He raurengarenga nō roto i te raukura - New line-up brings broad skills and strategic talent to board table

The three new members of Te Raurengarenga are bringing commercial, legal, business and cultural expertise to the Parininihi ki Waitōtara Committee of Management.

Tama Potaka, Anne-Marie Broughton and Liana Poutu were elected to the seven-member board at the Incorporation’s annual general meeting last year, joining Will Edwards, Claire Nicholson, Taaringaroa Nicholas and Dion Tuuta.

The committee’s role is to set the strategic direction of the incorporation and monitor the performance of its agribusiness, forestry, commercial property, crayfish export, horiticulture and investment interests.

Te Rau Toi Ariki/Chair Dion Tuuta said:

“The quality and calibre of each person who stood at the last election meant shareholders were spoiled for choice, and the three people returned in the election are all extremely talented people in their own right.

“They’re talented professionals, skilled in Te Ao Māori and culturally adept. Our bench strength has been elevated by Tama’s commercial expertise and Liana’s background in law. Her work among Taranaki iwi brings us another step closer to our iwi, and Anne-Marie’s experience in start-up and iwi business broadens our strategic lens.”

The new members had been able to hit the ground running because they understand the incorporation through their individual histories with PKW, either as previous Committee of Management members or associate directors, or through deep whānau connections.

“Their huge range of experience has already brought massive value to our strategic discussions as a board,” Dion said.

Tama Potaka connects to Taranaki and Ngāruahine through his grandmother, Sina James, and also has links to Ngāti Hauiti and other Mōkai-Pātea iwi, Ngāti Rangi,

Whanganui, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Raukawa and Ngāti Toarangatira.

A Charles Bailey Scholarship recipient in the late 1990s, he has degrees in Māori Studies, Political Science and Law, including a Master of Law at Columbia, New York.

He was the incorporation’s first Associate Director in 2004 and served on the Committee of Management for six years from 2005, including chairing PKW Farms and the PKW Trust.

He practised law in the United States and New Zealand, has been an executive leader in Tainui Group Holdings and is CEO for Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki. He was a senior advisor for the NZ Superannuation Fund’s direct investment team, targeting forestry, dairy farms, horiticulture, KiwiBank, retirement villages, property, infrastructure and other sectors, and had a hand in supporting the development of the Te Pūia Tāpapa Fund of Māori entities across the country, including Parininihi ki Waitōtara.

He has also worked in the public sector and has run his own consultancy.

Tama said he is supportive of the board’s leadership and enthusiastic about the whanaungatanga outcomes that come with being part of PKW.

And he returns with unfinished business in his sights.

“I’m keen to address some of the outstanding business of my earlier time at Parininihi ki Waitōtara, including realising more value from the asset base.”

He has a particular interest in residential and commercial property, and wants to elevate shareholder dividends as well as provide supplier and employment opportunities for whānau and in Taranaki.

Anne-Marie Broughton is of Ngaa Rauru Kiitahi, Ngāruahine, Ngāti Ruanui, Ātihaunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Rangi and Ngā Puhi. Raised on ancestral lands at Nukumaru Waitōtara, she lives at Pākaraka and serves as a trustee and chair of Whenuakura Marae, a director for the Whanganui Economic Development Agency, and cochair of the farmer-led Whanganui West Water Catchment Group.

She was an associate director for PKW from 2009 to 2011 and held management roles with the Māori Trustee and Te Kaahui o Rauru, leading the establishment of Te Rua o Te Moko Dairy Farm and Kaitahi Superfoods.

A ministerial appointee to the MPI Sustainable Food & Fibre futures investment advisory panel and a trustee on the Agri Women’s Development Trust, she has also just been appointed to the Crown Regional Holdings board (responsible for the former Provincial Government Fund). She is keen to bring insights from these positions to her role at PKW.

She says her first few months with Te Raurengarenga have enhanced her confidence in the incorporation’s direction, particularly in terms of diversification.

“I’m really supportive of innovation, research and development, and the work being done by management around potential plant-based innovation. I’m confident we’ve got the knowledge, experience, and skills across the team to explore this space and I think it’s essential that we do so.”

Anne-Marie also recently supported PKW to explore training and development opportunities to boost the number of whānau working incorporation lands and plans to help drive that kaupapa forward.

Liana Poutu has grown up with Parininihi ki Waitōtara and has been a visible and pivotal leader in the Taranaki iwi community. She was born in the year the incorporation was established, and her koro Edward (Ted) Tamati (supported by his wife Val) chaired PKW for 13 years.

Liana has whakapapa connections to Te Atiawa, Puketapu hapū, Taranaki Iwi, Ngāti Moeahu, Ngā Mahanga a Tairi, Ngāti Rangi, Whanganui and Ngāti Maniapoto.

A former Charles Bailey Scholarship recipient with a conjoint Bachelor of Arts (Māori) and Bachelor of Laws, she practised law for 15 years, focusing on Treaty of Waitangi, Māori land and Māori governance.

Now a consultant, she has chaired Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa Trust since its establishment seven years ago and is a director of the Te Atiawa Commercial Investment Board.

She has also served as a governor for iwi, hapū, Māori land trusts, Te Reo o Taranaki Charitable Trust, Tui Ora Ltd, Toi Foundation, Conservation Boards and advisory boards. “As a former Charles Bailey scholarship recipient, it’s my time to give back to the incorporation in a tangible way through serving as a board member,” Liana said.

“In the past 10 or so years I’ve been really focused on iwi development.

“One of my aspirations is to strengthen the relationship between Parininihi ki Waitōtara and ngā iwi o Taranaki.

“There’s more we can do together and I’m keen to explore that.”

In other governance changes, Will Edwards has been appointed the new chair of Te Rau Manawaora / the PKW Trust, while Liana takes a seat on Te Rau Matatū / Audit and Risk Committee and Tama joins Te Rau Mataora / Human Resources Committee.