Mike Bennetts helps boards and executive teams cut through complexity and lead change that endures.
As founding CEO of Z Energy, Mike led one of New Zealand’s top listed companies through transformation, growth and public listing. Under his leadership the company was named New Zealand Company of the Year and he was recognised as Deloitte CEO of the Year. His executive career spans global leadership roles across complex, regulated and high-stakes environments.
Today, as an executive coach and consultant to CEOs and boards, Mike works at the front line of leadership pressure. His keynotes draw not only on lived executive experience, but on current patterns he sees across organisations navigating strategy execution, cultural alignment and performance under strain.
Mike’s sessions are grounded and practical. He challenges leaders to examine the everyday behaviours and assumptions that shape organisational results. Rather than offering inspiration alone, he provides clear frameworks and language leaders can apply immediately to improve clarity, accountability and execution.
Common keynote themes include:
• Leading change that lasts beyond initial momentum
• Sustaining performance in complex, fast-moving environments
• Aligning leadership behaviour with strategic intent
• Confronting the “ordinary” habits that limit extraordinary results
Audiences value Mike’s credibility, candour, and ability to speak plainly about what works and what doesn't in senior leadership teams. His approach resonates particularly with executive audiences seeking substance rather than theatre.
Mike is the author of Being Extraordinary, a number of e-books, and continues to advise and coach leaders across New Zealand and internationally.
Talking Points
Transformational Change That Endures
All business leaders are after the holy grail of transformational change in a VUCA or BAMI world. While plenty of transformation initiatives are being deployed, many fail to meet the business case goals, and almost all fail to sustain the results beyond the first year that justified the original investment. This manifests as frustrated executives, overworked managers and change-fatigued employees. However, there are simple models and leadership practices for designing and delivering transformational change that endures. This session shares the practical steps that any business leader can adopt and see benefits from within just a few months.
Transformational Change That Endures
Sustaining Extraordinary Performance
When leaders play ordinary, the organisation can only play ordinary. When leaders play extraordinary, the organisation can transform. Most importantly, the organisation doesn’t change until the leaders do. ?It takes courage to be extraordinary because to be extraordinary, you need to confront where you are being ordinary. There are mindsets and practices that enable a more regular and reliable delivery of extraordinary performance. This session provides actionable insights into what it takes to sustain extraordinary performance and realise both individual and organisational potential.
Sustaining Extraordinary Performance
Chiefing the Tribe
In a world that is becoming more complex and demanding for business leaders, we seem to have forgotten that we are leading our people as well as managing our business. Developing and leading high-performance teams does not need to be that complex and demanding, but it does require the capability to blend strategy and culture to deliver results beyond the predictable. This session shares experiences and insights from two decades of leading diverse teams in challenging circumstances where the results were clearly beyond the predictable.
Chiefing the Tribe
Mike's presentation was really well curated to the issues we had identified and had the leadership engage from his first words. ... keep reading CBRE
Boma ran an Impact Session with Mike titled Climate Change Activism from a Fossil Fuel CEO. He was simply fantastic: prepared, engaging, honest. He spoke openly about what he was able to achieve and where he fell short of his ambitions. His vulnerability allowed us to connect powerfully with what he was saying and to see possibility for ourselves in his journey. I recommend him wholeheartedly; his is a voice worth amplifying.
