Fonterra, Zuru Group's Mowbrays triumph at the Deloitte Top 200 Awards

Fonterra was a standout winner at the Deloitte Top 200 Awards 2024, claiming three prestigious awards. Port of Auckland also celebrated a stellar night with two wins at one of the most anticipated events in New Zealand’s corporate calendar, and Zuru Group’s Mowbray siblings claimed the visionary leadership award.

Held at Auckland’s Viaduct Events Centre, the black-tie dinner brought together nearly 900 business leaders to celebrate resilience, innovation, and strategic leadership driving New Zealand’s economy forward during an era of global challenges.

Dairy giant Fonterra was named Company of the Year, a testament to its transformative journey over the past year.

The cooperative has implemented significant changes — reducing debt, exiting non-core businesses and concentrating on high-quality ingredients and food service products.

This strategic shift, along with disciplined cost management and sustainability initiatives, has solidified shareholder confidence and driven remarkable financial performance.

In September this year, Fonterra posted a net profit of $1.1 billion for the 2024 financial year, following a record $1.6b profit the previous year.

The panel of high-profile judges, convened by NZME’s Fran O’Sullivan, praised Fonterra’s ability to balance transformation with financial discipline, noting:

“Profits have improved markedly. Strong cash flow has driven down debt and supported payment this year of a 50c special dividend to its shareholders — helping to drive a 71% increase in the Fonterra shareholder fund unit price.

“By concentrating resources on areas with the highest potential, Fonterra is well-positioned for sustainable earnings growth, despite tough international markets.

For his pivotal role in Fonterra’s turnaround, chief executive Miles Hurrell was named Chief Executive of the Year.

Hurrell’s leadership has delivered record profits, improved milk payouts to farmers, strengthened the cooperative’s balance sheet, and improved employee engagement.

“Miles has focused on Fonterra’s core operations of processing and selling New Zealand milk efficiently while divesting less critical parts of the business and considering the sale of its consumer division,” the judges said.

“With a collaborative approach, Miles has built an aligned and forward-thinking team, making him a stand-out chief executive.”

The Visionary Leader award went to Zuru Group siblings, Mat, Anna and Nick Mowbray, in recognition of their courage, creativity and innovation that has built a multinational juggernaut.

Established in 2003, Zuru Group now generates $3 billion in annual revenue, employs 5000 people across more than 30 locations globally and spans toys, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and tech building.

The Top 200 judges commended the siblings’ bold decision to leave New Zealand in their 20s to establish themselves in China.

“They have sustained their entrepreneurial spirit, which has seen the company expand into new areas utilising China’s scale and technological prowess.

“Such ambition and success take courage, innovation and a lot of hard work, and in the opinion of the judges best exemplifies the visionary leadership of this award.”

The exceptional leadership of Jan Dawson, chairwoman of Port of Auckland, has earned her the title of Chairperson of the Year.

Since assuming the role in September 2021, Dawson has helped revitalise the port’s operations, improved stakeholder trust, and set the foundation for long-term growth.

The port has built a strong relationship with Auckland Council, the port’s sole shareholder, and this year increased its dividend to $40 million, reflecting its financial turnaround and focus on shareholder value.

“Under her leadership, the port has made significant strides in overcoming complex issues,” the judges said. “From securing a new CEO to addressing an automation project that had become derailed, fostering stronger collaboration with unions, and aligning more closely with Auckland City Council, the Port’s primary stakeholder.”

Meridian’s chief financial officer Mike Roan earned the title of Chief Financial Officer of the Year for his critical role in driving operational growth. Under his leadership, the partially state-owned energy company achieved a 16% increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and financial instruments (Ebitdaf), reaching $905m in the past year.

“Mike Roan has been recognised by his board and the market as one of New Zealand’s leading CFOs over multiple years,” the judges said.

“He is an absolutely integral member in chief executive Neal Barclay’s team that has posted market-leading returns.”

Global dairy marketer The A2 Milk Company received the Most Improved Performance award for its operational turnaround and resilient business model.

Amid challenging regulatory environments in key markets such as China and the United States, a2 Milk negotiated new strategic partnerships, strengthened its leadership team, and surprised the market with upgraded earnings guidance. The company will pay its first-ever dividend in February.

