms please do not attend this event.
Should you have any particular dietary, mobility, cultural or other requirements, you can let us know on the registration form.
Regrettably, registration fees cannot be refunded when cancellations are received within two working days prior to any branch event.
See our standard terms and conditions for more information.
Litia Brighouse-Fuavao
Diversity Programmes Manager
+64 274 447 371
Litia.Brighouse-Fuavao@iod.org.nz
The Institute of Directors acknowledges the generous support of national partners and sponsors
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