Tere ki Tai – Buyer Maturity Matrix
Tere ki Tai Buyer Maturity Matrix
To mature as a global leader in supplier diversity there is a journey that must be embarked upon, one that needs to be navigated with skill, direction, and the bravery to drive meaningful change. A ‘traversing of the tides’.
The Tere ki Tai Buyer Maturity Matrix is a powerful framework designed to inspire and guide organisations towards becoming global leaders in supplier diversity. This tool will help organisations identify where they are on their supplier diversity journey and take steps to improve their impact. By leveraging the matrix, organisations can both explore the benefits of supplier diversity and align their practices with their goals.
Translating to ‘traversing the tides’, Tere ki tai narrates the voyage organisations will take in traversing the tides of maturity to become global leaders of supplier diversity. The tool is framed around six levels of maturity, each level is represented by a different tai (tide) and symbolised by a specific waka (vessel), marking the varying levels to the voyage and the vessel used to carry one forward.
How does it work?
The first step is to undertake the Tere ki Tai is a survey. This assesses how well your organisation is performing supplier diversity against a series of key indicators.
After completing the survey, you’ll receive an automated report telling you what level you’re at: what you’re doing well and what areas you can improve.
From there, our Supplier Diversity Leads will work with Aukōkiri and Aumatua members to develop a plan to progress.
Autere members receive the report but must upgrade their membership to be supported on the next steps of the journey.
How Tere ki Tai can help
Tere ki Tai gives your organisation a competitive advantage: it empowers you with the knowledge and language to communicate the ways in which you’re positively impacting Māori and Pasifika businesses and communities.
It support you to understand what steps are required to level up your supplier diversity capabilities. Tere ki Tai shows you what good looks like and supports you to get there.
Tere ki Tai is intended to support organisations to:
- Assess their supplier diversity maturity and develop a plan to improve
- Understand key indicators and metrics to measure and track
- Understand what world class supplier diversity looks like
- Benchmark against other organisations
- Enhance accountability
- Ultimately, increase spend with Māori and Pasifika businesses
By setting a high-quality standard for all, Tere ki Tai will strategically drive supplier diversity forward.
How to use it?
There are three key steps in utilising Tere ki Tai which will support organisations in carving out their waka and navigating the tides of supplier diversity maturity within Aotearoa.
1. Buyer Survey
Each buyer undergoes a comprehensive survey. An assessment highlighting the buyer’s current state, and any potential areas for improvement across key indicators.
2. Buyer Report
Following completion of the survey, buyer’s will receive a detailed report identifying their level of maturity including their strengths and any areas for improvement.
3. Buyer Plan
Using the insights from the survey report, buyers will have the opportunity to confer with Amotai staff to discuss and formulate an improvement plan. A journey map that will ensure buyers progress through the levels.
FAQs
What is Tere ki Tai?
Tere ki Tai is a powerful framework designed to inspire and guide organisations towards becoming global leaders in supplier diversity.
The first step is to do the Tere ki Tai survey to assess how well your organisation is performing supplier diversity against a series of key indicators.
What are the Tere ki Tai levels?
Level 0 – Tai Mate
Inactive supplier diversity and development
Level 1 – Tai Timu
Starting supplier diversity and development
Level 2 – Tai Pari
Building supplier diversity and development
Level 3 – Tai Roa
Embedding supplier diversity and development
Level 4 – Tai Nui
Excelling in supplier diversity and development
Level 5 – Tai Āniwhaniwha
Leading supplier diversity and development
Who is it for?
Tere ki Tai was developed for Amotai’s registered buyers, in response to their frequently stated desire to understand how to improve their engagement and spend with Māori and Pasifika-owned businesses.
As an Amotai registered buyer, you have exclusive access to this world-first, evidence-based tool.
Why should I do the survey? What’s in it for my business?
Tere ki Tai gives your organisation a competitive advantage: it empowers you with the knowledge and language to communicate the ways in which you’re positively impacting Māori and Pasifika businesses and communities.
It gives you steps to level up your supplier diversity capabilities. Tere ki Tai shows you what good looks like and supports you to get there.
If you’ve committed to practising supplier diversity by supporting Māori and Pasifika-owned businesses, you want to know that your time, energy and resource are being directed efficiently and effectively. You want to know that you’re not wasting your time, energy or money – that what you’re doing is actually making a difference.
Tere ki Tai is the only tool that lets you assess where you’re at objectively and spells out the steps for improvement. It gives you confidence that you're on the right track, and that you’re telling your stakeholders a true story about your impact.
What happens once I’ve done the survey?
After completing the survey, you’ll receive an automated report telling you what level you’re at: what you’re doing well and what areas you can improve.
From there, our Supplier Diversity Leads work with Aukōkiri and Aumatua members to develop a plan to progress. Autere members receive the report but must upgrade their membership to be supported on the next steps of the journey.
What if more than one member of my team is involved in Supplier Diversity?
You can fill it out on behalf of your organisation, or multiple members of your organisation can fill it out to generate an aggregated score. Contact our team to arrange a survey assessment link.
What if my organisation has been practising supplier diversity for years and receives a low score?
Tere ki Tai is a world-first tool which offers a benchmark for what ‘good’ looks like when it comes to supplier diversity. We appreciate these benchmarks will feel new to many of our buyers, and they are. Before Tere ki Tai, the standards did not exist. By engaging with the matrix now, you’re on track to become a leader in supplier diversity in Aotearoa.
Each type of waka in Tere ki Tai has characteristics that its crew can be proud of, and every level of the matrix is navigating a different type of tide which has forces beyond our control. Whatever waka you’re in, with Tere ki Tai, you’re empowered with the knowledge to strengthen the vessel and navigate new tides.
And you’re not alone – we're here to support you and ensure your efforts and energies are being targeted towards areas that will allow you to achieve the biggest impact. Tere ki Tai is the best way to set your organisation up for success.
If I’m assessed at one of the higher levels, what’s left for me to do?
As an industry leader, you’re tasked with the wero of helping others level up to where you’re at, by sharing your knowledge with other buyers and building capabilities of Māori and Pasifika suppliers. Korero with us today about how you can support this kaupapa.
We recommended completing Tere ki Tai annually to see how you’re tracking.
How can I help other buyers level up their SD capability?
Kōrero with us about how you can support buyers like you, at kiaora@amotai.nz, and sign up to our newsletter to stay in the loop with opportunities.
