The Story Hub

Brazil's First Female Salesperson for NZ, Negotiating the Sale of TipTop as CEO, How to Excel in New Roles & Sales, & Create Thriving Team Cultures - this is Kim Ballinger's journey. This conversation follows Kim Ballinger's success in the Global Dairy Industry, starting out in a technical role with a Chemical Technology degree to being the first female salesperson in Brazil for NZ Milk Products. Hear her leadership journey which saw one of her teams get the highest engagement scores in Fonterra after only leading it for a year. We discuss her learnings as CEO of TipTop before and during the process of its sale and reflections on her time so far as CEO of AsureQuality, NZ's leading food quality state-owned enterprise. All of this epic story from a shy girl from Invercargill.  Time Stamps: 1:12 Growing Up in Invercargill, Family Life, Moving to Tauranga in Yr13 8:11 Massey University Experience 10:20 First Job out of Uni - Should you Follow the Money? 13:38 Key Growth and Career Foundations in your Early 20s 15:38 Standing Out as a Graduate/New Team member - Excellence Award in her first year 20:02 Kim's Habit you NEED to Adopt  22:21 Heading to Mexico (Scorpion Story!) 26:44 What makes doing an OE worthwhile? 30:09 Becoming the First Female Salesperson in Brazil's Dairy Industry 35:39 Navigating Mass Currency Devaluation & Learning Brazilian Culture 38:22 To the USA - Business Development for a New Factory 42:08 Stepping into Leadership - Building Trust 46:18 Creating a Thriving Culture & Excellent Results in a Global Team 48:46 Reflections on being a Working Mum 56:12 Strategy & China - Why the Chinese Market Teaches you so Much 59:42 Highest Team Engagement Score in Fonterra, within 12 months as  a Leader 1:05:57 Succeeding as a Woman in the Primary Industries 1:08:34 Becoming Fonterra's Brand Marketing Manager after the Botulism Scare 1:10:55 Launching Fonterra's Purpose 1:12:52 Why taking a Demotion Led to Success 1:15:55 Starting in her First CEO Role - TipTop Ice Cream  1:18:23 Negotiating the Sale of TipTop 1:21:51 Most Proud Achievements at TipTop 1:23:05 CEO of a State-Owned Enterprise - AsureQuality 1:24:40 Favourite learnings from AsureQuality 1:26:05 Final Thoughts leadership, adapting, balancing your focus on the present vs future

Dairy Farmer to Entrepreneur, Stoney Creek's Journey From Receivership to Iconic Brand, Leading the Creation of a Passionate Team & Customer Base - this is Brent McConnell's story. Don't miss this challenging & inspiring conversation which is the first episode of Season Three on The Story Hub podcast. Hear about the challenges in trying to turn Stoney Creek around after needing to drop ALL the current suppliers and a complete change in marketing strategy. We talk about leadership in developing the passionate Stoney Creek culture amongst staff and customers. So if you are looking for an inspirational and challenging story You will love this episode. Listen now! Time Stamps: 2:52 - Growing up on a Taupiri farm, upbringing in a dairy farmer family 10:17 - First passions & an entrepreneurial start to an agri career 23:37 - Brents out of the box journey to farm ownership 31:09 - Inspiration for a move into business 38:05 - Buying Stoney Creek in the midst of receivership 41:51 - A steep learning curve into the clothing industry 46:13 - Redefining Stoney Creek - why & how? 58:10 - Quality first - complete change in suppliers 59:47 - Business Strategy - navigating B2C & B2B 1:04:44 - A culture of innovation (Sustainable products) 1:08:37 - Growing leadership capacity 1:15:52 - Becoming a global brand 1:19:07 - A moving tribute to Stephen Gack 1:28:17 - Resilience mindset that searches for opportunity 1:32:40 - Embracing Covid - connecting with customers 1:41:27 - Digital adoption and supply chain adaption 1:49:52 - Personal reflections and advice for business 1:53:17 - Generosity in their local community 1:58:37 - Chasing a dream (final thoughts) Looking for more from The Story Hub? Seasons One & Two are out now!

