Te Tira Whakamātaki is pleased to announce that Shaun Neeley is joining their social enterprise as Trustee. 

Mr Neeley will join Mr Alby Marsh and Ms Kiri Hurunui to the organisation recently granted charitable status.

Shaun (Ngāi Tahu) grew up on a dairy farm in the Northland region of Aotearoa New Zealand and has spent most of his working life involved with the agricultural industry in the South Island. From self-employment through to managing large scale corporate agribusinesses, Shaun has been involved in business leadership for the past 15 years. In his current role he has led the largest conversion of dairy farmland to organic certification in New Zealand. Shaun is committed to agricultural practices that promote environmental restoration and protection, and is dedicated to developing the skills of his people.

Prior to taking on the position of General Manager with Aquila Sustainable Farming, Shaun was CEO of Fortuna Group, a large Southland based corporate dairy farming business.

In 2012 Shaun pursued an Executive MBA with Massey University where he developed strengths and interests in finance, economics, organisational behaviour and strategy.

Over the past four years Shaun has been developing his governance experience and has held board positions on a number of agribusinesses and not for profits.

Shaun is a member of the Institute of Directors and is passionate about the importance of effective governance.

Te Tira Whakamātaki CEO and co-founder Melanie Mark-Shadbolt says “Shaun is a swift and confident decision maker who is solution-focused. He is a very capable strategic thinker and I look forward to working alongside him and introducing our community, our network and our members to this very skilled and talented tane”.