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Neurodiversity has driven some big business wins and is key to Cookie Time’s ongoing success, says Managing Director Guy-Pope-Mayell.
Launched in 1983 with the delivery of 70 jars of Original Chocolate Chunk Cookies to 70 Christchurch dairies, Cookie Time Group today is a major FMCG player with a portfolio including New Zealand’s number one selling cookie brand, the Bumper brand and internationally patented OSM bars and bites. It has two bespoke Cookie Bars – in Queenstown and Tokyo – and runs online store munchtime.co.nz.
“Innovation and entrepreneurship are major drivers for Cookie Time, and these are fueled by an incredible group of dynamic, neurodiverse connectors and thinkers who challenge the status quo and have the gritty determination to make things happen,” Guy Pope-Mayell says.
Pope-Mayell is a key speaker and facilitator for the first Neurodiversity Leadership Forum taking place in Wellington today (October 2). He says Cookie Time Group is a great example of how embracing neurodiversity can improve staff retention, lift productivity and unlock greater business potential.
“Some of the key strengths that come from neurodiversity are high levels of creativity, the ability to see the big picture and the willingness to disrupt the norm. One of our key sayings is ‘creating the new is not the same as fixing the old’ which in a nutshell means tinkering around with old ways of doing things is not going to cut it when you’re looking for competitive edge.”
“Breakthrough solutions come from new thinking and approaching problems from diverse directions. Critical thinking, logic, instinct, and consideration of ‘how does it sound’, ‘how does it look’, ‘how does it feel’ all go into this. Without this, we wouldn’t have secured some of our big business wins – from opening the Cookie Bar in Tokyo, to opening an online store, plus launching some fantastic collabs including work with Universal Studios, Tip Top, Air New Zealand, New Zealand Post and so on,” Pope-Mayell says.
The Neurodiversity Leadership Forum is hosted by the Dyslexia Foundation of New Zealand, of which Pope-Mayell is also Chair of Trustees.
“I’m happy to be wearing two hats on this occasion. From the DFNZ angle, we’re committing to seeing changes in education, justice, and now the workplace, to accommodate difference and unlock potential. And from the Cookie Time perspective, I’ve seen firsthand the positive outcomes that result,” Pope-Mayell says.
The Neurodiversity Leadership Forum one-day event is the centrepiece of Dyslexia Action Week, and will shine a light on the opportunities associated with recognising the strengths of diverse brains in the workplace, and dispel myths associated with neurodiversity.
The Workplace Forum will bring together key stakeholders, leaders and specialists in neurodiversity training and advocacy, for a series of keynote talks, workshops, panel discussions, exhibits and video ‘tiny talks’. A key outcome is expected to be development of a New Zealand resource for employers and employees to better navigate the workplace.
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