The Leadership Network - how it all began

During the forum, participants got to hear from and ask questions of some of New Zealand's most senior leaders

The genesis of the Leadership Network stems back to 2003, when the Foundation launched its Seriously Asia initiative to examine how New Zealand’s relationships with Asia were evolving and to set a strategic direction for deeper engagement with the region in the years ahead. A key conclusion was the need to better engage young people and equip them for a future in which Asia would play an increasingly significant role in New Zealand’s social, cultural, and economic life.

To get things rolling, over the course of a week in 2006, the Foundation held the inaugural Young Leaders Forum in Wellington, Rotorua and Auckland.

The forum brought together 40 young leaders interested in Asia to explore ways of engaging their peers with the region and strengthening ties between New Zealand and Asia.

The forum wasn’t just an opportunity to meet senior leaders; it was a chance to build the connections that would lay the foundation for the network’s future

Jack Shepard, one of the forum delegates and original Leadership Network members, recalls the exhilaration of finding a community that shared his passions.

“I remember a tremendous sense of excitement and kinship at finding people and conversations that strode between Aotearoa New Zealand and Asian cultures as tangata Tiriti but also tangatarua,” he says.

Fellow forum delegate, Tessa McGreggor, shared this excitement: “It was amazing to meet so many other young New Zealanders who had a connection to Asia as that was definitely not the norm in 2006.”

The forum attracted some big hitters, with speakers including then-Prime Minister Helen Clark, Winston Peters (then, as he is now, the Minister of Foreign Affairs) and the recently appointed Governor General, Anand Satyanand, now an Honorary Adviser to the Foundation.

The Foundation’s deputy CE, Adele Mason, says the calibre of the speakers who made time to address the forum was a sign of the government’s changing attitudes towards Asia.  

“The New Zealand government was beginning to recognise that Asia would play an increasingly important role in New Zealand’s future and that upskilling young Kiwis on the importance of the region would be critical,” she says.

More photos from the forum

After a second forum the following year, and now with around 80 engaged young people connected to the Foundation and energised by the challenge set before them, the Leadership Network, then known as the Young Leaders Network, was formally established. “We never thought it would get to become what it is today,” Adele says. “But that’s the power of putting energy and resources into keeping people connected.”

The first offshore hui took 19 members to Singapore, and now two offshore hui are held each year across the region, with the next scheduled for Manila, Philippines in May.

Jack, who attended the NZ–China Forum in Shanghai in 2009 and the Hong Kong Forum in 2012, says his offshore hui experiences were invaluable — providing an environment in which he formed lasting friendships and giving him the confidence to pursue opportunities in Asia as his career expanded.

“The in-person experiences, the contacts made and the opportunities for professional development were all incredible benefits, and I still marvel with wonder at the soaring careers of my old roomies.

“A personal highlight for me was visiting the Shaw Brothers studios in Hong Kong: Peering behind that curtain to see how an Asian media empire was made armed me with confidence when I transitioned to working in the Chinese gaming and software publishing industry.”

The 2012 Hong Kong Hui delegates

Now numbering over 500 members, the Leadership Network has become a truly international network, with members from diverse backgrounds working in a wide range of industries around the world. Beyond its formal activities, members of the Network have travelled together, launched businesses, championed one another’s ambitions, and formed lifelong friendships.

Both Jack and Tessa credit the Network with shaping their personal and professional journeys.

“Without a doubt, the leadership network has shaped my life and career,” Jack says. “It has directly given me places to go; pathways to seek; spare rooms to crash in; and opportunities to dare to explore.

“I was offshore for about ten years and during periods of isolation would often draw great strength from knowing that there were others navigating tricky careers and pathways in Asia with resilience and skill.” 

The most recent Leadership Hui took members to Sri Lanka (Photography has also come a long way since 2006)

Leadership Network Advisory Board chair Mat Logan, who joined the network in 2013, says he has enjoyed seeing the network develop to become more representative of New Zealand society.

“Over the years I've been a member of the network it has become a lot more diverse - in terms of what fields, backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives people bring - this has been amazing and I can see that developing further in the future.”

He says he sees the role of the Leadership Network as being more important than ever: “In a world where it feels like people may be drifting further apart in all sorts of ways, I feel hopeful that something as sincere as the network, and the idea that bringing people together over a common interest, is still considered worthwhile.”  

It’s a sentiment shared by the Leadership Network’s greatest champion, Adele mason.

“The Leadership network is all about genuine connections – be that between members or the people they meet along the way. As long as we continue to embrace this Kaupapa, I can only see the network going from strength to strength.”

 The Asia New Zealand Foundation Leadership Network equips the next generation of Kiwi leaders to excel in Asia. We provide members with the connections, knowledge and confidence to lead New Zealand’s future relationship with the region.