Alison Paterson (company director)

Dame Alison Mae Paterson DNZM QSO (née Dinsdale; born 22 August 1935) is a New Zealand businesswoman. In 1979, she became the first woman to sit on the board of a publicly listed company in New Zealand.

Dame Alison Paterson

DNZM QSO
Paterson in 2020
Born
Alison Mae Dinsdale

(1935-08-22) 22 August 1935
Taumarunui, New Zealand
OccupationChartered accountant, professional company director
Known forFirst woman to serve on the board of a publicly listed company in New Zealand
Spouse(s)
Barry Paterson
​
(m. 1991)​

Early life and family

Paterson was born Alison Mae Dinsdale at Taumarunui on 22 August 1935.[1][2] She was educated at New Plymouth Girls' High School,[1] and became deaf towards the end of her schooling, although this was subsequently largely resolved through a series of operations.[3]

In 1991, Dinsdale married lawyer Barry John Paterson.[1][3] He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1993, and served as a High Court judge between 1996 and 2004.[4]

Career

After leaving school, Dinsdale worked as the petty-cash girl for an accountancy firm, and studied accounting by correspondence.[3] She qualified as a chartered accountant in 1966,[1] and established her own farm accounting practice in 1971.[3]

In 1976, Dinsdale was appointed as a member of the Apple and Pear Marketing Board, becoming the first woman to be appointed to a producer board in New Zealand.[2] Three years later, in 1979, she was the first woman to serve on the board of a New Zealand publicly listed company when she joined the board of retail chain McKenzies.[2] She has gone on to serve on numerous company boards. Paterson spent 15 years on the board of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and has chaired entities including Landcorp, the Waitematā District Health Board, Farm IQ Systems, Kiwi Wealth, the Forestry Industry Safety Council, and Albano Healthcare Group.[3][5][6] Other company boards on which she has sat include Vector, Stevenson Agriculture, New Zealand Formulary, Transpower New Zealand and Crown Irrigation Investments.[3][6] She has also served on the Massey University Council.[6]

Honours and awards

In the 2000 New Year Honours, Paterson was appointed a Companion of the Queen's Service Order for public services.[7] In the 2010 Queen's Birthday Honours, she was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to business,[8] and she was promoted to Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2014 New Year Honours.[9]

In 2009, Paterson was conferred an honorary Doctor of Commerce degree by Massey University.[10] The following year, she was named the Top 200 QBE Insurance chairperson of the year, and in 2015 she was inducted into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame.[6] In 2018, she was recognised for her contribution to business and finance at the New Zealand CFO Awards,[11] and in 2020, she won the board and management award at the New Zealand Women of Influence Awards.[12] Also in 2020, she was awarded honorary life membership of Global Women.[13]

References
  1. Taylor, Alister, ed. (2001). New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa 2001. Auckland: Alister Taylor Publishers. p. 695. ISSN 1172-9813.
  2. Slade, Maria (12 December 2010). "Many a seat at board table". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  3. "New Year Honours 2014: Alison Paterson". The New Zealand Herald. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  4. "Hon. Barry John Paterson CNZM, OBE, QC" (PDF). Arbitrators' and Mediators Institute of New Zealand. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  5. "Safeguards". Kiwi Wealth Limited. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  6. "Dame Alison Paterson". Broad-ly Speaking. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  7. "New Year honours list 2000". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 1999. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  8. "Queen's Birthday honours list 2010". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 7 June 2010. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  9. "New Year honours list 2014". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  10. "Honorary graduates". University Calendar (PDF). Massey University. 2012. p. 526. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  11. Canlas, Krizzel (17 March 2018). "In a first, women take top accolades at 2018 CFO Awards". Insurance Business NZ. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  12. Nadkarni, Anuja (17 November 2020). "Dr Siouxsie Wiles supreme winner at Stuff-Westpac 2020 Women of Influence Awards". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  13. "Global Women honorary life membership presentations". Government House. 18 November 2020. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
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