He mihi nā te Tiamana Poari, nā te Tumu, me te Poumatua

Mihi from the Ringa Hora Council Chair, Chief Executive, and Poumatua

Mā te kimi, ka kite; mā te kite, ka mōhio; mā te mōhio, ka mārama.
Through seeking, one discovers; through discovery, one knows; through knowing, one is enlightened.

Tēnā koutou katoa.
It is a real privilege to deliver the final annual report for Ringa Hora Services Workforce Development Council. The achievements highlighted in this report reflect the dedication and hard work of kaimahi, partners, and, most importantly, industry members in the Service sector.

Much has happened during the 2024/25 year. It has been a time of change, with the government working on the transition from Workforce Development Councils to Industry Skills Boards (ISBs). This transition becomes complete on 1 January 2026, when ISBs begin their journey.

Ringa Hora has remained active in our work to support a dynamic and resilient Service sector. We continued to focus on fostering the skills needed for industry and employers in this sector and the vocational education system. We provided skills leadership in collaboration with industry and released important research reports. We developed new qualifications and standards, reviewed existing ones, and provided support to learners and providers through our quality assurance function.

Ringa Hora opened its doors on 4 October 2021. Our story began with values, and our journey is about walking our pathway with purpose.

There is a difference between leadership that is effective and leadership that is valued. Effectiveness is often overemphasised, often becoming less effective by ignoring values, but trust is at the heart of any leadership. Trust is earned and it must be treasured. This is where the story of values-based leadership at Ringa Hora begins.

Working backwards from the future

Ringa Hora supports one third of the workforce in the Service sector, with manaakitanga at the core of all our mahi. While we don’t deliver training, we facilitate setting nationally-recognised qualifications. These qualifications help our chefs deliver safe and delicious food, our real estate agents sell homes legally and responsibly, and our pilots keep people safe in the air. Our challenge is to understand what skills and qualifications will support future growth. To do that, we must work backwards from the future, because you can’t develop people for tomorrow if you don’t start today.

Developing our values

Though it wasn’t always plain sailing when Ringa Hora was established, we ensured we placed values at the heart of everything we did.

Early on, we were asked to produce our Statement of Strategic Direction. Strategy sessions were called and we filled whiteboards with post-it notes. Meanwhile, our Chair, Hinerangi Edwards, brought together a council of leaders with diverse backgrounds, and introduced us to four uara: tika, pono, aroha, and mārama. We started with āhuatanga Māori as our foundation – and it stuck. It resonated across cultures, across kaimahi, and four years later, it’s how we’re navigating our own disestablishment.

Letting values lead

Our values enabled us to hire differently. We used a wānanga-style recruitment process, where CVs were taken as read. Instead, we asked candidates to whakawhanaunga with us, to talk about their values and ours. That process brought us incredible talent — and it didn’t stop at hiring. When we faced performance issues – good or bad – we turned to our values. When the leadership team debated tricky issues, we asked, “is this in line with our values?” and hopefully we lived those values with the people and industries we served.

Start with values, let culture bloom and strategy evolve

Why do values matter so much? Because the future is unpredictable. Purpose is about the footprints we leave behind as much as where we’re headed. We didn’t write, “By the end of 2025, we will have successfully closed down Ringa Hora” in our Statement of Strategic Direction, and yet, here we are.

It’s heartbreaking to let go of the ingoa and our team, but the work and relationships we’ve built mean we choose to rise to the opportunity presented by disestablishment. We choose to lead this change differently, because our values won’t let us do otherwise.

We invite you to explore this report to see how our focus on a path that starts with values has led to lasting achievements for the Service sector in the past 12 months.

Our efforts to build strong industry engagement and partnerships has led to some exciting initiatives. This helped deliver the valuable Aviation Workforce Insights Platform, the inaugural Pacific Aviation and Airport Services Talanoa, and the development of new qualifications and standards in areas as diverse as Business Events, Employment Advocacy, and Tendering and Procurement.

Our skills leadership functions led to important reports such as Tirohia ki Tua and Kele’a, examining the impact and possibilities in the Service sector for Māori and Pacific peoples, respectively. We also assisted industries in addressing their workforce priorities, through initiatives such as Hospo Navigator, often with support from the Ringa Awhi Fund.

The transformational Te Manu Arataki Leadership Project led to new leadership qualifications, and we reviewed large suites of qualifications in the Business and Hospitality sectors, among others. We also made significant progress in quality assurance by developing new Consent and Moderation Requirements, while our innovative assessment best practice workshops have helped providers in this vital area.

Our commitment to the future was highlighted in our third annual Workforce Development Plan and nine associated Industry Action Plans, and with our Investment Advice to the Tertiary Education Commission, a key lever for achieving long-term change in the vocational education system.

We also produced two key resources that highlight the exciting career paths available in the Service sector: Hidden Gems, which looks at some of the lesser-profile service industries, and We Be Who We See, which brings the exciting Mata Ārahi Manomano career pathway framework to life by highlighting the stories of Māori and Pacific workers in the Service sector.

These achievements have been celebrated in this report alongside the voices of the industry leaders who have worked with us. Endorsements from leaders from industries as diverse as aviation, business events, banking, tourism, and hospitality show us how successfully our values have led our journey.

Walking with values gives purpose —and purpose creates value

Values aren’t a “nice to have.” They are what others will value in you. Walking with values gives purpose, and purpose creates value.

We would like to thank all Ringa Hora kaimahi and council members for their service, for being tika and pono, for finding mārama, and for the aroha they show every day.

Download and read our Annual Report