For many New Zealanders, Waitangi Day marks the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. Today, Steel & Tuber’s, Tania and Marc, reflect on the importance of Waitangi Day to them personally and the value of diversity in workplaces across the country.
Tania Rapana, Senior Account Manager based in Whangarei, says: “Waitangi Day is a day to remember where our journey as a nation began. It’s a day to acknowledge the past, reflect on where we are today and how far we’ve come. We also must take lessons from the past and present to ensure we continue to grow and move forward in the future”.
“For me personally, Waitangi Day is an opportunity to embrace and celebrate where I come from, where I am today and to challenge myself to make a contribution to my community in a positive way, either big or small’.
When reflecting on the importance of Waitangi Day, Marc Hainen, General Manager – Distribution and member of Steel & Tube’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, says:
“It’s about recognising the history of New Zealand. It also reminds us all of the importance of unity and togetherness, particularly during challenging times where we must band together as a nation to do what’s best for our communities. It’s also an opportunity to reflect on how New Zealand has evolved to become home to people from a variety of cultural backgrounds. This ultimately makes New Zealand the interesting, varied and vibrant place we love to live in”.
“As business leaders, we have a responsibility to ensure that we embrace diversity and foster a culture in which we have a representation of ideas and thoughts from people of a variety of backgrounds. We know that in most aspects of life, and business is no different, that having a variety of ideas, perspectives and outlooks is more likely to deliver better outcomes. Generally, better business outcomes are positive for our communities”.
“Driven by a focus on our customers, it is critical that our team reflects our customer base. This is of particular relevance with New Zealand being our main market. As a result, we need to cultivate a work environment in which we create a culture that fosters differences while rewarding high performance and supporting all our people to participate, achieve and contribute”.
When asked how we can all signal the importance of Waitangi Day, Tania says: “Immerse your children, friends and family in the significance of the day. We can never lose the true meaning of the day but the only way to ensure this is to tell the story and explain the history and take them to the Treaty Grounds”.
“When walking the site and the land, you truly feel the significance of that whenua. You will find yourself at some point looking out over the Bay of Islands and imagining what it would have been like to be present on that day. It’s a humbling and awe-inspiring place to be – Stronger Together is a sentiment that surpasses even time”.
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