HOBSON LEAVY

HOBSON LEAVY is pleased to be partnering with Watercare Services Limited in the search to find their new Chief Executive Officer. New Zealand’s largest water utility, supplying water and wastewater services to 1.7million people in Auckland, Watercare is a Council Controlled Organisation. Wholly owned by Auckland Council, Watercare provides safe drinking water to 484,000 homes and businesses, and collects, treats, and discharges its customers’ wastewater in an environmentally responsible way. Employing approximately 1300 FTE, with revenues of $1bn+ and assets of over $16bn in value, Watercare’s 10-year capital works programme will require an annual spend of $1bn+. Headquartered in Newmarket, Watercare has operational sites throughout Auckland from the top of the Waikato, up to Wellsford. In response to the need to deliver high quality and resilient water services and accommodate growth, Watercare has embarked on a journey to undertake one of the largest capital raisings in NZ’s corporate history. This capital raise is accompanied by commencement of operations in a new environment of economic regulation. One of the critical aspects of this transition is the debt transfer from Auckland Council to Watercare. Watercare’s Board of Directors seek to appoint a Chief Executive Officer who will provide stability and meet the challenges ahead, whilst continuing to evolve the unified organisational culture. The CEO is responsible for developing and leading Watercare’s strategic pathway and will play a leadership role in contributing to the future of the water sector in New Zealand. Alongside steadfast leadership, the CEO will ensure operational stability and enable employees to successfully navigate the implementation of upcoming changes. The incoming CEO will have experience leading large, complex organisations, and will likely bring an infrastructure/network background. The successful candidate will be a skilled relationship builder, able to develop partnerships with key stakeholders such as elected officials (local and central government), Auckland Council employees, iwi groups, and customers. They will understand the complexities of working in a highly regulated environment. The new CEO will be comfortable with oversight of the $1billion + per year, capital works programme and driving a substantial efficiency gain in operations. Training and development are critical to maintaining water and wastewater standards and financial performance into the future. The successful candidate will be an authentic leader with high levels of integrity, who demonstrates a humble and open style, role modelling Watercare’s core values. For more information or to apply, please contact Maia Stewart at Hobson Leavy Executive Search: maia@hobsonleavy.com. Applications close 5pm Tuesday 14th January 2025.

Last week, Hobson Leavy had the pleasure of attending the Deloitte Top 200 Awards and sponsoring the Visionary Leader Award, presented by Partner, Lauren Shearer. Congratulations again to the winners, Mat Mowbray, Nick Mowbray, and Anna Mowbray. #DeloitteTop200 #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch #LeadersMatter

HOBSON LEAVY is thrilled to announce that Mark Schollum has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer for Partners Life. Please join us in congratulating Mark on his appointment below! #PanoramaLeadership #LeadersMatter #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch

Congratulations to Mat Mowbray, Nick Mowbray, and Anna Mowbray, who have been named the recipients of the Hobson Leavy Visionary Leader Award at the Deloitte Top 200 celebration last night! We are proud to be sponsoring this award for 2024, celebrating the best of business leadership in New Zealand! View all the winners here: https://lnkd.in/eCF_E7pF #DeloitteTop200 #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch #LeadersMatter #PanoramaLeadership

HOBSON LEAVY is delighted to announce that Katie Bhreatnach has been appointed as Chief Executive for Global Women. Katie arrives with a wealth of experience and a strong track record in leadership, Katie is well-prepared to guide and shape the future of Global Women. Katie is a dynamic business leader and mum to three daughters, driven by a commitment to being a good ancestor and shaping a prosperous future for Aotearoa. Her executive experience spans diverse industries, including financial services, technology, FMCG, and aviation, alongside governance roles across the commercial and not-for-profit sectors. Of Ngāti Whakaue descent, Katie has a longstanding relationship with Global Women, where she has been a member, active contributor and board member. Through her career, she has championed the advancement of wahine in leadership, embodying her passion for empowering others and ensuring intergenerational progress. Please join us in congratulating Katie on her new role below. #PanoramaLeadership #LeadersMatter #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch

As proud sponsors of the Visionary Leader Award, we’re excited to attend the Deloitte Top 200 Awards tonight to celebrate the best of Kiwi business and the successes of 2024. Good luck to all! #DeloitteTop200 #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch #LeadersMatter #PanoramaLeadership

HOBSON LEAVY is thrilled to announce the appointment of Gretchen La Roche as the next Chief Executive of Creative New Zealand.   The Chair of the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa, Kent Gardner, says Gretchen stood out in a strong field of candidates.   ‘Gretchen gave us confidence that she is the best person to lead Creative New Zealand as our next Chief Executive. She has a strong record as an enterprising leader who is highly responsive to context, is very good with people, and engages deeply and works with community.’   ‘The Council took the opportunity to appoint someone who is a leader and has deep experience of working in the arts sector. Gretchen has been both a freelance performer and worked in several executive roles in the arts, including a fixed term appointment as Senior Manager Art Development at Creative New Zealand until May of this year,’ Kent says.   Gretchen is currently Executive Director of The Court Theatre in Christchurch and has been Chief Executive at Chamber Music New Zealand and the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. She takes up leadership at Creative New Zealand as it develops a new vision and strategy for its work. She’ll lead the organisation’s national and international work from the Auckland office.   ‘I’m excited to lead the organisation as we set the direction for the next part of the story, and to work with the extraordinary people and organisations that serve all New Zealanders with their creative mahi,’ Gretchen says.   Please join us in congratulating Gretchen on her role. #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch #LeadersMatter #PanoramaLeadership

Hobson Leavy is delighted to announce John Rae has been appointed as a Non-Executive Director for Cambridge Clothing Company.   John is an experienced commercial executive, who has moved successfully into governance, gaining a wide breadth of experience. He has had an extensive governance career, which has revolved primarily around supporting privately owned organisations. John also brings NZX listed company experience. He has a passion for promoting NZ Inc.; proudly supporting NZ owned companies to perform on the world stage.   Please join us in congratulating John on his appointment below. #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch #LeadersMatter #PanoramaLeadership

HOBSON LEAVY is thrilled to announce that Godfrey Boyce has been appointed as a Non-Executive Director for Rangatira Investments. Godfrey Boyce, former Chief Executive Officer of KPMG, led the firm from June 2016 until his retirement from Partnership in 2023. Prior to becoming CEO, he served as National Managing Partner of the advisory division starting in 2013. Godfrey is now pursuing a career in governance. Please join us in congratulating Godfrey on his new role. #PanoramaLeadership #LeadersMatter #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch

HOBSON LEAVY is excited to announce the appointment of Gareth Brazier as Chief Information Officer for Wellington Electricity.   Gareth brings a wealth of experience in the energy sector, having worked in the industry since 2012. More recently, he has served as Chief Technology Officer at Flick Electric. With a deep passion for ICT and the energy sector, Gareth’s career spans both large gentailers and independent retailers.   Throughout his career, Gareth has been at the forefront of driving change, whether leading key projects or serving in his strategic role as CTO. He has successfully managed complex change initiatives that have involved not only technical transformation but also cultural and organisational shifts.   For the past eighteen months, Gareth has been a key member of the Senior Executive Team at Flick Electric, gaining valuable strategic and commercial insights that have enabled him to contribute at a broader business level.   Please join us in congratulating Gareth on his new role. #PanoramaLeadership #LeadersMatter #HobsonLeavyExecutiveSearch