strategy – Creative Welly – Courageous conversations with bold humans.

Creative Welly Episode #48 | Hannah Wignall & Craig Mildenhall

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Hannah Wignall, Senior System Development Manager, Te Whatu Ora & Womens Development Officer, Seatoun A.F.C

I was born and raised in Manchester, moving to Aotearoa as a lively teenager. When I asked to describe myself at ten years old, I conjured up “sporty, annoying and hungry”. I’ve always been energetic and curious and my desire to understand and bring people together has put me in good stead as I move through the world.

I have a PGDip in Public Health and have worked in many parts of the health system, grappling with the challenge of providing equitable and effective healthcare for our communities. Over the last nine years I have delivered and supported TEDxWellington in various capacities and the continued exposure to unique and innovative ideas has been instrumental to my professional life.

The thing that excites me the most at the moment is football and creating a thriving women’s football community in Wellington.

Craig Mildenhall, Head of Digital at Kowtow Clothing

Craig is a proud Wellingtonian, brings over two decades of expertise in loyalty, retail, eCommerce, and digital marketing strategies. Having worked with renowned brands like Fly Buys, Adidas, and Icebreaker, he now serves as the Head of Digital at Kowtow Clothing, based in his hometown of Wellington.

With a profound understanding of the values instilled by sports, Craig constantly seeks to merge the worlds of business and sports. Immersed in the sports environment at adidas, he drew inspiration from the All Blacks, infusing his work with their winning mindset.

As a leader, Craig strives to cultivate a team environment that encourages courage, humility, and focus, propelling the team towards collective success.

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Creative Welly Episode #44 | Jenny Cameron & Chris Jackson

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Jenny Cameron, Chief Transformation Officer, Ministry for Primary Industries – connector and stubborn optimist for people-centred solutions

I really enjoy jobs that draw on my ability to bring people together to effect system change. I like to connect people together who seek solutions, with nature and humans at the heart. I thrive on working on gnarly issues that are at the nexus of where regulatory and social intersect – drawing on my psychology and legal background.

A consummate Gemini, I like to converse, debate, and relish being thrown in at the deep end. I’ve been a lawyer, a diplomat, I’ve worked in the brewing, electricity, and dairy sectors. My current role is Chief Transformation Officer for the Fit for a Better World vision for Aotearoa New Zealand’s food and fibre sectors in the Ministry for Primary Industries. In some of our biggest challenges are our greatest opportunities.

Chris Jackson, Strategist, Foresight Practitioner, Designer, Researcher, Artist, Coach, Writer, Skateboarder, Business Owner

When you don’t know where you are going, are unsure about what the future holds or dealing with a complex, strategic challenge – that’s where I come in.

I thrive in spaces where others have been but have yet to figure out. I’ve got a slightly dented toolbox that’s two decades old. In it, you’ll find a socket set from futures thinking, a collection of design screwdrivers, some research chisels and lots of strategic hand-saws.

Whether you’re a CEO, a middle manager, or a design practitioner, I’ve helped you and your organisation before. But it’s probably in an adjacent sector.

And that’s the difference.

Connecting the dots to understand your ever-changing operating landscape to embed change that sticks.

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Creative Welly Episode #42 | Vida Christeller & Digby Scott

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Vida Christeller, Manager City Design, Wellington City Council

Vida leads the City Design team at Wellington City Council, a team focused on influencing and delivering people-centric spaces which build on the best of Wellington and transforms the City to be fit for the future. Her focus is on ensuring that Councils Strategy and Policy is implemented and the city becomes more sustainable in the whole holistic sense of the word – that densification is done well through empowering Wellingtonians of all ages and abilities to get around safely on foot and by bike, urban greening, public space upgrades and place-based regeneration. Wellington City Council is turning strategy into action and are beginning a decade of transformative change.

Digby Scott, Mentor, guide, and catalyst for leaders and change-makers

I’m a trusted mentor, guide and catalyst for leaders and change-makers. I’m deeply interested in how in this age of flux and uncertainty, we can better design our lives, our organisations and our societies to enable people to live well, purposefully and sustainably. I reckon this stuff matters more than ever now.

With 25+ years in the people game, my expertise is all about cutting through to get to what matters, and bringing energy and fresh thinking to get people unstuck and moving forward.

Originally from Western Australia, I’ve made Wellington my home. I love this place for its creativity, how nature is right there in your face, and the diversity of people that hang out here.

