Video transcript: Nicol Stevens
Note: Nicol was an Audit Manager when we filmed this video. Now she's an Associate Director in our Specialist Audit and Assurance Services team.
So I originally came from a small town in the Eastern Cape of South Africa called East London, sometimes confused with East of London. We’ve had mail going missing at times because and it’s actually gone to the wrong country.
So we’ve been in New Zealand for four years; we arrived in January of 2013. We didn’t know New Zealand before we arrived – we’d never been here before. We’d only heard good things, and what we found is that it actually exceeded our expectations.
We’ve all settled really well – a lot quicker than I thought we would. I think kids are quite resilient, and we were always told that the children would settle before the adults. We did have friends in New Zealand so they have made us feel very welcome, and the New Zealanders themselves are very open and very warm and welcoming to migrants.
Audit New Zealand, when we moved over, made the transition very easy for us. Everyone refers to it as a ‘soft landing’ and for us it really was. It was not difficult; there was no hardship. We were put up in lovely accommodation very close to the city. Everything was within walking distance so it made getting around very easy for us. We were also welcomed by members of the office. It’s always good to have a familiar face, people that we knew back in South Africa made us feel very welcome. So it was quite an easy transition for us, I felt.
If I think about my children, from their point of view, I think the independence and the freedom that they have in New Zealand is really great, and that’s one of the main reasons we came here. From our point of view, as adults, we sleep well at night, we feel safe in our environment, we are not surrounded by burglar bars on doors and windows, it’s very quiet, the air is fresh, and we enjoy being outdoors, and we enjoy watching our children thrive and grow in this environment.
Audit New Zealand has been a very supportive employer. Since I’ve joined, I’ve realised that there are a lot of like-minded people. We are committed, we care about what we do and what we’re trying to achieve. As a mother, it’s important that your employer understands family commitments, and if they are able to be flexible, you give the best that you have in return, so I appreciate the support and the flexibility that Audit New Zealand has given me over my time since I’ve been here.
I think anyone looking for a new country to settle in should really consider New Zealand. It’s a great country. It has a really good public service that supports the citizens. We’ve been very happy in the time that we’ve been here. I think our only regret is that we didn’t do it ten years earlier, but you’re never too old to make the move, and we are definitely better off emotionally, from a wellbeing point of view, lifestyle point of view than we were, so we are eternally grateful to New Zealand for opening its doors to families like ours.
Title: Great Job Better Future. For more information, please visit our website: www.auditnz.govt.nz