International Women’s Day: five questions with Kristen Neri

Which women inspire you the most?

My biggest inspirations in life and my career have been the women directly around me; My Grandmother, my Mother, my Aunt and now my Stepdaughter. As a child I would go with my grandfather every day to pick up my Grandmother from her work at a law office. My mom was also very dedicated to her career, smashing glass ceilings in the 80s and 90s as I was growing up while my dad was a stay-at-home dad. Some of my earliest memories were being with her in her office, under her desk playing with sticker books.

In my teenage years, I spent my summers volunteering at a hospital where she was the Director. Women in business roles were all around me and because of not knowing anything different I always saw it as a path that had been paved for me.

Forward on to today where my stepdaughter, Kaea Anderson, is now in Wellington forging her own career in the property industry in Planning. To see her take on the industry with passion and drive and determination inspires me more every day as well. It is so important to see others like you doing the work that you want to do, knowing that nothing can hold you back.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme is #AccelerateAction—what does this look like to you?

Challenge the status quo and recognise that we all have a part in progress no matter gender, race, religion, etc.  It’s not just women that hold the keys to progress, it’s everyone one of us that open the doors for each other to walk through.

If it wasn’t for my father being a stay-at-home dad and challenging that ‘Status Quo’ in the early 80s, my mom would have had a much harder of a time smashing the glass ceiling. Not only did mom inspire me in business, dad inspired me towards construction and architecture by helping him with home renovations and playing with Lego. If it wasn’t for Taylors supporting me through my career and now my parenting journey, I wouldn’t be doing the things I am doing today.

What do you think is the key to building a workplace where women thrive?

Flexibility, Support, and Celebration. I also don’t think that is just for women, I think that’s the way that we can build inclusive workplaces where all thrive. Flexibility in the workplace means that we can all share the load, and sharing the load means we can get to the end goal while also taking care of the well-being of ourselves and family.

Flexibility in work extends as well to men;  to help pick up the kids from school, or look after a family member when they are sick, or split parental leave if mom wants to go back to work.  This is all also important to women thriving in the workplace. Support means recognition and understanding, seeing the potential of someone in your organisation and helping them grow to their potential. Then celebrating those accomplishments by putting them on display so that others can see people like them in positions they can aspire to.

What advice would you give to your 18-year-old self?

“You’ve got this” and “Back yourself”. I don’t think I gave myself enough credit early on in my career. I was a sponge and looked at every task handed to me (no matter how big or small) as an opportunity to learn and to try to do it well. However, I always felt somewhat nervous or intimidated by a new challenge. After a quick internal pep talk, I would face it head on. Those internal pep talks have been so important and I would tell myself to recognize the importance of them earlier. 

I also always thought opportunities in my career came to me through “luck”. One of those was being accepted to the Property Council of Australia Mentor Program 13 years ago.  In my first meeting with my mentor, he pointed out that it wasn’t “luck” that presented the opportunities, I had achieved them because of who I was and what I had done; my skills, positive attitude, determination, and dedication. It wasn’t until then that I realised who I was professionally and what I had to offer to a project, or a committee, or the industry. Sometimes I wish I had recognised it sooner but also i’m proud of how 18-year-old me got to 45-year-old me.