Ō mātou tūāpapa whakahaere Our organisational foundations

Delivering our strategy will rely on many things and having the right organisational capability is essential.

Ko ō mātou Uara Manatū Whakahiato Ora he whakapuakitanga ko wai mātou, ā, me tō mātou kaupapa Our MSD Values are an expression of who we are and what we stand for

Woven into the fabric of MSD are Manaaki, Whānau, Mahi tahi and Tika me te pono – the four values that guide our behaviour. They help us to align our daily actions with a shared understanding of what should guide our behaviour. 

Manaaki

We care about the wellbeing and success of people

This design is the interconnected relationship of the organisation and the community. The koru are reflections of one another.

Whānau

We are inclusive and build belonging

The koru and puhoro are symbols of the strength of whānau and whakapapa. The mangōpare design in the middle is the common thread that binds us to Papatūānuku.

Mahi tahi

We work together, making a difference for communities

This design comes from rauru, a design that can reflect the separation of Ranginui and Papatūānuku as a result of their children working together.

Tika me te pono

We do the right thing with integrity

This design depicts a maunga, the sense of a higher purpose and responsibility of the organisation to be honest and trustworthy. The bindings of the maunga are the many threads needed to achieve this.

Ka whakapakari mātou i tō mātou uruparetanga ki te Māori We will strengthen our responsiveness to Māori

As an agency of the Crown, we are a Te Tiriti o Waitangi partner committed to supporting and enabling Māori, whānau, hapū, iwi and communities to realise their own potential and aspirations. The mission of Te Pae Tata is to embed a Māori world view into our organisation that will honour our commitment as a Te Tiriti o Waitangi partner and prioritise the needs of whānau. We will strengthen our accountability and responsiveness to Māori by placing emphasis on our guiding principles of:

Partnership – we will act reasonably, honourably and in good faith towards Māori by:

• giving effect to our Te Tiriti o Waitangi commitments
• strengthening existing relationships and seeking new opportunities to partner with Māori, whānau, hapū, iwi and communities
• collaborating with a wide range of partners to improve opportunities and outcomes for Māori.

Protection – we will recognise and provide for Māori perspectives and values and take positive steps to ensure Māori interests are protected by improving:

• services and approaches to ensure equitable access and outcomes for Māori
• policies and practices to safeguard Māori cultural concepts, values and practices
• support and the provision of advice on the contemporary claims process and kaupapa inquiries
• Māori capability and confidence. 

Participation – we will enable and support Māori to actively participate in all matters that increase their wellbeing by ensuring: 

• Māori leadership across all levels of MSD
• Māori voices are represented at all levels of MSD, including in decision-making, planning, development and delivery
• time and space for people, their whānau, hapū and iwi to be part of discussions about their needs
• an environment that nurtures reciprocity, transparency and integrity.

Ka whakahaere angitū mātou i tō mātou whakahaere We will manage our organisation effectively

We will support our people to help New Zealanders

Our People Strategy – He Korowai Manaaki – sets out the people-related actions we will carry out to deliver our key organisational strategies. The strategy provides a ‘whole-of-MSD’ view on what is needed to be successful in an ever-changing environment, how we might work in new and different ways, and what we want it to be like to work and lead people at MSD. He Korowai Manaaki is woven with four key threads. These threads are:

• Client and whānau-centred – we design our work, roles, and organisation to deliver for our clients and whānau.
• Capability-building – we have the capability to perform to our potential now and in the future.
• Leading for performance – our leaders develop and nurture people and teams to deliver high levels of performance.
• Positive experience – our people have an experience at work that enables them to reach their potential, be included, safe and well.

Interwoven through the four threads is a focus on building Māori cultural capability and supporting Pacific people to thrive. Many of our people are already knowledgeable in te ao Māori and are working with Māori in ways that are mana-enhancing. We will build more cultural capability so whānau, hapū, and iwi are confident they will receive the best possible services no matter where or how they connect with us.

We want a client and whānau-centred way of working to become part of our organisational DNA. We will do this by maturing our workforce planning capability so we can proactively build the workforce we need in the future.

Our leaders will focus on building inclusive teams where diversity, strengths and differences are valued and brought together for the success of the team. They will take a key role in building capability by embedding our Capability and Development framework, Te ara piki. 

We will continue to provide everyone with a positive work experience which enables them to be safe, well and reach their potential at MSD. 

We will keep growing constructive relationships with our employees and their unions.

We will look after the health, safety and security of our people, clients and the public

We are committed to providing the resources, training and physical working environments that support the health, safety and security of our people and those we work with.