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Creative Welly Episode #41 | Hollie Arnett & Joe Hopkirk

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Hollie Arnett, Founder of Maker & Moxie

Hollie Arnett is a brand strategist and coach for creatives, and the founder of Maker & Moxie. With a background in graphic design and experience with her own art practice, Hollie knows the power of creativity and how building a brand can enable your creative business to thrive. That’s why she’s on a mission to help creators build their brand, grow their audience, and share their work with the world so that together we can make the world a more creative place, one brand at a time.

More creativity, colour, and joy in the world? Yes please!

Joe Hopkirk, Strategy Development Manager, Greater Wellington Regional Council

I’m Joe, a long time ago, climbing on a cliff face somewhere, I realised that finding the easiest way to do the most difficult thing was a beautiful shortcut to living a satisfying life.

This has led me down a long a windy path via a fair few rocky trails and hill tops to working in systems and strategy design. Looking for connection in concepts and shifting how problems are framed, to find ways of addressing the challenges of the climate, biodiversity crisis.

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Creative Welly Episode #35 | Freda Wells & Dan Neely

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Freda Wells, Curator / Communications Advisor / Yoga teacher / mum

My curiousity about people, behaviour and the invisible forces between things, and my tendency to daydream, doodle, and sympathise with the underdog, have carved a winding life path around many countries, conversations and adventures.

In Europe, seeing our ecological trajectory, I added environmental science to my mishmash of uni papers, including psychology, neuropsyc, french, philosophy, graphic design, and music.

My work ‘portfolio’ includes comms & engagement advisor for the Wellington Regional Leadership Committee, teaching yoga, and curating The Kiwi Diary – a diary designed to share art and ideas that are good for people and planet.

I see many global woes as social in nature, that we need to “bring heart back”. We need to better understand how our inner world constructs our outer world, and the importance of psychological safety, I’m excited about co-curating experiences to cultivate these!

Dan Neely, Manager Community Resilience | Wellington CDEM Group Recovery

Dan Neely is the Manager of Community Resilience and Group Recovery Manager at the Wellington Emergency Management Office (WREMO). Dan is a community development practitioner – who happens to work in the Emergency Management.

He started in this field more than 20 years starting as a Peace Corps Volunteer working in the recovery of Hurricane Mitch in Honduras and later with the International Organisation for Migration in Sri Lanka after the Boxing Day Tsunami.

He leads a team of passionate and innovative people who make a real difference to peoples’ lives. Their work has been adopted by cities across Aotearoa, Australia, USA and Canada.

Originally from Arizona, he also knows a good taco when he sees one.

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Creative Welly Episode #32 | Michelle Kitney & Rob Cousins

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Michelle Kitney, Chief Executive at Volunteering New Zealand

Michelle Kitney lead’s Volunteering New Zealand. Originally from Taranaki, she lives in Te whanganui a tara with her three boys and husband.

Volunteering New Zealand is the national umbrella organisation for volunteers and volunteering. It’s purpose is to empower volunteers to enrich Aotearoa New Zealand.

Michelle has a background in communications, marketing, social enterprise and not for profit experience. She has also worked in the public sector in New Zealand and the UK. She says she volunteered her way into her current job. Gaining relevant experience through a variety of volunteering roles.

She cooks and plays Floorball in her spare time.

Rob Cousins, Innovation Manager

Being honest, I’m a jack of all trades and master of none, who often seems to land on my feet, and somehow finds a way to make a difference with the people I meet. After a mediocre degree in Psychology, I worked in insurance and risk management in the UK, whilst pursuing hobbies that were both uninsurable and risky in many other parts of the world. Instead of a career, I’ve followed opportunities as they’ve arisen, and as I’ve pursued various different interests.

All of this has taught me that they key to most challenges is people, their experience, being curious and caring. Right now I am bringing this to how health and safety is understood, and how we might regulate that, from WorkSafeNZ. Shifting away from paperwork, compliance and rules. Moving towards caring about people, creating improvement, and giving people power over the things that affect them.

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Creative Welly Episode #30 | Pamela Bell & Josh Forde

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Pamela Bell, Innovation Consultant

Pamela Bell is an Innovation Consultant and Board Director to a range of start-ups, Council controlled entities and commercial organisations. Her work is focused on innovative construction, affordable housing and added-value timber.

She founded PrefabNZ ‘the hub for innovative construction’ in 2010 from her Master of Architecture thesis Kiwi Prefab which was also turned into a book and museum exhibition.

