Meet Our 2026 Judges

Tim McCready is an experienced strategic advisor and business commentator who works across the public and private sectors on projects spanning innovation, international trade, investment, and economic development. He brings extensive experience in assessing strategy and execution at both the organisational and board levels, and has worked with leading New Zealand corporates, government agencies, and global multinationals.

As Convenor of Judges for the 2degrees Auckland Business Awards, Tim oversees the judging process to ensure integrity, consistency, and rigour across all award categories. He chairs the panel of independent judges and facilitates final deliberations, helping to spotlight outstanding business performance and leadership across Auckland.

Tim is a MC and moderator at high-profile summits including the China Business Summit and the US Business Summit. He also contributes commentary to the New Zealand Herald on topics including business strategy, geopolitics, and capital markets.

John Cunningham is an accomplished business leader with a track record of success in helping high-growth companies in New Zealand raise capital and negotiate strategic alliances globally. He currently serves as the Executive Director of Ignition Partner Ltd, a company that specialises in raising capital for New Zealand’s high-growth companies and negotiating strategic alliance deals internationally.

In addition to his executive roles, John is an active member of the New Zealand business community and has been a judge for Best Emerging Business in the Auckland Business Awards for 16 years, and lead judge for 8 years, as well as an expert reviewer for MBIE and Callaghan Innovation. This category under John’s leadership has seen many businesses win that are now household names. With his extensive background in corporate development and venture capital, John is highly respected for his ability to help companies develop and commercialise technologies. He is also a Director and shareholder in Resin & Wax Holdings Ltd and a Director of Cawthron Institute, and serves as Chairman of CLIM Systems Ltd and NZIMMR.

John is a Chartered Engineer and a Chartered Scientist, and a fellow of IChemE and Engineering NZ. He holds a BE in Chemical and Materials, an ME in environmental engineering, and a DipBIA. In addition to his impressive academic credentials, he is a past President of IPENZ, and a member of IOD. With his extensive experience and credentials, John is well-suited to lead the judging process for Best Emerging Business and provide invaluable guidance to other judges.

Anna Schubert is a seasoned distribution expert with a wealth of experience in developing and implementing innovative solutions to remove complexity and improve sales results. Her strengths in strategic planning, team development, and budget management enable her to drive tangible results for businesses. Anna has a deep understanding of regulatory principles and leverages this knowledge to ensure that her initiatives are both effective and compliant.

Anna is highly regarded for her authentic and engaging leadership style. She is a proactive and collaborative colleague who is driven to make a positive difference and get the job done. Her dedication to transparency and her commitment to achieving the best commercial outcomes for all stakeholders make her a valuable asset to any team. With her expertise in distribution and her passion for innovation, Anna is well-suited to judge the Best Emerging Business category and recognize businesses that are making a significant impact in their industries.

Darius Mistry is a highly experienced and humble business leader with over 30 years in the IT industry, known for transforming and growing businesses through both stable and challenging periods. As CEO and owner of Imagetext IT Specialists, he successfully scaled the company from a small $1.2M operation into a $10M+ business, delivering significant revenue growth and profitability improvements while building a loyal, high-performing team.

His strengths lie in strategic leadership, financial management, and market insight, consistently driving results well above industry standards. Darius also brings a strong track record of innovation, resilience, and community contribution, making him a well-rounded and valuable addition as a judge for the Best Emerging Business category.

Dave has been in business for over 50 years, mainly in companies with a manufacturing base and process technology as a point of difference. His leadership experience is extensive and he has specialised in transforming companies from being mediocre to great by building high performing teams and collaborative cultures.

With a strong engineering & management background, he has had a successful career spanning medium to large sized companies here and overseas, which has helped hone an effective leadership style with proven success in several different operating environments and cultures.

Over the last 10 years of his career he has dedicated significant time and energy to giving back through mentoring leaders of small and medium sized businesses as well as participating in the young enterprise scheme in schools around the Auckland area. His passion is people and he has an unwavering belief that we all have in us the ability to be successful in life, given the right encouragement and guidance.