WE ARE BACK!! The Story Hub Season Three is finally here with the promise of 10 excellent conversations for you in 2023. If you want to know what's coming up and an exciting announcement we have listen to the trailer NOW. SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss a thing. If you want to check out our brand new Live Smarter podcast click here for Spotify & Apple Podcasts

This week we have the massive privilege to have Graeme Milne on the show to wrap Season Two. Graeme contributed to some of the dairy mergers which ended up creating Fonterra in the `90s, worked in West and East Germany during the `80s, and all started out with a degree in biotechnology from Massey University. Graeme has a successful directorship career too, serving on many influential boards including Synlait as the chairman. If you are interested in learning about crisis management, leadership, and what it means to be a director, you will love this fascinating conversation. Enjoy practical tips, along with detailed stories where he shares the key experiences that have shaped his life. P.S Update about Season 3 at the end of the episode.

This week we have Phil Southward, an IT Contractor and one of the early investors in Xero. Phil has had a rich career working in NZ and Germany embracing the gig economy before the phrase was coined. If you are interested in learning about agile systems of working, What it's like to live in Germany and try a contractors' life, and what can happen if you don't wait and be patient - this conversation is for you. Here is a story to challenge your perspectives on the normal career path

This week we have Pat Peoples NZ Olympic rower, and now the Managing Director and owner of Schick Construction based in the North and South Islands. Pat shares about his rowing journey getting back into it after years of not competing in any sport, to representing NZ at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Hear how he joined Schick as General Manager in 2000 when there were 17 staff all focused on residential house pads, and how over the last 20 years he and the team have transformed the business into a construction company with over 200 staff. This is a conversation about leadership and living by your why I am so excited to share with you all.

This week we hear from Quency Wong, an immigrant from Hong Kong who now works as a Mortgage Broker in Auckland. Quency's time in New Zealand has been anything but easy, she had to raise 2 kids while on a salary of $24k per year, and has built her mortgage brokerage business from the ground up. She talks about her mindset of resilience that has helped her overcome adversity and shares about her life as an immigrant to New Zealand. I found her journey inspiring because she kept on going no matter the setbacks that she faced. I hope all who listen are inspired by her mental strength to push through challenges in their own journeys. This is a fascinating conversation about the experiences of a New Zealand immigrant.

Have you ever felt you were underqualified and undeserving of the job or praise people give you? It can be such a hard thing to wrestle with because the Tall Poppy Syndrome in NZ encourages that type of thinking. This week we have Jeff McLuckie, Director at KPMG in Tech Consulting. Jeff shares about his journey in IT before coming to KPMG as a consultant with no experience in consulting. It is a jarring shift to come in as a lateral hire so high up in the org chart. Jeff shares about his own journey in overcoming imposter syndrome and fantastic tips for high performers so they aren't caught in a neverending grind. This conversation is helpful to people in all stages of their journey who excel in their work.

This week we have Leonard Gardner, CEO and owner of Fosters Construction based here in the Waikato. After leaving school to work with KPMG, Leonard tried his hand in construction as an accountant, became Young Chartered Accountant of the year in New Zealand, and has led Fosters through strong sustainable growth completing many large projects including a 5 Greenstar rated building the size of 6 rugby fields near Cambridge. Leonard also owns Anthem homes, a residential construction company completing around 30 homes a year. If you are interested in growing in leadership, and dealing with the pressures of early success in your career, this conversation is for you.

Imagine losing the ability to do the thing you love to do most. Brittany Teei had worked so hard to represent New Zealand in Tennis when a potentially career-ending injury stripped it all away. Be inspired by her journey as she worked her way back into the New Zealand team to compete at the Commonwealth games after just under 2.5 years on crutches. Now Brittany is an entrepreneur, improving Kiwi kids' financial literacy skills and she shares wisdom from the sporting world and how it applies to business. If you are struggling, if you are wanting to get out of a rut - be prepared to be inspired. Listen now!

Check out the Season Two trailer to see what's coming up these next 7 weeks. Leadership, Overcoming Adversity, Crisis Management, and more. Stay connected on LinkedIn: The Story Hub and Instagram: @thestoryhub.nz

For the final episode of Season One, we have Andrew Nicol, the Founder and Chief Co-Worker of Agoge. Agoge is a recruitment business that is using AI to match people with jobs they love. We hear about Andy's journey rising rapidly in the courier industry after dropping out of high school. We touch on how to be decisive in this world of ever-growing complexity was the key to his success. Hear about his entrepreneurial journey with Agoge, and how Andy values reading - despite his dyslexia. Andy is one of the best people I know at intentionally getting outside of his echo chamber to explore new ideas. This conversation is a great listen, no matter where you are in your personal journey. Why not be inspired and encouraged today?

