The value of workers with te reo and tikanga skills in NZ workplaces

Thursday, 12 September 2019

Te Wiki o te reo Māori often prompts a lot of flat white orders in te reo - he kawhe mōwai māku - but at Parliament there are some MPs putting in the hard yards to improve their reo Māori pronunciation longterm.

Being able to speak te reo could help employees stand out in the job market as the booming economic fortunes of tangata whenua make it an increasingly sought-after skill.

In 2018 it was estimated the Māori economy was worth $50 billion, a figure likely to grow as more iwi settle treaty claims and their investments and commercial moves come to fruition.

For accountancy firm BDO New Plymouth, being able to understand the key values of the Māori culture motivated them to begin an in-house te reo and tikanga programme in 2015.

But the spinoff effects for staff have gone beyond the boardroom.

Partner Gaylene Findlay said people, planet and profit drove Māori business so it was necessary to understand the importance of this from a professional standpoint.

However, staff also benefited personally from learning te reo and cultural processes too.

'I think understanding culture and protocols gives us credibility and shows a genuine interest and respect for our Māori business clients. We are not perfect but we are keen to continue our journey of learning and removing any perceived barriers.'

* How to start on path to te reo Māori fluency**

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While there were no fluent speakers yet within BDO New Plymouth, she said the team were genuine in their efforts to try and some had gone on to further reo study.

Michelle Jordan, Venture Taranaki general manager of business, partnership and skills, said building a collective understanding of te ao Māori was relevant to all aspects of life.

Michelle Jordan, of economic development agency Venture Taranaki, said building a collective understanding of te ao Māori (the Māori world) was relevant to all aspects of life.

She said the region was home to a growing number of Māori enterprises and innovators, with plenty of scope for more opportunities on the horizon.

Jordan said the effective and respectful normalisation of te reo in business and in communications would only add value, both within New Zealand and the global economy.

BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope said there was a lot of potential for the country to become a diverse and integrated society and the workplace was a good place to start.

He said encouraging te reo Māori and tikanga at work would help grow an understanding of New Zealand's bicultural heritage.

Hope said there were a range of options to achieve that, including help for workers to create their own mihi (greeting) or using Māori and English in key documents or policies.

Kirk Hope, chief executive of BusinessNZ, says encouraging te reo Māori and tikanga at work would grow an understanding of the nation's bicultural heritage.

Shane Te Pou, who works in human resources and recruitment, said from what he observed in the not-for-profit and public sectors - and increasingly in the private sphere - he believed workers with an understanding of te reo Māori and tikanga were valued in the workplace.

One of the changes he had noted was the willingness of 'new New Zealanders' to embrace te reo and Māori culture.

Often multilingual before they arrived in New Zealand, migrants had 'quite an affection for things Māori as it does give them a sense of belonging to a new nation,' Te Pou said.

The use of te reo by the younger generation was also evident and Te Pou believed there generally had been a positive shift in terms of the acceptance of the place te reo Māori and culture had in society.

'There is a view that this is the right thing to do.'