Businesses going global

1. What does Te Ao Māori mean? 

For me, Te Ao Māori means Māori language, it means respect and acknowledgement of Māori customs and protocols, it means embracing the Māori story and identity and, embracing what that means, not just for Māori, but for all Kiwi both in New Zealand and around the world. I think for our people coming home from overseas, in a way they’ve got that sort of broader appreciation. Many people living around the world aren’t just monolingual, they speak two, three or even more languages and many countries recognise more than one language, so you know embracing Te Reo, it’s not that unique. For returning Kiwi I think they will notice that change more than perhaps those of us at home do. What the country looks like today versus say 10, 20, 30 years ago. I think it’s a very different Aotearoa New Zealand.

2. In what ways will returning Kiwi encounter Te Ao Māori? 

Think of it in terms of all the different sensory aspects. You’ll definitely see more Māori influence in stories, design and thinking. You’ll hear more Māori in mainstream media, in social media, in schools and in the workplace. You’ll taste more Māori in terms of  New Zealand cuisine and that Māori influence, and you will also feel and experience more Māori every day including in the workplace. So for example Whakatau. Whakatau is a welcome, similar to a Powhiri but perhaps not as formal, not as guided by the rituals and customs that you’d associate with the Marae, but no less significant. More and more we’re seeing Whakatau become part of everyday workplace practice in terms of welcoming people when they begin a new job. But it’s not just about welcoming people to a place of work. Specifically, when we look at those Kiwi who may have spent 5, 10, 20 years, even a generation or more overseas, it’s a really lovely way, I think, of connecting people back to New Zealand and welcoming them home.

3. How are Kiwi businesses being guided by Māori values? 

Right across the board, right across industries, spectrums and generations, we are seeing businesses embrace Māori values and it’s really fantastic. When we look at Kaupapa (principle or policy) like Manaakitanga, manaaki in Te Reo means ‘to care for’ and when we add tanga it becomes the overall practice of caring for people and that’s a really common value we see in most businesses today. It’s a great value because it makes our businesses step back and challenges them to think about when we talk about caring for people. What does that actually mean? So for some businesses, it could be about Whakatau, about how we welcome people and our onboarding programme. It could be something that comes through in our leave provision, so how do we support our parents when their kids are sick? or when they need to go on parental leave? We are seeing Manaakitanga really starting to challenge and change workplace practices. 

Kaitiakitanga is another common one. I think sometimes people make a bit of a mistake by trying to narrow the meanings of Māori and give them one direct translation, so we often see Kaitiakitanga translated to sustainability, which is true but it also a bit like Manaakitanga – so it’s also about how we care. It’s got a very fundamental place in terms of how we think and how we act and how we behave in terms of our natural environment. Kaitiakitanga has also got a place in terms of our home, education and work environments as well. 

It’s important that people realise like all languages there is often no direct word to word translation. For example, if we look at another common concept like Whanaungatanga. The key word in there is Whanau which is family, so Whanaungatanga really captures all the essences of what a family might be, the connections we have and how we respect each other. Family isn’t just the people you live with, it also plays out in the workplace. So Whanaungatanga captures the relationships we have with our colleagues, and how we manage our employers and interact with our people, managers and stakeholders and how that influences the way we communicate with each other. 

4. What benefits are businesses seeing from this growing incorporation of Te Ao Māori? 

We’re starting to get real momentum going in Aotearoa and I think that’s pretty cool. It’s quite beautiful and it’s really showing the maturity of the country and that perhaps we’re starting to lean into a lot more than what we have in the past. For Fonterra, like most corporate organisations we are still working our way through and finding our feet on what exactly our Māori story means to us. Even though we are based here in New Zealand, like many businesses we have a global footprint, so we are considering how our Māori story back home resonates with our offshore markets and how does it contribute to people’s understanding on our brand and who we are not just as Fonterra but for the country. And I think that’s a journey that many of our export businesses are on. I think we have made some great progress but there is a long way to go for us as a country. But it’s really exciting to think about not just what New Zealand looks like today but what it will look like for the next generation and the one after that.  I think as we open ourselves up to Te Ao it provides a richness and a diversity which makes us unique 

5. How should returning Kiwi embrace Te Ao Māori?

The most important thing people can do is to really embrace this, embrace their curiosity and their uncomfortableness. For those who are returning, think of it as similar to visiting another country and the way in which you embraced that culture and language and the respect you pay it. It’s about a learning mindset, don’t worry if you make mistakes, we all make mistakes. Use the language – learn a few words, sign off an email with Ngā mihi nui (thank you very much) or say Kia ora when you enter a zoom call. You don’t have to be Māori to embrace the culture. Learn a handful of words, let people correct your pronunciation and realise they are just helping you learn. Māori don’t expect people to be fluent but the idea that someone is making an effort and trying is what will be appreciated. After all, when we travel overseas most of us will try and learn a few words to get us around – this is the same thing. Te Ao Māori belongs to everyone in New Zealand and that’s the beauty of Aotearoa today. It’s multicultural and diverse and Te Ao Māori plays a big part in bringing that sense of inclusion, bringing us all together.

