Understanding professional support at Kāinga Ora: Which door do you choose?
As a Kāinga Ora kaimahi, you work with complex situations daily - supporting tenants through challenging circumstances, managing property issues, navigating relationships with multiple agencies, and balancing various stakeholder needs. With such demanding work, knowing where to turn for support is crucial.
Picture this: You've had a challenging week. A tenant situation has escalated, involving complex family dynamics and safety concerns. You're worried about a child in the household, there's property damage to manage, and you're questioning whether you could have handled things differently. Where do you turn?
You have three doors in front of you. Behind one sits your Wā Manaaki supervisor, behind another your EAP counsellor, and behind the third your People Leader. Which door do you choose?
The Wā Manaaki – Professional Supervision door
Walk through this door and you'll find a space to explore your practice with curiosity rather than judgment. Your Wā Manaaki supervisor provides:
Protected time to reflect on complex situations
Support to develop your confidence in decision-making
Space to explore challenging interactions with tenants, colleagues, and stakeholders
Opportunity to enhance cultural responsiveness in your practice
Support for navigating ethical dilemmas
Support for managing work-related stress
Help with maintaining work-life boundaries
A chance to explore how the work impacts your practice and your wellbeing.
The EAP/counselling door
Behind this door lies a space focused entirely on you as a person, not a Kāinga Ora employee. Here you'll find:
Confidential support for personal challenges
Crisis support when needed
Focus on your personal wellbeing
Support your whānau can access too.
The People Leader door
This door leads to operational conversations about your role. Your People Leader provides:
Help managing workload and caseload
Direction on policy implementation
Resource allocation and practical support
Performance feedback
Organisational requirements and priorities.
Consider this scenario
You're working with a household where there's growing tension between neighbours, property damage, and concerns about child wellbeing. You've had to issue warnings about tenancy obligations, but you're also worried about the family's vulnerability.
Through Wā Manaaki supervision, you might explore:
Your decision-making process around tenancy enforcement
How to balance support and compliance
Ways to work effectively with vulnerable tenants
Cultural considerations in your approach
Professional boundaries and role clarity
Emotional impact of working with vulnerable families.
Through EAP, you might discuss:
Personal stress from managing complex situations
Anxiety about making the right decisions
Strategies for self-care.
With your People Leader, you might address:
Immediate actions needed regarding the tenancy
Risk management strategies
Referral pathways to other agencies
Workload management
Policy compliance.
Making the most of your support options
Each support option serves a distinct purpose in helping you manage the complexities of your role:
Wā Manaaki: Reflect on and develop your professional practice
EAP: Support your personal wellbeing
People Leader: Guide operational decisions and ensure organisational effectiveness.
Remember
It's not about choosing just one door - each type of support plays a valuable role in helping you perform effectively in your challenging and important work at Kāinga Ora.
Remember - you don't have to choose just one door. Each support option serves a unique purpose, and in many situations, using all three together - Wā Manaaki for professional practice, EAP for personal support, and your People Leader for operational guidance - can provide the comprehensive support you need to handle complex challenges effectively.
Questions to consider:
Which support do you typically seek first when facing challenges?
Are you making the most of all available support options?
What type of support would be most helpful for your current challenges?
The Wā Manaaki programme recognises that professional supervision is a unique space, distinct from both counselling and management. It provides dedicated time to reflect on your practice and grow professionally in your role supporting Kāinga Ora tenants, communities, and most importantly, you.
Want to learn more about how Wā Manaaki can support you in your role? Contact: contact@3bigthings.co.nz. Or check out: Wā Manaaki - Professional Supervision
