Congratulations to the finalists of SOSA Te Hāpai Hapori | Spirit of Service Awards 2024
Proudly sponsored by:
Te Tohu mō ngā Hua E Pai Ake Ana Better Outcomes Award
Te Tohu mō ngā Hua E Pai Ake Ana | Better Outcomes Award celebrates the achievement of significant outcomes in areas that matter most for the long-term wellbeing for New Zealanders.
Driver Licensing Improvement Programme
Waka Kotahi | New Zealand Transport Agency, Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora | Ministry of Social Development, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa | New Zealand Police, Te Puni Kōkiri | Ministry of Māori Development, Te Manatū Waka | Ministry of Transport and Accident Compensation Corporation
Improving community-based access to driver licence testing in hard-to-reach communities; opening doors to opportunities that a driver licence provides including employment, education, support for whānau and healthcare, and enabling more people to become safe licenced drivers.
Learning Community Hubs
Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | Ministry of Education
Piloted in Christchurch following the 15 March 2019 terror attacks and now rolled out across the country, Learning Community Hubs play a vital role for ethnic communities to access and understand the New Zealand education system and support their children.
National Predator Control Programme
Te Papa Atawhai | Department of Conservation
A massive team effort involving multiple stakeholders that is protecting and increasing populations of vulnerable native species by reducing the threats from introduced predators across 1.8 million hectares of public conservation land.
Te Tohu Auaha Hou Innovation Award
Te Tohu Auaha Hou | Innovation Award celebrates new approaches or technologies that are creating positive change.
Identity Check – Improving Services to New Zealand through innovative online identity verification
Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs and Te Manatū Whakahiato | Ministry of Social Development.
This innovative digital approach to service improvement is making a positive difference in New Zealanders’ lives by increasing accessibility to services.
Love Better
Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora | Ministry of Social Development
A radical new approach focusing on deepening young people’s ability to navigate relationships, that encourages good decisions and supports them through critical moments when harmful behaviour is prevalent.
Zero Data
Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | Ministry of Education, Te Whatu Ora | Health New Zealand, Te Tari Taiwhenua | Department of Internal Affairs, Accident Compensation Corporation, Kāinga Ora | Homes and Communities, Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora | Ministry of Social Development and Te Tāhū o te Ture | Ministry of Justice
Zero Data makes essential government services and information available to thousands of New Zealanders who would otherwise be unable to afford the data charges.
Te Tohu mō Whai Ratonga Māori Crown Relationships Award
Te Tohu mō Whai Ratonga celebrates outstanding public service contributions to supporting Māori Crown relationships through auahatanga (innovation), whakapūmautanga (durability) and kōwhiringa (opportunities).
City Rail Link Mana Whenua Forum
City Rail Link
A partnership founded to develop capability of the public service to engage with Māori and understand Māori perspectives through innovative iwi engagement on large infrastructure projects.
Rongoā Māori Service
Accident Compensation Corporation
Rongoā Māori Service exemplifies a commitment to protecting rongoā as a taonga and ensuring equitable access to services and experiences leading to better health outcomes for Māori.
Whakaorangia te Mana Tangata
Te Tāhū o te Ture | Ministry of Justice
A key contributor to Te Ao Mārama vision for District Courts, aimed at improving justice and wellbeing outcomes for Māori in the court system through the collective support of whānau, hapū and iwi.
Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau Young Leader of the Year
Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | The Young Leader of the Year Award celebrates inspirational young public sector leaders who exemplify the spirit of service.
Charlotte Veikune
Senior Development Manager
Kāinga Ora | Homes and Communities
Charlotte leads by example, with a steely focus on delivering quality social housing outcomes for the people she serves. Her resilience, attitude, and brilliant mindset shine through in a sector with multiple stakeholders and complexities.
Renee Conway
Social Work Supervisor
Oranga Tamariki | Ministry for Children
The many obstacles that Renee has overcome to be where she is today are a testament to her resilience, community spirit and strength. She is always seeking opportunities to improve the services Oranga Tamariki provides with humility, care and an enormous depth of understanding.
Tayla Yandall
General Manager Auckland Region Women’s Corrections Facility (Prison Director)
Ara Poutama Aotearoa | Department of Corrections
Tayla is a strong, intelligent, empathetic leader, who actively seeks out differing viewpoints and acts with an open heart to deliver for the people Corrections supports.
Te Tohu mō te Hiranga o te Mahi Kaupapa Here Excellence in Public Policy Award
This award category will be considered again in 2025.
Te Tohu Oranga Angitū Lifetime Achievement Award
Te Tohu Oranga Angitū | The Lifetime Achievement Award honours an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to New Zealand or their community and who exemplifies a spirit of service.
The recipient is selected by the Public Service Commissioner.
Te Tohu a te Pirimia Prime Minister’s Award
Te Tohu a te Pirimia | The Prime Minister’s Award for the overall winner of the year is selected from the winners of the Better Outcomes Awards, Innovation Award, Whai Ratonga Māori Crown Award and Excellence in Public Policy Award.
This award is not open to entries.
Ngā Pae Kaiwhakawā Judging Panels
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Nga Hoa-Toihau | Co-chairs
Thor Gudjonsson
Kaikōmihana Tuarua, Te Aromātai Whakatutukitanga | Deputy Commissioner, System & Agency Performance
Te Kawa Mataaho | Public Service Commission
Thor is a highly engaged leader driving improved performance and system change across the Public Service. He has been a Deputy Commissioner at Te Kawa Mataaho since October 2021. Thor previously held a number of Chief Financial Officer roles including the Ministry of Justice and Ministry for Primary Industries.
