Leadership programme future proofs the horticulture industry

Horticulture New Zealand Leadership scholar Justin Wehner says he ‘fell into’ the horticulture sector by chance but soon recognised the great career opportunities it offers.

Justin is now operations manager for Echodale Marketing’s orchard in Hope in the Tasman Region and recently completed HortNZ’s 2024 Leadership Programme.

“I was thinking about going into veterinary but decided it wasn’t for me,” he says. “I just came to Echodale to work as a picker to save money for my OE.

“My boss said, ‘come back when you finish travelling’, I travelled around Asia and next thing you know I’m back in the orchard – this was eight years ago.

“I started at the bottom as an orchard hand, I was then fortunate they sent me to Lincoln University to study horticultural science. I came back and became assistant manager and now I am a manager running the company.”

Justin says being very driven to seek constant learning, he was keen to apply for the HortNZ Leadership Programme.

“I am a go getter, enjoy the pressure and driven to better myself and constantly adapt. I have also been fortunate to have some good mentors in the industry, Andrew Kininmonth and Richard Clarkson, whom I acknowledge my success too and suggested applying.

“The content was exceptional and gave a broad and diverse aspect of the industry. The range of people and guest speakers from across growing and governance in the industry was especially relatable and inspiring”.

“I work in pipfruit so it was very interesting to hear from other parts of the sector too. I really enjoyed meeting my cohort. It was inspiring to see so many talented young leaders, from a broad range of backgrounds, doing what they do and excelling at it. 

“It was awesome to be around so many people like that and it really illustrated for me how diverse our industry is and how many career paths there are to choose from – you can always find the right one for you.

“The networking aspect was super valuable. We have a Messenger group for our cohort and if anyone has an issue or a question, we can just flick a message up and someone will answer. It is invaluable to have that kind of variety of experience in a network operating all through New Zealand.”

Justin and his fellow cohort undertook the programme in two phases over nine weeks between August and October.

This included five days in Auckland in August and a further three days in Wellington during October.

The programme focuses on building an increased confidence to take the lead and influence into the future and a greater understanding of what leadership is really all about.

It supports development of ‘ready to use’ leadership and business skills such as communication, teamwork, critical thinking and problem solving and a wider perspective around how to address industry issues now and into the future.

Participants work to develop a personal plan for how they intend to go forward in their leadership career.

“There were a lot of takeaways from it and the biggest for me was about understanding who you are as a person, how you lead and understanding that you need to be constantly adapting and learning,” says Justin.

“I think there’s a perception that this is an ageing industry so promoting youth leadership helps to future proof the industry and encourage and support that new generation of growers.

“The programme is a great opportunity for current leaders to share their learnings with the next generation. It helps make sure we get the right people in the right places and that we are constantly adjusting to the different challenges we face.”

He sees climate change and increasing costs as the major challenges facing the sector.

“The financial side is always a challenge. It is costing more to grow and the end result is not matching the costs. The pest and diseases are moving faster with climate change and we need to be getting on top of that, to be ahead of the game and not playing catch up.

“But New Zealand and our sector has always strived to be better and there are opportunities too, in particular to grasp new technologies. As a sector, we have to be adapting to and adopting that and being more forward thinking. Making the change rather than reacting to the change.

“In the future, I guess I want to be a forefront leader in the industry, whether in growing or in governance. In particular, I want to be a leader for those who are new to the industry and to support growers who may be struggling, help them learn new techniques and adapt to technology to ultimately secure a growing future in New Zealand.”