Co-op Leader Conversations

by Cooperative Business New Zealand

Co-op Leader Conversation: The future of New Zealand's agricultural cooperatives - a follow up panel

What will determine whether today's agricultural cooperatives are still thriving twenty years from now? This follow-up Primary Industries NZ Summit panel explored exactly that question. Panelist Bruce Wills summed it up simply: "The co-operatives still around in 20 years' time will be those that run a great business." Anna Nelson added an equally important perspective: "The strength of collectives becomes even more important when you're surrounded by volatility and complexity." Good governance, strong commercial performance and long-term investment have always mattered. But as markets become more uncertain, climate pressures increase and farming continues to evolve, collective ownership may become even more valuable than it has been in the past. That's one of the many topics explored in this follow-up Co-op Leader Conversations episode, where our panel answers audience questions that couldn't be covered during the live 2026 Primary Industries NZ Summit session. Panelists: Bruce Wills, Chair Ravensdown; Anna Nelson; Chair Silver Fern Farms Co-operative and Simon Tucker, Group Director Global External Affairs, Fonterra.

E23

Aug 20, 2026

43:32

Co-op Leader Conversation: Mike O'Connor, Managing Director O'Connor Partners

Capital for a cooperative future Explore the unique capital challenges facing cooperative businesses in this Co-op Leader Conversations episode with Mike O'Connor, Managing Director of O'Connor Partners. Learn why cooperative capital is fundamentally different from investor-owned companies; what directors should consider for long-term success; the risks of adopting corporate approaches and how boards can protect member purpose while investing for the future.

E22

Jul 22, 2026

29:26

Co-op Leader Conversation: Professor Dionne Pohler and Dr Marc-Andre Pigeon

Leading cooperative scholars Professor Dionne Pohler and Dr Marc-Andre Pigeon discuss what enables co-operatives to thrive across generations, exploring governance, capital, member engagement and the leadership practices that help member-owned businesses remain relevant, resilient and future-focused.

E21

Jun 19, 2026

54:39

Co-op Leader Conversation: Carl Taylor, CEO Combined Building Supplies Cooperative

Carl Taylor discusses how a small group of builders created a rapidly growing cooperative that now supports more than 2,100 building trade members in New Zealand and Australia through collective buying power, advocacy, member ownership and consistent storytelling.

E20

May 10, 2026

27:32

Co-op Leader Conversation: Susannah Batley, GM, Sharesies Business

Susannah Batley of Sharesies Business discusses how technology is reshaping the co-operative ownership experience, from shareholder communication and mobile-first access to liquidity, succession and long-term member engagement.

E19

Mar 30, 2026

32:32

Co-op Leader Conversation: Norman Woods, CEO HRV

HRV is New Zealand’s leading home ventilation system and a household name, with more than 500,000 New Zealanders living in a home with at least one HRV product. In this episode of Co-op Leader Conversations, we speak with CEO Norman Woods about why this established Kiwi business chose to convert from a traditional company structure to a co-operative — and what that ownership shift means for its future.

E18

Feb 24, 2026

31:11

Co-op Leader Conversation: Liz Thomas, Managing Director Common Equity Housing Ltd

What New Zealand could learn from Australia’s housing co-ops. Australia’s CEHL proves housing co-ops can scale: a specialist owner (CEHL) holds the assets; local co-ops govern and manage; rents sit around social-housing affordability settings; and registration gives lenders comfort. New Zealand’s blockers are known - no dedicated tenure, immature lender products, and land access -so the question isn’t if housing co-ops work, but when we’ll let them. Liz Thomas walks us through the playbook.

E17

Nov 19, 2025

43:43

Co-op Leader Conversation: Craig Erasmus, CEO Seasonal Solutions Cooperative

Seasonal Solutions co-op was one of the founding entities of the current RSE scheme, and brings in over 1,100 seasonal workers each year to share labour across its diverse members. The co-op has recently worked through a multi-year shareholder-member engagement and share buy-back process. Craig describes their approach and the resulting benefits they are now experiencing as a co-op.

E16

Jun 8, 2025

32:09

Co-op Leader Conversation: Luc Vanoirbeek, General Secretary, Verbond van Belgische Tuinbouwcooperaties (VBT)

Listen as Luc explores in detail the drivers of change in Belgian horticultural cooperatives over his 35+ year career. We learn the striking similarities between co-ops in Belgium and New Zealand.

E15

May 21, 2025

42:25

Co-op Leader Conversation: Professor Murray Fulton, Fellow in Cooperatives and Public Policy, University of Saskatchewan

Listen as we explore lead indicators for cooperative success and failure; the role of a cooperative board in keeping focus; the differences in capital requirements of co-ops and investor owned firms and how to keep co-ops thriving for the coming decades. Professor Fulton references his research paper published on the Centre for the Study of Co-operatives at the University of Saskatchewan, linked here 'When big co-ops fail'. Also mentioned, Canadian co-op Federated Co-operatives Limited.

E14

Apr 4, 2025

35:25

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