Pamela has been the lucky recipient of several awards including the Victoria University of Wellington Alumni Award (2019). She is an Adjunct Professor at VUW investigating the relationship between design thinking and business. Most recently she has become intrigued about the interface between design thinking and governance for the boardroom with a series of articles for the Institute of Directors.

Josh Forde, Head of BD, Ackama

Josh is the cofounder of Ackama, a software firm focused on delivering tech with great social impact. Founded in Wellington and Melbourne he works with great teams to design and build online software and has worked with an incredible range of organisations around the globe.

Their work has taken them into organisations as diverse as the World Health Organisation to small clients in Vanuatu and the Marshall Islands while having our local roots.

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Creative Welly Episode #9 | Janelle (Jay) Fenwick & Tom Probert

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Janelle (Jay) Fenwick, Founder – Teulo CPD Education Platform

Janelle Fenwick is an incredibly passionate, high-achieving entrepreneur, mother and founder of the architectural brainchild Teulo.

She began her career in insurance, but with a background in the arts, it wasn’t long until creativity changed her trajectory. With a reputation for seeing the world through a lens of endless possibilities and more than 15 years experience working in positions ranging from business development to National Sales Manager, Janelle thrives in the start-up space and has embraced innovation and technology with every step of her exceptional career.

Teulo is the perfect fusion of Janelle’s two creative loves – design and businesses – and since launching, the online digital / webinar platform has continued to grow, challenging the status quo and raising the technology bar on CPD learning while filling the communications gap between architects, designers and builders to ultimately evolve the industry towards our digital futures.

Tom Probert, Head of Marketing and Innovation – Powershop

Now in his third stint in Welly, Tom returned from the UK in 2016 to head up Sales, Marketing and Design at Powershop.

After a short stint as Head of Marketing at Contact Energy in 2019 he returned to Powershop to continue the fight to disrupt the energy category.

His diverse career to date has spanned Sales, Marketing and Product Development across everything from Chocolate, Toothpaste and Ice Cream to Plumbing, Drainage and Electricity.

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Creative Welly Episode #8 | Lindy Nelson & Clive Spink

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Lindy Nelson, Founded AWDTNZ and AmplyfyingUs: a Podcast in service to the mission.

Food producer, AWDT Founder, Researcher, and ardent supporter of women. She is a visionary leader who has followed her heart-unafraid to tackle challengers and is driven to make a difference to the NZ Primary Industry.

Creating the Agri Women’s Development Trust has led to a transformation in NZ’s food and agricultural sector through unleashing the talent of women.

She believes women hold the key to supporting and leading much of the change that needs to happen globally, and is active around the world supporting women’s empowerment. She has spoken at APEC as well as offering strategic advice to the Scottish Government on empowering women in agriculture.

She is a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to agriculture and women, 2013 Next Business Woman of the Year and named by Primary Magazine as one of the top ten women in agriculture.

Clive Spink, Chief Executive Pūkeko Pictures

Clive Spink is the Chief Executive Officer of Pukeko Pictures. He is responsible for the growth of the business and its development and production momentum.

Clive has over 25 years experience in major commercial deal structuring across multiple industries and regions.

His role at Pukeko involves leading and shaping of all major commercial transactions, he serves as an Executive Producer for Thunderbirds, WotWots, Kiddets and is responsible for setting and executing strategies.

During his time at Pukeko he has lead the establishment of a number of global firsts including the first ever Co Production between China and the world, and then extending this to the first Official three way Co Production between China, Canada and NZ.

Clive is a chartered Accountant and a member of Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand.

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Creative Welly Episode #4 | Sandy Gildea & Jase Te Patu

Courageous conversations with bold humans (from the most creative little capital in the world).

Sandy Gildea, Executive Director, Screen Producers NZ

Sandy has worked in the screen industry for over 15 years, covering a range of key positions at government funding agencies and arts organisations, including the New Zealand Film Commission, Creative New Zealand and New Zealand Trade & Enterprise. Sandy has held the position of Executive Director at SPADA since 2014.

Jase Te Patu, Founder of M3 Mindfulness for children, Co-owner Awhi Yoga and Wellbeing

Jase Te Patu (Ngāti Apa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) is a TED X Wellington Speaker. He has over 25 years worth of experience teaching in the wellbeing industry. He is an award-winning facilitator, and co-owner of Awhi Yoga and Wellbeing. Jase is Founder of M3 – Mindfulness for children and is passionate about supporting adults and children alike, with their mental and emotional wellbeing. Jase is an Edmund Hillary Fellow, Ambassador for Youthline, and active-wear brand lululemon.

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