Gavin Shaw

Company: Navig8 Construction Advisory

Job title: Director 

About Gavin 

Founder of Navig8 Construction Advisory, strategic advisor, leader, engineer, bush lawyer. I’m all of these things, plus an energised pragmatic problem solver who spots trends and sees numbers and words as colours (synesthesia).

With more than 25 years of experience in capital project delivery and business leadership, I serve as a trusted advisor in the construction industry, bringing a track record of cultivating high-performing businesses and teams, and leading them to secure and deliver major projects and programmes.

As an accomplished business and project leader, I’m passionate about influencing positive outcomes in the construction sector for the benefit of the construction industry and New Zealand as a whole.

I’ve served as a member of the Standards NZ Committee for the revision of NZS3910:2023 representing ACE New Zealand and Engineering New Zealand, and am the founding Chair of the Society of Construction Contract Practitioners.

Pepeha or whakapapa/family history

My waka is the SS Ionic, a pre-war ocean liner that served the UK/New Zealand route to bring my coal mining ancestors from Scotland and England to Puponga in 1910. My maunga is Rangitoto and my moana is Hauraki Gulf. My retailer parents ran a shop in Browns Bay, Tāmaki Makaurau, where my sister and I grew up. They supported me to be the first in the family to attend university and study engineering, where the science and art of geotechnical engineering became my calling. I met my English wife, also an engineer, during an OE in London, before returning to New Zealand to settle in Auckland's North Shore. We now have two auburn-haired teenage boys who share our love for the outdoors and marine environment, where we find that the distance to the horizon is directly proportional to our level of happiness and wellbeing.

What is your strategic vision for ACE New Zealand?

I believe that a strong and thriving construction sector is essential to creating a platform where people and businesses can make a genuine, lasting impact on the natural and built environments, as well as the communities they serve.

My vision for ACE New Zealand is to further extend the important role it plays in advocating for a robust construction ecosystem for all industry participants. We are more than the sum of our members; we are a mature organisation with the collective insight and influence that presents both an opportunity and obligation to champion and cultivate sustained high performance and equitable outcomes. My aspiration is to understand and leverage the insights and perspectives of all industry contributors, our members included, so that we can collectively adjust our approaches to achieve "aligned compromise" - solutions that address the fundamental concerns and priorities of all.

What strengths would you bring to the ACE Board?

I enjoy challenging myself and others to think differently, be brave, and to challenge embedded untested assumptions. I like to promote courageous pragmatism to achieve better outcomes. The perspective I can bring is informed by my balance of experiences; from founding a small advisory practice, leadership roles in large professional services enterprises, consulting experience as a designer/project manager/strategic advisor, and through client-side roles and insights.

I have experience in governance and leadership, and I am happiest when empowering and coaching others to grow and achieve their potential. I spot trends early and bring a thoughtful, pragmatic approach with a focus on collaboration and continuous improvement.

What does diversity and inclusion mean to you?

If we want to learn and grow equitably, we need to create environments that invite and respect the balanced perspectives of everyone. By definition, diversity and inclusion is something we collectively achieve. I believe that in addition to every individual's voice needing to be heard, their insights, experiences, culture and perspectives need to be welcomed, heard, valued and respected.

As we navigate a constantly changing and challenging world, we can all benefit from shared perspectives that give us richer discussions, better solutions and authentic caring.

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