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Do you want to think more strategically? Have you been told that you need to lift yourself out of the operational space to think more futuristically? Strategic thinking is something that frequently comes up in our coaching conversations. In this episode, we offer you our thoughts, advice and practical tools that will help you to think more strategically and progress your career. We cover: What is strategy? Why does it matter? 3 ways to think more strategically Key tools you can use to build a strategic mindset Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, or sign up to our newsletter to receive career insights direct to your inbox using the form on our website. Find out more about The Female Career and the services we provide, including leadership coaching, career coaching and gender pay gap analysis on our website. We’d love to hear your feedback. If you’d like to get in touch you can email us on hello@thefemalecareer.com. Image credit: Christina Morillo

It's not easy to juggle a career with being a parent. In today's episode, five New Zealand women share their experiences and insights into how they make it all work. They talk about fitting work around their kids' schedules, what happens when family and work intersect, running a business while looking after a small child, and their hopes and dreams for more gender balanced parenting and work roles. We hope the thoughts of these women are useful and inspiring for you: Miriana Stephens (Ngāti Rārua, Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui), Leader of wellness business AuOra™, Director of Wakatū Incorporation - and mum of 4 Alliv Samson, Co-Founder and COO of EdTech app Kami - and mum of 1 Rhiannon McKinnon, CEO of KiwiWealth - and mum of 3 Jacqui Magure, Clinical Psychologist, Science Communicator, Media Contributor - and mum of 1 Megan Scott, Director at PwC - and mum of 1 Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, or sign up to our newsletter to receive career insights direct to your inbox using the form on our website. Find out more about The Female Career and the services we provide, including leadership coaching, career coaching and gender pay gap analysis on our website. We’d love to hear your feedback. If you’d like to get in touch you can email us on hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Professor Bronwyn Hayward is an internationally-recognised sustainability and climate change advocate. Her day job is as a Professor at the University of Canterbury in the Department of Political Science and International Relations where she is also Director of The Sustainability, Citizenship & Civic Imagination Research Group: Hei Puāwaitanga. Bronwyn is also part of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. She is passionate about sustainability, climate, youth and democracy. In 2021, Bronwyn was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in recognition of her outstanding work. In 2022, she was chosen as the Supreme Winner in the Women of Influence Awards. In this episode, Bronwyn talks about: Strategies for breaking into academia as a woman How we can work collectively and improve the way we collaborate to solve big issues Completing her PhD with young children 🎙 "Doing a PhD with very young children meant that there was something I was doing for myself as well as raising the children. But I didn't know any other women who were actually doing it." Follow us on Facebook and Instagram, or sign up to our newsletter to receive career insights direct to your inbox using the form on our website. Find out more about The Female Career and the services we provide, including leadership coaching, career coaching and gender pay gap analysis on our website. We’d love to hear your feedback. If you’d like to get in touch you can email us on hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Amanda Malu (Ngāi Tahu) is Chief Executive of Whānau Āwhina Plunket, which is a charity and Aotearoa’s largest support service for the health and wellbeing of tamariki under-five and their whānau. Amanda has been the Chief Executive since 2016. Prior to that, her career has seen her take on a wide range of marketing and communication leadership roles across not-for-profit and public sector organisations such as Maritime New Zealand, the Families Commission and the Tertiary Education Commission. Since recording this episode, Amanda has been appointed Deputy Chief Executive Service Delivery at ACC. In this episode, Amanda talks about: Her pathway to becoming a Chief Executive out of a career in marketing Her experiences of returning to work after parental leave, including starting back when her baby was 3 months old and being promoted while on parental leave How she responded to situations where conversation was directed at the man in the room even when she was more senior 🎙 "I think as women, one of the things we are very good at is going: 'Well, there must be someone better than me, so I'll just wait and see'. Actually, you might be the best person, so put yourself out there."

