Tony Sewell will step into the role of chair effective from December 1.
After 14 years as chair of Generation Group Ltd, which operates as residential builder Generation Homes, Brian Kreft is retiring.
Co-owner of Generation David Mansel said: “Brian was the first chair of Generation Group, and his leadership has been instrumental in guiding our strategy over the past decade. On behalf of everyone at Generation Homes, we thank Brian for his incredible leadership.
“Under his stewardship Generation Homes has grown to become one of New Zealand’s top 10 residential construction companies by volume.”
Kreft said he has enjoyed the challenge of working in the residential building sector.
Current director Tony Sewell will step into the role of chair effective from December 1, 2021. Kreft will remain a director until March 2022.
“Brian signalled to us that he would be retiring in March. Given the challenging times due to Covid, we all decided that current director Tony Sewell would take over the chair role effective from December 1 rather than wait until March,” Mansel said.
With a 45-year career in the property and construction sector, Sewell has worked for some of New Zealand’s major players in the property and construction sector including, Fletcher, Downer, Landcorp Property and Ngāi Tahu Property. He holds several governance roles including the principal adviser on property to the Catholic Diocese Christchurch, leading its post-earthquake rebuild program.
During his 21 years as chief executive of Ngāi Tahu Property, Sewell oversaw the company’s shareholders equity grow from $50 million to $600m.
Commenting on the appointment of Sewell to the role of chair, Generation co-owner Graham Hockly said: “We’re fortunate to have someone of Tony’s calibre who can take on the role of chair. [He] has a strong land transaction and property background. His appointment to chair is particularly critical as the company continues to expand into larger projects, requiring stronger iwi relationships.”
Sewell has played an active part in industry organisations including the New Zealand Property Institute, the Property Council of New Zealand, the Canterbury Employers’ Chamber of Commerce, and Business New Zealand.
This is supplied content and not commissioned or paid for by NBR.
