Basketball New Zealand (BBNZ) is pleased to announce Cameron Barker as its new Future Director on the BBNZ Board.
Tauranga-based Cameron joins the organisation in a 12 month role, which sees him working alongside the four elected and three appointed BBNZ board positions to help shape the future of basketball in this country.
30-year-old Cameron brings an operations and tech background to the Board, having moved from the banking sector into a Senior Product Operations Manager at Uber – working remotely for the organisation’s head office in San Francisco, with a focus on product development and building new tech into the Uber app.
Cameron says he is honoured to have an opportunity to contribute to basketball in New Zealand through the BBNZ Board.
“I’ve reported to a few boards in the past, but this is my first proper experience of sitting on a board. It’s an amazing learning opportunity for me as there’s not a lot of chances for a less experienced or younger person to contribute at board level, especially one of such significance,” says Barker.
“So the learning opportunity around governance and being on a board is exciting. It’s also the opportunity to learn from some exceptional people who are on the BBNZ board; I’m very lucky that Rob [Gold] has offered to mentor me during my time in this role.
“And then to contribute to the game that we all love in New Zealand, I’m hugely passionate about basketball – my playing days are over as my knees are giving out – so any way I can help towards growing the game here is something I’d like to do more of.”
Cameron is clear on what he wants to get out of this experience, and well as what we can bring to the BBNZ Board in this role.
“For me I want to use this opportunity to build my confidence, to operate on a board and to know how the governance works. I want to be able to contribute meaningfully, so hopefully I can take that experience and continue on a journey of being in more governance roles in the future – both corporate and for not-for-profit and sporting organisations.
“What I hope to give to the BBNZ Board in this role is hopefully a different perspective on things; I’ve been lucky enough to have some interesting personal and professional experiences in my life, having lived overseas in London for some time and being part of the basketball community in a number of different areas.
“I think with my age as well, I can give a fresh or different perspective – and hopefully that helps shape what we can do as a board over the next 12 months.”
Find out more about the BBNZ Board at www.nz.basketball/about-us/board/
