Humility part of Rawiri's wairua as a great leader

As an international leadership speaker and businessman, I have had the privilege of meeting many outstanding leaders.

I won't name drop but they are people who have made a difference to their families, people, countries and, indeed, the planet. They are from organisations such as Google, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Mighty River Power, universities, the health sector and others. They include people such as MPs or government officials, judges, doctors, financiers, police leaders, youth leaders, church leaders, bank leaders, and whanau, hapu and iwi leaders.

I have met these people in various countries including England, the United States, Singapore, Malaysia, Fiji, Australia, Holland and other countries.

Of all the leaders I have had the privilege to meet, Rawiri Te Whare was one of the best.

I first encountered Rawiri (or at least his name) when I started working at Waiariki Institute of Technology in 2001 after being away from Rotorua for 20 years. My position was the head of Te Paakaro a Ihenga, the school of Maori studies, journalism, fashion, arts and design. Rawiri had been the previous head of Te Pakaro a Ihenga before leaving to lead the Ngati Tahu/Ngati Whaoa and the Pumautanga Treaty negotiations.

I moved into Rawiri's office, which was quite small compared with other offices I was offered. I liked Rawiri's office because it was accessible to everyone, had lots of natural sunlight, was comfortable to work in and had adequate space for staff meetings. It also had good wairua and was easy to heat with the single heater on the wall.

Rawiri's name was still on the phone and his name kept popping up everywhere at Waiariki. In my discussions with staff, Rawiri was always spoken of highly and I knew I had some big shoes to try and fill.

I eventually met Rawiri through his good friend, June Parata, and the first thing that struck me was his humility. He never interrupted anyone while they spoke, listened intently and thought deeply before replying. His wairua, mannerisms, presence and attitude reminded me of another Maori leader I had met, namely Dame Te Atairangikaahu.

In the relatively short time I have known Rawiri since moving into his old Waiariki office back in 2001, I have learned many things from him including the tikanga and history of Ngati Tahu/Ngati Whaoa, the main tribes on my mother's side. We also became trustees on Tauhara North No2 Trust at the same time and I was honoured when the number of votes we received at the AGM were exactly the same.

Soon afterwards, the position of trust chairman was established and Rawiri and I were nominated for the role. I believed I had no chance and thought "well at least you were nominated Ngahi" so I was surprised when I was appointed to the role. This was when I saw the outstanding leadership qualities of Rawiri come to the fore. I have seen leaders lose important votes like that, spit the dummy, and do all kinds of immoral things to get themselves into the role they missed out on, but not Rawiri. Rawiri was even more supportive and encouraging. I would call him or meet him when I needed someone to talk to and created the position of deputy chairman to which he was appointed. We never became close friends as such, but Rawiri was an outstanding mentor and confidante.

It has been a real honour and privilege to learn from one of the best leaders I will ever meet. Rawiri left many legacies including the values and goals of the Tauhara trust. One of the outstanding mentoring attributes Rawiri left behind was to "hikoi ki te taha o Te Atua, nana nei nga mea katoa". Rawiri had a strong belief and faith in Te Atua and was always quick to give honour to the God he served. Rawiri was a man of prayer.

Today, I sent an email out to the trustees of the Tauhara trust and Rawiri's name popped up again as part of the trustee email list. It reminded me of how his name always popped up when I first encountered him back in 2001 at Waiariki. I am sure that Rawiri Te Whare will be a name that will continue to pop up for many generations to come, not just in his whanau, or his tribe but this nation of Aotearoa and many others too.

He honore he kororia ki Te Atua mo te taonga oranga o Rawiri Te Whare.

Na reira e te Rangatira, e Rawiri, kua ea aau mahi i konei i tenei ao hurihuri, haere atu koe ki te taha wairua o to Kaihanga, o whanau, o Tupuna hoki. Haere, haere, haere atu ra. Hurinoa ki te hunga ora, ki a koutou te whanau pani, kia kaha kia maia, ki a tatou katoa, ka maumahara tatou i te ingoa o te Rangatira ko Rawiri Te Whare.

Ngahihi o te ra is from Te Arawa and is an international speaker, author and consultant. His book is available at Mcleods book store and the Lakeside café in Rotorua. His website can be viewed at www.ngahibidois.com