Holly Bennett (Te Arawa, Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Pikiao) is Urban List’s Guest Editor for March. Holly is the Founder of kaupapa Māori government relations firm Awhi and Aotearoa New Zealand’s first government relations education and training organisation Engage.
A zealous advocate of transparent, accessible government, she cut her political teeth working in the heart of politics in the Beehive as a political advisor. A lawyer by training, Holly is the (louder) one-third of the formidable political podcast Three Gals One Beehive.
It's widely accepted that representation matters; that diversity of thought is to be celebrated and that greater understanding can help shift public opinion. But when an industry hasn’t been particularly inclusive—in fact when it has been explicitly exclusive—who is to blame for that ongoing exclusion?
Is it the industry and all those within it? Is it the consumers of those goods and services? Is it the silent observers?
While we might not like it, the reality is that there will always be those who reject competition and actively patch-protect, to prioritise their individual success.
This means that when we stop being inquisitive and seeking to take space in industries that we’ve been made to believe are not for us, then we become part of the problem. By definition, however, this means we can also be part of the solution.
Over the past seven years, since setting up my government relations firm Awhi, and now as an educator of aspirant lobbyists, I have had a front-row seat on how the industry of lobbying representatives isn’t particularly representative, and how our country deserves a lobbying industry that can be so much more than what we’ve been told to accept.
I could be considered an accidental entrepreneur: when I set up my firm in December 2017 it was because of a single conversation with my Pāpā (father). Contemplating my next career move, he suggested using my skills from four years working in the Beehive to create a business helping organisations navigate the nuance of politics. I responded that I thought that was weird, and he laughed “It’s weird you think that’s weird.” And my business was born.
Nothing, however, in my entrepreneurial journey has been handed to me. In fact, when I set up the business in Kirikiriroa I had individuals comment that they hadn’t expected it to survive; “I was waiting for it to fail,” one politician told me.
It took a few years to gain a foothold in my industry, but once I knew what I stood for, the way I wanted to work became much clearer. My first priority has always been to make resources available that improve understanding of democratic processes for all who want to engage with decision-makers. It never ceases to amaze me when well-heeled Chief Executives and established Chairs have little more than a rudimentary understanding of the political system.
My next priority is an industry that is representative of the society within which we live. As one of few wahine Māori who owns her own firm free of investor influence, I am acutely aware of my responsibility to remain focused on job creation.
Any industry that is not, remains uncompetitive. We know that non-competitive markets encourage profiteering while stifling innovation, which leaves the consumer at a disadvantage while doing the wider public a disservice.
Finally, I don’t think it's unreasonable to say that lobbyists hold a privileged proximity to legislative power. Many careers have ethical obligations and duties of care: doctors and lawyers immediately come to mind. Yet there is a pervasive belief in Aotearoa New Zealand that lobbyists do not need to respond to legitimate questions regarding the nature of activities undertaken and on behalf of whom.
Calling for improvements has brought to light the ugly prominence of a pervasive belief in and around politics of ‘because I have and I can, I will’. I consider that the overriding duty of those who undertake lobbying activities must be the maintenance of trust in democracy.
This means that through their work they must not participate in activities that could reasonably be believed to erode trust in our democratic institutions. Just because you have and you can, doesn’t mean you should.
I have less than eight years left in this industry.
When I set up my firm I decided I would be out of the industry in 15 years—society doesn’t benefit when people dig in their heels just to maintain relevance. In fact, my hope is that in the years ahead, more aspiring lobbyists will enter the market and take me to task.
Part of the human condition is that we all have our own blindspots, so who better to chart a course for industry-wide improvement than those coming into the sector with eyes wide open?
So in the spirit of International Women's Day, to all the aspiring advocates and grassroots activists, take this as your sign: the lobbying sector needs to know you! An effective sector is a representative sector, and this one will be better off with more diverse voices in it.
Image credit: Holly Bennett | Supplied