Jay is an accomplished business leader, strategist, and innovation specialist with more than 25 years of executive leadership and management experience across New Zealand and international markets. He is widely recognised for his expertise in strategic planning, business transformation, organisational growth, technology innovation, and leadership development.

Jay is the co-founder and designer of one of the world’s leading fully automated car stacking systems through Auto-Park and has been a keynote speaker in the world’s largest International Smart City conference in Saudi Arbia, presenting on the impact of automation on communities, housing, and infrastructure. He also served as a contract Chief Executive Officer of one of New Zealand’s premier towing companies, where he led the development and implementation of a new strategic business model that helped grow the company into New Zealand’s largest towing operator.

Throughout his career, Jay has worked as a business consultant and advisor to a diverse range of organisations including the Pacific business community. His expertise spans business growth and scaling, innovation, operational leadership, customer engagement, organisational change, and technology-driven business efficiency.

Jay holds degrees in Psychology, Education, International Business and has a master’s degree in Organisational Change Management. He is also recognised for his strong commitment to community development, cultural awareness, and empowering Māori and Pasifika communities through leadership, education, and business innovation.

Laura Fayerman is a consultant, strategist, and innovation leader with more than 20 years’ experience helping organisations navigate growth, transformation, and complex challenges across New Zealand and Australia.

As Founder of Salt Labs, Laura advises organisations on innovation, strategy, operating model design, and sustainable growth. Her experience spans senior roles across energy, insurance, economic development, and technology, where she has led innovation portfolios, built new capabilities, and brought customer-centred solutions to market. Laura has also mentored climate tech startups in Australia, supporting founders to refine propositions, accelerate commercialisation, and scale impact. She has a particular interest in the blue economy and helping organisations identify opportunities that deliver both commercial and environmental value.

Passionate about supporting New Zealand businesses to thrive, Laura brings a balanced perspective that combines commercial rigour, creativity, and a deep understanding of what it takes to build and grow successful organisations.

Cole Campbell is an accomplished innovation strategist whose expertise has been honed through years of experience working with a wide range of businesses, from SMEs to multinationals. She is a two-time business founder, and holds various director, trustee, and advisory positions across several companies.

Cole’s extensive knowledge and fresh thinking have earned her recognition and numerous awards for her successful work in corporate innovation. With a background in design and business advisory, she brings a unique perspective to her work and is adept at future-proofing clients’ businesses. Cole’s approach to engagements is marked by a balance of provocation and pragmatism, making her a great choice to lead the judging for excellence in innovation for the 2degrees Auckland Business Awards.

An accomplished commercial leader and champion of brand and innovation, Scott Wright brings over 25 years of executive experience across large consumer goods businesses such as Cadbury, Philips, Goodman Fielder, Frucor/Suntory and Lion. He has also been GM of smaller companies such as Arano Juices and The Village Press and was most recently part of the business events sector with Brightstar, so understands the challenges and dynamics of smaller businesses and the B2B sector too.

He is a firm believer in the power of outside-in thinking and driving great commercial outcomes through creativity, collaboration, partnerships, deep consumer insight, and harnessing the potential of engaged, high-performing teams.

Having had leadership roles across marketing, commercial, business development and future innovation, Scott understands the nuances of the innovation process and what it takes to successfully innovate in not only product, but also ways of working, business model and service.

Simon is a strategist and innovation leader sought out for his creativity and vision. His expertise is in frictionless customer experience where he applies human-centred design and design-thinking processes to deliver commercial results. Simon’s passion is unlocking innovation and growth through the exploration of customer experience and early stage prototype development.

Simon has deep experience and possesses detailed, real knowledge in how to apply design-led innovation to start-up’s, mature businesses and organisations in a diverse range of industries. His unique approach to customer experience adapts design led thinking methodologies and coaching skills to fuel disruptive service innovation.

Simon’s extensive commercial and academic background spans both the public and private sectors. He is a highly skilled facilitator and has coached executive education for Stanford University’s d.school.

