Carl Carrington - New Endeavours
Carl Carrington - New Endeavours
AS THE NEWLY APPOINTED CEO OF NEW ZEALAND KING SALMON, HOW DO YOU PLAN TO SUSTAIN THE POSITIVE PROGRESS MADE OVER THE PAST YEAR AND ENSURE THE COMPANY IS PREPARED TO CAPITALISE ON FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES?
The company has undoubtedly been through a firestorm. Firstly, I am hugely impressed with the capability, energy, and passion of our people. Their resilience in the face of the adversities experienced is quite honestly remarkable. And that puts us in a good space to build on the successful adaptions made over the past 18 months. He aha te mea nui o tea o? he tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata. (What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people, the people, the people.) One of the challenges for every aquaculture business I have seen is coping with volatility. It’s no good having a couple of good years then one or more disastrous results. It undermines investor confidence, the business’s ability to invest and of course significantly impacts our customers who depend upon our stable supply. So, a priority focus for us will be building resilience, mitigating in-so-far as practical the opportunity for shocks. Adapting how we farm some of our warmer water sites has thus far proven a successful mitigation; working with nature, staying away from periods when we can reasonably anticipate conditions will be less favourable for stable operations. But also, we need to de-risk the impacts of events such as floods, droughts, or other natural disasters. Such investments mitigate downsides but of themselves generally don’t grow earnings. So, we will also be focussed on productivity gains to help pay for investments. Stabilise and optimise the core. Solidify our base before aspiring to take on more than we can digest.
WITH THE APPROVAL OF BLUE ENDEAVOUR, WHAT ARE THE KEY STEPS AND TIMELINE YOU ENVISION FOR SUCCESSFULLY ESTABLISHING AN OPERATIONAL OPEN OCEAN FARM?
Aquaculture is a business that rewards caution and patience. There is no question that Blue Endeavour has the potential to be transformational for our business and the wider New Zealand industry. We are acutely aware that we must prove the technology, that King salmon will thrive in that water space and our footprint is as we have modelled or less. We will progressively step our way from monitoring to establish benchmark data, to pilot trials of infrastructure and small fish numbers to scaled up operation, taking measured and appropriate investment risk at each step. There are significant investments in related capabilities such as rearing smolt that are required to be made in parallel to operationalising Blue Endeavour. We are still working through the planning, choices, and funding strategies for Blue Endeavour. However, it is unlikely to be producing in the near term, rather it is central to our medium-term growth path.
IN YOUR OPINION, WHAT ARE THE ESSENTIAL QUALITIES A CEO SHOULD POSSESS TO UNIFY A COMPANY AND ACHIEVE BOTH SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM GOALS?
In aquaculture a good dose of resilience and humility is a good start. The CEO role is to lead, inspire and create the environment for people to be their best. Never think the CEO has the answer to everything – they seldom do, rather build a team of empowered subject matter experts working as one to a common ambition, understood by all. We know where we want to get in the longer term – that is pretty clear. The “how” is what we as a team will chart. And by “team” I include all our stakeholders. We must make sure we deliver consistently along the way so we can fund our growth aspirations. Hence the initial focus on building the resilience of our core. For me personally, I am flat out drinking from the fire hydrant; listen, reflect, learn.
DRAWING FROM YOUR EXPERIENCE AS CEO FOR MOANA AND YOUR CLOSE COLLABORATION WITH IWI OWNERS, WHAT INSIGHTS AND LESSONS LEARNED CAN YOU APPLY TO YOUR NEW ROLE AT NZKS?
Authentic and respectful partnerships are partnerships that last. Seek to understand before promoting any pre-conceived views.
WHAT STRATEGIES DO YOU INTEND TO EMPLOY TO GARNER PUBLIC SUPPORT AND ENGAGEMENT FOR NZKS’S INITIATIVES?
We grow one of the most nutritious and delicious forms of protein with one of the lowest environmental footprints. Of that we are very proud. However, there will always be some in our community for whom our existence in itself runs counter to their value systems no matter what we do. I suspect we will never gain the licence of 100% of the community. That’s just reality. Our objective is to engage with a wide range of stakeholders, not limited to but especially with Te Tauihu Iwi, regulators, councils, scientists, and the public to listen to their views and do our best to mitigate any concerns or amplify our areas of alignment. Open, respectful, and reflective dialogue is at the heart of earning and retaining our social licence.
COULD YOU SHARE YOUR FAVOURITE SALMON DISH WITH US?
Whole skin on fillet, manuka smoked on BBQ. Basted with maple syrup and brandy. No need for a plate, or even a knife & fork for that matter.
