This is the question we asked as we launched our latest Financial Resilience Index 2023, an annual tracking survey of Kiwis’ financial confidence, financial preparedness, financial literacy, job security and wellbeing.
Our guest speakers examined the findings in the context of their own insights and experiences to consider how New Zealanders will fare over the remainder of 2023 as we continue through tough economic times.
We broke down the key findings of the research, and shared political, regulatory, economic and community lenses on how we can all do our bit to ensure New Zealanders can navigate the financial headwinds they’re facing.
Nicola Willis is a List MP based in Wellington, having entered Parliament in April 2018, and being re-elected in October 2020. She is currently National’s Deputy Leader, Spokesperson for Finance, and Social Investment. She is a member of Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Select Committee and the Intelligence and Security Select Committee, and has previously served on the Environment Select Committee, the Education and Workforce Select Committee, and the Regulations Review Select Committee.
Prior to becoming an MP Nicola held a number of senior management roles at New Zealand dairy co-operative Fonterra. Her work at Fonterra included leadership of the business’s global trade strategy team, permanent membership of the global incident management team, operational management of Fonterra-owned farms and work on a number of major projects alongside Fonterra’s global customers, manufacturing teams and farmer shareholders. Nicola also served on the boards of Export NZ and policy think-tank the New Zealand Initiative.
Nicola was a senior advisor to Prime Minister John Key during his first term in Government, having been a member of his winning 2008 campaign team, a senior advisor during his time as Leader of the Opposition and a researcher for then opposition education spokesperson Bill English.
She has also worked in a number of small businesses including jobs selling shoes, clothes and bagels.
Nicola is a proud graduate of Victoria University of Wellington with a first-class honours degree in English literature. She was a successful university debater, captaining teams and competing around the world. She grew up in Wellington, and today she lives there with her husband Duncan and their four children aged 6, 9, 10, 12.
Sharon joined the ANZ Economics team in 2010 and became Chief Economist in late 2017. She started her career as a macroeconomist at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in 1998, and has also worked at the Central Bank of Norway.
Andrew Inwood is the founder and principal of CoreData and has more than 30 years’ experience in the Australian financial services industry. He started his career at Rothschild Australia Asset Management where he headed the marketing team, before moving to AMP Investments where he spent more than a decade. During his time at AMP, he was seconded to Virgin Direct in the UK to help establish the finance and investment arm of the group.
Andrew returned to Australia to be marketing director of Wizard Home Loans. From Wizard he moved to Telstra where he spent three years as general manager of applications and hosted services, before leaving to start CoreData. In the past 20 years, CoreData has expanded out of Sydney to have offices in Perth, London, Boston and Manila.
Andrew is the author of more than 50 pieces of significant research into clients and their behaviour and has a particular focus on the value of the client experience in financial services. He is a highly regarded speaker and has delivered keynote speeches in every Australian capital city, London, Edinburgh, New York, Tokyo, Queenstown, Monaco and Berlin.
Andrew has served on a number of charity and sporting club boards and been a seed investor in and director of a number of start-up businesses, particularly in the online sector, a practice which he continues to this day.
He has a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Sydney ASIA.
Dr. Jarrod Haar is the Dean’s Chair and Professor of Management and Māori Business at Massey University.
He researches employees and organisations.
He has won industry and best-paper awards; and won multiple research grants (over $6.7m).
He has 144 refereed journal articles, 300+ conference presentations, and done 85+ keynotes/invited talks.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand Te Apārangi.
Richard is the Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Services Council – New Zealand. He has extensive experience in leading and transforming Industry Associations, Life Insurance manufacturers and Financial Advice businesses, having held senior leadership roles in all sectors over the past 16 years. Organisations include Sovereign Assurance, ANZ Banking Group, Association of Financial Advisers and ING Richard is known as a community builder, skilfully engaging and influencing a diverse range of stakeholders to create common purpose, connection and enable collaboration.
Richard holds an MBA from the Macquarie Graduate School of Management, a Bachelor of Arts and Diploma of Education from Macquarie University and recently completed the Denison Miller Senior Executive leadership program as well as the innovative ‘Rethinking Leadership’ program with the Hunger Project in India.