The New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services (NZCCSS) is pleased to announce the appointment of Nikki Hurst as Executive Officer.

NZCCSS president Bonnie Robinson says the appointment follows a comprehensive recruitment process that generated good interest in the position.

“This is a special role and we’re excited to welcome Nikki. She has an energy and excitement for the task. She is committed to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and to working in a collaborative way,” says Bonnie.

Nikki comes to the position with a strong academic background, most recently working for The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand as its National Programme Delivery Manager. Prior to that she was a Programme Coordinator and Principal Academic at Auckland’s Unitec Institute of Technology.

Along with high-level strategic and critical thinking skills, Nikki brings valued proficiency in research and evaluation, and an ability to develop effective solutions to complex problems.

Before entering academia, Nikki retrained from her earlier career in accounting, attaining an MA in counselling (first class) from Massey University.

Bonnie says that, importantly for NZCCSS, Nikki has a long-held heartbeat for children and youth. “Over the years, she has balanced her professional life with a commitment to working as a volunteer, particularly with children.”

This includes organisations such as youth-development body Ara Taiohi and Korowai Tupu, Sticks ‘n Stones and Well Women Charitable Trust.

“Her experience at both governance and operational levels has given her an indepth insight into the challenges of the NGO sector, and how good policy impacts lives.”

Nikki says that the Council’s Christian values resonate deeply with her own. “Hope and authenticity are my key personal values and I’m really looking forward to building the connections and working to bring about change.”

She is also gladly anticipating the prospect of finally melding her day job with her ‘spare time’ interests. “I’ll now be able to do what I love in my volunteer life in my fulltime work.”

Nikki replaces former Executive Officer Trevor McGlinchey and takes up the role from Monday, 22 March 2021.

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