Tara Tan is the Founder and CEO of Grin – a New Zealand natural oral care brand. Tara founded the company 8 years ago after completing her Masters in Commerce at the University of Auckland. She had some concerns about the oral care products that she was using with her daughter and felt she could create safer and more environmentally friendly options that would appeal to parents. Since starting the business, she has grown the brand and range significantly, and now exports Grin products all around the world. In this episode, Tara talks about: The importance of determination and resilience Starting a business with little experience of working in a company Being ambitious as a mother, daughter and wife 🎙 "Don't stop halfway along the journey and think you're tired, you're exhausted, and you've tried 100 times. You probably have to try 200 times before you see the results." This episode is one of a special 5-part miniseries that we’re really proud to have developed in collaboration with Te Taurapa Tūhono, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. NZTE helps grow Kiwi companies internationally, bigger, better and faster. Each of these 5 podcast episodes brings you the inspiring story of a woman who has taken her Kiwi company to the global stage. A big thank you to NZTE for their support to bring these stories to life and if you’d like to find out more about NZTE and how they might help you grow your business go to https://bit.ly/nztewomen. We really hope you enjoy listening, and if you’d be interested in any leadership or career coaching to support your own career journey, drop us a line at hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Mary Bond and Robyn McLean have been best friends since they were kids. In 2017, they launched Hello Cup, a fun, comfortable, hypoallergenic, recyclable menstrual cup, made here in Aotearoa New Zealand. Since then, their company Hello Period has gone from strength to strength, growing internationally, and launching a range of new period products. Mary and Robyn are also passionate about being a business that makes a positive impact on our planet. Since launching, Hello Cup has saved over 200 million single use tampons and pads from going to landfill. In terms of career backgrounds, Mary has been a nurse for over 20 years, with her most recent years as a palliative care nurse at a hospice. Robyn started her career as a journalist before moving into Communications, PR and Marketing. In this episode, Mary and Robyn talk about: How they learnt to trust their instinct and commit to the things they believe in Running a profitable business while looking after the environment Bringing fun and humour into their work 🎙 "Trust your instinct. If you've got a good feeling about things, then follow that instinct. If something doesn't feel right, leave it alone – avoid it. Don't ignore the voice in the back of your head." This episode is one of a special 5-part miniseries that we’re really proud to have developed in collaboration with Te Taurapa Tūhono, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. NZTE helps grow Kiwi companies internationally, bigger, better and faster. Each of these 5 podcast episodes brings you the inspiring story of a woman who has taken her Kiwi company to the global stage. A big thank you to NZTE for their support to bring these stories to life and if you’d like to find out more about NZTE and how they might help you grow your business go to https://bit.ly/nztewomen. We really hope you enjoy listening, and if you’d be interested in any leadership or career coaching to support your own career journey, drop us a line at hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Amber Taylor is Co-Founder and CEO of ARA Journeys, a mobile games company weaving the digital world with te ao Māori. Inspired by and drawing on mātauranga Māori, ARA’s award-winning games use immersive technologies and artificial intelligence to promote connection, education, and exploration of the natural world. In her broader career, Amber has over 18 years working in the tertiary sector, with 12 years of that in research and innovation of emerging technologies. Amber is also a strong advocate for growing Māori and Pasifika talent and diversity in the tech sector. In this episode, Amber talks about: How she started growing her business while still working a day job Stepping back in her career to get ahead Strategies for overcoming self-doubt 🎙 "The one thing that has really helped me through the self-doubt is being confident enough to talk about the self-doubt with people rather than sitting and stewing on it within my own head." This episode is one of a special 5-part miniseries that we’re really proud to have developed in collaboration with Te Taurapa Tūhono, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. NZTE helps grow Kiwi companies internationally, bigger, better and faster. Each of these 5 podcast episodes brings you the inspiring story of a woman who has taken her Kiwi company to the global stage. A big thank you to NZTE for their support to bring these stories to life and if you’d like to find out more about NZTE and how they might help you grow your business go to https://bit.ly/nztewomen. We really hope you enjoy listening, and if you’d be interested in any leadership or career coaching to support your own career journey, drop us a line at hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Rebecca & Kate co-founded The Better Packaging Company in 2017, which has a mission to find the world’s most sustainable packaging solutions. They’ve experienced phenomenal growth since launching and now export globally, to over 50 countries. In this episode, Rebecca & Kate talk about: Leaning into their values Pursuing 'zigzag careers' with many twists and turns How their packaging products are making the world a better place Kate studied chemistry and commerce and started her career in management consulting. She then founded, published and edited a quarterly magazine Dumbo Feather, with a focus on social and environmental change makers before running her own Marketing & Communications Consultancy. She is passionate about the circular economy and about innovative design solutions. Rebecca studied biochemistry originally and the early years of her career were spent working for companies such as IBM and Vodafone. Prior to founding the Better Packaging Company, Rebecca was the COO at StarShipIt, a cloud based app designed to simplify shipping orders. In that role, she realised the amount of packaging waste generated by the eCommerce industry and that sparked the vision for The Better Packaging Company. 🎙 "Do stuff that resonates with you, that makes you sing in the morning, that you absolutely love. And it sounds a bit naff, but I've been in a place where I wasn't living my values through work and it's a completely different thing to be doing work that is true to your values." This episode is one of a special 5-part miniseries that we’re really proud to have developed in collaboration with Te Taurapa Tūhono, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. NZTE helps grow Kiwi companies internationally, bigger, better and faster. Each of these 5 podcast episodes brings you the inspiring story of a woman who has taken her Kiwi company to the global stage. A big thank you to NZTE for their support to bring these stories to life and if you’d like to find out more about NZTE and how they might help you grow your business go to https://bit.ly/nztewomen. We really hope you enjoy listening, and if you’d be interested in any leadership or career coaching to support your own career journey, drop us a line at hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Janine Grainger is the co-founder and CEO of Easy Crypto, New Zealand's leading cryptocurrency trading platform. Easy Crypto now has over 150,000 customers across New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Brazil, and has recorded over $1.1 billion in sales through the platform over the past three years. Janine has been involved in cryptocurrency since 2015, and is one of New Zealand’s most visible voices in the sector. She’s leading the charge in trying to drive collaboration between the industry, central government, and the finance sector to provide a secure, accessible crypto environment for consumers while fostering ongoing innovation and growth for the sector. Prior to Easy Crypto, Janine worked in senior operational and people leadership positions at Air New Zealand and Westpac and also in Consulting with PwC. Janine talks about: Starting and growing a side hustle alongside her day job The steps she took to grow her business internationally Finding the confidence to follow her interests and progress in her career Her experiences of conscious and unconscious bias 🎙 “The more that I’ve stepped into and stepped up into the roles that I’ve had thrust upon me, the more I’ve realised that I have the ability to do it and do it really well. And I think that everyone has that ability and often it’s just our confidence that’s holding us back.” This episode is one of a special 5-part miniseries that we’re really proud to have developed in collaboration with Te Taurapa Tūhono, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. NZTE helps grow Kiwi companies internationally, bigger, better and faster. Each of these 5 podcast episodes brings you the inspiring story of a woman who has taken her Kiwi company to the global stage. A big thank you to NZTE for their support to bring these stories to life and if you’d like to find out more about NZTE and how they might help you grow your business go to https://bit.ly/nztewomen. We really hope you enjoy listening, and if you’d be interested in any leadership or career coaching to support your own career journey, drop us a line at hello@thefemalecareer.com.

