Tainui Group Holdings chief executive Chris Joblin will leave the organisation late this year.
Tainui Group Holdings chief executive Chris Joblin is leaving after overseeing almost $1 billion in asset growth over the past decade.
Joblin joined the commercial arm of the Tainui-Waikato iwi as chief financial officer in 2009 and took up the top role about five years later.
During that time, he spearheaded the creation of the 490-hectare Ruakura Superhub in Hamilton, one of New Zealand’s largest infrastructure and property developments, taking it from the concept stage to a fully functional, rail-served, inland port that was now filling up with large-scale distribution centres.
Other notable projects he has been involved with include the Cambridge Police Station, ACC regional offices and Te Arikinui Pullman Auckland Airport Hotel.
Joblin will leave the TGH role in November this year.
He has no set plans for his future other than to spend the summer with his family and consider his next career move after that.
“After 15 years at TGH . . . [and] with the new ACC regional office, the new Te Arikinui Pullman Auckland Airport Hotel up and running, and Ruakura [Superhub] well set up as a growth platform for the future, I believe the timing suits a new leader to come in.”
TGH board chairwoman Hinerangi Raumati-Tu’ua acknowledged Joblin’s significant contribution to the organisation and said he had proven to be a kaitiaki (guardian) of the assets of Waikato-Tainui.
“The team has grown shareholder wealth by $987 million through our equity growth and the distributions paid to Waikato-Tainui, as well as delivered signature projects for the Waikato region . . . which provide an excellent platform for future growth.”
In addition to the growth in net assets, TGH paid distributions of $212m to Waikato-Tainui during Joblin’s tenure.
Joblin said he was proud of the support he received at TGH from a strong, talented, and committed team of 50.
“I am grateful for the support of our team over the past decade and am proud of the high-performance culture we have built together and the legacy we have created.
“Together we have built a portfolio of investments, and a family of strong external business partners across a range of sectors to serve Waikato-Tainui for many years to come.”
Other key achievements of Joblin’s include implementing the new Waikato-Tainui intergenerational framework, Puna Whakatupu Tangaata, to ensure a strong iwi lens on investment decisions, and bringing a strong environmental management and healthy safety focus to TGH’s farming and forestry operations.
He also established social procurement programmes on major development projects and bulk delivery of kai for large marae events. He’s been a keen practitioner of intent-based leadership to build a high-performance culture and team engagement levels at TGH.
Joblin also established retail partnerships with Kiwi Property Group in relation to The Base and Centre Place shopping centres and helped regenerate central Hamilton with the buyout, extensions and renovations of the Hamilton Riverside Hotels and master planning for the future development of the Centre Place precinct.
In 2022, he was honoured as a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Australia-NZ and won the 2021 CEO of the Year at the Waikato Chamber of Commerce Business Awards.
Raumati-Tu’ua said a chief executive transition was under way.
“Joblin and the team remain focused on achieving current business priorities, while the TGH Board will shortly commence a search process for a new executive leader to take TGH into its next chapter.
“We look forward to recognising [Joblin’s] contribution in an appropriate Waikato-Tainui way later this year.”
The TGH board and Joblin agreed on an extended notice period until mid-November to enable a thorough recruitment process and orderly transition for the next CEO.
Malisha Kumar is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined the Waikato Herald in 2023 after working for Radio 1XX in Whakatāne.
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