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to our catalogue of services, working alongside appropriately skilled partners. Leadership Continuing to use Symphony as the strategy to deliver a new energy future vision has led us to implement a new approach to working across the Group. Under our new model, we draw on the power of cross- functional team-based collaboration to prioritise and achieve our business goals. In the past year, we have commenced our evolution towards a new operating model where employees are better supported to succeed personally, professionally and through business performance. This way of working has already fostered the development of new technical skills throughout our workforce, opened career pathways and released new ways of thinking that support our direction as a business and the sort of culture we aspire to. In August 2019, we were pleased to be awarded the Empowerment, Diversability and overall Supreme Award at the Diversity Works Awards for our commitment to building an inclusive and supportive workplace culture. For the Supreme Award, Vector was chosen from 36 other entrants and 76 entries across nine categories. This is the second time we have won the Supreme Award, the first being in 2015.
responsibility to deliver essential services at affordable prices for customers. We firmly believe that our Symphony strategy is the right one for us as we strive towards our vision of a new energy future. As a shareholder, in the next year you can expect to see Vector to continue to execute our Symphony strategy, investing wisely to benefit customers. We will embrace change and disruption and harness innovation with a relentless commitment to improving outcomes for our customers.
In November 2019, we announced the launch of the Battery Industry Group (B.I.G), a cross-industry collaboration to design reuse and recycling solutions for large batteries, commonly found in electric vehicles or in stationary energy storage. We are also an active participant in the Aotearoa Circle, Sustainable Finance Forum, Sustainable Business Council and Climate Leaders’ Coalition. Our cultural leadership has already been recognised by other like-minded organisations, for example AWS, which appreciated the strong cultural alignment when forming our strategic alliance. Looking to tomorrow Vector is focused on managing the demands of today while preparing our people, customers and wider energy sector for the opportunities of tomorrow. We have the right talent, strategy and partners to enable us to forge ahead towards our new energy future vision. We remain committed to growing, advancing and maintaining our networks so they can continue to deliver for our customers and evolve in line with their changing energy needs and preferences. Like all businesses we will continue to experience the impact and uncertainties caused by a COVID-19 world. We remain concerned about the regulatory settings and the impact on our ability to invest. We must balance these external pressures on Vector with our
Dame Alison Paterson Chair
Simon Mackenzie Group Chief Executive
Board succession planning Succession planning is key to ensuring continuity as the business environment continues to evolve. Earlier this year Vector announced our Deputy Chair, Jonathan Mason, will take over from our Chair, Dame Alison Paterson – who has made the decision to retire at our upcoming annual meeting on 25 September 2020. The Board is deeply thankful to Dame Alison for 13 years of outstanding service on Vector’s Board, including the past two years serving as our Chair. Her achievements and standing within both Vector and New Zealand’s wider business community are unparalleled. While we are reluctant to farewell Dame Alison, the Board acknowledges it is fortunate to have a director of Jonathan’s calibre ready to take up the position of Chair in September. Jonathan joined Vector as a non-executive director in 2013, bringing with him extensive experience in the energy and financial services sectors. He has a strong governance background that includes directorships on the boards of leading companies, such as Air New Zealand, Zespri and Westpac New Zealand. We look forward to welcoming Jonathan as he takes the reins from Dame Alison to continue the Board’s work supporting Vector’s Symphony strategy and enabling our vision to create a new energy future.
CHAIR AND GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE REPORT
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