Julia Arnott-Neenee (Sāmoan, Chinese & British) has been told she is “too much”. Too loud, too bright, too young, too brown, too white. Far from letting these comments hold her back, Julia has chosen to grow into her “too much” as she has built her wide-ranging career across strategy, marketing and technology. Julia talks about: Putting her flame up and pursuing opportunities without fear of rejection Choosing a values-driven career Facing the system and refusing to be punished for other people’s behaviour Julia’s career has spanned across Aotearoa, Australia, the UK and the USA. She has recently been appointed National Manager of Transformation at the country’s largest NGO, Emerge Aotearoa, whose mission is to strengthen whānau so that communities thrive. Julia is driven by social justice, people, and futures. In line with this, she is also a member of the Digital Council for Aotearoa New Zealand, member of the World Economic Forum Global Futures Council on AI and Humanity (Inclusion), Trustee of Hi-Tech Board, Board Member at Middlemore Foundation and Mentor at First Foundation. Julia has also co-founded the social enterprise PeopleforPeople, a youth-led Pacific organisation on a mission to ensure that everyone confidently participates in the Digital World of today and tomorrow. 🎙 “Keep on growing and growing, continue to grow into whatever that “too much” may be for you. Don’t let that seem to be an insecurity or inferiority to you. Because you never know, that could be your special source, your absolute strength, and that’s someone else’s insecurities they’re projecting on to you.”

Anya Satyanand has spent the last two decades on a haphazard journey that's been all about equipping, emboldening and inspiring young people, entrepreneurs and leaders to actively create a more hopeful world. She is a recovering teacher, an erstwhile youth worker, and an independent director of an ethical investment company. In her work for Leadership New Zealand, Anya supports, equips, empowers and inspires people who are interested in growing the future of Aotearoa - a future that is just and abundant, peaceful and participatory. Anya talks about: The challenges and urgency of being a leader today Her professional crisis of becoming a parent How appointing a personal board can help you grow in your career 🎙 “I have ended up in this place some days I think by accident, but most days I think because I believe in this work of resourcing , acknowledging, affirming, encouraging, inspiring leaders about their own capacity to be the change that needs to happen in the world right now."

