Shane Brealey

Shane Brealey, Managing Director of Simplicity Living, delivers one of the most provocative episodes in the series, laying out a radically different model for NZ construction. His track record speaks for itself: 10 years with zero extension of time claims, zero disputes, less than $10K in legal fees on $360M of work, and 13 projects all delivered 20-35% cheaper and faster than the next best alternative. The secret: no tendering, no retentions, no performance bonds, a 4-page subcontract, and a philosophy that reframes construction managers as "production managers" who are "servants to subcontractors." Shane gifted his company NZ Living (700 homes) to Simplicity KiwiSaver, a not-for-profit owned by a charity, and pledged 10 years of pro bono work. The conversation makes a compelling case that trust, not contracts, is the missing ingredient in an industry Shane describes as a "red ocean, doggy dog for breakfast."

Key Topics Discussed

• NZ Strong track record. 10 years, zero extension of time claims, zero disputes, less than $10K in legal fees on $360M of work. Compare to Multiplex: $500K/year external legal budget plus a full-time in-house lawyer.
• Simplicity Living's three principles. (1) Build 10,000 homes in 10 years. (2) Outsized returns for Simplicity KiwiSaver members (fund grew from $1.86B to $7.4B). (3) Freely share IP and "be the crash test dummy of the industry."
• No tendering. All negotiated contracts. Tendering adds approximately 25-30% waste premium through risk allowance, pricing effort, and non-winning bidders. On the first project, Shane beat the independent cost plan by approximately 30%.
• Simplified contracts. No retentions, no performance bonds, 4-page subcontract with project-specific details only. References standard master builders conditions, no special conditions, no lawyers needed.
• 13 projects, all 20-35% less cost. Beat independent cost plan by approximately 30% on the first project, then repeated 12 more times.
• Production managers, not construction managers. Language change reflects mindset change. "Servants to subcontractors." Pre-loading floors with fit-out materials, standardized hardware boxes per apartment typology (8-9 types), packing off 20mm for electrician cabling, fixing into formwork before concrete pour (no drilling into concrete).
• Trust as the missing ingredient. Industry is a "red ocean, doggy dog for breakfast." Staff say they can't go back to the old industry.
• Sold 700 homes $30M under valuation. Approximately $50K per home under market, sold out in minutes online.
• Gifted company to charity. Gifted NZ Living to Simplicity (not-for-profit owned by charity) and pledged 10 years of pro bono work.
• 1 RFI per working day is the NZ norm, Shane's projects get zero. Industry standard on NZS 3910 build-only commercial projects is approximately one RFI per working day raised by the construction team, with at least 2 FTEs absorbed managing them on both sides (often way more). Shane's projects generate almost none, because the contract, sequencing, and relationship eliminate the information gaps that drive them.
• Variations: ~dozen on a $200M project. versus industry norm of hundreds. Total: less than a dozen variations across an entire $200M build.
• Meeting load: 1.5 meetings per project across a 2-year project. versus the industry norm of weekly progress meetings running into the hundreds. Trust eliminates the meeting cadence because information flows through the daily working relationship.
• Productivity hub: 870 visitors through the hub since July. Government, Kāinga Ora, architects, engineers, builders have walked through Shane's site to see the model in operation. He treats IP sharing as part of the mission, not a competitive threat.
• Construction Accord, "four years, language review". Shane's scorching assessment of industry reform: four years of Accord work produced a plain-language review of NZS 3910, not the structural reform the industry needed.

Notable Quotes

"Risk is a four letter word. So is gold. And we see risk as gold.", Shane reframing the industry's core fear.

"It's hard to fly like an eagle when you're surrounded by turkeys.", Shane on why he left corporates to start NZ Strong.

"Red ocean, doggy dog for breakfast.", Shane on NZ construction industry culture.

"Servants to subcontractors.", Shane's reframe of the construction manager role.

"Be the crash test dummy of the industry.", Shane on why Simplicity shares its IP freely.

"On a commercial project it's about one RFI per working day raised by the construction team. On a build-only NZS 3910 contract. That's probably 2 FTEs if you take both sides. Way more than that, actually.", Shane naming the hidden cost of the standard model.

Shane's staff: they can't go back to the old industry.

Guest Background

Shane Brealey is the Managing Director of Simplicity Living. A civil engineer (Canterbury), he spent 15 years at corporates including Lend Lease, Mervac, and Multiplex. He founded NZ Strong with Jamie Valance, then NZ Living (700 homes, the largest Kiwi-built home provider). He gifted NZ Living to Simplicity KiwiSaver, a not-for-profit, and pledged 10 years of pro bono leadership.