Catherine Taylor has been with Kiwibank since it was known as the New Zealand Post banking project. When she started in 2001, friends would ask about her job.
When she told them she was with the banking project, they raised their eyebrows and indicated she would be looking for a real job in the near future.
"The barbecue test now is when I tell people I work for Kiwibank they invariably go: `Oh, that is going so well'," she said in an interview in Dunedin.
Kiwibank this week reported an after-tax profit of $52.5 million for the year ended June, well up on the $36.8 million reported in the previous corresponding period.
Mrs Taylor said a recession was when human resources (HR) managers had to take the next step and work with their leaders to shift thinking about how to manage staff.
For her, the challenges were probably different.
Kiwibank was still growing and Mrs Taylor had to manage staff expectations about growth and careers at a time when they might be worried about friends and family losing their jobs.
She had noted an increase in the quantity and quality of CVs being sent into Kiwibank as the recession hit.
It was a different story eight years ago, when she started with the banking project.
Then it was a challenge to recruit people.
Mrs Taylor needed to bring people into the organisation and show them the passion the establishment team had about the project.
"It was an intense time. "We were not sure how big it would be.
"We knew we had to work hard to make it grow sufficiently and be profitable. We were determined to make it successful."
She paid tribute to chairman and former prime minister Jim Bolger and chief executive Sam Knowles for their enthusiasm which spread throughout the organisation.
Each of the 1000 staff had had a one-day "tiki tour" of the organisation when they were hired.
The tour instilled the overriding values of Kiwibank and what they could expect from the organisation.
New staff were asked for their impressions of Kiwibank and often these came from the advertisements seen on television.
"We want to know what their expectations are when they come in and we want to meet them."
Staff growth for Kiwibank had been steady, with the occasional burst of activity, such as when mobile banking was introduced and 12 staff were hired at once.
New business areas being introduced usually meant a group of new staff members.
Otherwise, staff were hired to meet business growth, Mrs Taylor said.
Asked how she kept fresh, Mrs Taylor said she was lucky to have a range of different challenges with Kiwibank.
Last year, the bank introduced its own HR system and that provided a creative approach to what she and her 18-person team worked through normally.
Mrs Taylor was on the executive team of the bank and was involved in developing new changes to help the bank grow.
She had an extensive network of contacts and was the vice-president of the HR Institute of New Zealand and on the institute's board.
Her two children of 11 and 13 keep her busy, as do an extensive range of interests including supporting the Highlanders and Otago rugby teams.
Asked whether eight years was long enough at such a demanding job, Mrs Taylor said at some point it would be time to move on and allow a fresh pair of eyes to look at the way Kiwibank's HR operated.
"I would love to have someone in my team to step up to my job and take over when I move on. That's my goal."
Catherine Taylor
> Age 47
> Educated Columba College, University of Otago with BCom, majoring in manpower studies and information systems.
> Recruited to Reserve Bank as graduate and worked her way up to the role of personnel manager.
> Worked as HR manager for Sun Alliance Life and Disability, various other insurance companies and Enza.
> Was knowledge and communications manager for Land Information New Zealand.
> Joined New Zealand Post banking project (Kiwibank) in 2001.
> HR manager for Kiwibank
> Supports Highlanders and Otago rugby teams