As is sometimes the way with virtual recordings, the audio quality varies in this interview. Please don't let that put you off listening though - Renee has such an interesting story! How do you decide whether to make the leap into a new career? Can you incorporate multiple passions into your working life? How does historical sexism impact on the experiences of women at work today? Dr Renee Liang, a second-generation Cantonese New Zealander, blends her passions for medicine and the arts. A paediatrician with special interest in community and youth health, she is also Asian Theme Lead for the landmark longitudinal study Growing Up in NZ. Alongside her medical career, Renee also works as a poet and playwright. She has written, produced, and nationally toured eight plays, and has made operas, musicals, and community arts programmes. Her poems, essays, and short stories are studied from primary to tertiary level. In 2018, Renee was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit. 🎙 “We feel it’s a good thing to have balance, but it’s also a good thing to be passionate about lots of things and to draw energy from lots of things, so long as it makes you burn with something to do it.” Image credit: John Rata

Tracey Ryan is Managing Director New Zealand for engineering, design and advisory company Aurecon. She is responsible for the leadership and performance of 850 people across five locations. In this podcast we talk about: The importance of bringing compassion, empathy and integrity into your career Finding the courage to get uncomfortable Why workplace diversity is critical to innovation and problem-solving Tracey’s career to date has been focused on business growth, leading enterprise-wide multi-disciplinary teams and creating inclusive and engaged cultures. She has held senior leadership roles in several global professional services companies. Tracey’s technical STEM background and 25 years international professional services experience makes her incredibly passionate about getting more young women and girls to choose STEM careers. She is Deputy Chair for Infrastructure New Zealand and Chair of the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) Sustainable Development Committee. 🎙 “Earlier on in my career, I was often the only female in the room, and that meant that bringing a different opinion or different way of thinking. But I do think the reality is that that has moved on quite significantly because the complexity and the uncertainties and the challenges that we are faced with, requires that entire diversity of thinking. And I don’t mean it from a gender perspective, I really do think that inclusivity across our workplace and our workforce is going to drive that innovation, that eminence and that creativity to be able to deal with the complexity of the issues we’re trying to solve.”

How do you know you are being paid a fair rate? Can you be both grateful and assertive? Practical tips to get the gender pay gap on the agenda at your organisation In this special episode of the podcast we talk all things gender pay gap. Our guests are Dellwyn Stuart and Irihapeti Edwards, campaigners and advocates for pay transparency and equality in Aotearoa. Dellwyn is CEO of YWCA Auckland and Co-founder of MindTheGap. With 30 years' experience in corporate and private business, she is passionate about gender equality and is driven to help amplify the voices of young wāhine. Irihapeti (Ngāti Manawa, Ngāti Hikairo, Ngāti Awa, Te Arawa, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Whātua ki Kaipara) is a young wahine Māori who works in the finance sector. She is a keen advocate of human and indigenous rights and is passionate about community engagement, cultural representation, female empowerment and education. Dellwyn and Irihapeti talk about their work at MindTheGap and what drives their passion for closing the gender pay gap. They leave us with practical tips for how we can all be part of the movement for a more equal society. In the words of Dellwyn, we all have power to make change. “All change does really begin with conversation. You are entitled to be curious and to have that conversation.”

For International Women’s Day we are bringing you a special episode on the theme of #BreakTheBias. Many of our previous podcast guests have faced some form of bias in their working lives. In this episode six wāhine talk about their experiences of bias at work and how they have fought to break it. Stacey Morrison (Te Arawa, Ngāi Tahu) is a radio and TV broadcaster, journalist and author. Stacey talks about how women are perceived differently once they become mothers and the expectations women put on themselves. Vic Maclennan is a technology entrepreneur and champion of digital capability for all. Vic speaks about gender pay discrimination and the power of supportive colleagues. Teresa Tepania-Ashton (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kuri, Te Aupōuri, Te Rarawa, Ngāti Kahu ki Whangaroa) is the Chief Executive of Māori Women’s Development Inc. Teresa talks about challenges at the intersection of ethnicity and gender and we can overcome bias by believing in ourselves. Sarah Lang is Director of Government Advisory and Strategic Relationships at Beca. Sarah talks about struggling to be heard in male-dominated workplaces and the value of female role models. Hema Patel is a senior business leader in the software and technology sectors. Hema speaks about breaking the bias by finding the courage to have the conversation or ask the question. Caren Rangi (Cook Islands Māori) is a professional director and supporter of Aotearoa’s Pacific community. Caren talks about challenging the expectations we hold of ourselves and cutting ourselves some slack.