“While the journey is not complete, there are good signs that a2 Milk is back on track,” the judges said.

Infratil’s strategic foresight and disciplined approach to long-term infrastructure investments have driven remarkable growth, earning it the Best Growth Strategy award.

With early bets on data centres and renewable energy, the infrastructure investment firm’s strategy reflects bold decision-making and exceptional execution which have been a hallmark of its success. Shareholder returns have been exceptional at a compound annual rate of 23% a year over the past five years.

“These accomplishments reinforce Infratil’s strategy in infrastructure investment, with a focus on driving innovation and sustainable growth around what the company describes as ‘the ideas that matter’,” the judges said.

Continuing Fonterra’s run of success last night, Richard Allen was named Young Executive of the Year in recognition of his exceptional leadership and strategic vision.

Over his eight years at Fonterra, Allen has improved capital efficiency, developed strategic customer relationships, and identified the need to shift from siloed and reactionary initiatives.

Now President Global Market Ingredients, he is focused on expanding Fonterra’s markets and diversifying income streams.

“His strategic restructuring of the Atlantic region and innovative approaches not only strengthened Fonterra’s position in international markets but also contributed significantly to New Zealand’s export legacy,” the judges said.

Port of Auckland was named winner of the Diversity & Inclusion Leadership Award for its transformative approach to addressing deep-seated organisational challenges through a bold focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

“By prioritising a people-centred approach, they created a high-engagement, high-performance culture that recognised and served the unique needs of their diverse workforce and stakeholders,” the judges said.

The reset has achieved remarkable improvements in safety, employee engagement, union relationships, and overall performance, demonstrating the power of diversity and inclusion to drive sustainable change and deliver exceptional outcomes.

Spark NZ took home the Sustainability Leadership award for its long-term commitment to embedding sustainability across its operations.

The judges recognise Spark for its governance, accountability, and measurable progress in decarbonisation and digital inclusivity.

“Since 2020, Spark has been implementing a comprehensive three-pillar strategy, fully integrated into its day-to-day operations and across the entire footprint of the company.”

The Deloitte Top 200 awards include a special Judges’ Award, designed to recognise individuals or organisations whose performance has made a significant impact on the business community.

This year’s recipient is Dr Oliver Hartwich, executive director of The New Zealand Initiative, honoured for his outstanding contributions to public policy and thought leadership in New Zealand.

Hartwich has been instrumental in shaping public discourse, not only by identifying critical challenges facing the country but also by proposing practical solutions.

Under his leadership, The New Zealand Initiative has delivered rigorous, independent research that has influenced national debates and informed key policy decisions.

“We recognise his sterling contribution to public policy thinking and his willingness to advocate publicly through significant media engagement,” the judges said.

They highlighted that in recent years, The Initiative’s policy recommendations have played a pivotal role in several critical areas, with a particular mention of its work in improving New Zealand’s education system.

The Deloitte Top 200 Index consists of New Zealand’s largest entities ranked by revenue. These include publicly listed companies, large unlisted entities, New Zealand subsidiaries and branches of overseas companies and the commercial operations of Māori entities; also producer boards, co-operatives, local authority trading enterprises and state-owned enterprises.

An overview of the Top 200 Index, along with New Zealand’s Top 30 finance companies, is featured at the end of this report. This includes insights into revenue, profitability, efficiency and other key metrics. These numbers offer an insight into how the biggest companies in New Zealand operate and are accompanied by commentary and analysis from the Herald’s team of business reporters.

The high-level view of the Top 200 this year shows total revenues increasing by 4.1%, a modest rise compared to the 12.4% growth seen in 2023. However, underlying earnings (Ebitda) fell by 8.1%, and total profits after tax declined significantly, down 57.2% year-on-year.

In the financial sector, the Top 30 finance companies showed a marginal decline in year-on-year assets of 0.9%, while cumulative profits rose slightly by 0.8%.

ANZ remains the largest bank by a considerable margin, with $194b in assets — $61b ahead of second-placed Westpac. ANZ also outpaces all other banks in terms of profit and equity.