The women transforming Pacific Markets

For Heather Ronney, Manager Markets Vanuatu, nothing tested her leadership skills quite like being in the midst of an earthquake. It was eight days before Christmas, 2024, and Heather was sitting at her desk.

"In the Pacific, traditional views can sometimes place us women in more supportive or family-focused roles, so stepping into a fast-paced, high-pressure environment like the trading desk can feel like breaking new ground"

“I was having a conversation with our senior RNA Analyst and suddenly I was thrown back against a wall,” Heather recalled, “everything just flew off the shelves.”

Heather

Heather Ronney, Manager Markets Vanuatu

The 7.3 magnitude quake struck at midday near Vanuatu’s capital, Port Vila. Thankfully, Heather and her team were unharmed, but tragically, 14 people across the region lost their lives. In the days and weeks that followed, Heather found herself relying heavily on instinct and empathy.

“It was a time where you had to put your staff’s wellbeing at the forefront,” she said. “It was beyond work. We were just taking things day by day.”

In the Pacific, where community sits at the heart of daily life, many women grow up leading long before they ever hold a formal role. Heather realised this most clearly during the disaster. 

“For many of us, we already have that leadership skill embedded in us. If you’re a mother, you’re a leader at home,” she said. “But we must move away from the cultural norm of women being caretakers. Working for an organisation like ANZ has helped to pull me out of that mindset.”

The backbone of Pacific economies

The Markets business plays a critical role across the Pacific by supporting economic activity, trade flow and financial stability in countries such as Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, Kiribati, Cook Islands and Timor Leste. It provides essential foreign exchange (FX) and treasury services tailored to the unique regulatory and liquidity conditions of each market.

With ANZ having the broadest footprint of any bank across the Pacific - Markets is a central pillar of ANZ’s Pacific banking proposition. These services ensure importers, exporters, investors and governments have access to the tools they need to operate effectively, often in heavily regulated environments.

It is within this complex, high stakes landscape that an impressive cohort of women has emerged.

Finding confidence 

Shamita Devi knows better than most how much the landscape has changed.

“The markets business was always known to be run by males,” she said. “I realised early on in my career that being a female wasn’t easy. You’d go to meetings and attend functions, and they were mostly all men.”

Shamita started with ANZ in Fiji in 2007 and later spent three years in Samoa. In the beginning, she found herself working hard to be heard.

But Shamita persisted. Impressively, she’s now a Senior Dealer based in New Zealand.

“Consistent dedication and focussed effort eventually rewards you.” Still, she says, no one succeeds alone. “At the same time, you need to have the support around you in order for you to achieve your goals.”

Her advice is direct: “Stay focused, stay driven and shape a career path that inspires you and others around you to grow.”

Leadership that lifts others

For Fiji-based Manager FX Sales Kritika Reddy, that support came in the form of one person: Shamita.

Kritika

Kritika Reddy, Manager FX Sales, Fiji

Kritika joined ANZ a decade ago. When a dealer role came up in 2015, she and her husband both applied - and Kritika was the one who landed the job! But early on, she felt out of her depth.

“Shamita saw potential in me. And after that, I was a different me,” Kritika said. “She was a gamechanger in my career.” 

Breaking new ground in the Cook Islands

In the Cook Islands, new FX dealer Olivia Colati admits she’s in unfamiliar territory.

olivia

Olivia Colati, FX Dealer, Cook Islands

“In the Pacific, traditional views can sometimes place us women in more supportive or family-focused roles, so stepping into a fast-paced, high-pressure environment like the trading desk can feel like breaking new ground,” she said.

But she also sees the distinct strengths women bring.

“Women bring valuable qualities - such as patience, empathy, and attention to detail - which are essential in building trust with clients and managing relationships in our close-knit Pacific communities.”

A region where women are leading the way

Today in Pacific Markets, women now make up 81 per cent of staff, hold 86 per cent of leadership roles, and account for 71 per cent of new hires over the past two years. Collectively, female staff bring 146 years of Markets experience and speak 10 languages.

During a recent visit to Fiji and Vanuatu, Group Executive and CEO of ANZ New Zealand, Antonia Watson, reflected on just how significant this progress is.

“I’m incredibly proud of the women leading our markets teams across the Pacific. Their talent, their confidence, and the way they support one another is really lifting the bar on what leadership looks like. I strongly believe that representation matters and seeing women in these roles shows others what’s possible.”

As she embarks on her 32nd year with ANZ, Heather’s advice is relevant to working women everywhere. 

 “The biggest barrier is yourself. You can do anything.”

Alicia Muling is a Senior Journalist at ANZ.