Taranaki identity to set up down South
Trevor Johnston is compiling a CV for the first time. He's 65, never been out of work, started his working life as an office boy and worked up to become chief executive of Riverlands in Eltham.
But after 11 years in Taranaki, he's retiring, leaving the region and heading to Southland.
It seems like a joke - him having to write a CV. His Taranaki profile is undisputed. He took over at Riverlands meat works in Eltham when the freezing works was grappling with staff issues and left it in a much stronger position 10 years later.
Then there's his passion for the community and its voluntary sector.
He first chaired a squash club in his 20s and over the years, as he moved around with his job, he joined subsequent clubs, mainly in the South Island. His experience and determination to put right what he saw as inefficiencies helped him write two manuals on how to run a voluntary organisation.
In addition to career and community connections, he's a director of Port Taranaki, chairman of the region's CEO Forum and heavily involved in Rotary.
Down south in Invercargill, where he and wife Shirley will settle to be closer to family, the locals won't know that, he points out.
He doesn't want to work but wants to be involved in the community and possibly pick up directorships.
So he needs a run-down of his achievements.
The list is long. He's arguably "Mr Community" in Taranaki and people use words like outstanding, inspirational and people-centred to describe him.
He downplays praise because he's matter-of-fact about his achievements, although he's also open and charming and the teller of a good story.
He says he got involved in community groups to meet people in new places but also to learn skills.
"I know the value of sport, or church, and scouts and cubs and what it did for me.
"I sat school certificate twice and I still haven't got it so when you don't have brains and you're not good looking and you're not great at sport, what do you do?
"Well, you work. Then you say, 'How am I going to be successful at work?' and that's through leadership. I wanted to develop leadership so the best way to do that is to be involved in running voluntary groups because you can develop the talent."
In Ashburton, in his five-year tenure as president of the squash club, it developed a workable business plan, scored the NZ squash club of the year title and rated well at tournaments. In 1999 he was named squash person of the year.
Ad Feedback His philosophy for clubs goes like this: A historical style has governed management. Clubs hold annual general meetings, scratch around for a committee; someone takes up a post because no one else volunteers and membership falters.
Instead, he advocates a semi- business model. Establish what needs doing, and ask people to take on specific roles rather than wait for volunteers. Have lots of people doing small tasks. Run meetings on time. Have two vice-presidents who share roles and ensure future leadership is nurtured. Build your base of youth.
It's a model he has preached to groups around the country and has been using since 1977.
He emphasises he's not critical of current volunteers: "I've worked with them all and I admire them and would like to help them - which I have been doing."
It's harder to get volunteers today. He doesn't dispute that and says he can list all the reasons why.
"How do you overcome that, how do you make it more suitable to today's environment, help our youth to be leaders. You say: 'Is there a way? Yes there is, let's try it.' "
In between the voluntary circuit, Mr Johnston found time to work and raise two sons with wife Shirley (also a club stalwart in her involvement with tennis clubs and porcelain doll making).
He announced his retirement from Riverlands on August 13, 2010, an emotional day.
He was moving aside to manage Taranaki Bio Extracts Ltd, a 50 per cent joint venture between ANZCO and Smith Brothers Trading. Last month Mr Johnston left, finally severing his ties with ANZCO.
The small Hawera-based company, established eight years ago, uses bone waste from Riverlands to create a range of products and Mr Johnston had been a director.
Some attributed his sadness in August 2010 to more sinister reasons, speculating he'd got the boot. That was not the case.
Mark Clarkson, ANZCO Group chief executive, says people are Mr Johnston's forte. He headed two sites, one in Bulls as well as the Eltham plant. He took a keen interest in staff, not just at work but also in their personal lives. He motivated people and had done a "first class job" since joining the company in 1994.
When he arrived he handled "a lot of issues related to people in the business", says Mr Clarkson.
Mr Johnston admits that leaving Taranaki won't be easy, even though he's returning to Southern roots.
Son Dean is executive director of finance for the Invercargill City Council while Carl manages Guthrie Bowron. Wife Shirley will continue to teach porcelain doll making and sell doll parts as well as play tennis.
Mr Johnston will throw himself into road biking - a sport he took up after two hip replacements.
"We are leaving what I call a very nice place with a great future and going to a place we like as well," he muses. Taranaki is the region he's lived in the most, behind his home region of Otago.
Taranaki's leadership is "inspired," the facilities impressive, the people welcoming.
His work with the CEO Forum, an initiative of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce, showed executives' willingness to work together as well as nurture young leaders.
New Plymouth District Council boss Barbara McKerrow and Stuart Trundle at Venture Taranaki also come in for praise.
"What I get from that community leadership is it inspires me . . . as it did the workforce at Riverlands.
"It is Taranaki's greatness. It's part of me and I love it. Leaving is not easy for us."
And saying goodbye to the Johnstons won't be easy for Taranaki.
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