DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION ANTONY HALL
Growing Pasifika talent The team at Auckland Transport (AT) has recently launched a new Pasifika strategy. Antony Hall, Head of Organisational Effectiveness, shares successes of this strategy.
M
alo e lelei, talofa lava, kia orana, malo ni, fakaalofa lahi atu, ni sa bula vinaka, fakatalofa atu, namaste, kam na mauri and tēnā koutou are greetings you will start to hear more of at. The organisation employs about 1,700 people and is responsible for all the region’s transport services, from roads and footpaths, to cycling, parking and public transport.
As diverse as Auckland
Auckland is the largest Polynesian city in the world. Pasifika are among the top three fastest-growing ethnicities in New Zealand. They represent 15.5 per cent of the Auckland population and are an essential group of people that AT serves every day. AT has recognised the importance of this group is growing and it must respond to their transport needs. Significantly, AT has recognised it can only do this if the organisation reflects the diverse communities in 34
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which it operates and serves, that their people are culturally intelligent, and they embrace the diversity that Tāmaki Makaurau offers. This means making AT a place where all the different groups that make up the community can thrive.
If we get this right, we’ll be better off when it comes to supporting Tāmaki Makaurau, says CEO Shane Ellison. Shane Ellison, CEO, believes AT’s Pasifika strategy is an enabler in helping the company create an
inclusive culture where people feel valued and supported, regardless of any differences. “If we get this right, we'll be better off when it comes to supporting Tāmaki Makaurau,” he says. AT has a range of diversity and inclusion initiatives. These include a focus on growing female leadership, improving Māori employment outcomes, an unconscious bias programme and various internal networking groups, such as the Rainbow Network, Incredible India and Chinese AT Heart, to name a few.
