The 59-year-old, who’s mostly lived in Kingston since 1991, ensures matauranga Maori — the ancestral knowledge, values and worldview of Aotearoa, New Zealand — is authentically embedded in the policies and practices of government and private organisations.
That’s been her role for the past four years with Queenstown-based consultancy Kauati, which in 2023 picked up two major Maori business awards and last weekend picked up the KUMA Supreme Maori Business Award.
It’s also a finalist in next month’s Queenstown Business Awards in the ‘excellence in innovation’ category.
Gladys wears her moko kauae, or chin tattoo, with pride — a symbol of whakapapa and continuation of ancestral legacy.
She’s also a doctoral scholar in Maori business and economic development and is completing her thesis next year.
This year she’s also joined the Queenstown Writers Festival board, whose annual event’s being held next weekend.
Gladys grew up speaking te reo as her first language in a large whanau in Rotorua.
With nine siblings, she says "we treat Masters degrees like a sport".
"There are eight doctorates or doctoral candidates in the whanau — two doctors are actually medical doctors and they jokingly insist the rest of us are ‘fake’ doctors."
Her koro, Kawana Nepia, son of All Black legend George Nepia, was among the leaders of the Waitangi Tribunal Claim No.4 — the Kaituna claim — which sought to protect the mauri or life force of the Kaituna River.
"His leadership, alongside others, shaped how I understand the power of voice, advocacy and whakapapa [lineage] in action."
Gladys moved to Kingston in 1991 where her husband Nigel managed the garage his father had bought, then worked as a Queenstown-based BNZ personal banker for almost 12 years.
From 2004 she was financial manager for Kiwi Discovery and Queenstown Rafting for almost eight years.
Following that she completed a postgraduate degree and MBA at the University of Auckland.
When she returned south she worked in the building then hospitality industries as finance manager, before joining Kauati director/owner Ailsa Cain in 2021.
Kauati is a tribute to Hakitekura, who carried a fire stick, or Kauati, with her when she swam across Lake Whakatipu.
That also fits with her moko kauae, which represents Maori mythology’s dawn maiden, Hine-titama.
"Throughout my career I have been trying to spark light — to help ideas and people find illumination in shared purpose."
Latterly, Gladys has been integrating matauranga Maori into Bachelor of Commerce subjects for the New Zealand Qualifications Authority.
And, through Kauati, she’s leading and co-designing a matauranga Maori socio-economic assessment for NZ Aluminium Smelter/Rio Tinto, guided by Ngai Tahu values and tikanga.
Gladys is also looking forward to next weekend’s writers festival and hearing and meeting authors including Peta Carey, Mike McRoberts, Dr Monty Soutar and Grant Robertson.
She also has a special interest in ‘The Sampler: Songs from Tahuna’, on November 1, as it’s being project-managed by her son, Tyrone Henderson.
It features locally-raised musos Violet Hirst, Sofia Machray and Tom Maxwell, who were all taught by Wakatipu High music teacher Alison Price.
"They’ve chosen the theme, ‘mana whenua’, interpreted as giving mana back to the land they were born on."
