The first Power EA Masterclass, Auckland NZ, 2015

Truly stunning part of the world - Lake Pukaki, New Zealand’s South Island

By Trish Butera, Founder, The Global Assistant Online

Back in 2015, when I was starting out as a cultural awareness trainer and consultant, AdmiNZ (AAPNZ back then) was the first organisation to support the global skills training I introduced to administrative support professionals. In fact, the first Power EA Masterclass was held in Auckland, and I am pleased to still be in touch with many of these early graduates who continue to thrive in their careers.

When other international organisations said, "why do admins need 'global skills' training?" - emphasising 'global skills' as if they were cumbersome words to pronounce - AAPNZ, with great foresight, said, "bring it on!". And so began a great partnership that today, I am honoured to re-establish with AdmiNZ's new National President, Joanne Gallop.

The fact that New Zealand, a stunning south pacific island nation with just over 5million people, would be so open to trying something that, back then, was a little radical for the admin profession, says a lot about the people and its culture. Kiwis - as New Zealanders are known - are innovators. And in world-ranking indices, they are top in the world for ease of doing business and have the world's second freest economy. It's a bicultural nation that long ago took measures to recognise its indigenous peoples and has since made Maori an official language along with English. As a cross-cultural specialist, you can appreciate why that 2015 partnership meant so much to me.

The 2015 collaboration allowed me to visit New Zealand many times over the years and, more significantly, meet exceptionally talented and diverse executive support professionals over training sessions and workshops- old school style! When virtual training was non-existent!

My first and only encounter with a real Kiwi. Massey University Veterinary Teaching Hospital.

However, one of the first teams I had the honour of conducting a hybrid learning program (in-person, followed up with virtual workshops) was for the Senior Leadership Support team at Massey University. This format for training was not so common back then and had received push back from many other organisations. "Trish, how effective can a training be if running it exclusively via video?" I must admit that even I doubted how successful I could facilitate a virtual program but, Massey embraced the approach and the measurable outcomes spoke for themselves. So again, a New Zealand organisation was the catalyst for me to rethink the possibilities, and in fact, I used a little-known platform back then called Zoom for that specific training program, and it has been my go-to virtual meeting platform ever since (if only I’d bought shares!).

Of course, we've gone completely virtual over the last 18 months, and the way of work will never be the same.

With the changes we’ve needed to embrace to work effectively, supportive channels are just as critical to our success as ongoing professional development.

That's why I'm incredibly excited about this collaboration. The AdmiNZ partnership will serve New Zealand administrative professionals by opening up further opportunities for career development and international networking with peers. As soon as our borders open, I look forward to returning to the land of the long white cloud and reconnecting with old friends again.

About the partnership benefits

Besides discounted enrolments to TGA online programs (using discount code ADMINZ05), we have a separate special 'membership inclusive' professional development offer with TGA's signature Power EA International Masterclass program. Using discount code TPEANZ, New Zealand executive support professionals also receive 12 months’ membership INCLUDED as part of the standard enrolment fee. This benefit is open to new and existing members. Check out AdmiNZ's dedicated page for more details.

Read the Media Release