Rebecca Kitteridge
Te Pou Turuki mō Te Kawa Mataaho | Deputy Public Service Commissioner
Te Kawa Mataaho | Public Service Commission
Rebecca works closely with the Public Service Commissioner to provide leadership and oversight of the Public Service. From March 2023 to April 2024, Rebecca stepped into the role of acting Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and Chief Executive from her substantive role at the Commission. Prior to this, Rebecca was Director-General of Security and Chief Executive, New Zealand Security Intelligence Service.
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Pou Tikanga | Cultural advisor
Rauru Kirikiri
Te Whānau ā Apanui
Kaihautū mō Te Kawa Mataaho | Kaihautū to the Public Service Commissioner
Te Kawa Mataaho | Public Service Commission
Rauru has a notable background serving iwi, Māori, and New Zealand through his many roles in academia, consultancy, and the Public Service. He specialises in a range of Māori related issues including environmental management, strategic planning, Treaty of Waitangi claims negotiations, policy development, and tertiary education. Rauru is also an experienced resource consent commissioner, has had various academic activities at universities in both New Zealand and Australia, and continues to serve on several committees including acting as Deputy Chairperson of Te Mana Whakahaere o Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi.
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Te Tohu mō ngā Hua e Pai Ake Ana | Better Outcomes Award
Janine Smith
Deputy Chief Executive, Policy
Te Tari o te Pirimia me te Komiti Matua | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Janine has extensive experience in environmental policy and partnerships across the public sector. As a member of the DPMC Policy Profession Board, she plays an important role in leading, managing and stewarding policy. Prior to this role, Janine was Deputy Secretary, Natural and Built System and Climate Mitigation at Manatū mō te Taiao | Ministry for the Environment. In her time at MFE, she led the Zero Carbon Act and chaired The Local Government Steering Group for the RMA reform.
Michelle Paki
Ngāti Porou, Rongowhakaata
Director Māori, Kānoa Regional Economic and Development Unit and Regional Public Service Commissioner - Waikato
Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment
Michelle began her public service career with Te Puni Kōkiri and has been with the Ministry for Business Innovation and Employment since 2018 working in Regional Economic Development. As a Regional Public Service Commissioner for Waikato, Michelle sees the positive ways the public service can improve the lives of whānau and the communities we serve through a better-connected public service. Michelle’s experience as a business owner and her passion for Māori economic development brings a strong regional economic development and Māori business lens to her mahi.
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Te Tohu Auaha Hou | Innovation Award & Te Tohu mō Whai Ratonga | Māori Crown Award
Lisa Fong
Deputy Director-General, National Cyber Security Centre
Te Tira Tiaki | Government Communications Security Bureau
Lisa Fong leads the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), part of the Government Communications Security Bureau. Lisa and her team play a key role in protecting New Zealand’s wellbeing through trusted cyber security services. The NCSC were winners of Te Tohu a te Pirimia | Prime Minister’s Award in 2023. Prior to her role as DDG of NCSC, Lisa served as Acting Chief Executive of the GCSB and was Crown Counsel at Crown Law
Manaia Paki King
Waikato Tainui, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Korokī Kahukura
Deputy Secretary, Organisational Support
Te Puni Kōkiri
Manaia has extensive public service experience in policy, service delivery and operations, corporate and community and partner engagement.
Manaia’s previous role was as a Private Secretary in the office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Development and Employment. His substantive role was General Manager Māori, Partnerships and Programmes at the Ministry of Social Development. Prior to this, Manaia spent 10 years with the Ministry of Health in public health and prevention.
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Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | Young Leader of the Year
Saunoa (Noa) Samasoni
Senior Project Manager, PM Leads
Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities
Noa is a Young Leader grounded in her core Pacific values. As Senior Project Manager, Auckland Flood Recovery at Kāinga Ora, Noa stepped up and played a key role in supporting the rehousing of whānau and repair of affected homes. Noa began her Kāinga Ora career in the Customer Support Centre in 2016 and now oversees the servicing of more than 8,000 Auckland homes. Her leadership and outstanding spirit of service saw her awarded Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | Young Leader of the Year Award in 2023.
Fatumata Bah
Senior Policy Analyst
Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health
Fatumata is a Young Leader who serves with tenacity and courage. In her current role within the Health System Stewardship team at the Ministry of Health, she plays a role in developing and implementing health strategies that improve health outcomes. In 2023, Fatumata was a finalist for Te Tohu mō te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | Young Leader of the Year Award for her role as Strategic Engagement and Partnerships Advisor and Policy Analyst at Te Tari Mātāwaka | Ministry for Ethnic Communities. Through her work, Fatumata strived to achieve better outcomes for ethnic communities by working with public service agencies to create system change.
Oliver Asprey
Health and Safety Advisor
Te Tāhū o te Ture | Ministry of Justice
Oliver is a genuine and engaging young leader dedicated to making workplaces and buildings more accessible for everyone. He has worked in many roles at the Ministry of Justice over the past five years. He’s currently leading a significant long-term project to make all New Zealand courts ‘Hidden Disability’ certified, ensuring that all people can easily access court
buildings, and therefore justice. In 2023, Oliver was a finalist for Te Tohu mo te Kaiārahi Rangatahi o te Tau | Young Leader of the Year.