Troy Rawhiti-Connell Email & Phone Number

Northcote, Auckland, New Zealand

Te Warewhare is proud to have Aotearoa as its home court, and my role is to help our business belong at home, to champion our home, and to be welcoming to all in a way that only we can do.In acknowledgement of our development in te ao Māori I was appointed Pou Whakawhanake Māori/Māori Development Lead to continue leading our work in this space. Building on the earlier strategic development work and identifying the areas of opportunity and continuity across the different areas of our business, I have focused on the key areas of product development, marketing and communications, team and culture, and executive support.This has included the continued encouragement of the learning and use of everyday reo by our team of 12,000 to our customers, stakeholders and industry partners; work on organisational culture; team and customer experience improvement; product created with authentic Māori design whakapapa and ethos, and commercial partnership/strategy work.

When The Warehouse Group turned to Agile in 2020 I was appointed as the first Chapter Lead, guiding the development and work of a team of art directors, graphic designers, and copywriters. By 2021 this role had expanded to include photo studio team members with skills including studio management, photography, video and online motion content, and social agency/influencer relationship management.I also worked alongside them as senior copywriter, as a link to stakeholders across the business and into our supporting agencies, and as creative lead on The Warehouse and Warehouse Stationery.My personal outputs ranged from top-tier nationwide campaigns to quick one-off creative executions, as well as countless advisories and deliveries across our wider business - from app user journies to employment contract documentation and recruitment advertisements.I also played, and continue to play, the role of Hana Kōkō/Santa Claus during Te Warewhare's famous "A Kōrero with Santa" Facebook Live events each December. This is but one of the ways in which the business' efforts to increase its use of everyday reo Māori was at the fore.In addition I began to ramp up and refine our process and delivery of te reo Māori across our private label (own brand) products and packaging, assist senior leadership on their tikanga Māori learning journeys, and in 2022 began work on our business' Māori strategy. This work would be the basis of my role switch in 2024, away from leading our creative team to leading our business' development in te ao Māori.

Auckland, New Zealand

Copywriting and language leadership, mainly in English and in growing amounts of te reo Māori, for a stable of leading New Zealand retail brands, and their parent company. I help set the tone, mentor our staff, guide our executives, and spend time on the tools myself.New skills I developed along the way include TV and promo video scriptwriting and storyboarding, radio scriptwriting, and directing voice artists for broadcast and digital content.Within a year, I was creative-directing nationwide marketing campaigns either as lead or in support of a senior art director, including the highly impactful (and, at least once, imitated) Cosy winter campaign for Te Warewhare which had staying power with customers and the market from its debut in 2019 through the peak years of COVID.All up, I supported the delivery of omnichannel marketing campaigns, corporate communications and citizenship initiatives, executive presentations, b2b comms, social community management, digital marketing, e-commerce, and much more.I co-authored two brand books for the group’s retail family, and provide copy, brand, and marketing coaching to the executive team, peers, and team members.The role concluded in 2020 when I was appointed the new leader of the creative team during the Agile restructure.

Auckland, New Zealand

I looked after brand communications strategy (copywriting, tone of voice, execution, and more) for The Warehouse Group and its subsidiaries: The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery, Noel Leeming, and Torpedo 7.My main areas of focus were corporate sustainability and citizenship programmes, plus support for all four brands - mainly The Warehouse and Warehouse Stationery. The tester brand, Purple School, also figured strongly in my work.

Auckland, New Zealand

A founding member of the Newsroom journalism site, I acted as a digital news editor and look after all engagement channels, from social media to the daily briefing email.I successfully guided the site’s audience growth to its first-year target four months ahead of schedule, and developed a social brand for Newsroom based on clear identity, strong social copy, and readers’ appetites for seeing and sharing quality journalism. This resulted in trend-bucking social traffic for Newsroom.I advised the managing editors and commercial teams on content and comms strategy. I ran the site's analytics programme, feeding insights to the company directors, commercial partners, and other key stakeholders. I provided guidance to Newsroom's journalists and, last but not least, I wrote for the site.My input was key to Newsroom’s selection as Website of the Year (joint with Stuff) at the Voyager Media Awards 2018.

Auckland, New Zealand

One title, one head, and a whole bunch of hats. I was a leading social media strategist, and I set the general tone of voice for this resurgent business and its new brand, - making sure Spark was being Spark in any marketing channel and customer interaction.What else? Digital marketing, content creation and marketing, PR and risk/reputation management, internal and external comms, brand TOV and principles, and more. I also set the guiding principles and strategy of the Spark Boroughs community basketball project, and was active in numerous partner activities.

Auckland, New Zealand

Led the investigation and implementation of a new social media strategy as Telecom made its transition from being a legacy telco to Spark, a digital services company fixed on the future.This work included a dedicated, six-month online customer engagement programme in support of the rebrand, successfully bringing customers and customers-to-be on the journey.I coached the executive team, peers, and team members on social media best practice and how to develop their own engagement styles as brand ambassadors and advocates for customer-inspired action.I developed and implemented a framework for dedicated social media service, integrated with community management, social marketing, and online crisis management. This was an unprecedented service for the company, which had previously relied on a network of volunteers from across the business.

Auckland, New Zealand

On secondment from the Spark brand and comms team to Givealittle to scope, test, and implement a new strategy for digital content and social media.I also took a lead in PR, landing Givealittle stories in news media channels, and advising the team of comms strategy and language in its announcement of a new fees structure and growth ambition.

Auckland, New Zealand

I turned nzherald.co.nz's social media strategy from a broadcast plan to one of collaboration with a digital audience becoming increasingly aware of its own influence. Across a series of key domestic and international events I experimented with and improved upon social media storytelling, including critically-acclaimed coverage of the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes and 2012 west Auckland tornado, and a one-person-newsteam approach to the 2012 London Olympics incorporating traditional and new media styles.During the same tenure I also served as a reporter on a variety of rounds including sport, entertainment, and national news - particularly breaking stories.

Auckland, New Zealand

Games editor and writer for the NZ Herald, TimeOut, nzherald.co.nz, with stories syndicated in APN publications across Australasia. I have covered two E3 expos in Los Angeles, and was the sole NZ-based reporter present at the 2013 reveal of the Xbox One in Redmond, Washington.

* Ensured the nzherald.co.nz website was continually setting the pace with fresh stories and strong homepage layouts.* Worked with Herald print and digital editors and journalists to deliver the news across a variety of media.

Prepared New Zealand Herald and Herald on Sunday newspaper content for publication at nzherald.co.nz. Took on leadership of the evening content admin team and more responsibilities as my experience and skill set grew.

Providing assistance to clients and nursing staff in pyschiatric and geriatric residential inpatient wards across two public hospitals in the cities of Waitakere and North Shore, Waitemata region.

Mini Mba, Marketing, B

Te Ara Reo Māori, Levels 1 And 2: 100% Completion

Te Ara Reo Māori, Levels 3 And 4: 100% Completion

Certificate: Te Whakatapu Te Kākano Tuatahi, Te Reo Māori

Education record

Activities and Societies: Junior debating: 1995-96; Senior debating: 1996-98; Premier debating: 1999; Rugby: 1995; School drama: 1996-97.