Renae's journey inspires you to dream big, & take risks. After her University of Waikato Business degree, Renae then started out her career in consulting which lead to an adventure in the UK & Europe. Hear how she convinced the manager to hire her on a call where she was told she didn't get the job. Enjoy this wide-ranging conversation about balancing a great career and being a Mum, beating cancer, and being group CEO of CIvtec - her own business started with her husband Shane. Civtec began as a man in a van operation helping install people's fibre, to now having over 300+ staff covering almost all of New Zealand south of Pukekohe. Renae is honest, and encouraging - sharing about her journey in self-awareness that has got her where she is today. Enjoy. Be challenged and encouraged.

Today we have the privilege of hearing the story of a significant person in New Zealand's Big 4 Accounting Firms - Sir Ross Buckley. Sir Ross was a part of KPMG for 38 years and recently retired from the Executive Chairman role in New Zealand to pursue more governance roles. We recorded this episode late 2020, just before he stepped down from his role. This is an incredibly rich conversation with deep and practical advice, as well as fascinating stories of working abroad in the Netherlands. Enjoy some reflections on a successful 38 year KPMG career.

Mark's story is fascinating as he breaks the mold of a typical engineer. This episode is great to listen to if you are struggling to find a direction for your career, or have the desire to be a generalist. Be prepared for Mark's great storytelling ability as he shares about his journey from rural New South Wales to Tauranga New Zealand in Priority One- the regional Economic Development Agency.

TSH S1 E03 | Gavin Halley - The Army to National Sales Manager. How to Deal with Immense Pressure & Practical Sales Tips In this episode, we talk with Gavin Halley who served in the New Zealand Defence Force, then worked his way up from the warehouse floor to becoming the New Zealand National Sales Manager (now recently appointed General Manager of Sales) for TRT a family owned heavy commercial truck and crane, repairs and parts company. Gavin's journey can seem quite disjointed at first glance, but the core themes of hard work, thorough preparation, and discipline have shaped his career. Dealing with pressure is a skill we all should develop. If you want to grow, you are bound to face it in your life. I love what Doc Rivers says - “Pressure is a privilege”. When you are in a high-pressure situation, there is a reason why it is there. What I found so encouraging about Gavin's approach to dealing with pressure is that it isn't about avoiding failure. It is about learning from your mistakes and pushing through no matter what. Hear Gavin's perspective in pushing through the first COVID lockdown New Zealand experienced Gavin shares extremely practical sales advice, about how he has learned to deal with pressure, and how to become decisive in a world of uncertainty. Enjoy an inspiring story and practical tips on how to improve your sales skills.

Simon Shares his journey from the University of Waikato to becoming CFO of Gallaghers, one of New Zealand's largest private companies. This conversation focuses around growth both personally and professionally as Simon shares how he pushed himself to take challenging opportunities. If you are looking for great leadership tips on how to lead teams effectively, & quality career advice for those students and young professionals starting their careers in a COVID-19 marketplace - you are in the right place. Oh, and of course, hearing about what Sir William Gallagher is like is fascinating and inspiring too. Why not check it out?

The Story Hub Podcast - Season One, Episode One Celia Austin shares her journey as a young professional from her Art History degree to becoming a Tech Consultant. Find practical tips for starting out in the workplace, how to develop resilience, and how to give/receive feedback effectively. This inspiring conversation is especially encouraging because it kills the myth of one perfect linear career path. Start Living Smarter, learn from Celia's journey. If you enjoy this conversation, why not share it with a friend who needs to hear it? Rate and Review the podcast so others who will benefit can find the show.

In the trailer find out what is come in Season One of the podcast. There is a quick breakdown of what to expect, topics discussed, and what guests will be appearing. On The Story Hub, you will find long-form conversations (45mins - 2 hours) with successful Kiwi professionals discussing their personal career journey so far. Expect to be challenged, inspired, and hear great tips to help you with your own journey.