From stacking shelves in Hamilton, to CEO of Walmart and Air New Zealand

Greg Foran is the CEO of Air New Zealand – and one of the country’s most successful businessmen.

Greg started his career as a shelf-stacker in a Hamilton supermarket. By the age of 20 he was a Woolworths manager and by 48 he was on track to be the next CEO of Woolworths Australia – but was overlooked for the top job.

He pivoted to America via China where he started working his way up the Walmart ladder and in 2014 became the CEO of Walmart US.

As CEO of Walmart US – Greg had 1.5 million staff, 4,600 stores across the country and an annual GDP of 300 billion. This was a Kiwi running America’s biggest retailer.

In 2020, Greg left Walmart to move home to New Zealand – and took the top job at Air New Zealand… just days before Covid-19 started grounding flights.

He doesn’t often do interviews like this, and we felt incredibly fortunate to take so much of his time, we cover:

• His remarkable morning routine

• His rugby league superstar son Kieran

• Crazy stories from running Walmart in China

• The art of inviting feedback and leading by example

• What it’s like to be the boss of Walmart

• Air NZ’s challenges and his vision for New Zealand

This was a fascinating chat – and I think you’ll quickly be able to see why Greg has had the career he’s had.

Best Laugh: Greg shared a snippet of some unbelievable stories from his time running Walmart China!

Best Insight: Greg goes into detail to unpack the specific challenges of the aviation industry post Covid-19 pandemic.

Biggest Surprise: Greg personally answered 2,700 emails when he invited Walmart US key stakeholders to message him about where they could improve their service.

We’ve teamed up with guests from the pod to speak at your next event. Head to B2Bspeakers.co.nz to find out more.

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