We will support the mental health and wellbeing of our staff by:

• continuing to enhance our mental health training
• building the capability of managers
• better equipping staff with skills to look after themselves and their colleagues
• improving and expanding long-standing initiatives that support staff, including our peer support network.

We will continue deploying a new model for our public facing sites to enhance the safety and security of our service centres. This balances ease of access and delivering a positive experience with ensuring our staff and the people we work with are safe. We will embed and improve changes to our health, safety and security reporting system to ensure it remains fit-for-purpose and supports MSD to continue to meet its legislative responsibilities.

We will manage risk in a challenging environment

We work in an environment of ongoing change which provides both opportunities and challenges in terms of delivering services and meeting the expectations of our clients, the Government and the public. Good risk management and a strong control environment are key factors in navigating the changing environment in which we operate.

We will continue to support our people to make balanced decisions, taking risks into account and establishing controls, so that as an organisation we can take advantage of opportunities while managing their associated risks. This will provide ongoing assurance that the key systems and processes we rely on to deliver our services and safeguard our people are operating effectively and efficiently.

We will support strong decision-making through governance

Our governance arrangements support strong stewardship, enabling delivery of our strategy and ensuring we are focused on our purpose. 

Our primary governance body is the Leadership Team, comprising our Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executives. The Leadership Team is responsible for setting our strategic direction, driving organisational performance, overseeing organisational risk and assurance and leading a positive culture. The Leadership Team is supported by the Organisational Health Committee and the Transformation and Investment Committee, which are led by members of the Leadership Team and include senior leaders from across the organisation. 

Our Chief Executive is supported by three independent advisory groups consisting of external members. The Risk and Audit Committee provides advice to the Chief Executive on risk assurance and auditing requirements for MSD. The Chief Executive is also supported by the Māori Reference Group and Pacific Reference Group, who provide a strategic reference point and advice on matters impacting and relating to the wellbeing of Māori and Pacific peoples, whānau, families and communities.

We will enable our people, partners and New Zealanders with effective digital technologies

Our technology needs to deliver an improved and expanded digital experience for staff and clients, better access for our partners, and enable better insights to support improved outcomes for clients and their whānau.

We will establish and mature our core foundations, including cloud platform services, improving system security, enabling digital access to services, improved integration between systems, improving access to, and use of, data and information, and simplifying our business processes. 

We will continue to ensure the services we provide operate reliably and securely, and that we can react to changing requirements placed on MSD due to crisis events, the expectations of Government and our clients. 

We will use data, analytics and information to make the right decisions for New Zealanders

Effective use of data, analytics and information supports better decisions and better outcomes for New Zealanders. We will focus on building our clients’ trust in the security and integrity of the information we hold – treating information as taonga. High-quality insights will direct investment to where it will make the greatest difference for New Zealanders. Our insights will be easily accessible for those who need it, including partners where appropriate, and specific to the unique needs of people and whānau.

We will continue embedding the Privacy, Human Rights and Ethics (PHRaE) framework into our information management, system design, and privacy and security processes. This will ensure we are open, transparent and responsible stewards of client information. 

We are also committed to working alongside Stats NZ, as it progresses the Mana Ōrite Relationship Agreement, working together with Māori to realise the potential of data to make a positive difference to outcomes for iwi, hapū and whānau.

We will enable smarter investment and asset management

We are committed to prioritising the services and opportunities that provide the greatest benefit to New Zealanders and align to our strategic direction, while working within our existing baseline allocations.

We will maintain the suitability and availability of assets through strong asset management practice and performance monitoring. This is essential to optimising the value of our significant asset portfolio. This will include asset management planning at strategic and operational levels and a structured approach to assessing the condition and performance of our assets with a strong base of reliable asset information.

We will continue to strengthen our commercial operations

As our organisation transforms, we will need to respond to increasing demands for commercial operations support. This will require developing our commercial operations systems, processes and people through a series of initiatives. We will:

• continue to mature our procurement and commercial services
• ensure our processes focus on collaboration, planning and outcomes
• continue to embed broader social outcomes within our procurement including increasing procurement with Māori providers
• implement a supplier relationship management framework
• ensure our service centres and offices support evolving ways of working, meet our increased security and new building safety requirements, and environmental standards
• explore resilient regional workspaces through co-location and collaboration with other agencies
• continue implementing a new finance system to provide both frontline and back office staff with better core financial information.

We will reduce our carbon emissions and introduce more sustainable practices

As part of the Carbon Neutral Government Programme, we are working to identify, measure and reduce emissions with the goal of becoming carbon neutral. We believe that by reducing our emissions and introducing more sustainable practices we contribute to better outcomes for New Zealanders and New Zealand generally. We are transitioning to an electric vehicle fleet and making sure we have optimised the number and type of vehicles we need to continue our mahi.

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