Three leaders, three journeys, one shared destination

Warrant Officer Class 1 (WO1) Rebecca Savage has recently taken the Command Warrant Officer position within the Joint Military Police Unit (JMPU) and now joins her fellow Army comrades WO1 Lisa Harrison at the Force Health Organisation and WO1 Shelley Eriksson within the Deployable Health Organisation.  

WO1 Savage has honed her skills and her leadership credentials over nearly 29 years serving in the Army across various Combat Support roles within 1^st (NZ) Brigade. 

“Leadership is a journey of continuous learning and growth, and having had the opportunity to deploy to East Timor, Afghanistan, and the Middle East, it has given me a better understanding of what drives NZDF personnel to succeed both at home and abroad,” WO1 Savage said.  

Just three weeks into the new role, she says balancing staff interaction in a way that motivates the team, and within a unit where there is a big difference across the three services’ culture, will be a positive challenge, but one that she is excited to take on. 

“You can’t build a productive team without positive connections. In a military organisation where a lot of our culture is influenced by rank, it’s so important to earn your colleagues’ and subordinates respect as a person and leader too. Leaders gain true respect through their actions, the way they manage uncertainty or challenging situations, but also by the way they communicate and treat people,” WO1 Savage said.   

Each Warrant Officer brings their own flavour and perspective to any command role, and for Christchurch-raised WO1 Savage, she sees the role of the collective being fundamental to leadership success.  

“Leadership lies in guiding others to success by making sure everyone is performing at their best, doing the work they are pledged to do, and doing it well,” WO1 Savage said. 

That approach is already in use within the Force Health Organisation (FHO) too, with Wanganui-raise WO1 Lisa Harrison also a strong advocate of tapping into a unit’s collective strength.  

“My success is not mine alone, it is the success of the collective - Ehara taku toa I te toa takitahi engari he toa takitini,” WO1 Harrison said. 

WO1 Harrison’s Army career saw her initially train as a Telecommunications Operator, before eventually working her way up the ranks through all roles within the Army’s gymnasium structure as a Personal Training Instructor. 

She’s also been on two overseas deployments to East Timor and one to Iraq. 

WO1 Harrison said one of the challenges to a Command Warrant Officer position, particularly as it pertains to her role within the FHO, is to ensure all of her personnel have the appropriate level of support and development opportunities whilst also fostering a culture of resilience and teamwork.   

“However, the most rewarding aspect of my role is seeing these individuals thrive, grow professionally, and deliver exceptional care to our personnel – which ultimately raises the standards of our military outputs. Supporting their wellbeing and success is both a privilege and a driving force in my leadership.” 

Rounding off the trio of JSG Command Warrant Officers is WO1 Shelley Eriksson, the only one based at Linton Military Camp where she operates with the Deployable Health Organisation (DHO).  

Born in Christchurch, WO1 Eriksson has spent more than 37 years in service, spanning various roles across the Medical Corps which saw her deployed to Kuwait and Bosnia in the early and mid-1990s. She later undertook a trade change as an Environmental Health Technician, a role which saw her deployed to Afghanistan and Indonesia following the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2004.

WO1 Eriksson has also spent significant time overseas on exchanges to the UK and Australia, and said all these experiences helped shape the way she valued, and ultimately practiced leadership.

“My experiences have shown me that true strength comes not only from guiding others but from understanding their concerns and motivations,” said WP1 Eriksson.  

“Leadership can be challenging as it requires a balance of decisiveness and empathy. I have found that working in a complex environment with strategic insight and having a compassionate approach with our shared connections empower us to thrive together.”

With the Command Warrant Officer roles within JSG being tri-service in nature, having all three positions filled by a single service is significant. 

“It’s pretty awesome when we look at how each of our careers went this way or that way, but that we’ve all ended up here in our Command Warrant Officers roles. We gain so much value in working together, and it’s pretty cool to put our markers in the ground as Army wāhine,” said WO1 Savage. 

“I can’t wait to get stuck into the new role.”