'Ngā kete e toru o te wānanga': Exploring feminine ancestral leadership with Māori business leaders

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to open up and explore physical and metaphysical leadership knowledge that honours the feminine dimension of Māori culture from spiritual, ancestral and genealogical histories. From qualitative interviews conducted with nine Māori business leaders, nine recurrent themes emerged regarding significant aspects of ancestral leadership knowledge within Ngā Kete e Toru o te Wānanga. These themes are organised according to the three baskets of knowledge that were brought down from the heavens by Tāne, one of Māori mythology's significant spiritual figures. The three baskets of knowledge are symbolic of the wealth of leadership knowledge that is contained in ancestral histories. Organising the knowledge into this structure reflects the author's interpretation of the baskets and allows the knowledge that was shared in the interviews to fill them. This research discovered that these Māori business leaders actively carry their genealogies of leadership into the work they do and how they conduct themselves. It was observed that these participants are doing more than simply contributing to the global market economy -- they are people who push back on conventional understandings and structures of business -- beyond what the formal economy might allow space for. They imagine that Māori and Indigenous economies have the potential to thrive for the purpose of growth and development of Indigenous peoples as well as non-Indigenous peoples. In their work toward such aims, they also bring forward alternative paradigms regarding the purpose and function of global economies. They also consciously engage in creating, continuing and shaping their leadership genealogies. Ancestral leadership has influences not only on how they conduct themselves professionally but it also informs their ethical and value-driven conduct as a person.