Melissa Wong brings a wealth of experience to the judging panel for Excellence in Innovation. Her extensive background in science and business commercialization gives her a unique understanding of the complexities and challenges involved in bringing new products, technologies, and services to market. 

Melissa has worked across a range of industries, including the New Zealand government science sector, private and public companies in New Zealand and overseas, and a life science consultancy. Her areas of specialization include agritech, sustainability, and biotechnology portfolios, reflecting her passion for environmental and social responsibility. Additionally, her expertise in intellectual property and indigenous rights highlights her commitment to ethical business practices and ensuring that businesses operate in a responsible and sustainable manner. 

With Melissa’s deep understanding of the business landscape and her commitment to ethical and sustainable practices, she will be an invaluable addition to the judging panel for Excellence in Innovation, helping to identify and recognize businesses that demonstrate outstanding success and meaningful impact. 

A recovering scientist turned early-stage commercialisation professional, Sandhya brings over eight years of experience in deep-tech and innovation-driven ventures.

With a strong foundation in research and a sharp commercial lens, she excels at translating disruptive technologies into meaningful, real-world outcomes.  Outside of work, Sandhya finds joy in creative pursuits like candle-making, gardening, and baking, and is a regular at local farmers’ markets. 

Charlie Drummond has a wide-ranging skillset in customer strategy, digital innovation, human-centred design, and ventures/partnerships. He has held innovation, digital and customer strategy leadership roles across banking, insurance and travel & tourism as well as consulting across not-for-profit, private and the public sector.

He enjoys helping organisations build successful products that customers will love from the word go – no matter how that experience is delivered. As the Creative Innovation Director at Gladeye, he is enjoying the chance to create for world-leading clients internationally, and in New Zealand. He also leads the Ventures Studio; created to spin up new businesses leveraging the world-leading talents of the Gladeye team.

Charlie enjoys translating between different domains – business strategy, innovation and product development, human-centred design, technical problem-solving, and creativity. He is happiest joining the dots at the big-picture level and will be looking for innovative businesses that can see opportunities where others cannot.

His experience in the practicalities of delivering these big-picture ideas will help provide a useful perspective in selecting the entries, identifying finalists and picking the winners in this category.

Glen has a broad range of experience across capital markets, science, engineering, environmental consulting and international business development.

Glen has advised companies ranging from early-stage ventures to global corporates on product commercialisation, international market expansion, and capital raising. He has connected New Zealand innovation with global investors across Asia, North America, Europe, and the Middle East.

Glen’s career has also included international programmes and partnerships with Fortune 500 companies, providing strategic planning, business development, and stakeholder engagement at board and executive level.

Passionate about supporting innovative businesses, Glen has a strong track record of helping organisations translate ideas into global opportunities.

Dylan Weymouth is a seasoned business transformation leader with over two decades of experience driving innovation, operational excellence, and customer-centric strategies in New Zealand’s retail and commercial sectors. As General Manager of Noel Leeming Commercial, a division of The Warehouse Group, Dylan leads a dynamic team delivering integrated technology, appliance, and managed IT solutions across diverse industries, including education, construction, and corporate enterprises.

Since joining The Warehouse Group in 1999, Dylan has held multiple senior leadership roles, including GM of Group Business Operations and Tribe Lead for Business Solutions. He has been instrumental in implementing agile operating models and digital transformation initiatives that have enhanced customer experiences and streamlined business operations. His leadership has been pivotal in positioning Noel Leeming Commercial as a trusted partner for organisations seeking innovative procurement and technology solutions.

Dylan is passionate about fostering cross-functional collaboration, developing high-performing teams, and leveraging technology to create seamless customer experiences. His commitment to innovation and excellence makes him a valuable contributor to the business innovation award judging panel.

As an expert in design, learning, and culture, Perrin brings a unique perspective to the judging panel for Excellence in Customer Experience. With a diverse background that includes teaching at New York University, working with the Neilson Norman Group, and training in design-led product delivery and inclusive facilitation, Perrin is well-equipped to assess businesses’ customer service delivery practices.

