Our Bicultural Journey
Our refreshed identity has been years in the making. It reflects the work HRNZ has been doing to better understand what it means to be the professional body for HR in Aotearoa New Zealand.
When we first began exploring bicultural practice, a rebrand wasn't the goal. We were thinking about something much bigger: how HRNZ could better reflect the unique context of Aotearoa New Zealand, and what that meant for us as an organisation and for the HR profession we represent.
Over time, that thinking began to influence more of our mahi. It shaped professional development, informed our Capability Framework, created new opportunities for members to engage with te ao Māori, and led to the establishment of Mana Tāngata.
Our new identity has grown from that work.
Te Ara Whakaritorito and the identity around it are not the beginning of HRNZ's bicultural journey. They are a reflection of how far that work has come, and a commitment to continuing it.
01 | Where the work began
HRNZ had been considering bicultural practice for some time, but by 2018 there was a growing desire to turn that thinking into something more practical.
The focus was on understanding what bicultural practice could mean for HRNZ and, more broadly, for HR professionals working in Aotearoa New Zealand.
A number of people helped move that thinking forward, including Karli Te Aotonga-Tamepo, Koro Timi Peri and Chief Executive Nick McKissack, bringing different knowledge, experience and perspectives to the kaupapa.
What followed was an opportunity to move beyond discussion and create something HR professionals could experience for themselves.
That became Transforming HRM in Aotearoa
02 | Transforming HRM in Aotearoa
Working with Te Puni Kōkiri, HRNZ developed Transforming HRM in Aotearoa, a professional development programme designed to help members better understand how Māori cultural values could inform HR practice.
The programme was led by Karli Te Aotonga-Tamepo, with the assistance of Bentham Ohia and support from Koro Timi Peri. Rather than focusing only on theory, it gave participants an immersive opportunity to experience te ao Māori, reflect on their own practice and consider what bicultural HR practice could look like within their organisations.
It also created something HRNZ hadn't necessarily set out to create: a growing community of practitioners who could help inform where this work went next.
03 | Choosing a bolder path
Around the same time, HRNZ was working with members and other stakeholders to develop a new capability framework for the profession.
Through that work, a clear choice emerged about the future direction of HR.
One path reflected the profession's traditional roots, with a strong focus on policy, process and compliance. The other was a bolder path, where HR professionals positioned themselves as proactive leaders of change, influencing culture and helping shape better organisations and workplaces.
There was strong agreement that the bolder path was where the profession needed to head.
The HRNZ Capability Framework, The Path, was developed to support HR professionals choosing that direction.
Knowledge of Te Ao Māori was included as one of six core capabilities required for effective HR practice in Aotearoa New Zealand. This connected the bicultural work already underway at HRNZ with a much broader view of what the future HR professional needed to know and be able to do.
04 | Guidance for the next stage
As HRNZ's bicultural work continued to develop, we recognised the importance of having ongoing cultural guidance to support where we went next.
In 2024, the HRNZ Board formally engaged Koro Timi Peri as kaumātua. Koro Timi had already supported HRNZ through Transforming HRM in Aotearoa, so this formalised a relationship that had been part of our work for some time.
His role has been to provide guidance as our thinking has developed, helping us approach this work in a way that is culturally safe and grounded in tikanga Māori.
This guidance became particularly important as HRNZ began considering the next stage of our bicultural work, including two significant developments: establishing the Mana Tāngata Special Interest Network as a place for members to continue these conversations, and adopting Te Ara Whakaritorito as our gifted companion name.
It gave us a stronger foundation from which to keep moving forward, while recognising that this is work we need to approach with care, respect and the right guidance
05 | Bringing the whakataukī to life
As our bicultural work developed, three whakataukī became an important part of the thinking behind our new identity. Together, they speak to growth and change, the importance of connection, and the strength that comes from working collectively.
Those ideas also connect closely with the role HRNZ plays for our members.
Grow. Connect. Lead. brings that connection into focus. It gives us a simple way to express what the three whakataukī mean in practice and the experience we want members to have through HRNZ.
Grow through learning, professional development and opportunities to build capability.
Connect with people, networks and communities across the HR profession.
Lead with the knowledge, confidence and collective voice to help shape better workplaces across Aotearoa New Zealand.
The whakataukī are therefore more than part of our visual identity. They help express the purpose behind what we do and how our programmes, networks, resources and member experiences come together.
Our bicultural journey is not complete. Like the unfurling ponga, it continues to grow.
Progress is reflected not in reaching a final destination, but in our willingness to keep listening, learning and walking alongside others.
Continue the Story
Discover Te Ara Whakaritorito
Our bicultural journey has helped shape the identity HRNZ carries today.
Discover the story behind our gifted companion name, Te Ara Whakaritorito, and the meaning of the unfurling path.
Get Involved
Join Mana Tāngata
Interested in te ao Māori, bicultural practice and what this means for workplaces in Aotearoa New Zealand?
Mana Tāngata brings HRNZ members together to continue the kōrero, share experiences and learn from one another. Join the Mana Tāngata Network →