Central Otago was the first to try out an ‘emerging leaders’ development programme for orchard supervisors and managers.

The 10-week course concluded this week in Alexandra after being successfully piloted in Nelson last year. It is currently being rolled out in Canterbury, Gisborne/Hawkes Bay and soon in Pukekohe and the Bay of Plenty.

Organiser and GoHort career progression manager Chelsea Donnelly said funding for the course came from the Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT), the New Zealand Fruit Growers Charitable Trust, and Horticulture New Zealand. 

“They had to come in with an open mind and have a growth mindset,” Chelsea said. 

“Everyone got really stuck in, it was awesome.”

The programme has a maximum cohort size in each region to ensure participants obtain the most they can from the sessions. 

Group leaders from various orchards were put forward by their managers or showed a keen interest to come and be involved.

Participant Lionel Boyce from Roxburgh said he had learned how to develop more empathy, and there were many other useful initiatives that he would be taking away with him to think about.

The course was run by Emerge and Transform - a leadership and coaching company that was set up five years ago. In 2020 it focused on New Zealand’s dairy industry, and horticulture was a natural progression. 

Course founder Shar Perera said over the 10 weeks, participants discovered more about their emotional intelligence, and how they “show up”.    

By connecting better with people, we can be our best selves at work, she said.

Participants were encouraged to bring work issues to share and brainstorm over the course of the programme.