MĀORI GOVERNANCE PROGRAMMES
Elevating the mana and impact of your governance
We provide tailored governance support for a range of organisations – through tirohanga Māori frameworks, immersive wānanga, and ongoing support to apply good governance in real time, rather than just learn about it.
What we do
Te Whare Hukahuka helps boards strengthen their cohesion, governance processes and effectiveness through building shared understanding, integration of frameworks and systems, and supporting long-term succession and sustainability.
We partner with your board and consistently support you to structure your governance in a way that suits you, assisted by our Pātaka operating system, which helps ensure continuity of clear roles and responsibilities, effective meetings, strong risk management, and consistent use of decision-making tools, templates, and resources to make governance easier.
Together we could work on more than 100 aspects of governance, but we wouldn’t do it all at once. We will refine the work programme with your board around the few things that will make the greatest difference – weaving mātauranga Māori, tikanga, and ‘best practice' governance.
What our programmes include
There are four pou that make up our training programmes. These are set out below. Together these help ensure shared understanding and cohesion around the boardtable, provide useful tools and frameworks to use, and enable us to get hands-on with you over several months to actually unblock challenges holding your board back and apply the concepts that matter most to you.
PĀTAKA
Governance operating system
Tailored online learning content
100+ resources, governance tools & templates
12 months access for your board members
Induction pathway
Annual updates and improvements
Configuration and tailoring aspects to align with your board.
WĀNANGA
Two full day workshops learning alongside other boards
Up to 8x participants per Trust
Online Ako sessions with guest speakers
RINGA KAHA
Multiple coaching and application sessions
14 hours of TWH team time allocated
On-demand support
MAHERE
12 month governance calendar and work plan
Final report with recommendations
Real clarity on what to prioritise next
Governance frameworks we use
We teach governance through the framework of the Whare Tupuna. This covers all aspects of effective governance in a way that reflects the fuller context of kaupapa Māori that conventional governance misses.
For an overview of our Whare Tupuna framework, click below.
If you are seeking to address actual challenges with your governance and take your practice to the next level, we have the tools to help you do this.
Our team has worked with more than 400 Māori organisations over the past 12 years, and trained more than 2,500 Māori governance leaders across Aotearoa.
Boards we work with
Te Whare Hukahuka partners with Māori and community organisations committed to consistently lifting their governance practice.
With each Māori organisation we contribute towards the cost of your training programme.
Whatever you are facing as a board, rest assured that we have helped address it before.
Training for individuals
As well as programmes for boards, we also run programme for individuals. These include:
Our Ka Eke Poutama programme for those new to governance.
Induction pathways and training for new board members.
A range of tirohanga Māori and content-specific wānanga and programmes for individuals.
Often we find that working with the whole board and the Manager/CEO creates the greatest impact and longevity of impact. This creates shared understanding, commitment and rhythms of effective practice.
Content we cover
Our governance programme is personalised to your board, based on the most critical areas your board wishes to address.
Our content is framed around eight dimensions of the Whare Tupuna.
We start our projects with undertaking a Governance Aromatawai to surface the areas of governance to work on together, developing a joint work plan around strengthening your governance.
