Whilst Māori are big players in both the ownership and workforce in the food and fibre industries, they are underrepresented in leadership and management roles at organisational, regional and national levels. We want to achieve Māori representation that is proportionate to the ownership and value of Māori within the food and fibre sector.

We have heard significant demand from Māori agribusinesses for a pathway that develops leaders of people, in a way that aligns with Māori values and needs.

We want to develop clear pathways where kaimahi Māori are enabled and empowered to progress from entry-level workers into team leadership, organisational leadership, regional and national leadership and beyond. 

Developing a Māori leadership development framework will be the first phase of a tangible progression mechanism for Māori workers into leadership roles within their industries. 

The framework will provide an outline of values and skills for emerging leaders and highlight pathways to develop these. Future phases will focus on the delivery and credentialisation of these leadership values and practices.

Key steps:

  • May 2024: Project initiation
  • August 2024: Literature Review published
  • October - December 2024:Consultation on Draft operational manual
  • February 2025: Publication of handbook/operational manual

Latest update:

October 2024:

We held a wānanga for emerging and existing Māori leaders across the food and fibre sector at the Food and Fibre CoVE’s office in Taradale in October.

The purpose of the wānanga was to give feedback on the work that has been carried out so far of a draft framework that can be delivered around the country as a programme or course, to lead to a future qualification.

Next steps – Finalise draft framework and socialise for feedback. 

August 2024:

The first milestone of this project has been marked by the publication of the report, A Literature Review of Māori Leadership. 

Through a literature review on existing text, we’ve found that:  

  • the concept of leadership varies notably between Western and Māori cultures, shaped by unique histories, beliefs, and behaviours.
  • Māori leadership tend to derive from a more community-focused approach, with a high degree of employee involvement in decision making.
  • leadership in Māori culture is deeply rooted in te ao Māori, tikanga Māori, and wairua, with values such as manaakitanga (caring), kaitiakitanga (guardianship), and whanaungatanga (relationship building) central to interactions and operations in an organisation.

On the basis of these findings, we are now working to develop a framework which captures these values, and a handbook to support leaders as they develop in these areas.