This year’s panel of independent judges is made up of three experts in safety and business.
Francois Barton - Chairperson:
Francois is the Chief Executive of the New Zealand Business Leaders’ Health and Safety Forum – a coalition of more than 390 CEOs committed to building cultures that enable people and business to thrive. Before joining the Forum in May 2015, Francois worked in the health and safety regulator for almost 10 years, through the Pike River Mine tragedy, major health and safety ecosystem reforms and was directly involved in establishing WorkSafe NZ. During that time, he established WorkSafe’s national programme team, including the significant interventions in construction, forestry, work-related health and agriculture. Francois has spent his career working to effect change by connecting diverse groups and perspectives, reframing and redefining complex challenges and remaining anchored to the core belief that it is only by working together we will make progress.
Peter Berry:
Peter joined the electricity industry in 1986 as the Executive Officer for the Electricity Supply Association of NZ and has been actively involved in the reform of the NZ electricity supply industry from its beginnings in 1987. In 1993, he was appointed Executive Director of the EEA and has refocused the organisation to meet the needs of its members in a changing environment. Previously, Peter held positions within the University of Waikato, the NZ Army (Royal New Zealand Engineers), the Ministry of Civil Defence, and a leading NZ market research company. Educated at Waikato University and Victoria University, he has two Masters Degrees and a post-graduate diploma in business management. He is a Member of the Institute of Directors in NZ and has held a number of directorships. He is a founding member of the Electricity Supply Industry Training Organisation (ESITO) and the Electric Power Engineering Centre at the University of Canterbury.
Dr Keith Turner:
Dr Turner is the Chair of Transpower’s Board of Directors. He has over 50 years’ experience in the electricity industry, having held senior executive positions in Meridian Energy, the former Electricity Corporation of New Zealand, and its predecessor NZED. Since 2008, he has been a professional Chair, Deputy Chair and Director on major New Zealand and Australian Boards including Auckland International Airport, Transgrid (NSW), Chorus NZ, Spark Infrastructure, NSW State EnergyCo, and Fisher & Paykel. In 2018, he was appointed as a member of the Interim Climate Change Committee by the New Zealand Government, which began crucial work on how Aotearoa transitions to a net zero carbon economy by 2050. Dr Turner has a PhD in electrical engineering, is a Distinguished Fellow of Engineering New Zealand and holds the Sir William Pickering Medal for Engineering Leadership.
Judging criteria
The judges of the STAR Awards will assess nominations against these criteria:
- How well nominations fit the category
- How credible and detailed supporting information was
- How significantly the action, innovation or programme contributed to reducing risks and hazards on an ongoing basis
- Evidence that the action, innovation or programme had a positive impact
- The extent to which the action, innovation or programme was beyond expected business-as-usual
- How strongly the nominations demonstrated the commitment shown to health, safety and/or wellbeing.