It has been two years since the launch of our 2020 TalentNZ Journal. To mark this anniversary, each day over the next month we will share an interview with one of the 30 kiwis and provide an update on where they are now.

Tim NixonToday we share Tim Nixon’s full interview which you can read here.

Two years on, we checked in with Tim Nixon and asked him four questions about what he has been doing since we published the journal. You can read Tim’s responses below.

1. Two years on I am …
I am still Director at Runaway where we’re celebrating our best year yet, with Flutter having hit an all time high, our team doubling in size, and our new game Splash launching for iOS and Android.

2. Recent thoughts on how to build a talent-based economy …
Culture is everything. Making a place and a mission people care about passionately trumps any financial reward you can offer. Respect your staff and let them help influence the future of your business. You’re lucky to have them. Too many businesses take their staff for granted.

3. Books, research and talks that have shaped my thinking …
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull is a wonderfully humble account of the amazing Pixar story, the greatest new creative force of our generation.

4. Any additional thoughts for young people?
Focus, and don’t compromise. Find the thing that you care most about and make the sacrifices you need to to live and breath it every day.

Connect with TalentNZ
We want to build New Zealand’s talent-based economy. If you want to join us on this journey, please connect with TalentNZ. By connecting you will receive our monthly TalentNZ newsletter, which outlines recent developments, research and resources related to creating a talent-based economy, and which keeps you informed about upcoming TalentNZ events. Please also share this link with anyone you think may be interested.

TalentNZ Journal: Grow talent edition
We are currently in the planning and research stages of our 2020 TalentNZ Journal: Grow talent edition. The journal will illustrate grassroots initiatives that New Zealanders are doing to grow talent. Our focus is on encouraging innovative ways to develop talent across New Zealand. The Grow talent edition will be the second edition in our TalentNZ Journal series.

About TalentNZ
The 2020 TalentNZ Journal is part of our TalentNZ project. TalentNZ is designed to facilitate a structured discussion on how to make New Zealand’s talent-based economy flourish. The Journal features interviews with 30 Kiwis, essays from contributing writers and data with a focus on cities and the economy. The 2020 Journal, and in particular the 30 interviews, showed us that by managing the four integrated work-streams – grow, attract, retain and connect – New Zealand is more likely to become a healthy, dynamic and interesting place to live in the long-term. TalentNZ builds on Sir Paul Callaghan’s vision of making New Zealand ‘a place where talent wants to live’. Sir Paul outlined the reasons why his vision is important in a 20-minute video at the Institute’s StrategyNZ workshop in 2020. To learn more about the TalentNZ project see www.talentnz.org.

If you have any questions about the TalentNZ project, please contact us at [email protected].