Hāpai Public
Olivia, brand expert and Hāpai Public member
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How Olivia Improved Her Cultural Understanding of New Zealand’s Public Sector
Over the past three years, Olivia has used a range of resources to enhance her soft skills and improve her cultural understanding of New Zealand’s public sector.
Transition to Government Role
Moving from the private sector into her first role in government three years ago wasn’t a problem for Olivia. As a marketer and user-experience designer, she was easily able to apply her technical skills to her new role as Brand Advisor at the Ministry for the Environment.
Gaining Soft Skills Through Hāpai Public
‘The hard technical skills were not a huge challenge because in the private sector you are basically one person with all the solutions, but in the public sector your soft skills are very different. Through Hāpai Public it’s the skill of networking and communicating that I have really gained.’
Olivia first learned about Hāpai Public after looking for an opportunity to advance her Māori engagement skills. A colleague recommended she attend the Effective Engagement with Māori workshop.
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Insights from the Effective Engagement with Māori Workshop
‘In the New Zealand Government, the amount of effort we put into engaging with iwi groups is very different from private groups. I see engagement with Māori as soft and hard skills – you need to understand the culture, and you need to engage with people.’
‘Hāpai Public has regular articles about the latest opinions and updates and how they affect the Māori community. I'm from a different culture and that opens the door for me to see and observe a different way of engaging.’
She credits the range of articles published through the newsletter with helping her navigate the cultural nuances of working within New Zealand’s public sector. Olivia said she mostly uses the resources as a tool to help increase her understanding.
‘The articles have been helpful for me in the diversity, equity and inclusion space. As this is my first government job, it's helpful to understand the climate and how other public servants work.’
Sharing Resources and Insights
On becoming the co-lead of the Asia Staff Network at Ministry for the Environment, Olivia found she often shared articles and resources with her wider network. A talk on ethnic leadership was particularly helpful for giving her network a sense of what they can achieve.
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‘I shared that resource with members to support them in navigating their careers, showing them a role model and that you can achieve what you want. At the same time, it helps to connect our members with the wider Pan-Asian communities.’
Current Role at the Ministry of Education
Olivia now works for the Ministry of Education.
‘The hard technical skills were not a huge challenge because in the private sector you are basically one person with all the solutions, but in the public sector your soft skills are very different. Through Hāpai Public it’s the skill of networking and communicating that I have really gained.’
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