Perrin’s current role at Westpac NZ involves ensuring that customers and their journeys remain at the forefront of the company’s agile development work. She is passionate about facilitating human-centred design workshops and coaching teams to design quality customer solutions at scale. Perrin is also a change master, skilled in shifting the cultural maturity of organizations towards customer obsession and making systemic change. Her expertise and experience make her a valuable addition to the judging panel for this award, and we are honored to have her on board.

Connie Clarkson is a passionate advocate for food, community wealth, and inclusive entrepreneurship, with over 30 years of experience in placemaking, hospitality, and local economic development. In 2025, she was named one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Top 50 Women in Food & Drink by Cuisine.

She leads Auckland Council’s The Kitchen Project, supporting emerging food entrepreneurs-particularly Māori, Pacific, Indigenous, and women-led ventures-with a focus on mentorship, sustainability, and customer-driven growth.

Connie played a key role in Auckland’s urban regeneration, curating destinations like North Wharf, Queens Wharf, and The Cloud. At Eke Panuku, she championed local business resilience and people-first public spaces.

Her work also includes developing food education and engagement programmes at Peter Gordon’s Homeland, the Franklin Local Board, and the University of Auckland-connecting local food stories across Aotearoa.

Connie combines executive insight with deep operational experience, celebrating businesses that put people at the heart of their service.

Jens Mueller has spent more than 30 years in board rooms of $Billion organizations and in class rooms, teaching MBAs globally, after having started several successful businesses in Europe, the USA and New Zealand. With a doctorate in Commercial Law and another one in Corporate Governance, he has published 8 books and advises firms and government organizations in New Zealand and overseas, on best practices for spectacular growth. Jens‘ no-nonsense approach to deciding on winning strategies and then ‘going fast’ is a proven combination for firms to develop superbly well, especially in challenging times.

Sarah is the Managing Director of REFRAMR, a boutique customer strategy consultancy based in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. As a strategic partner to business and government leaders, she helps organisations reimagine the way they design, deliver and evolve their services and business model – with people at the centre.

Drawing on her own entrepreneurial lineage and experience across sectors, Sarah understands the pressures of running and growing a business in an uncertain world and the opportunity customer experience offers to drive not just satisfaction, but sustained relevance and resilience.

A recognised leader in her field, Sarah is one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s foremost Customer Strategists and the founder of the CX Collective, the country’s largest network of in-house design and CX teams. She and her team work alongside ambitious organisations to challenge the status quo and unlock growth through purposeful, people-led strategy.

Sarah is proud to serve as a judge for the Excellence in Customer Experience category at the Auckland Business Awards.

Mark Sweeny is a highly accomplished business professional with a wealth of experience in technology, business development, and change management. His career began in technical servicing of medical equipment and quickly progressed to sales management where he realised the potential of systems to manage sales and service processes while ensuring timely customer responses. Mark later founded his own company that specialised in selling and servicing medical equipment, operating in a competitive business environment where he leveraged technology to gain a competitive edge. The company was one of the pioneers in developing web-based reporting tools for both technical teams and customers to upload and download service reports.

Mark has since worked in various business development and change management roles in Australia, focusing on making organizations smarter by using technology. He completed an MBA at Massey University Albany during his time in Australia, and his dissertation on the use of ICT in medical equipment service organizations was published in a technical journal in the USA. Mark is a dedicated business mentor, where he derives satisfaction from seeing business owners develop and grow. His vast experience and expertise make him an invaluable addition to the judging panel for Excellence in Customer Experience.

As a judge for Excellence in Customer Experience, Mark’s extensive experience in business development and change management, as well as his expertise in technology and ICT, are invaluable in identifying and recognizing businesses that demonstrate exceptional strategic planning and execution. He is committed to fostering a culture of excellence in customer experience and is dedicated to identifying and celebrating businesses that are at the forefront of this endeavour. His contributions to the awards are essential to their continued success, and we are proud to have him as part of our esteemed judging panel.

