2014 BP Leaders for Life a big success

The 2014 BP Leaders for Life programme has come to a close with the final round of workshops involving candidates from the Northern and Eastern Regions from August 8-10 in Auckland.

Candidates from the Central and Southern Regions took part in their final workshop in Wellington from August 1-3.

Surf Life Saving New Zealand Member Development Manager Belinda Slement says the programme was a great success for all of the candidates. Since May, 32 candidates across all four regions have taken part in three different workshops.

"There was a great mixture and cross-section of leaders across both groups who were all incredibly keen and really put in a lot of effort to ensure they got the most out of the experience," she says.

Some of the highlights of this year's programme included the great range of guest speakers and the candidates completing their personal profiles to better understand their work preferences and how they can contribute better as a developing leader.

The final workshops for each region hosted presentations of projects they had been working on for the past three months. "The work that went into these projects was outstanding with many members attending the presentations and commenting on how well they had all done," Belinda says.

The guest speakers included Jonty Mills (BP), Jamie Fitzgerald (Inspiring Performance), David Trail (State Insurance), Mark Weatherall (NZ Team Manager) and Advanced Lifeguards Allan Mundy and Ben Flynn. "All of these speakers brought unique leadership stories, challenges and triumphs to this year's programme and were a key highlight for all our candidates," says Belinda.

The 2014 BP Leaders for Life is part of a national strategy to support a wide range of development activity for member's right across the Surf Life Saving community.

It aims to enhance the ability of current and emerging leaders within the Surf Life Saving community to make a real difference to their clubs and across the wider organisation.

Belinda says as an outcome of the programme, the participants all have a great understanding of why leadership is important at SLSNZ, what sort of leadership we need, the challenges we face over the coming years and what we are looking for in our young, emerging leaders.

"Leadership is a key element for SLSNZ. On the beach, we operate on a daily basis in dangerous situations where people's lives are at risk - that strength of mind and character, rapid (good) decision-making, absolute teamwork and support for individuals. This is not the place for weak leadership, indecision or leaving our people feeling insecure and unsupported, she says.

"Running a club requires organisation, drive, professionalism, integrity and skills. Inherent in what we do is giving young people leadership opportunities- this is becoming increasingly rare in modern society, which means it is even more important that we continue to offer it as it becomes a key point of difference when parents look at organisations for their children to join," she says.

Guest speaker and BP Communications and External Affairs Manager Jonty Mills says BP partnered with Surf Life Saving to form the BP Leaders for Life Programme in 2013 because it aligns closely with one of their own core drivers- Leadership.

"Identifying young leaders and helping to nurture them towards becoming great leaders within the Surf community, and beyond in business and the community, is a great thing to be part of. We believe we can help make a tangible difference with this programme by sharing some of our own learnings and experiences from within BP. These are the types of people we look for when recruiting in our own organisation," he says.

For more information about BP Leaders for Life, visit /education/member-education/bp-leaders-for-life/regional-bp-leaders-for-life/

To view photos from all of the workshops, click here.

To register your interest for the 2015 BP Leaders for Life programme, please email belinda.slement@surflifesaving.org.nz

For more information please contact: 

Lisa Honeybone, Media & Communications Specialist, SLSNZ
Phone 09 303 9335 or 0276 488 823
Email lisa.honeybone@surflifesaving.org.nz