The 76th Annual General Meeting of Civil Contractors New Zealand was held on 30 July as an online meeting streamed live from the boardroom at CCNZ headquarters in Margan House. It was the first time CCNZ has held an AGM online.
This AGM saw Tony Pike from Downer elected as President. Those of you who know Tony personally will know him as positive, energetic and resilient, qualities which he has brought with him to CCNZ in his time as Vice President. He has been on the Executive Council since CCNZ was formed in 2014, and has contributed a lot to the organisation already. For those of you looking to find out more about Tony, you may want to read his profile from the latest edition of Contractor Magazine.
"As you develop in your career, the wider industry becomes more important to you. It's a real privilege to be in the role, and I think we've moved into quite a solid position over the past few years," Tony said during his acceptance speech at the AGM.
"With a challenging couple of years ahead, it's going to be really important that we can be consistent and represent the full range of our members to make sure we're a healthy industry. I'd like to thank Tim for his leadership as well. He has done a great job through a rocky time."
Tony replaces Tim Ford, who will continue to serve on the Executive Council as the immediate Past President. In stepping down, Tim commented on the ongoing change CCNZ was going through, and how proud he was that the team had been able to respond rapidly to support the industry when COVID-19 struck.
"CCNZ is more resilient and agile and has moved with the times, now communicating through webinars, on-line meetings, websites, and social media platforms. Our increased media and advocacy efforts mean we are recognised as the authoritative, credible voice of industry."
Bailey Gair from family business Gair Contracting in Hawke's Bay has stepped into the role of Vice President. Bailey is the first woman to hold the office of Vice President in our 76-year history, and brings both and SME and regional perspective to the role.
"Coming from a regional SME background, I've found CCNZ invaluable for myself and our business in terms of the information we're getting from across the industry, the upskilling and the networking. I look forward to working with Tony and everyone else to support the industry over the next couple of years," she said.
Mark Evans from HEB Construction in Auckland and David Howard from Construction Contracts Ltd in Wellington were both re-elected, while Paul Bisset of Whitestone Contractors from Otago was elected to the Executive Council as its newest representative.
CCNZ Past President Brian Warren is leaving the Executive Council after many years of involvement since long before the Roading New Zealand and Contractors Federation merger.
Brian has left a fantastic legacy, including stable Civil Trades apprenticeship pathways, the EPIC Careers in Infrastructure platform and much more.
He said he would miss the cameraderie and interaction he had experienced in his time on the Executive Council. He was especially proud that CCNZ had been able build momentum and unify the civil construction industry with a single voice.
"The heartening thing is that we've now got one voice that's truly representative of the industry.
"We've been through some blimming tough times, and come through remarkably well. I think it's a great reflection that we have had increased membership at a time when businesses are dealing with something like covid, with and it just goes to show the value."
Brian Warren will continue to support the industry as Chair of Connexis ITO.