Jon Andrews has been the General Manager of Customer Experience & Digital Services at Auckland Council for the past five years. Prior to this, he spent 13 years at New Zealand Post, beginning his career as National Telephony Manager, where he led three contact centres and an outbound telesales team. Twelve years later, Jon was appointed General Manager of Franchise and Agency, where he led the transformation of the NZ Post and Kiwibank franchise retail network across New Zealand. This portfolio included 140 franchise stores and more than 600 agency locations. Following his time at New Zealand Post, Jon moved to TAB, taking on the role of Head of Retail and Gaming, before later becoming Head of Direct Channels. 

In his current role at Auckland Council, Jon oversees the Contact Centre, Digital Services, Written Communications, Privacy & Official Information, and Business Improvement & Enterprise Change. He is continuously working to find new ways to enhance the overall customer experience for Aucklanders, making it easier for them to connect with council. A guiding principle within his department is “putting our customers at the heart of everything we do,” which guides his leadership approach. To understand what is working well and where improvements are needed, Jon and his team actively engage with Aucklanders to identify real pain points and opportunities for change.

Stephanie Quantrill is the lead judge for Excellence in Marketing, responsible for overseeing and managing the judging process for this category. With her extensive background in managing some of New Zealand’s most loved brands, Stephanie brings a wealth of expertise in marketing strategy and execution to the judging panel.

As a marketing professional who believes in building strong relationships with colleagues and business partners, Stephanie understands the importance of aligning marketing efforts with the overall business strategy. She has a deep understanding of how marketing can drive growth and deliver value to customers, and is passionate about identifying and recognising businesses that are doing this exceptionally well.

Stephanie’s enthusiasm for marketing is contagious, and her commitment to fostering a culture of excellence in marketing in New Zealand is evident in her role as lead judge. Her contributions to the awards are essential to their continued success, and we are proud to have her as part of our judging panel.

James Caldwell is a seasoned technology entrepreneur and product strategist, with a background in electrical and electronics engineering from the University of Auckland. Over the course of his career, he has founded multiple tech ventures, including one that was successfully acquired by a Canadian venture capital firm. His experience spans both B2B and B2C environments, with a particular focus on product management and business growth.

James previously served as the New Zealand Manager for a US-based computer networking company, where he led the business through a period of significant expansion driven by a multi-channel sales and distribution strategy. He brings a strategic and entrepreneurial mindset to all his work, combining technical expertise with commercial acumen.

He is currently focused on his latest startup, a SaaS venture developing innovative tools for product managers. Known for his depth of experience and clear commercial insight, James has also been invited to join the judging panel for the 2degrees Auckland Business Awards, where he will contribute his expertise in the marketing category.

Pips’ career path was set in Year 11 when a classmate mentioned her dad’s job was in marketing, selling lip-glosses to Farmers department store. That sounded like a lot of fun, and Pip needed no more convincing!

Since then, Pip has had the pleasure of working with some of New Zealand’s and the world’s most beloved brands, including Bendon, Smirnoff, Johnny Walker, and Coca-Cola. Lately, Pip has been channelling the customer-centric approach common in FMCG businesses into the finance industry – just to keep things interesting!

Pip spent seven years at The Coca-Cola Company, managing marketing for the Coke brand in New Zealand and, for a time, overseeing the Pacific Islands. It was an incredible experience working for such an iconic company. The finely honed processes, data insights, creativity, resources, and innovation at Coca-Cola are a marketer’s dream.

As a marketer, Pip prides herself on being both commercially savvy and passionate about measuring the impact of her work on brand health, in addition to the traditional commercial metrics.

Currently, Pip serves as a senior marketing manager in the finance industry, bringing a wealth of experience in FMCG and consumer brands. For Pip, the real thrill comes from aligning a business’s great purpose with the products and marketing to truly add value to customers’ lives.

Rachel Mulhern is a senior marketing professional with 15 years’ B2C and B2B experience across fashion, FMCG and telecommunications in Auckland and London. Currently leading the Business Marketing team at 2degrees, Rachel has a passion for developing insight-led marketing strategies that are aligned with the overarching business strategy and support commercial objectives.

