New Board Members Appointed To Economic Development Agency, Venture Taranaki

Four new Trustees have been successfully appointed to the Venture Taranaki/Te Puna Umanga Board of Trustees. The new Trustees were approved by New Plymouth District Council councillors in a council meeting on 26 April 2022, and will take up their official appointments on 7 June 2022.

The incoming Trustees include a line-up of high-calibre executives and directors, including Owner and Director of Velocite Grant McQuoid, former TSB CFO Roddy Bennett, Pou Amotake/General Manager Operations at Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa Joshua Hitchcock, and current Papa Rererangi i Puketapu Ltd (New Plymouth Airport) Board Member Chris Myers.

"On behalf of the Venture Taranaki Board and the team at Venture Taranaki, I would like to welcome and congratulate, Grant, Roddy, Chris, and Joshua on their successful appointments," said Venture Taranaki Chair, Joanna Breare.

The cohort of talented trustees are set to officially join the governance team, replacing four outgoing trustees, including Hemi Sundgren, Kevin Murphy, Hinerangi Ramati, and previous Venture Chair Jamie Tuuta.

"I would like to thank and acknowledge the contributions all of our outgoing Trustees and the impact they have had on Venture Taranaki and the wider Taranaki region," said Joanna.

"Collectively they have made a huge contribution, and their skills, experience, and strategic minds will be missed around the table," she added.

New Plymouth District Mayor Neil Holdom also thanks the departing board members for their contributions and welcomes the new appointments.

"Venture Taranaki has a proud history of innovative thinking as our economic and tourism development agency, supporting all the great businesses of our region, both big and small, punching above our weight while encouraging visitors to enjoy our piece of paradise. There’s no doubt we’re facing some big challenges as we look ahead to a post-covid economy and a low-emissions future in line with the Taranaki 2050 Roadmap. With directors of this calibre, we can have confidence we’ll continue to head in the right direction," said Mayor Neil Holdom.

The new Trustees are looking forward to getting underway with the region’s Economic Development Agency, and are excited about the future of the organisation, and the region.

"I’m looking forward to getting across the organisation. From the outside looking in, Venture Taranaki/Te Puna Umanga have been doing a great job at supporting enterprise growth throughout the region, while also making significant headway across strategic areas of importance to Taranaki Māori and the region as a whole through food and fibre diversification, the transition towards a low-emissions future, the recent work supporting the Māori economy, and attracting the visitors of tomorrow. I look forward to continuing to support this alongside their other diverse kaupapa, and contribute collaboratively and strategically around the table," said Joshua, Pou Amotake / General Manager Operations, Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa.

The new board members come at a significant time for the organisation, as they welcome a new Chief Executive; Kelvin Wright in the coming week.

"As a board, with a new CE and recently appointed new chair, this is an exciting time to be joining, as we look to leverage off the significant and impactful undertakings we have contributed to in recent years, and to consider what lies ahead to best serve our community and shareholder to make Taranaki a great place to live, work and play," said Joanna.

The incoming board members will be welcomed into the organisation alongside incoming CE Kelvin Wright on 2 May with a Powhiri. Their first official board meeting will be on 13 June after a full induction into Venture Taranaki by the Senior Leadership Team.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION - TRUSTEES BIOS

Joshua Hitchcock

Joshua is of Te Ātiawa and Taranaki Iwi descent and was born and raised in Taranaki. He has a Master of Laws degree alongside Law and Commerce conjoint bachelor degrees and has spent the last 15 years in a range of legal, accountancy, consultancy and executive leadership roles. Joshua recently returned to Taranaki so that his whānau could grow up on their ancestral whenua. He is the Pou Amotake/General Manager Operations at Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa and holds Board roles as Treasurer of the New Zealand Māori Law Society and as a Director of Ka Uruora Trustee Limited. Joshua previously worked in public law and Māori law before working in the Māori business team at Deloitte, as Commercial and Operations Manager with Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa and as Head of Finance and Operations at a London based tech start up. Most recently he was Customer Manager - Māori Business at New Zealand Trade and Enterprise where he advised over a hundred SME's on their export strategies and worked with multiple Economic Development Agencies across Aotearoa.

Chris Myers

Chris has a range of executive and governance experience across tech, tourism, and energy sectors. Chris is a current member of the Papa Rererangi i Puketapu Ltd (New Plymouth Airport) Board. Chris has a master’s degree in Commerce and Management and extensive tourism experience with 20 years with Air Zealand, including heading up offshore activities across Asia, Europe and the Americas. He was previously New Zealand CEO of JUCY Rentals NZ and Head of Partnerships at Contact Energy. Chris’ current focus is working with emerging businesses around indigenous forest regeneration and biodiversity improvements, carbon management services and SaaS technology enhancement. Chris is a director of Forever Forests Limited and Chair of Wellington based SaaS business Pricetech Limited (trading as Marginfuel).

Roddy Bennett

Roddy has recently retired after 25 years at TSB, with the last ten years as Chief Financial Officer. He is a member of the Institute of Directors and Chartered Accountants ANZ and has previous governance experience on the Payments NZ board and various school boards. He is a current Trustee of the Tamariki Pakari Child Health and Wellbeing Trust - a non-profit that works to improve the health and wellbeing of tamariki and rangatahi in Taranaki and Aotearoa through research and informing service development.

Grant McQuoid

Grant is an Owner and Director of business advisory firm Velocite, supporting passionate business owners across regional New Zealand. Grant also works with several privately owned businesses as an advisor focused on growth and improved performance. He is an experienced SME board facilitator and advisor, and has significant experience in navigating and advising on governance structures, acquisition opportunities, and mergers. In 2015 Grant was made a Life Member of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce for the contribution he provided to the Governance of the organisation as Chair (2011 to 2015). Grant is also a member of the Ngā Kaiwhakatere o Taranaki - Taranaki 2050 Roadmap lead group representing the business community and the region’s transition to a low emissions, high-value economy. In 2018, Grant was made a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, recognising his outstanding achievement and contribution to the profession.

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