Auckland Council-led supplier diversity initiative Amotai celebrated its first-ever awards ceremony on Wednesday 21 August 2024, championing the power and importance of supplier diversity in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The Amotai Supplier Diversity Awards 2024 recognised the efforts of individuals and organisations who are levelling the playing field in procurement. It took place on the evening of Amotai’s Navigate Summit, an annual event in its fifth year that brings together business leaders, procurement professionals and innovators from Aotearoa to learn about opportunities to drive economic growth in New Zealand, through Māori and Pasifika-owned businesses.
Councillor Kerrin Leoni, an avid Amotai supporter, says the Summit's theme for the year, “The Power of Opportunity”, speaks to the goals of Amotai to unlock supply chains and create opportunities for Māori and Pasifika businesses to provide products and services to a wide range of organisations.
“Since it was first established in 2018 by Auckland Council, Amotai’s members have grown to more than 2200 Māori and Pasifika-owned suppliers, and more than 180 buyers, including corporates, not-for-profits, government entities, and iwi,” says Councillor Leoni.
“Suppliers span construction and infrastructure, tech, professional services and retail sectors, from Te Tai Tokerau Northland to Te Wai Pounamu, the South Island. The growth of Amotai represents growth for the economy, and an upshift for our Māori and Pasifika business communities, creating a more diverse and resilient local business sector,” adds Councillor Leoni.
Auckland Council’s Chief Executive Phil Wilson, who hosted a pre-Summit business mixer at Auckland Art Gallery, says Amotai was established because it was recognised that Māori and Pasifika were significantly under-represented in the council’s supply chain.
“This under-representation meant Māori and Pasifika were not able to contribute to our region or benefit from it in the same way that other groups could,” Mr Wilson says.
“When one group in society is falling behind, we are all disadvantaged, so we have sought to remedy this inequity in Aotearoa through first influencing Auckland Council's procurement and supply chains, and the movement has flowed outward from there,” he says.
“It’s an inspiration to see how Amotai has grown since we launched it, and the positive impact supplier diversity is having on communities.
“We have come a long way in the six years since inception, and these inaugural awards are a testament to that maturity and growth. The name Amotai itself alludes to this, as it is the swell in the tide; a tide that can carry all waka to new horizons…”
This year the summit also hosted an international delegation from the USA, Canada and Australia, who presented global opportunities for advancing supplier diversity. The awards included the signing of a MOU between Amotai and the USA’s National Minority Supplier Diversity Council President and CEO, to increase international trade opportunities from the global supplier diversity movement.
The Amotai Supplier Diversity Awards 2024 finalists and winners below:
Supplier of the Year
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Kenai
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Stronghold Group (winner)
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ARC Asbestos and Demolition
Buyer Member of the Year
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Downer/Hawkins
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John Fillmore Contracting (winner)
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Ministry of Education
Supplier Diversity Advocate of the Year
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Trina Pohatu-McQueen - Waikato-Tainui
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Beaufa Brown - Height
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Sarah Lang - Beca (winner)
About Amotai
Amotai connects public, private and not-for-profit sector buyers across Aotearoa and Australia with Māori and Pasifika-owned suppliers with the aim to unlock opportunities for innovation, growth and resilience on both sides, supporting participating parties to positively impact communities through their procurement processes.
