Published on the 22/03/2016 | Written by Clare Coulson
NZTech has announced two new appointments to its board of directors, one of which is a Board Internship role…
Unlike traditional internships, however, the board of NZTech is seeking to gain as much from the appointment as the intern will.
“What we were hoping to do is get more input or feedback from a younger perspective. We are constantly looking for perspectives we might be lacking and which are relevant to the sector we are in,” explained Graeme Muller, NZTech CEO.
Muller said that rather than waiting for the next AGM, which at the time was six months away, NZTech opted to create an opportunity to allow a young tech executive to come and sit in on board meetings to learn and bring a different perspective. “Depending on how it goes, we’ll aim to get a young tech entrepreneur formally appointed to the board at the next AGM,” he added.
The first appointment to the internship seat is 28 year old Dil Khosa, operations manager of data science start-up Parrot Analytics.
Kim Connolly-Stone also joins the board as a representative for government, replacing Chris Bishop who resigned from MBIE and went into private practice last year. While a resignation doesn’t give the organisation that person represents an automatic right to replace him or her, Muller said the Board wanted to maintain a strong working relationship with the government. After discussions with Ministers Steven Joyce and Amy Adams, it was decided that the new director of the Digital Economy Program in MBIE would be the ideal person to take up the role.
Muller highlighted the fact that both new appointments are women and referred to research which shows that firms with women in senior management positions enjoy superior economic performance, especially in companies focused on innovation. He noted that in his time as CEO, he has seen the gender balance and general diversity on the board increase significantly. This is not due to any quota system but an increased focus on specific experience requirements. He said he has noticed more questioning and divergent approaches and thoughts – not just from women, but from board members outside the sector. As a result “We are getting sharper at our job.”
The NZTech Board is now comprised of 12 people; iStart asked if this renders it unwieldy. The answer was ‘no, and yes’. Muller said it depends what you are trying to achieve. “We are working on quite a defined strategy and board meetings tend to be relatively short, in terms of governance. We are not a complex organisation. But because we are growing fast and getting quite large, we have started conversations and formed a governance committee to define when the board needs to be restructured.”
