Students and business leaders connect via Shadow a Leader
Posted on July 09, 2021
Three Macleans College Year 13 students were selected to participate in Shadow a Leader, an initiative of AUT’s Faculty of Business, Economics and Law.
The programme gives Auckland secondary school students the opportunity to follow an industry leader for a day. Students are provided with invaluable insights into how business leaders work in the professional world and the skills and attributes required to navigate a successful career in their chosen field.
This year 59 businesses and 43 schools across Auckland took part in connecting 80 students with senior business leaders.
Sophia Lim (Snell House) joined Mike Marr, the CEO of the TPT Group. The TPT Group is a privately held investment company with a focus on the growth and development of a portfolio of entities. The group consists of nine businesses, with many of these focused on technology and future innovative products. Throughout the day, Sophia got the opportunity to immerse herself in CEO life, asking questions, learning about leadership, management, and what it takes to grow a great group of businesses.
Grace Yau (Batten) was given the opportunity to follow around Strahan Wallis, CEO of the global public relations and media group, Clemenger Group. Clemenger Group works with major corporations both within New Zealand and overseas. Notable clients in New Zealand include Spark, Heineken and the Government during COVID-19, where Clemenger’s Wellington office was responsible for all COVID related communications. It was a great experience and Grace was able to immerse herself in corporate life for a day through asking the CEO questions and joining the CFO in one of his meetings.
Shaheer Rizwan (Upham) joined Vanessa Syme in MinterEllisonRuddWatts, a Law firm full of remarkable leaders and solicitors. The most interesting aspect for Shaheer was how much significance the corporate culture was treated with, creating a safe and helping environment for lawyers of all ages to grow and prosper. Shaheer had the opportunity to experience an ongoing case inside the Auckland High Court, along with numerous Q/A sessions with junior lawyers for an exciting and informative evening. The highlight was a meeting with one of the CEOs of MinterEllisonRuddWatts. Shaheer was treated with a passionate discussion of ‘inspiring change’ with the CEO.
