What does it take to lead a modern, work-based learning organisation through upheaval and into growth? For Executive Director Tony Laskey, it’s enlightened leadership paired with relentless execution: building strong industry partnerships, backing equity in practice, and keeping the focus on outcomes for learners and employers. In this profile, Tony shares the career lessons that have shaped him and the short- and long-term priorities that will steer ServiceIQ’s next chapter.

Tony joined ServiceIQ in February 2019, after holding several prestigious roles in the travel and tourism sector, including a combined 16 years with Contiki Holidays and its parent company, The Travel Corporation. Those roles included Director of Marketing and Communications for The Travel Corporation and Regional Director of Sales and Marketing for Asia and New Zealand at Contiki Holidays.

Having worked in the UK, Canada, Australia, Asia and, of course, New Zealand – plus travelling the world for work, Tony has gained a high-level appreciation and insight into the different ways of doing business and the importance of relationship building among clients and teams.

“The travel industry can be very glamorous and rewarding, but it’s 24/7, 365. My phone would often ring in the middle of the night with news of something happening in Europe, for example. With a young family, and my wife juggling her work and the children, it got to the point where I was thinking there's got to be something more,” says Tony.

“When I saw the ServiceIQ role advertised, my first reaction was that this is an opportunity to give back. I’d had (and still have) a fantastic career in travel and tourism in the service sector, but here’s a role where you're training up other people to do good things in the sector.”

Since day one, life at ServiceIQ has been anything but dull, with Tony successfully guiding the team through the challenges and impact of Covid and working closely with government and relevant agencies through the establishment of and, more recently, disestablishment of Te Pūkenga (the New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology).

Today, Tony’s role focuses on developing strategic partnerships with businesses and industry organisations, with the ultimate goal of creating a skilled workforce and clear career pathways through ServiceIQ’s products and services.

Based in Auckland, with offices in Wellington and Christchurch, there are plenty of 4 am starts, and with no such thing as a typical day, “A lot of my time is spent meeting with our industry partners and our kaimahi around the country.

“In a leadership role such as this, I see myself as a buffer to allow our people to get on and do the great work that they do without having to be distracted by changes that are happening outside of our control, supporting our frontline team to continue to service our learners, trainees and employers, and do all those good things that they do so well.

“My day is also about engaging with our customers as well as our people, and understanding what the opportunities, risks and customer pain points are, and then working to address those, grow the business, and provide an excellent service.”

Short-term, Tony is focussed on successfully and seamlessly navigating ServiceIQ’s move into the new Industry Skills Board (which will set vocational education standards and manage work-based learning in New Zealand from 2026). A longer-term vision is for ServiceIQ to expand into more sectors offering a broader range of commercial products and services.

“We want to grow in a sustainable way that we can maintain those good ingredients that we know work, while always ensuring we have the right people on our side who speak the language of the retailer, for example, or the learner, and understand the pressures that they're under.

“My approach to leadership is to look for the opportunity. When you're skiing or mountain biking, you shouldn’t be looking for the tree, but where the gap is. This is where the opportunity is, and I love being in growth mode. That’s the position that ServiceIQ is in now and the direction in which we’re pointing.”

As well as taking a company-offered course in Tikanga Māori this year, Tony also achieved a Bachelor of Applied Management from Otago Polytechnic through Capable NZ. “Given that we’re in the training space and promoting people to get formal qualifications, I felt it was important I walk the walk, too!”

He and his family live in central Auckland and away from the office he enjoys cycling, spending time in nature with his family, and travelling around New Zealand.

“As mentioned earlier, one of the special things about ServiceIQ is that opportunity to give back. Seeing trainees and apprentices graduate with their qualification in the workplace while they're working and getting paid to do their job, when some left school with no or very few qualifications, is what gets me out of bed.

“They’re earning qualifications, improving their earning potential, their family life, and benefiting from gaining more skills, knowledge, and experience. That’s a real highlight for me – knowing that the work that we're doing is making a difference in people's lives.”

Learn more about ServiceIQ today. Make today the day you grow your people and grow your business with affordable on-the-job training for your employees. ServiceIQ is the workplace training specialist for the hospitality, retail, tourism, aviation, travel, and museum sectors New Zealand wide.