We have a saying in Māori “He waka eke noa.” This literally means we are all in the waka, the canoe, together. But before we can all get in the waka we need to understand who’s in? What direction are we going? What sort of leadership do we need? And are we all going in the same direction? I get the sense that Aotearoa is very much on this journey and it’s a pretty exciting space and time to be in. 

Jonathan grew up in Austin, Texas, but after University decided it was time to see the world. He worked in London, taught English in South Korea and initially came to New Zealand on a working holiday visa. 

“Originally I was just going to do the OE thing and work in a bar and travel around, but then I ended up getting an actual job in IT and through that was eligible to stay for longer. I worked in both Auckland and Wellington before having to return to the US for personal reasons, however, the great experience I had in New Zealand was always in the back of my mind. Then during Covid, when the lockdowns occurred and I really had time to think about what I wanted to do in the future, the desire to return to New Zealand became really strong.” 

Jonathan began looking into opportunities to move to New Zealand and speaking to recruiters, he thought it might be a few months until he could make the move, but the pandemic meant it in fact took two years. He finally arrived in Aotearoa in June. 

“I was lucky enough to find a job in Wellington that was a great fit for me and luckier still that the company was happy to wait for me to get everything sorted. I really love Wellington, I feel the city is a great cultural fit for me, I’m really happy to be back.”

Before settling on a return to New Zealand, Jonathan looked at moving to a number of places including Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and South America. However, it was New Zealand he ultimately kept coming back to. 

“It is definitely expensive to live here, certainly a lot more expensive than the other areas I was looking at. However, like a lot of people who immigrate here, I can’t really put into words why it’s the right place for me. There are the obvious things like the lifestyle, the inclusive nature of people and the beautiful scenery, but it’s more than that it’s this weird emotional connection, it’s like the country casts a spell on you.” 

Jonathan is hoping to sell his home in Texas and eventually invest in a place in Wellington but before that he is really looking forward to getting a car and being able to get out and explore the country.

“I can’t wait to start driving around. Some of my most wonderful, almost hyper-realistic memories are of just driving around and exploring New Zealand. This country is so beautiful. Every time I send pictures back to my family and friends back in Texas I don’t have to do anything. I just point the camera and I shoot, no filter. And they’re like, that looks like a postcard. Even at the Air BnB I stayed in when I arrived I just took photos out the window and all my family and friends were jealous.”

Apart from the airline losing one of his bags and forcing an emergency trip to Kmart, Jonathan says he has settled in well to his new life and was able to find a flat, sort out his bank accounts and get settled into his new job daily easily. He says the job opportunities in the IT sector are really good and he would definitely encourage others thinking about making the move to take the plunge and he’s got some practical advice for them.

“The cost of living here is high, so I would advise people to budget more for moving costs than they think – there are so many little things to buy that you don’t think of. I would also tell people to really think about what you bring over. I had to replace a lot of basic items when my bag got lost and it made me think about how easily I could have got stuff here, rather than paying to ship it. I think once my containers finally arrive I will realise I don’t actually need a lot of the stuff I have sent.”

“I would also really urge people to do their research, moving is often a really emotional decision but you have to be able to back that up with practicalities. I also found a lot of value in the online Kea meet ups each month. It was great to hear other people’s stories and sharing the excitement of others who were moving to  New Zealand was really infectious, it gave me a lot of validation that I was doing the right thing.”

While Jonathan’s IT skills are a huge plus for New Zealand which is facing key shortages in the technology sector, it’s not all he brings to the country. A fan of circus arts he’s bought his juggling balls and clubs over and is looking forward to his containers arriving full of his cowboy boots, accordion, and some St. Louis Cardinals baseball tops and hats. For now, though he’s just enjoying getting to know his new workmates and pinching himself to make sure, after all the delays and waiting, his new life is actually real.

“The fact that I have done it, that I am here still doesn’t feel real. I still feel like I am going to wake up and be like wow I had this crazy dream that I packed up all my stuff and moved to New Zealand. I think it will take a while to sink in, but I hope to be in New Zealand for a long time to come.”

North America

In good news for Kiwi business travellers to the United States, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has launched a new mobile application to enable travellers to submit Electronic System for Travel Authorisation [ESTA] applications easily and quickly from their mobile devices. The ESTA Mobile App launched in 24 languages to 40 Visa Waiver countries, including New Zealand, whose citizens are permitted to travel to the US for business or tourism for stays of up to 90 days without a visa. Being able to quickly and easily apply, amend your application, scan documents and upload a selfie to confirm your identity will be a game changer for travellers. The app also sends notifications for any updates to your application status. 

