Vodafone New Zealand has announced it will be changing its name to One New Zealand in early 2023, following the change of ownership from Vodafone Group to new owners Infratil and Brookfield in 2019.
Jason Paris, Vodafone New Zealand CEO, explains the change is the logical next step in its ongoing transformation. “We are proud to announce this decision to change our name. This move means we will have even more money to invest into our networks, onshore service, and technology solutions for our customers in New Zealand. We think One New Zealand better reflects our deep connections and legacy in New Zealand, as well as our future ambitions.
“For almost 25 years Vodafone has been proudly serving New Zealand and driving competition and innovation. We have stood out for leadership in New Zealand mobility; we are now also a leader in next-generation digital and technology services. We partner with the best technology companies in the world, such as Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Nokia, Palo Alto Networks, and Vodafone, and we have invested in best-in-class New Zealand security company DEFEND, to make sure our business and public sector customers get the best technology solutions.
“We are going from eight letters to three, and we are keeping our strong partner market relationship with Vodafone, so our customers will continue to benefit from that via access to global roaming, IoT (Internet of Things) platform, security and network technology solutions for the business and consumer market.
“This is much more than just a name change; it is the icing on the cake. Three years ago, we moved from global to local to focus 100% on New Zealand, and since then we have been laying the foundations to serve Aotearoa long into the future. Now, it is time to take the next step. To become One New Zealand. One team of over 3,000 employees, with one focus on one country and on one goal, to unlock the magic of technology to create an awesome Aotearoa.”
Over the last three years the company has spent close to a billion dollars to dramatically improve The Smart Network. This includes being the first to launch a 5G mobile network in New Zealand (after being the first to deliver 3G and 4G) and rolling this latest technology out to dozens of cities and towns around Aotearoa, plus upgrading wireless broadband and HFC (Hybrid Fibre Coaxial) services and delivering world-class fibre broadband across the motu. This year the company was awarded the best mobile network in Aotearoa New Zealand by independent global leader in mobile testing, umlaut.
The company has been overhauling the way it sells and serves, bringing most of its call-centres back home to New Zealand, forming local teams of experts and bringing all its retail stores under full ownership. It has been upgrading its legacy technology to make it easier for teams to help customers. While customer experience is better than it has ever been, One New Zealand will be on a mission to become world-famous for its service, dedicated to providing more locals helping locals, and great service where and when needed, in stores, via call centres, or on-line.
To coincide with the announcement of One New Zealand, the company is announcing some exciting new initiatives, including One Good Kiwi a unique digital charity platform through which One New Zealand will donate $1.2 million a year to worthy causes that are making positive change for rangatahi, and One Plan which will give customers the freedom to use data however and whenever they want. And, from today Vodafone New Zealand is offering its business customers an upgrade to an enhanced security package with Microsoft, on them.
“Our commitment to Aotearoa has always been intergenerational. We recently celebrated the 20-year anniversary of Te Rourou, Vodafone Aotearoa Foundation (soon to be Te Rourou, One New Zealand Foundation), which has now invested close to $50 million in securing a better future for rangatahi (young people), and we believe represents the biggest corporate philanthropy in New Zealand’s history, and this commitment will continue long into the future. We are committed to supporting Te Ao Māori and normalising the use of Te Reo through Whārikihia, our Māori strategy, and through honouring the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We also support numerous digital equity and youth programmes.
“We have been supporting the Vodafone Warriors (soon to be One New Zealand Warriors) through thick and thin for a quarter of a century now, one of the longest running sporting sponsorships in the world, and that commitment will continue.
“We are incredibly proud of the difference we have made for customers over the last three years, including keeping millions of New Zealanders connected through a global pandemic and the massive shift to online. We cannot wait to help more New Zealanders do amazing things in the future, and we have a lot more plans up our sleeve to share in coming months. For now, customers will not need to do anything different at all, we will continue to operate as Vodafone New Zealand until the change happens, but in the meantime, expect to see a lot more proof of the changes that One New Zealand will bring.
For more information, please visit www.vodafone.co.nz and www.one.nz