Is it unhelpful to talk about “imposter syndrome”? How can you build your confidence and create opportunities to let your talent shine at work? Renee Graham is Te Tumu Whakahaere, Chief Executive of the Social Wellbeing Agency. Before beginning this role in June 2021, she was Secretary for Women and Chief Executive of the Ministry for Women. Growing up in Porirua, Renee began her career journey in a frontline role at Work and Income. Over the next 20+ years, she performed a range of policy roles within the Ministry of Social Development and the Ministry of Education. In this episode of the podcast, Renee talks candidly about her progression into senior leadership roles, her experiences of imposter syndrome, and how she built her confidence by noting down her successes in a little black book. “You start building up your little black book of things that you know that you can do, and that helps build your confidence. And then when you’re building your confidence, your imposter syndrome dial is decreasing a little bit. So it’s always there, but every little thing that you do helps.”

“Nobody knows what they’re doing until they’re doing it, so just get started.” Jessie Wong is a Wellington entrepreneur and founder of luxury leather goods brand Yu Mei. She set up Yu Mei after winning an AMP scholarship while completing a Bachelor of Fashion Design at Otago, allowing her to invest in the specialised machinery required to craft leather goods. Together with her production manager Adrian, Jessie grew the brand, picking up 32 stockists in 18 months following successful showings during Yu Mei’s first two appearances at New Zealand Fashion Week. Six years on, Yu Mei has grown to a team of 16, with a permanent design studio, and three flagship stores across Wellington and Auckland. Under the guidance of her female business mentor, Jessie has scaled her business, securing a world-class manufacturing facility to realise plans for international expansion. With a large network and community of successful fellow females, Jessie is a woman in business with an impressive strategic outlook and vision for the future of regenerative leathercraft.

“Trust yourself....When you’re in your flow and when you’re in your place of strength and confidence, things will work out.” Bron Thomson is the founder and co-CEO of Springload, one of New Zealand’s leading digital agencies, with a team of over 75 people in Wellington. Her experience in design, technology, and business strategy spans three decades of New Zealand's tech sector. Springload’s mission is to make the things that matter, better. They’ve worked with some of New Zealand’s leading organisations, including Te Papa, Massey University, ACC, NZ Customs, Kiwibank, and many Government agencies. Springload also became a B-Corp in 2019. Bron is passionate about collaborating to create change for good.

We are bringing you a special episode with some of the very best career insights from recent episodes of The Female Career podcast. Set yourself up for your next career steps by reflecting on thought-provoking career advice from five inspiring wāhine of Aotearoa: Qiane Matata-Sipu (Te Waiohua, Waikato-Tainui, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Pikiao, Cook Islands) is a journalist, photographer, social activist, and the founder and creator of NUKU. Qiane talks about the innate magic of wāhine and the importance of finding the courage to listen to and trust our gut. Katherine Skipper is an architect and Principal with the architectural firm Warren and Mahoney. Katherine talks about seeking growth outside of our comfort zone, using our networks and being bold.  Dr Hinemoa Elder (Ngāti Kuri, Te Aupouri, Te Rarawa, Ngāpuhi) is the only Māori child and adolescent psychiatrist in Aotearoa. Hinemoa encourages us to reach out to the wāhine who inspire us and to learn to love ourselves by exploring our whakapapa. Vanisa Dhiru is a human rights advocate who holds commissioner roles with the NZ National Commission of UNESCO and the Library and Information Advisory Commission. Vanisa talks about the importance of playing to our strengths and being open-minded about networking opportunities. Leonie Freeman is the Chief Executive of Property Council New Zealand and has had an extensive and accomplished career in the property industry. Leonie talks about how to lean into our purpose and reframe challenges as opportunities.

“My wonderful parents, and particularly my mother, have always said – do what you love and the money will follow. And I think I’ve always just taken that to heart, in that work is so much of your life so you need to love it and it needs to make you happy.” Dr Olivia Harrison is a neuroscientist whose research focuses on mental health, especially anxiety. She looks at the relationship between our brain and our body, and how awareness of changes in our body - things like a racing heart, sweaty palms or rapid breathing – may impact on our anxiety. Olivia studied originally at the University of Otago before completing her PhD at the University of Oxford in the UK. She’s worked as a Research Fellow in Oxford and Zurich before returning home to NZ in 2020 and has been awarded the Rutherford Discovery Research Fellowship. Olivia has also recently been awarded the prestigious LÓreal/UNESCO Fellowship for Women in Science. Here are some mental health support services in Aotearoa New Zealand in case useful after listening to this episode: Call or text 1737 any time for support from a trained counsellor Lifeline – 0800 543 354 or free text 4357 (HELP) Anxiety Help Line – 0800 269 4389 Mental Health Foundation