There has been considerable speculation about the state of the US economy in the media recently, particularly after last month’s House vote to suspend the debt ceiling resulting in two years of spending caps and policy changes. However, a suite of stronger than expected recent numbers on US durable goods orders, new home sales, and consumer confidence led US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to express optimism about the US economy, describing it as “quite resilient” and “still growing, albeit at a modest pace”. He acknowledged that while a recession is still possible, it is no longer the most likely case and noted that wage pressures are also coming down.  

This comes as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the SWIFT international payments system and more than a dozen private sector partners announced that a three-month digital dollar pilot for global payments had shown promising results. The pilot found that blockchain technology could be used to develop a near-instant 24-hour global payment system using USD, benefitting global users of USD as an international payment currency. The pilot is a major development in the potential introduction of blockchain-based payments to the global financial system, where the USD remains the world’s foremost reserve currency.

Gary Fortune, Kea North America Regional Director

UK and Europe

This month the UK signed the Protocol of Accession to join the CPTPP. The CPTPP is a trade deal of 11 Pacific nations including New Zealand, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia. The UK’s accession to the trade deal means it will cover around 15% of global GDP. Including a major economy like the UK inside CPTPP strengthens the rules-based trading system and will benefit both New Zealand and UK exporters, providing greater certainty and enhancing regional supply chains for trade. Entry into force of the agreement is expected to take place in the second half of 2024. Through the CPTPP, New Zealand export businesses saved $330 million in tariffs in just the first two years. For UK exporters, it means that more than 99% of exports to member countries become eligible for tariff-free trade. 

In eagerly awaited news for Kiwi planning to head to the UK for their OE or for work, upgrades announced earlier this year to the NZ/UK Working Holiday Scheme and Youth Mobility Scheme are now live. The topline benefits include an extension of 5 years to the age of eligibility for both schemes from 30 to 35 years; an extension of the maximum period of time individuals can stay in New Zealand and the UK respectively, from 2 years to 3 years and an extension to the length of time individuals can work, allowing those in the UK and New Zealand respectively to work for the full duration of their 3-year stay. 

In events news Kea was privileged to join High Commissioner Phil Goff, the Te Papa Foundation, Ngāti Rānana London Māori Club, and other local New Zealanders at Kew Gardens to view a beautifully preserved 170-year-old Kahuhu (cloak) made from flax and tikumu (mountain daisy leaves) from the Southern Alps. It was designed to keep the wearer warm and dry from cold southern weather.

Sara Fogarty, Kea UK/Europe Regional Director

China

This month Chinese Premier Li Qing met with senior executives from China’s leading tech firms including Alibaba, ByteDance, Meituan and Xiaohongshu. He commended the companies, labelling them the “trailblazers of the era” and vowed more support. The announcement follows more than $1 billion in fines for Alibaba and Tencents’ fintech arms, but is widely believed to mark the end of the official clamp down on tech companies.

There have been a few false starts for China’s tech companies but after two-and-a-half years of scrutiny, tech companies have a better idea of what is expected of them. They are also one of the country’s greatest hopes to continue as the growth engine of the world. Over the next five years the IMF predicts China is expected to contribute to 22.6% of the world’s economic growth, well ahead of second-placed India at 12.9% and the US at 11.3%. By then, one in four of the world’s middle-class consumers are expected to be Chinese. This is good news for Kiwi businesses looking to advertise brands on key platforms like Alibaba and also for those looking to leverage China’s tech market for growth or investment. 

In other news, Kea celebrated Matariki with the local community in Shanghai by co-hosting a Kiwi Drinks to mark the event. We were also fortunate enough to be present at a Gala dinner to mark Prime Minister Chris Hipkins visit, which brought together 450 members of the New Zealand and China community.

Rebecca Bao, China Regional Director

New Zealand

This month New Zealand and the European Union signed a ground-breaking Free Trade Agreement that will provide significant new trade access to our fourth-largest trading partner. The FTA will increase our exports to the EU by up to $1.8 billion per year by 2035, with tariff savings of $100 million from day one of the agreement entering into force. This is the highest immediate tariff saving delivered by any New Zealand FTA, around three times the immediate savings from the UK FTA. Tariffs were removed on products like kiwifruit, Mānuka honey, fish and seafood, onions, wine and industrial products.

