Rikirangi is of Te Whānau -a-Apanui descent.
Rikirangi is currently the Chief Executive Officer for Te Rūnanga o Te Whānau. He has a wealth of experience in the marine environment. Rikirangi has served as a member of the Ministerial Advisory Committee for Oceans Policy and was a prominent spokesperson during the allocation discussions. He served as a board member for TE Papa for three years and represented the Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Commission at the Convention on Biological Diversity in Argentina in 1996.