A true inspiration: hubergroup New Zealand’s mentoring programme
“A mentor is someone who sees more talent and ability within you, than you see in yourself, and helps bring it out of you”, says author Bob Proctor. And this is exactly what hubergroup New Zealand did: establishing a mentoring programme for young people, whose road in life has not always been easy, and helping to bring out the best in them.
Though how did this idea come to life? Generally, as one of the leading printing ink specialists and raw material manufacturers worldwide, we do not only offer the whole range of modern ink products as well as the raw and auxiliary materials, but most importantly we put a whole lot of love, passion and commitment into our projects and tasks.
This love and commitment go far beyond projects that only foster our own economic success: We thrive on supporting individuals, communities, and charity projects that improve the lives of those who are facing all kinds of difficulties.
In some cases, we have the great privilege to directly work together and support those in need. A great example of this is hubergroup New Zealand, where Kevin Tapatuetoa, Production Manager, and Arthur Lenssen, General Manager, instigated a mentoring programme late in 2021. Their aim was (and still is) to create an opportunity for disadvantaged adolescents to experience an environment in which they are surrounded by positive role models. An environment, where success is celebrated and mistakes are seen as learning opportunities.
The mentoring programme teaches discipline, confidence, personal growth, and self-respect, e.g., by hosting fitness and boxing classes. And it goes beyond the physical/fitness support: It also provides meaningful, paid, part-time employment whilst encouraging academic achievement via Tikanga Māori (which is a Māori concept incorporating practices and values from Māori knowledge) and academic achievement in the school curriculum.
Its first graduate, Peter, is meanwhile working at the New Zealand Defence Force. Kevin Tapatuetoa says: “It has been a great privilege for everyone working on the programme to bear witness to Peter’s journey.”
hubergroup New Zealand is recognised through the print community and beyond for being very active and visible in the community, having raised over $15,000 NZD last year to help community projects and international charity work.
hubergroup’s vision of corporate responsibility does not only focus on our products and customers but encompasses our staff, environment, and community well-being. Our goal is for the hubergroup brand to be recognised as a business partner that customers want to have on board. This recently paid dividends when hubergroup New Zealand won a major contract in the newspaper industry in December 2022.