Ko Ōwhawhe tōku maunga
Ko Tainui tōku waka
Ko Waitomo tōku awa
Ko Ngāti Maniapoto tōku iwi
Ko Ngati uekaha me Ruapuha ōku hapu
Ko Tokikapu tōku marae
Ko Pauline raua ko Sonny ōku tipuna
Ko Tara tōku māmā
Ko Cody Te Kanawa Carnachan tōku ingoa nō Waitomo ahau
Kei Tamaki Makarau au e noho ana inaianei Nō reira, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tatou katoa
Kia ora!
My name is Cody Carnachan and I am the Managing Director at Flume, and, as you may have guessed from the above, I’m Māori and a proud New Zealander.
While I started Flume (previously Hatch) over 8 years ago, my fascination with technology began much earlier.
From when I was a toddler I was always fascinated with how things worked (or so I’m told). So, at the ripe young age of 14, when we got our first computer in our house, I took to taking it apart, and putting it back together. Then, when I was fourteen, I started teaching myself how to code.
The thing I loved about coding was that, with the internet, everything was within your grasp to teach yourself and just build stuff, and, apart from the cost of buying a computer and internet, it was basically free.
From there, and as I got more practiced, I started realising the true potential of technology; to be a tool that enabled systems and processes, whether they be sales, marketing, or operationally, oriented, to be automated. To put it in another way: technology at its most basic level allows us to take what we do normally, and (usually) do it with far less effort, much faster, and at a much bigger scale.
We started Flume to build technology that tangibly improved the lives of people. And I am proud to say that 8 years on, we have been fortunate enough to have been able to deliver on that mission.
I think this quote is a great reminder of the power of technology and the aspiration to use it to improve our humanity.
“Technology is best when it brings people together.”
- Matt Mullenweg
So what do I do outside of work?
One thing that not a lot of people know is that I am a classically trained pianist, having played for the past 16 years. Learning piano taught me a lot of things; the value of breaking down complexity and dealing with it in parts, how to add expression by reading between the lines (literally and figuratively), and how to tell a story.
One of my more recent passions is that of being out on the water. Last year, I was lucky enough to be able to purchase a boat, Monty, and here she is:
Despite the impact of COVID, I’ve managed to get out on some great trips over the past 18 months including Kawau island, Motuora, multiple trips to Waiheke, Motuihe and even down to Whitianga a few times. I’d have to say that one of the less experienced and appreciated aspects of living in Auckland is exploring the plethora of islands in the Hauraki Gulf that are right on our doorstep. On a great day, you can’t help but feel like you have been transported to another part of the world; it’s magical.
One lesson I've learnt in a near-decade of running a business, is the importance of truly having balance in life and savouring moments like these.
Whatever those moments are for you, I encourage and urge you to find what that looks like for you.
I’d like to leave you with a whakatauki or Māori proverb that sums up this pursuit quite nicely.
Whāia te iti kahurangi ki te tūohu koe me he maunga teitei.
Seek the treasure you value most dearly: if you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain
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