Advancing Pacific workforce opportunities

Hana Seumanu is our new Pacific Partnerships Manager at Waihanga Ara Rau in the Engagement & Partnerships team.  She's excited and humbled to take on this new role as she feels it was a natural progression in her career malaga (journey), and the timing was right. 

Hana is of Samoan heritage and a former ‘Westie’ as she was born and raised in West Auckland.  She made a significant career choice to relocate to Wellington 18 months ago for more workforce development and planning opportunities in both the public and private sectors. Hana’s parents are both Samoan, her father is from Vaiusu (Faleata, Upolu), and her mother hails from Fatausi (Safotulafai, Savai’i). 

Playing a part in ensuring that Pacific people prosper in the workforce is a role that Hana takes seriously, and she believes that Aotearoa will prosper as a result.  She’s excited to work collaboratively with her team and learn from the combined and harnessed expertise to help bring everyone on the journey for Pacific success.  She'll be overseeing the skills development pipeline and acting as a catalyst and conduit between industry and employer demands, and what Pacific learners need from their learning experiences.  

Hana will be engaging closely with Pasifika communities, industry stakeholders, employers and training providers. She knows it's a huge job, even though she'll work with a select group of industries, including power, water, infrastructure, and construction. She's excited about this role as she believes these industries hold huge opportunities for Pacific people who may not want to transition to the typical university pathway. For instance, Pasifika have the potential to make a good living from owning their own businesses, being a successful tradie or climbing the leadership ladder, but Hana believes that Pacific communities are simply not aware of the opportunities on offer. She's excited to partner closely with key industry associations and business owners around these respective industries, especially with the anticipated housing projects in certain regions.