It’s hard to ignore the pace of change in New Zealand’s business landscape right now. From skills shortages to shifting employee expectations, and from rapid technological change to the ongoing demands on leaders, it can feel like there’s never a moment to pause. At the same time, these pressures bring opportunities - to rethink how we lead, develop talent, and turn the wealth of data at our fingertips into real, actionable insights.
This month, we’ve highlighted some of the thinking shared at the NZ HR Leadership Summit, where Helen and Sonya explored how connecting assessment, development, leadership, and succession systems can unlock the full value of your people data. We’ve also included a blog on leadership frameworks, examining why a one-size-fits-all “Leading Others” approach can hold organisations back, and how differentiating leadership levels can help people and organisations thrive.
As we all navigate these complex times, I’m reminded of the importance of challenging our assumptions and updating the mental models we rely on.
Even small habits, like listening more deeply, letting go of control, or questioning the way we’ve always done things, can make a big difference.
There’s no need to do everything at once, but by starting where we can and staying intentional, we can turn challenge into opportunity, and support leaders and teams to achieve their full potential.
As many of you will be aware, last week was Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori Language Week) and the 50th Anniversary no less! Rawe!
Early next month, a few of us are attending Meihana Durie's Unleashing Māori Potential workshop - exploring pathways that contribute to flourishing and the revelation of Māori potential, exploring the catalysts that promote mauriora (flourishing vitality) and hauora (enhanced wellbeing) in ways that also forge greater capacity for manawaroa (endurance). It feels like an inspiring way to start the last quarter of 2025, and I look forward to sharing more about it next panui.
Unlocking Data: Turning Individual Insights Into Organisational Outcomes
2025 New Zealand HR Leadership Summit
Helen and Sonya facilitated this presentation earlier this month at the NZ HR Leadership Summit, to a broad audience of public, private, and not for profit HR professionals and leaders.
They landed on this topic, based on the unique set of pressures that People and Capability leaders face: rapid technological change, persistent skills shortages, evolving employee expectations, and unrelenting demands on leaders (2025 HR Leaders Summit Survey).
Data abounds in every corner of the employee lifecycle: recruitment platforms, performance systems, engagement surveys, leadership programmes. All too often, however, these insights sit in silos, with the result that organisations have activity without clarity, data without insight, and puzzle pieces with no picture on the box.
Helen and Sonya discussed how People and Capability professionals can unlock the value of an integrated talent management framework, where assessment, development, leadership, and succession systems align to create a seamless pipeline of insight.
Using evidence-based tools, consistent measures, and real-world examples, we argue that integration doesn’t just streamline People and Capability processes, it drives better business outcomes, empowers leaders, and engages employees.
Their message was simple and encouraging - you don’t need to do everything at once, just start with what you can.
When Leading Others Isn’t Enough.
By Rachael Stott
A focus on succession has reminded us of the critical foundation of a coherent, fit for purpose leadership framework.
Over the years, we’ve often come across frameworks that define three key leadership levels: Leading Self, Others, and the Organisation. Given the complexity and demands in most organisations, we question whether those identified in the ‘Leading Others’ band are really being set up to succeed? Oversimplified leadership frameworks can blur the differences between frontline supervisors, mid-level managers, and senior leaders, leading to stalled promotions, strategy gaps, and talent risk. In this blog, we explore why differentiating the unique value of leadership levels matters, to unlock leadership potential across your organisation and drive performance.
In the spirit of complete honesty, 'Everyday Habits For Transforming Systems' by Adam Kahane is actually on my list of ‘books to read’ vs. ‘books read’ but my strategy is that a public commitment to read it, will hold me more accountable to follow-through and prioritise time for this.
“Big problems don't always need big solutions. Sometimes, it's the small stuff that can break a deadlock at the office, at the dinner table, or in conversations about politics. Listening, letting go of control, and staying present even when things get tense are habits, we should learn says Adam Kahane. He's a conflict and peace negotiator who Nelson Mandela called to help South Africa when apartheid ended.”
Drawing on decades of work with leaders from national and organisational presidents to front-line managers and grass-roots activists, Kahane distills seven potent habits that enable ordinary citizens to become extraordinary agents of transformation. In our current context of ‘doing more with less’ the topic of this book holds great appeal. I look forward to catching up with others who take up the challenge of reading in the next few months.
Highlighting this particular book, reminded me of another resource that I’ve shared liberally with executive leaders I’ve coached and worked with on executive leadership programmes. It likewise encourages us to challenge existing mental models - to break and make new habits of thinking.
"In this time of transformation, some of our most cherished assumptions and beliefs become inaccurate. To embrace the new model of value creation, you first need to unlearn obsolete ways of thinking and update your mental models for success in a digital world."
It is an easy to read resource, that you can ‘come and go’ from with accessible, bite-sized ‘lessons’ relevant to navigating any complex context:
If you’re not in the neighborhoods of Unity Books or Scorpio Books we encourage you to support your local bookstore.
Kind regards, The Winsborough Team
Exceptional Leadership. A Better Future.
Winsborough, Level 3, The Formery, 87 Albert Street, Auckland, 1010, New Zealand, 0800 222 061
