For Inspector Nicky Cooney, her new role as Eastern Bay of Plenty Area Commander is a case of right job, right place.
Being an area commander is something Nicky started aspiring to about two years ago, but she¡¯s bided her time waiting for the right role and ensuring she¡¯s developed the skills she needs to do it justice.
When the opportunity opened up in the Eastern Bay, she knew she had the perfect opportunity to make a difference ¨C both for those in Police and the communities they serve.
¡°This is the role for me. It¡¯s the real community feel that I was attracted to, both within Police and outside of it. I¡¯m still in the Bay of Plenty, but this is an opportunity to make a difference in a role and area that is really important to me.¡±
Nicky has held a range of roles during her time with Police, working across frontline and road policing and more recently, in District Headquarter roles including Deployment Manager, Operations Manager and Professional Conduct Manager.
¡°My greatest joy in Police was as a frontline supervisor and building your team around you. That was policing in its rawness, working as a first responder.¡±
For Nicky, the new position is the perfect combination of returning to the part of policing she¡¯s loved most, while using her background in high-performance sport to lead the team. Nicky represented New Zealand in diving at the Commonwealth Games twice, picking up a bronze medal in 1990, and has also played rugby and cricket at a representative level. She also loves the size of both the communities and stations.
¡°I¡¯m committed to our people and our community and I¡¯m here for the long run.¡±
As well as a focus on supporting her people, Inspector Cooney knows the responsibilty the role carries for the wider community, and especially local iwi.
A focus over coming months will be engaging with iwi from across the Eastern Bay, working alongside the MPES team to build relationships and look at ways to work together.
¡°There are relationships to be built and opportunities to engage with the communities. We police by the consent of our communities and it¡¯s important to understand their views.¡±