In a second collaboration between New Zealand and the European Union announced this month, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and the EU President Ursula von der Leyen witnessed the signing of the Horizon Europe Association agreement in Brussels. This collaboration on research, science and innovation will mean greater access and opportunities for Kiwi researchers – giving access to Europe’s largest ever science collaboration platform, and creating opportunities for New Zealand’s interests and expertise to be demonstrated on the world stage. Association is the closest form of cooperation with the Horizon Europe research programme available to non-EU countries. It gives Kiwi scientists the opportunity to lead major research programmes in areas of global significance such as climate change, energy, health and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Finally, FIFA fever has hit this month! Through July and August New Zealand is playing co-host to the biggest women’s sporting event in the world. The FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia-New Zealand 2023™ will be a historic event on multiple levels. It is the first edition in the Southern Hemisphere, the first to be co-hosted by two confederations (AFC and OFC), and the first to feature 32 teams. As a co-host New Zealand looks to unlock the untapped football potential of the Asia-Pacific region and leave a lasting legacy for football and women’s sport in New Zealand. The Government is supporting regionally-led programmes to celebrate and empower women and girls during the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.

Saya Wahrlich, Global Director, Government & Industry

Richard’s career in international trade and the steel industry has taken him around the globe. He left New Zealand after finishing University, eager to explore the world and in the past 24 years he’s lived in the UK, the US, Mexico, and Japan. He has a Japanese wife and his two boys, aged 9 and 11 were born in Mexico and Tokyo. Now he’s returned home in a bid to put down more permanent roots for himself and his family. 

“We’ve moved a lot over the course of my kids’ life. I’ve spent the past 14 years working for a Japanese company and we moved every three years as part of my job. It gets harder and harder for the boys each time. Just as they start getting comfortable and making friends we move again. My wife and I were concerned that at some point they would stop bothering to make friends because they were worried about leaving them behind, and so we decided it was time to settle somewhere.”

Richard says the family considered settling in Japan, a country they love and have lived in several times over the years, however he was concerned he couldn’t achieve the right work life balance in a country where long hours are the norm. 

“I love Japan and I have worked there a lot over the years, but it’s hard to achieve a work-life balance. When we have lived and worked there in the past I would see my family for five minutes in the morning before I left for work and I would end up catching the last train home

past midnight and not get home until the early hours of the morning. Then on the weekends I was busy catching up on sleep so I barely saw my family. I loved my job but these days my priorities have shifted.”

The move back to New Zealand will also allow him to be closer to his parents and siblings and while Richard says Covid was not a factor in their move home, the time spent away did reemphasise the value of being close to family. 

Conscious of not moving the family unnecessarily Richard returned home by himself hoping to secure a job and a home before his family came out from Japan to join him. He had spoken to other returning Kiwi and attended several of Kea’s virtual returner meetups so was prepared for the job hunt to take some time. 

“We didn’t want to bring the boys back to one city only for me to find a job in another and have to move them again. After talking to others I fully expected the process of finding a job to take around six months. I initially stayed with family in Wellington before finding a job in Auckland, I was pleasantly surprised that this only took a couple of months.”

While searching for a new role, Richard says he came into contact with a number of Kiwi businesses who were really interested in his offshore experience and the global skills he is bringing home. 

“When I was working in Japan in the import/export business I was handling hundred-million dollar accounts and dealing with tens of thousands of tonnes of steel, obviously New Zealand doesn’t have the scale to operate like that, so I understand how it could be hard for some businesses to relate. I was prepared for this after hearing similar stories from other returners but I was really lucky that everyone I spoke to was really interested in, and positive about my international experience.”

During his 24 years offshore Richard says he only came home every 4-5 years and so didn’t have many expectations of what moving back would be like. Instead he realised that just as he has changed over the past decades so has the country. 

“I’ve been away for so long it’s sort of like a new adventure for me. Until I started working it felt like an extended holiday.  The weather seems to be better in Wellington, you can stand up straight in the wind now, I remember being blown backwards when I used to walk to University! New Zealand is also a lot more multicultural, and it’s great to see such a significant increase in the use of Te Reo Māori. It’s also a lot more crowded than I remember, but then the population did grow by more than a million while I was away!”

Richard says one of the things he is enjoying the most about being back is the beauty of New Zealand, not just in the tourist areas but in the smaller towns and out of the way areas. And he’s looking forward to sharing that, and the Kiwi lifestyle with his wife and two boys. 

“It’s a safe, beautiful country, it’s relaxed and fairly chilled and people are nice. When we decided to move, I started reaching out to the few contacts I did have, and they all introduced me to other people. I even had a recruiter introduce me to another recruiter who was technically their competitor, and they didn’t want anything in return. That’s something that you wouldn’t get in the US!”

Richard’s key advice to others is to make sure that the time is right for you, and to keep an open mind rather than having a lot of preconceived expectations. 

“If you had told me five years ago I would have to move back to New Zealand I would have said no thank you. But for us now is the right time, and so far I have found the transition really smooth. I think a big part of that was the belief that I had changed and therefore so had New Zealand. There are definitely some challenges, but the country also has so much to offer. I have great memories of growing up here and I hope my boys can experience that Kiwi way of life and make similar memories.”