26th August 2026
Business North Harbour’s Massey MBA Business Connect event brought together local businesses and Massey University MBA students for an afternoon of meaningful conversations, fresh perspectives and new opportunities.
Held at Massey University, the event provided businesses with the chance to meet face-to-face with a talented cohort of MBA students and experienced professionals, while exploring how fresh thinking, specialist expertise and diverse perspectives could help address real-world business challenges.
With participants averaging more than 11 years of professional experience and coming from a range of global backgrounds, the MBA cohort brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the conversations. The event also provided a valuable opportunity for businesses to connect with potential interns in a relaxed and informal environment.
Connecting Local Businesses with Talent
Business North Harbour members from a range of industries took part in the event, including:
- Insphire Event Rental
- Albany Oak Motel
- Bricks for Kidz
- BRIV Construction Group
- General Architectural Design Ltd
- Colliers
- Sweet Disorder
- RAYtech
- Pasifika Consulting Limited
- Project Employ
- Voyager Internet Ltd
The diversity of businesses and experience in the room created an engaging environment for conversations around business challenges, ideas, and potential internship opportunities.
For participating businesses, the event was a chance to discover new talent while considering how an MBA intern could bring fresh thinking and practical value to their organisation.
One member commented:
“It was a great event. I’m sure there are plenty of businesses around that would love to be part of this and have an opportunity to welcome an intern. We have a couple of friends that are business owners and they thought this was a great opportunity.”
Another member highlighted the value of the connections made through the event:
“This is such a great event and a great initiative. Thank you BNH for connecting us with such valuable resources and networks. We really appreciate the opportunity to be part of it!”
A Valuable Experience for MBA Students
The event was equally valuable for the Massey MBA students, giving them the opportunity to meet local business leaders, understand the challenges businesses are facing and explore how their skills and experience could be applied in a practical setting.
Students particularly appreciated the opportunity to engage directly with Business North Harbour members and have genuine conversations about business, rather than simply meeting in a traditional recruitment environment.
The feedback from students was enthusiastic, with one commenting:
“If only BNH and Massey could organise such events more often…”
Creating Opportunities Through Collaboration
The Massey MBA Business Connect event demonstrated the value of bringing education and business together. By creating a space for open conversations between experienced MBA students and local businesses, the event helped identify potential internship opportunities while laying the foundations for future collaboration.
For businesses, these connections can provide access to new ideas, skills and perspectives. For students, they offer valuable exposure to the local business community and the opportunity to apply their experience to real business situations.
Business North Harbour would like to thank Massey University – Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa, Massey Business School, the MBA students and all the participating businesses for helping make the event a success.
We look forward to seeing where these new connections lead and to supporting further opportunities for local businesses and talented MBA students to connect, collaborate and create value together.
