Shay Wright – Enterprise Impact Award Winner 2019

On July 27th, 2019, Shay Wright became the inaugural winner of the Impact Award for Enterprise. Launched by the team at Inspiring Stories, The Impact Awards celebrates young New Zealanders making a difference with $20,000 awarded across four categories – climate, enterprise, inclusion and wellbeing.

The Impact Award for Enterprise recognises young New Zealanders demonstrating leadership and taking action through enterprise, harnessing the power of business to create better social and/or environmental outcomes. Shay co-founded Te Whare Hukahuka, or ‘House of Innovation’, a social enterprise that helps indigenous leaders to grow world-class enterprises and create thriving communities. They do this through training, business development, and connecting individuals to funding opportunities.

The inaugural Impact Awards attracted 200 applicants from 12 regions across New Zealand. The Awards Ceremony took place on the Saturday night during the weekend of Festival for the Future 2019, and attracted 400 guests, including CEO’s and senior leaders from business and government, as well as young people and finalists from across the nation. We caught up with Shay to hear more about his experience…

Pictured from left: Guy Ryan, CEO & Founder of Inspiring Stories and The Impact Awards; Jacinta Gulasekharam – winner of the Evolve Leadership Summit scholarship; Shaquille Shortland, CEO of Tuapapa Māori Language Academy & Consultancy – winner of the Inclusion Award; Sophie Handford, National Coordinator School Strikes 4 Climate – winner of the Climate Award; Jazz Thornton, CEO of Voices of Hope – winner of the Wellbeing Award; and Shay Wright – Co-founder of Te Whare Hukahuka – winner of the Impact Award for Enterprise

Q: Let’s rewind to the Awards Ceremony – what was it like? 

A: The Awards Ceremony was great. It really showed the energy and drive that young people have for making positive change, and creating enterprises and projects that can scale. It wasn’t just about celebrating the winners, but everyone – working to achieve good things for our nation and beyond.

Q: What went through your head when your name was called out, when you won the award?

A: I was actually quite surprised! I hadn’t really thought about it, I was just stoked to be there. I was thinking how amazing this was, but also like ‘oh man - what do I say on stage?’ 

It’s not until afterwards when you can reflect on it that you think about what it reinforces about the work you’re doing and how important that work is.

Q: What difference has winning the award has made for you?

A: The award actually provided some great profile for what we’re doing. As well as the cash prize of $5,000; receiving the award in front of everyone in the room that night, there were some tangible things that came out of it too – we all got to speak to some of New Zealand's top CEO’s as part of the Champions for Change initiative. I think it also had an influence on the contention for Young New Zealander of the Year Awards too, with Fraser, Sophie and myself also being listed as semi-finalists and finalists. 

There are many different awards for businesses and enterprises, but I think Inspiring Stories has really carved out a niche with The Impact Awards as a prestigious recognition of young people and the impact they are making.

Q: So the value of the award was more than just the cash prize?

A: Absolutely - if you have a small enterprise, a $5,000 prize can be game-changing, but it depends on the scale your enterprise. For us at Te Whare Hukahuka, $5,000 equates to just three days of wages for our core team, so it was the other things that made more impact – like the exposure, the credibility, and the opportunities that have come from it.

Q: What difference has the cash prize helped you to make?

A: The training we run through Te Whare Hukahuka often has a cost to it, so the $5,000 went into scholarships for Māori individuals who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford it. Last year as a social enterprise we gave away $194,000 in training subsidies to those that couldn’t afford it. The Impact Awards allowed us to increase access to training opportunities for rangatahi Māori. 

The Purpose of Te Whare Hukahuka is to dramatically improve the wellbeing of indigenous communities. We do this by enabling indigenous leaders to grow the world…

Q: What’s one thing that’s new with Te Whare Hukahuka?

A: Every year TWH launches a new initiative or programme. This year it is a digital technology programme to help Māori people better utilise technology to grow organisations. We have a cohort of 20, we’ll soon have another 40 start - mostly young Māori who will learn strategic skills, marketing and ecommerce skills and some of the technical stuff to them be able to have their own digital enterprises, or else be able to identify the challenges faced by different organisations, and identify how existing technology can be used to solve them or make them more efficient. 

Q: What would you say to someone who’s thinking about applying for The Impact Awards next year?

A: I would say if you feel you are making an impact in one of the categories that is being highlighted, then definitely apply for the Awards.

If someone offers to nominate you, accept it. If your team want to put in a self-nomination, go with it – because it reinforces the value of your work. The impact is not actually about you. It’s about showcasing your mission so that other young people and influencers can see what you’re doing, be inspired by it, and potentially get involved.

If you don’t feel like you’re quite ready to run for the Awards, ask yourself what ready looks like, or just keep an eye on the Awards – look at who is making the semi-finals and finals… what’s their story? What’s their enterprise model? What can you learn from them?

Q: What role do you think Inspiring Stories plays in making a difference for young New Zealanders?

A: I think Inspiring Stories plays a really important role giving young people a chance to experience something different, something bigger than what they’re used to, and something outside of their communities. I particularly like the work it does through Future Leaders, supporting young people in rural communities to build their skills and make an impact locally. That’s really needed in Aotearoa – especially in the regions. Then there are all the other initiatives – the growth and impact of Festival for the Future; the Inspiring Speakers bureau; developing a tribe of active young people and changemakers, and inspiring us all around the real potential that we can play in moving our world forward. If you look at the alumni of Inspiring Stories and the network it has grown, there’s no doubt it’s making a really tangible difference for New Zealand.