The night before virtually interviewing ABV mentor David Campbell and mentee Moana Korikalo, a 6.5-scale earthquake hit Vanuatu. Despite being woken up by her home shaking in the night, Moana showed up on time to chat with us with a positive attitude. "That's who Moana is; she always follows through on her commitments," David remarked.
As the Retail Head of BSP Financial Group Limited's Vanuatu branch, Moana guides clients through their business growth and steers them towards success. We matched David and Moana in May 2022 under BSP's leadership development program. Moana picked David for his impressive profile that showcased his extensive sales and business development expertise. On David's suggestion, they took a personality test to get to know each other. They found they were both 'protagonists'–the people who get things done.
Moana has been with BSP Financial Group since 2010 and is now in her 7th year as the retail head of Vanuatu. She manages a team of 59 staff—each day brings something new. Moana's real love is helping people; she initially started as an executive assistant at BSP and, in her downtime, would head downstairs to help customers at the bank. She quickly realised an assistant role wasn't for her; she needed to be with a team.
Moana embraced the chance to participate in the BSP/ABV mentoring program. Her main goal was to enhance her leadership skills, and with David's help, Moana has improved her confidence in leading her team. Moana's excellent communication skills are crucial to managing her multi-lingual team, who speak French, English, and Bislama.
David travelled to meet Moana for the first time in September 2023. "It felt like reuniting with an old friend. We have become great buddies over the years, and I felt comfortable immediately. I know our friendship will continue after this program," said Moana.
David met Moana's team at the bank and got to see the other side of his mentoring at play; "I asked the team for feedback on what was and wasn't working, and the level of candour was pretty refreshing", he said.
Moana has led her team to great personal and professional achievements. She shared a heartwarming story of how proud she was that one of her branch managers passed her driving test after seven years of her writing it into her 'development plan.'
Moana's leadership style has transformed throughout the mentoring program. Moana said, "My confidence and how I approach situations is so different, thanks to David's guidance. When people ask me how I've done it, I simply say, 'Meet my friend David.'"
