In order to better understand the impact of Maybo training through the eyes of the customer, we talked to Jon Stoddart, the Operations Manager at Kia Puāwai, Auckland. An organisation with a twenty-five-year history, its mission is to improve the lives of children, young people, and their families dealing with behavioural, emotional, mental health, or developmental issues. In this article, Jon reveals why he believes Maybo training is so effective and highlights how it complements the organisation’s Māori values.

What does your role look like day-to-day? 

I started at Kia Puāwai (previously called Youth Horizons) as an education expert and have recently taken on an operational management role. An average day involves monitoring service delivery and budgets, problem-solving with staff, external stakeholder liaison, and planning for the future. This often includes the management and facilitation of Maybo training across all our services, fitting the programmes to the needs of our organisation. In addition, I run the training refreshers and review them to see if there are any improvements we can make.

How did you first encounter Maybo, and what made you choose our training solutions?

We were looking for training that would make sense to our staff, and they would feel confident putting into practice effectively. We liked that it was focused on preserving the person’s rights, safety, and quality of life. 

Maybo training has taught us to think through how to approach a situation before acting, which we have found really beneficial when interacting with the rangatahi (youth) and whaanau (families) we support. Also, we liked that the training was aligned with our values, protocols, and principles. Including the Māori values of Manaakitanga, Aroha, Wairuatanga, and Whaanaungatanga.

For those who may not be familiar with these, Manaakitanga means to respect and uphold the mana (or “spiritual life force energy”) and dignity of people. Aroha signifies the unconditional support of someone. Wairuatanga means the holistic wellbeing of an individual and the spiritual synergy of the collective with which an individual identifies.Wairuatanga is an essential requirement for the identity and wellbeing of Māori. Whaanaungatanga means having a deep connection with other people where the young person feels safe and secure. Having Whaanaungatanga is a critical element in successful de-escalation.

We use these values when engaging with the young people we work with because they teach respect, love, and dignity, as well as the importance of celebrating your culture and heritage.

What do you love most about Maybo training? 

Several things stand out to me. Firstly, the Maybo Australia team is always available, helpful and it is obvious they live and breathe the Maybo values. They are always happy to chat with us whenever we need to make sense of any concepts that need clarification. In addition, Maybo’s approach is based on human rights values, which are simple and make it easy to keep focus in challenging situations. We were able to effortlessly embed the training into our organisation, showing how adaptive the programmes are. Through long-term exposure to the training, I have also become increasingly aware of its focus on treating people with respect and valuing them.

So, would you recommend Maybo training to other organisations?

Yes! You can easily incorporate it into your organisational structure. It teaches learners to think before acting and put the individual’s safety and quality of life first. Also, the option to mix in eLearning means organisations don’t need to send staff away for refresher training as often. And the face-to-face training sessions always feel dynamic and engaging.