Hall of Fame - Organisational Development Award
Behind every successful transformation is a team that took responsibility for getting it right
The Organisational Change and Development Award recognises organisations that have approached change with both innovation and responsibility. This is an award for those who understand that successful transformation isn't just about what changes, but how it's handled and the impact it has on the people involved.
Past recipients have demonstrated that when change is led thoughtfully, with a genuine commitment to doing it well, it creates stronger, more resilient organisations and a workforce that can face whatever comes next.
Has your organisation navigated change in a way worth recognising? If your organisation has implemented a change or development initiative that demonstrates real innovation and a responsible, people-centred approach, we'd love to hear about it. Find out more about the upcoming awards and how to apply.
Organisational Development Award winner
New Zealand Post
Organisational Change & Development Award 2025
Tukurau Aotearoa NZ Post is transforming as they embrace more efficient ways to deliver for their customers. To support their people through this change, NZ Post partnered with E tū union to establish the Just Transition (JT) programme. The programme helps NZ Post’s people navigate change with confidence and dignity by building resilience and providing targeted support. Key components include needs-based workshops and capability-building initiatives to prepare employees for the future. Recently, they introduced large-scale foundation skills learning (Level Up with JT), focusing on essential life skills that benefit both work and personal lives.
With participation rates of 87%–95%, NZ Post have seen a 4% reduction in absenteeism and a 15%–25% productivity improvement. Graduation rates for foundational learning programmes are 100%, and development remains ongoing as they continue to support their people through transformation.
My Food Bag
Organisational Change & Development Award 2023, in association with Real TV
An iconic Kiwi brand, MFB is a meal kit home delivery service. Recently publicly listed and with an ambition to double the size of the business in three years, one of our strategic pillars to support doing this is an amazing, high performing, culture. Our ‘Secret Sauce’ has given clarity to what makes us uniquely US. It has defined the values and behaviours and in turn the symbols and rituals to support and embed them. Clarity around these has increased retention by more than 50% and engagement (measured by eNPs) lift strongly.
Southern Cross Health Insurance
Organisational Change & Development Award 2022
Southern Cross Health Insurance won the Organisational Change and Development Award for their ‘Enabling our organisational agility’ initiative. They embarked on an eight-week journey, immediately employing agile principles by working in short bursts of 4 x 2 week sprints) to create a roadmap for improving organisational agility. By December 2020, they had completely remodelled the entire organisation to enable organisational agility. Throughout the process, they fostered cultural conditions that would ensure our operating model supported their people to deliver the outcomes they work so passionately to achieve.
Whangārei District Council
Organisational Change & Development Award 2021, in association with LHH
Whangārei District Council won the Organisational Change & Development Award in association with LHH for their Our Kōrero initiative, which lead to the formation of a group tasked with developing a strategy set by their staff. Both the tikanga and action plan were made up of the things that mattered most to their people.
Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC)
Organisational Change & Development Award 2020, in association with Lee Hecht Harrison
In 2016, LIC initiated a transformation programme involving all staff in a massive turnaround plan, generating ideas to yield revenue, drive efficiency and improve morale. Every employee was invited to share personal stories of change with the rest of LIC about the change they wanted as well as the change they needed.
Three years later LIC has transformed itself into a high performing, debt-free co-operative which returned a $15.6 million dividend to shareholders in the year ending 31 May 2019. Their Organisational Health Index has increased by 12 points and today LIC is more relevant than ever to dairy farmers.
Farmlands Co-Operative Group
Organisational Change & Development Award 2019, in association with Human Synergistics
Established 55 years ago, Farmlands is NZ’s largest farmer owned rural supplies and services co-operative. We exist to harness the collective power of our shareholders to negotiate better deals. We provide a range of services to our shareholders/customers nationwide, including 82 stores, field sales, agri-products/services, fuel and card.
We embarked on a total business transformation to support our vision of preparing ourselves and our shareholders for the future. The ‘Braveheart’ Programme will touch every aspect of Farmlands and impact all staff, uniting us as one business, one culture, one brand, one technology platform and one single view of our customers/shareholders.
With a transformation the size and scale of the Braveheart Programme, the complexity of the co-operative’s business model and multiple legacy systems, consideration had to be given to not only supporting significant change in the business, but also mobilising support to bring key messages to the business.
The vision was to utilise a peer network and increase our commitment to build change capability and agility across all Farmlanders. As a result, the Change Clan was brought to life with the purpose of connecting and educating our people, as well as building capability and resilience to flourish in a changing environment.
Lion
Award for Organisational Change and Development 2018, in association with Human Synergistics
Lion Way For Change
In our complex and changing world to be successful Lion needs to be changing faster than its customers, consumers and competitors. Lion has to grow it people’s capacity and capability for change to act fast, focus on progress not perfection, co-create with internal and external stakeholders, and build an environment where its people thrive through change.
Lion supported this aspiration through the development of new human centred, behaviour based Lion Way For Change to give people the skills and self-awareness to become great change leaders, increase their personal capacity for change.
The University of Auckland
Award for Organisational Change and Development, in association with Human Synergistics
The University of Auckland is a large and complex organisation with an annual budget of over $1 billion. Achieving our academic objectives relies significantly on the successful undertaking of about 100 different administrative processes across eight faculties linked to central service divisions.
Processes and roles were transformed from October 2014 to address issues noted above. This involved a significant change, uncertainty and transition for many staff.
Service Essentials Supports University Strategy by supporting managers to plan, resource, manage performance, workflow and improvement and innovation with those who know the job best – their staff. Co-created with staff, the Service Essentials ‘system of working’ involves team ‘stand-up’ meetings around a visual display board that is aligned to the University’s Leadership Framework thereby supporting a balanced view of the organisation and linkages with the capability development programme and performance management system. Approximately 90+ teams (~500 + staff) participate voluntarily. Supported by Master Classes and inter-team peer learning, staff say Service Essentials is an engaging capability development programme that works.
Holcim (New Zealand) Ltd
Organisational Change & Development Award 2016
In August 2013 Holcim New Zealand announced that it would start globally sourcing cement into New Zealand and that subsequently the cement plant in Westport would close in 2 - 3 years (mid 2016). This announcement brought certainty for the employees at the plant who had known for a number of years that the plant was to close at some point. With a long lead time to closure and as a major employer in a community in which it had been part of for nearly 60 years, exiting the community and closing the plant responsibly is very important to Holcim.