Tauranga’s inaugural DayBreak event brought together businesses from across the region to explore how innovation can help organisations adapt and grow in an increasingly uncertain environment.
Melissa Clark-Reynolds
Aimed at strengthening innovation capability, the one‑day event last month attracted people from a wide cross‑section of the local business community, encouraging fresh thinking about the future and the role innovation can play across all sectors.
Western Bay of Plenty’s economic development agency Priority One hosted and championed the event. Chief executive Dave Courtney says DayBreak carved out a distinctive place by deliberately avoiding a narrow audience focus.
Dave Courtney
Present were startups, technology companies, teachers, marketers, local government, HR professionals and corporates.
“Our aim is to bring together people from a wide range of industries, roles and sectors to create new and deeper connections across the regional innovation ecosystem.
“We see ‘innovation’ – doing new things that create impact – as a common theme that can bring people together.”
Daybreak
The strength of DayBreak lies in its ability to expose people to different perspectives and ways of thinking, rather than prescribing a single pathway forward.
Too often people think of innovation as something that only applies to tech firms or startups, Courtney says.
In reality, every organisation is facing change, whether that’s through technology, customer expectations, workforce shifts or regulation.
Daybreak
A key objective for organisers was making high‑quality professional development accessible to local businesses by keeping it both affordable and close to home.
“DayBreak delivered a calibre of speakers and programme content that you don’t often see in the Bay of Plenty,” Courtney says.
“That makes it a valuable professional development opportunity for businesses to invest in their people without having to send them out of the region.”
He says attention was also paid to the overall experience, reinforcing the message that creativity matters in how events – and organisations – are designed.
From the way sessions were structured to how people connected throughout the day, the programme was built to encourage participation and learning, he says.
Organisers have continued to refine the format by listening to attendees and trying new ideas, rather than delivering another standard conference.
Day Break
One of the event’s keynote speakers was futurist and technology entrepreneur Melissa Clark‑Reynolds, who challenged attendees to rethink their assumptions about what the future looks like.
“People often ask what the future will be, as if there is just one version,” Clark‑Reynolds says.
“But there are multiple futures, shaped by different circumstances, levels of access to technology and choices we make today.”
Courtney says that message resonated strongly.
The future is not something that simply happens to organisations, he says. Events such as DayBreak help people see the possibilities and understand the role they can play in shaping what comes next.
Daybreak
