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Southland Leadership academy
The Southland Leadership Academy is designed to inspire and develop leaders across the region. It offers an engaging platform for participants to strengthen leadership skills through personal growth, experiential learning, and insights from accomplished business leaders.
Since the programme began, the Academy has been delivered across Southland, including Invercargill, Te Anau, Edendale, Gore, Lumsden, Otautau, and Stewart Island/ Rakiura. In 2025, we’re excited to host two intakes in Invercargill, and one in Edendale.
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Why join the Southland Leadership Academy?
This programme offers a valuable opportunity to:
- Strengthen your leadership capabilities through self-reflection and learning from others
- Gain practical insights directly from senior executives of leading Southland-Otago businesses and organisations
- Understand what it takes to lead, both within your organisation and in the broader business community
- Build meaningful connections with presenters and fellow participants, forming relationships that extend beyond the programme.
Who should attend?
The Academy is designed for individuals who are:
- Passionate about developing their leadership skills
- Aspiring to take on senior leadership roles or governance positions.
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What you’ll gain.
By the end of the programme, participants will:
- Be better equipped to lead with confidence and clarity
- Develop a strong understanding of the demands and expectations of leadership
- Build valuable connections within the local business community.
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A legacy of leadership.
Graduates of the programme are invited to join the exclusive Southland Leadership Academy Alumni, a vibrant network of leaders. This transformational experience goes beyond learning – it’s about realising your potential as a leader and making a meaningful impact on the Southland business community.
Meet our Inspirers Inspirers
Alumni testimonials, real words real impact rave reviews
The presenters were high quality, extremely interesting and very approachable - you left each week feeling invigorated and with more strings to your bow. Fantastic initiative and a definite must for the current and future leaders. Debbie Hodges
General Manager - E Hayes & Sons
A highly valuable course, well worth the investment! Awesome opportunity to learn from and be challenged by highly effective leaders while forming connections with likeminded people. I would highly recommend to anyone who wants to challenge themselves. Alexis Wadworth
Bank of New Zealand
The opportunity to upskill, challenge my thinking and meet like-minded people from different industries was invaluable. I quickly realised that all leaders have the same challenges and the course content was very relevant to our business. I highly recommend the Academy. Peter Bruce
Senior Operations Manager - Fortuna Group
An amazing eight weeks. Being able to hear leadership stories, learning and reflections from amazing leaders was a true privilege with so many takeaways. A must do investment for any organisation to support your leaders to lift their gaze and grow and strengthen their skillset. Dave Gibbs
Regional Manager - Graeme Dingle Foundation Southland
We were provided with excellent speakers, all of whom shared their wisdom openly. Strongly recommend this short course to anyone wanting to imrprove their leadership skills. Lindsay Bowmar
Southland Regional Manager - Calder Stewart
The Academy allowed me to challenge the status quo and utlise real life stories to learn valuable leadership learnings. Being in the rural sector it has widened my connections and networks. A great programme. Olivia Ross
Extension Manager - Beef + Lamb New Zealand
A fantastic interactive group of sessions with likeminded people from other industries. It's great to hear from local leaders to see what they do and what ideas farmers can grab to add value to their businesses. Tim Driscoll
Director - Southland Development Dairy Trust
We are extremely lucky to have so many people in senior leadership and governance roles willing to share their experiences and advice to help others navigate their career journeys. The high calibre of those leaders ensures plenty of learning and lightbulb moments that you can then take and put into practise immediately in your day-to-day role.
This is a unique opportunity to spend time with talented, successful, and motivated leaders in our community and hear direct from them.
Carla Harper
Support available
– Regional Business Partner (RBP) Management Capability Development Fund
The Southland Leadership Academy is registered with the RBP Management Capability Development Fund.
Small and medium sized businesses may qualify for this funding to help pay for services such as training workshops and courses that build the management capabilities of their owners and key decision making managers.
To explore if your business is eligible for support contact your local Regional Business Growth Advisor at business@greatsouth.nz or register your business here.
– Community Trust South Leadership Scholarship
Participants from not for profit organisations are invited to apply for a Community Trust South Leadership Scholarship. For more information and online application visit www.communitytrustsouth.nz
Exclusive Alumni experiences
Leadership Academy Alumni benefit from attending exclusive opportunities for ongoing personal development and connection, including Thought Leadership panels, engaging discussions on leadership challenges and emerging trends, and guest speaker sessions.
Governance Internship Programme
Recognising the pivotal role governance plays in business, we launched the Governance Internship Programme in 2019. This initiative provides Southland Leadership Academy Alumni with a unique opportunity to gain hands-on board experience, fostering the development of governance capabilities, knowledge, and skills.
Southland Youth Leadership Academy
Launched in 2024, the Southland Youth Leadership Academy (SYLA) is a transformative initiative designed to harness the leadership potential of Southland youth. By developing leadership and governance skills, SYLA empowers participants to thrive both personally and professionally, preparing them to make a meaningful impact in their lives, communities, and beyond.
Empowering through partnership
We’re grateful to our Inspirers and their organisations for supporting Southlanders on their leadership journey.
