RECOGNITION
What the CEO says ...
ROB HENNIN CEO , nib New Zealand
“ The traditional role of the EA no longer exists . It ’ s now about being a strategic , trusted adviser that supports the business to deliver upon its mission and objectives . That ’ s exactly what Zoë is to me – a key part of our leadership team that helps us to drive results .”
“ What I was doing five years ago isn ’ t what I ’ m doing now and what I ’ m doing now will likely be redundant in five years ’ time . So , I need to keep learning , evolving and growing my skills .”
the Red Queen says to Alice : “ Now , here you see , it takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place . If you want to get somewhere else , you must run at least twice as fast as that !”
“ In short , if you go at the same pace as your competition , you never achieve more than them – and you won ’ t survive . So , we have a very fast-paced , intense environment that ’ s also very supportive of challenging the status quo and our own abilities . We continually evolve our roles , innovate and improve the way we do things to meet the changing needs and requirements of our business .
“ Taking ownership is strongly encouraged . What I was doing five years ago isn ’ t what I ’ m doing now and what I ’ m doing now will likely be redundant in five years ’ time . So , I need to keep learning , evolving and growing my skills . Fortunately , I ’ ve been supported with comprehensive courses in leadership , commercial acumen , strategy and a number of other focus areas – as well as getting involved in some pretty intense projects .”
The powerful team behind the EA “ Leadership development has been a focus for me throughout my career . I think it ’ s a privilege to be able to support and enable the growth and development of our people , drawing on their strengths to continually support our executives , our business and help build careers . Even in EA roles without direct reports , indirect leadership – influencing , guiding and advising the wider team – is a huge part of the role .
“ My team is amazing and has a broad remit . We provide strategic , project , advisory and operational support to the New Zealand CEO and CFO and we look after our office hubs in New Zealand . We ’ re responsible for creating a premium experience for employees and visitors , bringing people together and keeping teams connected .
“ In early 2020 , the pandemic presented us with a rare opportunity to completely rethink the way work . We developed a hybrid work model across the nib Group , providing our people with the flexibility and choice to work where and when suits them – and their role .
“ For my team , we needed to completely redesign our office spaces in New Zealand to make them fit for new purposes – primarily connection , learning and collaboration rather than a bias towards focussed , desk-based work . It ’ s been an exciting journey and project . In consultation with our people and reacting to the way we use the spaces , it ’ ll be a continual evolution .” S
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Autumn Issue 2022 | Executive PA 23