Praneeta Mahajan
Hamilton, 15 November 2022
PM Jacinda Ardern, TIA Chief Executive Rebecca Ingram and Tourism Minister Stuart Nash at Tourism Summit Aotearoa(Photo by TIA)
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was the special guest at this year’s Tourism Summit Aotearoa, a full-day event where delegates dive into the most important issues facing the tourism industry. This year’s Summit, which is led by Tourism Industry Aotearoa (TIA), was held on 10 November in Kirikiriroa, Hamilton.
It was the first in-person Summit since 2020. “Our very social industry is getting excited to gather together in person,” says TIA Chief Executive Rebecca Ingram. “While the industry is rightly focused on the summer ahead, it’s important to also look up and consider what’s next. Summit is a forum for the industry to examine issues of climate change adaptation, building our future adaptability, the role of technology in tourism experiences and the positive impact every tourism business can have on their community.”
An Impressive lineup
The prestigious New Zealand Tourism Awards also took place on the evening of the Summit. The host City Sponsor, The Mighty Waikato supported the Summit along with other Brands like Marsh New Zealand, ServiceIQ, H3, Tourism New Zealand, Air New Zealand, and The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
The event was impressive in terms of its line up with both Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Tourism Minister Stuart Nash present to support the industry at this year’s event alongside our other insightful speakers, including Catherine Rushton (Chief Strategy Officer of Mindshare Australia), Livio Goetz (Switzerland Tourism Director Australia & New Zealand), and Jane Patterson (New Zealand’s Chief Operating Officer of FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™).
Attendees also heard from a panel of young leaders for a fresh perspective on the future of tourism and take part in breakout streams focusing on the three areas of the theme – innovation, inspiration and impact.
Tourism MinisterStuart Nash and PM Ardern with TIA Chief Executive Rebecca Ingram (photo by TIA)
About Tourism Industry Aotearoa
TIA is New Zealand tourism’s peak industry body. The only independent association that represents all sectors of New Zealand’s large and diverse tourism industry, TIA has about 1300 member businesses from across the industry, ranging from small owners/operators to large publicly listed tourism corporates and international hotel chains. As an association, it is deeply involved in discussions on recovery and the future of New Zealand’s tourism.
TIA also leads the implementation of the industry’s Tourism Sustainability Commitment, which aims to see every New Zealand tourism business contributing positively to its people, cultures, environment, and economy.
Their vision is to grow an industry that delivers high-quality experiences for both domestic and international visitors while having a positive impact on local communities, contributing to the restoration and protection of our natural environment, and rebuilding the economic sustainability of the sector.
Tourism Summit Aotearoa 2022 held in Hamilton (RNZ Photo)
Views of Industry Leaders
The speakers and participants at Tourism Summit this year discussed their hopes for the future of the industry and the need for younger talent in the industry.
Ōhope Beach TOP 10 Holiday Park’s Megan Smith was well aware of the reputation tourism could have in schools. “Tourism was always taken at school as something where you get easy credits. That’s why I took it originally,” Smith said. “I think it’s showing our younger people that this isn’t just a stop along the way like this can be a future career and a lifelong goal.”
Zorb Rotorua’s Charlotte Brady wanted to change the perception parents often had about tourism as a career option. She said that “The parents are quite heavy influences on their children. Tourism’s an epic career option, and I think we need to better tell our story. I think we need to do a lot more work at that level to change the perception of our industry.”
She wanted the industry to be better at keeping and looking after its key people. “We’ve got our entry-level that is amazing, we’ve got that middle-level management and then the (general managers). I think we need a little bit more job training for that middle-tier level” she said.
NZ Māori Tourism’s Matt Ammunson-Fyall was interested in seeing a different focus than just the visitor experience. “For me, something that has been rattling around in my head is that we shouldn’t be focusing on the visitor. But as tourism organisations, we should be focusing on our communities and how we can leverage their money to support our communities.”
He argued that would be better for the tourists and added “I don’t know what’s more meaningful than being able to support communities that are struggling economically to survive.”
Maverick Digital’s Zac Watson wanted tourism to continue to play a greater role in supporting communities. He said that “We’re enriching lives whether they be your staff members, whether they be your guests. It’s all about that experience. Tourism’s moving away from a very transactional type environmental approach, and I think that’s an extremely good thing moving forward and definitely how we want to move forward as an industry.”
He said that the New Zealand Tourism industry can get back to being the highest export earner but the key was doing that in the right way by providing incredible visitor experiences for our manuhiri yet looking after and giving back more than we take from the environment.
Praneeta Mahajan is an Indian Newslink reporter based in Hamilton.