Below are the most common areas that boards seek our support on over a year:
Tūāpapa | Foundations
Fit-for-purpose organisation and governance structures
Robust constitutional documents and policies
Tools to guide board decision-making, problem-solving and prioritisation
Tekoteko | Leadership
Clear organisational purpose
Expectations of the board
Governance responsibilities
Role descriptions
Board composition
Board meeting preparation
Board Skills Matrix to identify gaps to address
Pou Tokomanawa
| Board Cohesion
Agreed and respected Code of Conduct
Inclusion of a diverse range of voices
Practices to maintain mana-enhancing conversations and positive board interactions
Effective conflict resolution
Strategic-focused meeting agendas and structures to get the mahi done
Clear board resolutions
Review of board performance
Pou Tūhono
| Structural Strength
Functional responsibilities
Health & Safety processes
Resource and asset management
Conflicts of interest processes
Supportive structural systems
Board committees and portfolios
Board pack quality
Board annual work plans
Governance action plans
Technology and data systems
Pou Tuarongo
| Safety & Succession
Protecting the organisation
Legal and regulatory compliance
12 main types of risk
Robust Risk Management protocols
Risk controls and tools
Risk Register
Crisis response plans
Director & Officer liability insurance
Protecting our future
Proactive board succession
Consistent induction processes
Tāhuhu | Strategic Direction
Clear long-term direction
Clear links between the Vision, Mission, Obstacles, Strategic priorities, Goals & Measures
Strategic priorities connect directly to the vision and mission
Robust strategy
Fit-for-purpose strategy tools and frameworks
Clear constraints to address in the strategy
Project decision-making framework
Clear outcomes and goals
Team capability and capacity to deliver on the strategy
Evidencing impact and transformational change
Financial viability
Business model effectiveness
Income diversification
Investment strategy and SIPO strength
Maihi | Resourcing & Delivery
Board–Manager relationship
Effective Board-Manager communication
Good employer & HR processes
Clear delegated authorities
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Organisation management
Internal strategies
Effective operational systems
Financial policies, planning & processes
Monitoring progress
Annual budget, compliance, taxation & audit processes
Clear measurements for board review
Board-level financial reporting
Visual dashboards and ratios
Mahau | Connections
Stakeholder representation
Strong whānau relationships and communication
Community voice actively shaping board decisions
Community impact evaluation
Effective communication systems
Clear communication systems and protocols
Mana-enhancing AGMs
Media Statements policy
External partnership reliability
Collaboration processes and disciplines
Co-governance arrangements
Frequently asked questions
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We can tailor to the needs of your board. The most effective governance support happens as small and consistent changes over time, giving your board a chance to learn, implement and refine each part as you develop effective board rhythms.
The programmes include a mix of workshops, coaching sessions, independent reviews, tailored guidance, templates and tools and our Pātaka governance system.
We focus on partnering with Māori organisations and develop governance over the long-term.
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Your board can choose which of our monthly wānanga will suit you best. These happen in different regions around Aotearoa and bring several governance boards together at a time to share lessons and strengthen their practice.
We can also organise for a facilitator to travel to you to work with your board.
Our Ringa Kaha coaching and application sessions are generally run online as short coaching sessions with the board – at times that suit yourselves and the facilitator.
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Only three:
Bring an open mind and a willingness to learn.
Be ready to apply the learning in your board practice.
Contribute towards the costs alongside TWH.
We are regularly working with new clients, and cater to boards at all stages of their governance journey.
Our team are here to support you, even if only to offer some tips to begin with. We can determine together what support would benefit your board most.
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TWH contributes towards each client project, but there will always be a client fee.
Generally Māori Trusts will come to us with funding or a budget already in place for the programme.
We are able to direct you towards potential funders who may support towards the costs.
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Our team are used to there being some board members thinking they don’t need it.
The reality is that governance is a team sport. Individual brilliance is helpful but it doesn’t create strong governance.
For boards that need more convincing, it is helpful for our team to join a board meeting (e.g. via video-conference) and speak to the proposal and any objections or pātai that board members wish to raise.
Sometimes it takes months or even years before your board feel ready to actually engage in the programme support – and we’re all good with that. Any support we can provide along the way, we are happy to do so.
Sometimes speaking with our alumni can also help – providing a real life example of how we helped lift governance practice and effectiveness. We are happy to connect you with alumni that you can speak with.
What makes Te Whare Hukahuka different?
Our team have worked with more than 400 boards and more than 2,500 Māori trustees.
We are yet to find any other organisation that has the same breadth of experience working with Māori Trust boards as we do. We understand your challenges and we have experience with solving them.
We share practical insights and case studies with you. We have more than 100 useful tools and frameworks to assist with governance decision-making. We go beyond content to actually embed a rhythm of effective governance through our governance operating system.
Our team approach governance from a tirohanga Māori, ensuring that it reflects the actual context you are working in, which conventional governance often overlooks.
Our team are dedicated community leaders and practitioners, passionate about the self-determination of Māori communities. This is deeply reflected in who we are and the work that we do.
If you are ready for some new perspectives and commit to applying the learning, we guarantee that our training will help your team address governance challenges, reduce risk, and improve your ability to grow and innovate so you can provide better outcomes for your organisation and community.
Our Te Whare Hukahuka team have won multiple national and international awards, including being acknowledged by Forbes magazine, Obama Foundation, ACE Awards, Impact Awards, Matariki Awards, and as past finalists in the NZ Innovation Awards.
“Te Whare Hukahuka have helped give us a Māori face in the governance space.”
— Shane Bradbrook, Ngāi Tāmanuhiri
“They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks…”
— Te Taru White, Pukahukiwi Kaokaoroa No 2 Inc
