Fisher & Paykel Healthcare: Indigenous leadership programme inspires business-wide cultural shift
Training and Development > , Organisational Culture and Capability >
Five years ago, Māori kaimahi at Fisher & Paykel Healthcare were effectively invisible, feeling that they had to leave their identity at the door. Even the use of Te Reo Māori greetings was a rarity in the business, despite the interest in integrating te ao Māori that was growing amongst Māori and non-Māori alike in the organisation. A chance meeting between the Learning and Development team and Indigenous Growth Limited founder Michael Moka in 2019 led to a focus on training and developing Māori leadership and an ongoing dedicated cultural shift across the business.
“We had reasons to be better, or more authentic, in our approach... Lots of reasons, and they’ve built since then,” reflects Veronica Matheson, Senior Communications Manager and graduate of the Indigenous Growth Leadership Programme (IGLP).
The first cohort of the IGLP at Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was delivered to 16 participants of Māori descent, including two general managers. Given the name ‘Manaaki’, the cohort would meet for one half-day orientation and then five two-day retreats from November 2020 to March 2021. Over the course of the programme, participants developed business projects focused on raising the profile of Māori and solving business problems. Each cohort had to take on a significant cultural burden in creating, proposing and delivering the projects following successful buy-in. However, the success of the projects throughout the business also lead to opportunity, with 25% of the participants receiving promotions, and 65% making an ongoing contribution to integrate te ao Māori throughout the workplace.
“We created a wellbeing awareness programme over six months,” says Veronica. “We were looking at trying to improve people’s awareness of the types of things that could help them improve themselves, using Te Whare Tapa Whā.”
This wellbeing programme, called Kimi Ora, raised the profile of Māori and the Māori health model business-wide and enhanced the reputation of the business as a whole. Implemented at the peak of the pandemic, the programme would become a touchstone for the business when seeking solutions around wellbeing. Kimi Ora later inspired participants in the second iteration of the programme to develop Hei Oranga Hinengaro, a mental health champions network.
In addition to embedding kaupapa Māori projects into the culture of the business, graduates of the leadership programme are making waves in other facets of the business through promotion and recruitment. One graduate has moved into a managerial role with talent acquisition and is leading the way in terms of improving Māori and Pasifika representation in the internship and graduate intakes.
The influence of the programme has also extended past business projects and promotions. Following completion of the programme, the original cohort formed the Manaaki Committee, an employee resource group open to all focused on advancing kaupapa Māori. Established with governance guidance from Rise2025, the Manaaki Committee’s vision is “to create a workplace where it is wonderful to be Māori.” The committee actively provides support and guidance throughout the business. They organise events and communications for Matariki and Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori and develop capability for both Māori and non-Māori employees in te reo, kapa haka, and mihi whakatau.
“We put quite a lot of work into creating this, and we have the right support as well,” says Veronica, regarding the success of both the programme and the committee. “Our business culture is about care, innovation and a growth mindset, so in Manaaki we feel the world is our oyster. What are we capable of and what do we need to get there.”
The Manaaki Committee seeks to embed cultural competency business-wide, but there are careful considerations about who is doing this mahi and what it means for them. In organisations with an identifiable Cultural Advisor, one person has to bear the brunt of cultural competency. However, in businesses such as Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, where kaimahi are working to integrate cultural competency across the board, the people putting in the work do not get remuneration, and the work can still take its toll. In addition to the focus on personal development, the Manaaki Committee is responsible for educating other workers and facilitating external partnerships.
The cultural shift instigated by the programme has had a profound impact for Māori working throughout the business. Testimonials from graduates of the first cohort shared that they feel they have “a deeper purpose to connect and serve others in the company,” that they no longer feel afraid to be Māori at work and that they feel “our company truly cares about providing a safe place for us where people no longer need to hide.” These outcomes are at the heart of the IGLP and drive its ongoing success.
The business is now running its third iteration of the programme under the name ‘Step Into Your Mana,’ which has been opened up to tangata Pasifika and offered to kaimahi across every level of the company. While the cohorts are still intentionally predominantly Māori, the lower numbers of Māori kaimahi and difficulty with obtaining ethnicity data across the board has resulted in a widening of scope. In catering to the wider Pasifika population of the business, the course is evolving with an eye to what can be done together and what needs to be done separately when addressing Māori and Pasifika development. The future of the ‘Step Into Your Mana’ will need to support the huge demand for training and development from Pasifika, while continuing to embed and grow kaupapa Māori.
Case Study Summary
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To raise the profile and presence of Māori throughout the organisation and develop Māori leadership by supporting leadership training cohorts of Māori staff, including managers, to develop, pitch and implement DEI initiatives, which are able to shift organisational culture and build cultural competency.
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The Learning and Development team and Michael Moka (Indigenous Growth Limited) developed the programme, which has had two cohorts of 16-18 people each.
The first cohort collectively initiated the ‘Manaaki Committee’, which now voluntarily leads on embedding Māori and Pasifika cultural competency across the organisation and includes a Senior Communications Manager.
Other third-party support has come from the Rise2025 Indigenous Coaching and Development Programme (MWDI) which has supported governance approaches for the Manaaki Committee.
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Each cohort consists of 6 wānanga, each 2 days a month, as well as one-on-one coaching.
By the third wānanga the cohort starts developing business projects that increase the profile of Māori and solves a business problem. Projects don’t stop with the course – development continues after as participants try to win support for their business idea and then carry out the project within the organisation.
Originally targeting Māori, the most recent cohort has opened up to Pasifika also.
It is now an established and evolving initiative, having gone through three cohorts since October 2020.
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High levels of support from senior leadership, as well as engagement from non-Māori and non-Pasifika colleagues.
Because of a lack of ethnicity data, and known perceptions among Māori staff of thinking they needed to ‘leave their culture at the door’, during planning stages, there was uncertainty as to whether there would be pick-up amongst Māori staff. However, the first cohort had 30 applicants, and ran with 16 participants. Participation was opened up to Pasifika after this.
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25% of participants have gone on to promotion post-programme, and 65% are making an ongoing contribution to kaupapa Māori-led projects and initiatives.
Establishment of employee resource group called “the Manaaki Committee,” focused on building cultural competency with te ao Māori for all workers – the committee is comprised of Māori and non-Māori and not limited to programme alumni. The Committee:
Provides coaching for senior leaders and mentoring for Māori employees.
Develops partnerships with mana whenua and organises cultural events.
Provides cultural immersion and cultural competency training for workers.
Supports other employee groups.
Supports DEI kaupapa and training.
Integration of cohort-developed business projects into organisation, including:
wellbeing awareness model Kimi Ora based on Te Whare Tapa Wha;
mental health champions network Hei Oranga Hinengaro; and
improving recruitment and intake of Māori and Pasifika interns and graduates.
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The model demonstrates to senior leadership the concrete benefits of supporting Māori and Pasifika talent to lead on organisational culture change by introducing fresh, actionable ideas. This has enabled continual support for the programme and uptake of its initiatives.
The distributed-responsibility model of the Manaaki Committee for leading organisational cultural competence across a wide range of expertise and business areas is seen as a better approach than having one single paid Cultural Advisor who must carry the load alone. However, the key challenge is the cultural tax placed on the Manaaki Committee which operates without specific remuneration for its activities.
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Indigenous Growth Leadership Programme.
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Fisher & Paykel Healthcare
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