Ka oti ā runga-te rau mano putiputi mō te iwi. The legacy of Hinerangi Raumati-Tu'ua

Hinerangi Raumati -Tu’ua may no longer sit at the head of Te Rau Rengarenga o Parininihi ki Waitōtara Board table, but the legacy she has left behind will resonate for far longer than the 15 years she gave to the Incorporation.

From the day she was elected as the first wahine to sit on the PKW Committee of Management, Hinerangi has brought a calm determination to her governance mahi - always putting her people to the forefront of any decision-making and never forgetting the vision and intention of her tūpuna.

“She has helped us to ensure we never lose sight of who we are and the journey we, and those before us, have travelled to get to this point,” says Dion Tuuta, who has taken over the legacy Hinerangi has left as Chair of the PKW Committee of Management.

“The ability to determine our future as individuals and as whānau is a right that the very first Committee of Management fought for, and that sense of unshakable belief in the kaupapa we have at PKW has certainly passed down the generations to Hinerangi, who has instilled it in others in her time of service.”

Hinerangi was elected to the PKW Board in 2006, having already made her mark rising to the position of Chief Financial Officer of Tainui Group Holdings Ltd, a place at the trustee's table of Trust Waikato, and then as chair of the investment sub-committee responsible for the management of a $200m asset base in 2001.

Hinerangi has always joked that she was a Taranaki girl raised in the Waikato, so it should have been no surprise that her involvement in PKW’s affairs was to become such a central part of her life for so many years.

Her appointment to the Board was the first of many firsts for her - she says one of the highlights of her time in governance was the ability to be able to appoint a general manager, the first management role going to Dion Tuuta.

“It seems a long time ago, but it changed how the incorporation was managed. It made such a big difference to how we were perceived. To me his appointment was a real game-changer for PKW and everything that flowed after that,” she said.

A deep empathy and love for the people and the wider tribal collective has been the driver for the development and growth the organisation has experienced under her firm but fair leadership and dedication to her mahi.

“I think there might be a perception of her as an accountant, but my experience of Hinerangi is that for her the numbers are just an enabler for helping people, and she really cares about people,” says Dion.

“She has always been clear that Parininihi ki Waitōtara was about developing people, and I have been the beneficiary of that wisdom, and so I have taken that lesson and try to hand that on too.”

Above image: Hinerangi at the formal opening of Farm 7 in July 2012, after lease acquisitions brought together 5 separate properties (and recently a further 6th parcel) into one significant land block in South Taranaki.

Above image: Headline in Issue 21 of the original Whenua publication (March 2007), after Hinerangi’s appointment to the Board in 2006.

One example of this is the ability to build strong partnerships with other Iwi and Māori organisations to collectively leverage assets and resources for the benefit of all - an aspect of the business that Hinerangi takes pride in.

“It was something that had been discussed for nearly twenty years, so it is really good to say, well actually, we are doing it and we are really good at it,” she says.

She has also overseen the development of Te Ara Putanga, the innovative kaupapa evaluation tool that not only creates the framework that PKW uses to measure performance, but provides an outcomes pathway that ensures the Incorporation stays true to its core vision and values where the dollar bottom line is not the only indicator of success.

“To me, it’s been a real breakthrough. I use it as an example to other Māori entities as to how you can create a model where you aren’t focused just on the financial results. Though they are important it’s not what everyone wants. Instead, they (Te Rau Titikura / shareholders) want us to show how we are creating other benefits and outcomes through the business.”

For Warwick Tauwhare-George, PKW’s Te Rau Matomato/ Chief Executive Officer, this is another example of Hinerangi’s commitment to her people on many different levels.

“It’s my belief that Hinerangi has all the hallmarks of being one of New Zealand’s great leaders - not just for Māori but for all New Zealanders - in terms of her vision, her ability to connect with others, and her skill in bringing people in, to help them find their place and enable them to continue the mahi she knows needs to be done,” he says.

“She has many strengths, but I feel that perhaps her greatest is her deep understanding of who she is as a person, the value she places on her whakapapa, and how she brings that to the roles she holds, to the people she serves.”

Above image: Hinerangi at the PKW 2018 AGM held at Owae Marae.

Hinerangi not only stands as a leader for her people but as one who has spent most of her career sitting at a table of men, ensuring that the voice of wāhine Māori is heard.

“She is a wahine that our young kōtiro can look up to, and take strength from, that there is a place for them at the governance tables for our people, and that their voices should be heard,” says Jacqui King, Te Rau Whakapuāwai/Head of Corporate Services.

“I believe that she has been, and will continue to be, a catalyst for the diversity of thinking that is fundamental to the way we need to grow as a culture as we continue to take back control of our future, and that of the generations to come.”

Above image: PKW’s 2017 AGM.

Above image: Behind every pou is a supportive whānau. Hinerangi with her husband Lala Tu’ua, their son Naotala, and tamaiti mokopuna.