Values in Action (Wellington) - Culture Masterclass (BPTW™, Business Central & Unstoppable Force)
A full day interactive values and culture workshop
Brought to you by Best Places to Work™ (BPTW™) and Business Central, in partnership with Unstoppable Force.
Learn from the leaders behind some of New Zealand's exceptional workplace cultures.
What does it take to build a culture where people can perform at their best, values are lived, and performance follows?
This immersive full-day masterclass is designed for business owners, CEOs, executives and People & Culture leaders who want to take a more intentional approach to building culture.
Join leaders from Beca, Sharesies, and Visir AI as they share how they have built, sustained and evolved culture in organisations at very different stages of growth. From a large, established organisation, to a fast-growing start-up, to a remote-first technology business, you'll gain meaningful insights into how culture is shaped through leadership, communication and everyday behaviours.
Throughout the day you'll hear honest stories, practical lessons, and real examples of what has worked, what they've learned, and the challenges they've navigated along the way.
Hear from organisations putting values into practice
Sharesies
How do your values evolve as your organisation grows? Anna Liumaihetau Darling will share how values have guided Sharesies from start-up through growth, helping shape leadership, decision-making and culture as the organisation has evolved.
Beca
How do you embed values across a large, complex organisation? Sharon Durno will share how Beca has established, maintained and evolved its values across multiple offices and diverse teams, creating consistency while empowering teams to make those values their own.
Visir AI
How do you create connection when your team rarely shares the same office? Susie Witehira will explore how Visir AI has intentionally built trust, belonging and culture in a remote-first organisation, while supporting multiple generations and new ways of working.
These presentations will come together in an interactive panel discussion, where our guest speakers will share honest reflections on the challenges, successes and lessons they've learned in bringing values to life within their organisations.
Turning insights into action
Facilitating the day is leadership specialist Stew Darling from Unstoppable Force.
Rather than simply listening to presentations, Stew will guide you through interactive workshops, hands-on exercises and facilitated discussions that help you apply the learning directly to your own organisation.
You'll explore:
How values influence behaviour, communication and decision making.
How to build values that are lived, not just written.
The role of communication and body language in building trust and accountability.
How to create stronger alignment between culture and business performance.
How to facilitate meaningful conversations with your own team.
You'll also take part in The Unstoppable Challenge, where you'll bring a real workplace or leadership challenge and work alongside other senior leaders to develop practical, values-led solutions you can implement immediately.
Whether you're strengthening an existing culture or navigating growth and change, you'll leave with practical tools, fresh perspectives and actionable ideas from organisations that are leading the way, and a clear framework for putting those ideas into practice within your own team.
Agenda
- 8:00 am
Registrations and Light Breakfast
Food and drink provided
- 8:30 am
Introduction and Keynote
- 9:30 am
Panel Introduction
- 10:30 am
Morning Tea
Refreshments provided
- 10:50 am
Values Workshop
- 12:00 pm
Lunch
Food and drink provided
- 12:45 pm
Welcome Back
- 1:05 pm
Panel Session
- 2:00 pm
Afternoon Tea Break
- 2:20 pm
Body Language Workshop
- 3:15 pm
Your Unstoppable Challenge
- 4:00 pm
Wrap Up and Networking
- 4:30 pm
Finish
Your Facilitator
Stew Darling (Unstoppable Force)
Stew Darling is a strategic partner to founders, CEOs, and senior leaders operating in high-stakes environments. Before entering business, Stew spent more than 20 years in military intelligence, leading covert operations and advising governments on risk, resilience, and leadership under pressure. He briefed prime ministers, advised the United States Senate, and worked alongside and commanded elite international teams where clarity, discipline, and trust were non-negotiable. Today, he works privately with a select group of leaders navigating growth, complexity, and decision-making at scale. His work is focused on one thing: becoming more unreasonable. Stew is the founder of Unstoppable Force and author of the books Lead through Life, Unstoppable: Living Beyond Our Limits, and The Unreasonable CEO.
Speakers
Anna Liumaihetau Darling (GM - People Experience, Sharesies)
Anna is an HR leader with 15 years’ experience across the public and private sectors in Aotearoa New Zealand and the UK. She has spent the past ~6 years at Sharesies, supporting its growth from a small startup to where it is today. Her work centres on human-centred design, creating meaningful employee experiences and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion, with a strong focus on increasing Māori and Pasifika representation in tech and leadership, drawing on her background in growing women’s rugby in Aotearoa.
Sharon Durno (Senior Infrastructure & Project Delivery Lead, Beca)
Sharon is a senior infrastructure and project delivery leader with over 25 years’ experience across engineering, construction and public‑sector delivery. As Manager - Project & Programme Management at Beca for Central, Waikato and Bay of Plenty, she leads a talented team of 50 professionals delivering complex infrastructure projects that support communities and regional growth. Known for her open, people‑centred leadership style, Sharon leads with trust and teamwork, creating diverse, inclusive and high‑performing teams. Shaped by deep experience across procurement, construction and contracting, and by strong community roots, she is passionate about developing people and strengthening the future of the profession.
Susie Witehira (Senior Delivery Lead, Visir AI)
Susie is currently the Senior Delivery Lead at Visir AI Limited, where she helps lead the end-to-end delivery of complex software and AI projects, while also shaping the delivery processes and ways of working for a fast growing, remote-first start up. Her role sits at the intersection of people, technology and customer outcomes, requiring strong communication, clear structure and an intentional culture that enables teams to do their best work, regardless of where they are based. Her leadership approach is grounded in empathy, accountability and servant leadership.
Access
We're committed to providing an inclusive space for all. Our rooms are wheelchair accessible, and there's an accessible toilet available on a nearby floor. Please let us know if you have any specific accessibility needs.
Getting here
You'll find us in the NTT Tower in Midland Park. We're easy to get to, no matter how you prefer to travel:
Public Transport: We’re a 1-minute walk from the Lambton Central bus stop, and a 7-minute walk from the Wellington Train station.
On-street parking is available in the surrounding area, and we have a Wilson Car Park within NTT Tower that’s accessible from Waring Taylor Street. Though paid parking is normally available, we cannot guarantee it.
Bike racks are available around the edges of Midland Park
Tickets for good, not greed Humanitix dedicates 100% of profits from booking fees to charity
