Simon is currently the CEO of Rowing New Zealand and has been in the role for 12 years.

Simon was former CEO of Sport Auckland, where he worked for over nine years. Simon is the former Chairman of Paralympics NZ, where he was in the role for the Athens and Beijing Paralympics campaigns. During his time in that role, he was on the International Development Committee for the International Paralympic movement. Overall, Simon has over 25 years of experience in sport management. 

He has also completed the Harvard University course – Governance for Non-profit Excellence. 

Simon has also been a professional cricket coach (six years) and played first-class cricket for Auckland. Simon’s coaching and playing experience and his understanding of sport management are integral in understanding and creating a high-performance environment for New Zealand’s rowers.

Simon has been Chairman of the Pinnacle Programme, which is a Hyundai NZ-backed initiative to develop the potential of young New Zealanders across music, art, culture, and Sport. Simon is also a Director on a family-owned commercial Board.  

He won the NZ Sport and Recreation Leadership award in 2015 with a Professional Development scholarship in the name of Chris Doig, a former Rowing NZ board member.  

Simon is happily married and has two young children, and enjoys living an active lifestyle in Hamilton.

On this episode:

• Simon talks about how he evolved his leadership style to focus on both the team and individual aspects of your members
• Simon discusses why “change managers” irks him.
• Simon explains why leadership is all about “time.”
• Leadership is transitioning more into EQ rather than IQ
• The unfair playing field brought by the social media world and mainstream media heading into more opinionated pieces.

Key Takeaways:

• Look after your team and give them the appropriate treatment
• A good leader is about consultation and makes sure everybody is heard and considered
• A good leader has a good sense of EQ (Emotional Quotient)
• Our paradigms are not the same as other people’s paradigms

Tweetable Quotes:

“You are a people leader when you’re a coach.” – Simon Peterson

“As a leader, it’s really critical to understand that your paradigm and your world is not that of your colleagues and those that are working with you.” – Simon Peterson

Reach out to Simon on:

• Visit their website at  https://www.rowingnz.kiwi/ 
• Send him an email: [email protected]

Resources:

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.leadingchangepartners.com/ 

Leadership Is Changing Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/LeadershipIsChanging/

Leadership is Changing LinkedIn Page:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/leadership-is-changing-podcast/