In Leaders Getting Coffee episode 55, our guest is the former National Party Minister, Speaker of the House and Ambassador to London, Sir Lockwood Smith.

Sir Lockwood Smith is one of those people you feel you know before meeting him. He first stepped into the public gaze as a television presenter of science programmes aimed at school age children. What started as a university holiday job delivered some early name recognition, helping him to win a seat in the old first part the post political system.

He grew up on the family farm that he still runs today. He learned the ropes early and developed the skills necessary to run the farm before leaving school. A Bachelors and Masters degree (with honours) in Agricultural Science put the theory alongside the practical skills he’d already developed.

At first, he followed what most of us would observe as an academic career, lecturing at Massey University and wining a scholarship to attend the Waite Agricultural Research Institute, at the University of Adelaide, where he studied for his PhD in ruminant metabolism. He tells of studying Opera, as a sideline, while he was there.

While in Adelaide he took up rowing, winning five state championships and leading the Adelaide University Boat Club as it’s captain.

Back in New Zealand, politics was calling and he was elected to parliament as the MP for Kaipara in 1984. He became one of our longest serving MP’s, staying for 29 years, the last five of which were spent as a most respected “Speaker of the House”.

On the Leaders Getting Coffee podcast with Bruce Cotterill, Sir Lockwood speaks of the highs and lows of life in politics. There have been many achievements and the occasional disappointment, and he is refreshingly open in his discussion, including the behind the scenes conflict surrounding leadership appointments.

And he reflects on his time as Speaker of the House and his disappointment at today’s parliamentary behaviour.

He also covers off his five-year stint as our High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ghana & Nigeria, and Ambassador to Ireland and the various roles he conducted on behalf of the UK government after his post was completed.

Today, he’s back on the farm that he has operated throughout a busy life, breeding Belgian Blue bulls, a breed that he has continued to develop and enhance over his entire life. He’s a happy and contented man with a wonderful story to tell. And he tells it very well.

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In Leaders Getting Coffee episode 54, our guest is the CEO of realestate.co.nz, Sarah Wood.

As the real estate market starts to show some long awaited green shoots, it’s timely to have a discussion about the real estate market. As the leader of New Zealand’s only dedicated real estate portal ccompany, Sarah Wood is uniquely positioned to share her insights into the changes in the market.

Her early life was as one of 6 children in a farming family. That’s where she learned the value of hard work and the need to earn her own money.

She completed a diploma in advertising and a university degree in marketing, all while learning the ropes in retail business before heading for the media sector with the Company then known as Wilson & Horton. Thereafter, the FMCG world came calling and she led a range of projects across some of the major brands at Goodman Fielder.

As her husband’s medical career started to take off, she then found herself in the USA for seven years and she talks of a different way of life and new business opportunities. There she met an influential woman and she discusses the impact that relationship had on her.

But the return to New Zealand was inevitable and after a stint back with her old employer, by then named APN, she found her first CEO role in the real estate advertising business.

During the Leaders Getting Coffee podcast with Bruce Cotterill, Sarah shares her insights on building teams, developing a can do culture and getting things done. And she talks about her love of working with highly successful real estate agents and their clients, and the current state of the real estate market, with record numbers of listings and increased buyer activity.

This is a leadership story that is still developing. Sarah Wood is a CEO of the future, someone who understands how to make technology, people and customers come together to create outstanding experiences.

It’s well worth a listen.

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In Leaders Getting Coffee episode 53, our guest is the former CEO of both Auckland International Airport and Spark New Zealand, Simon Moutter.

Simon Moutter is one of New Zealand’s best CEO’s of recent times, with a track record of growth and transformation that few can match.

As you listen to Simon tell his story, one of the things that strikes you is how logical every step seemed to be. He started his own business as a young man working within New Plymouth’s energy sector, but moved on to run power stations and eventually lead the power company he worked with.

But it was at Telecom, where he was to make his mark. As he describes it, stepping backwards to go forwards, he quickly rose up the ranks to become the COO in Theresa Gattung’s well established leadership team.

When Gattung departed, rather than push himself for the top job, he assisted the new CEO with the transition and left to run Auckland International Airport, a move that saw one of New Zealand’s most important infrastructural assets refocus around the needs of it’s wide-ranging customer base.

Four years later, he was back at Telecom, this time as CEO, and hatching a plan to reposition a company that was once one of New Zealand’s most loved and successful brands. Despite advice from business leaders and customers, he led the change to Spark New Zealand, a change designed to reflect the move to the digital age.

On the Leaders Getting Coffee podcast with Bruce Cotterill, Simon tells the stories behind those decisions in a way that provides countless lessons for everyone from young aspiring leaders to well established current executives.

And the story doesn’t stop there. When a newly installed Prime Minister called, Simon Moutter took his skills to the country’s housing provider as Chairman of Kainga Ora. And so the Moutter transformation machine keeps on rolling.

This is an inspiring and educational story about business, tough decisions, and how to be sure of turning those decisions into successful outcomes.

Make sure you have your notebook ready.

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