A career highlight has been working on the 2degrees Business Shop Local campaign over the last 4 years where she has supported 20 local businesses across New Zealand in developing bespoke marketing plans to support their growth ambitions. Rachel is excited to be a judge in the marketing category of the 2degrees Auckland Business Awards and to see the best of what Auckland business has to offer.

Merritt Watson is an entrepreneur, marketer, and elected member of the Franklin Local Board based in Franklin, Auckland. He is the Managing Director of Pik n Mix Lollies, a nationally recognised e-commerce confectionery business that grew rapidly from a small family startup into a large-scale online retail operation supplying customers across New Zealand and internationally. 

With a background spanning e-commerce, logistics, horticulture, digital marketing, and business operations, Merritt brings practical, real-world commercial experience to the judging panel. He has extensive expertise in social media strategy, paid advertising, brand growth, and scaling systems within fast-moving small businesses. 

Alongside business, Merritt is actively involved in local governance and community advocacy through his role on the Franklin Local Board, giving him a strong understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing businesses and communities across the Auckland region. He is passionate about supporting innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable business growth, and enjoys recognising businesses that combine strong execution with authentic customer connection. 

With over 20 years in the events and entertainment industry, Nicky Tuck brings sharp commercial insight and a deep understanding of customer experience to the judging panel.

From running her own events business to leading the Events & Entertainment team at SKYCITY, she’s delivered some of Auckland’s most high-profile activations – always with the customer in mind. At Generator NZ, she helped shape the marketing and member experience for one of Auckland’s top flexible workspaces.

Now, as General Manager of the Hyundai Marine Sports Centre, Nicky oversees a thriving waterfront venue that welcomes everyone from elite athletes to local mums and bubs. With experience across corporate, startup and not-for-profit sectors, she knows that outstanding customer experience doesn’t happen by accident – yes its strategic and measurable but overall is about creating incredible moments that people connect with, share and come back for more of.

Hannah McKee is a senior marketing professional with more than 20 years’ experience developing and executing marketing strategy to unlock sustainable growth across brand portfolios in New Zealand, Australia, and export markets. 

Across her career in FMCG roles, Hannah has successfully delivered full lifecycle marketing activity spanning product ideation, commercialisation, retail activation, media strategy, and brand growth initiatives which also means she has loads of experience navigating things that haven’t gone quite to plan along the way! With a strong belief that “well done is better than well said” working closely with operational, sales, and commercial teams to ensure marketing strategy is both commercially grounded and effectively executed and measured across the business is always at the heart of Hannah’s style of marketing leadership. 

Hannah is excited to join the judges panel to see the best of Auckland’s businesses celebrating success where marketing has delivered a genuine business impact. 

Kane Stanford is a highly accomplished marketing professional with an exceptional sense of humor and a diverse career history spanning multiple industries. Currently serving as the New Zealand Country Manager for Bacardi, Kane’s expertise in sales and marketing has been honed through his experience working with leading FMCG, adTech, liquor, and communications companies both on the agency and client side.

As a creative thinker, Kane firmly believes that good ideas always start with a pun. He is passionate about transforming insights into actionable ideas and driving marketing activities that ultimately lead to increased revenue. With a deep understanding of the importance of the bottom line, Kane’s favorite part of marketing is when the money comes out of the wallet.

Kane’s significant judging experience includes evaluating speeches for primary school competitions, judging several cocktail competitions, and even serving as a judge for the NZ Air Guitar Championships. His wealth of knowledge and experience make him a valuable addition to the judging panel for Excellence in Marketing. Kane’s commitment to recognizing and celebrating innovative marketing strategies and campaigns is essential to ensuring the success of the awards.

Colart Miles is an expert in strategic planning and co-owner of Opal3, the leading management reporting and dashboard tool for New Zealand’s public sector.

As a sought-after management consultant, Colart specialises in organisational performance and leadership leveraging dashboards and reporting.

His experience spans finance, technology, and media. Colart also serves on the board of the Upper Waitematā Marine Centre and is the Chair of the Make Give Live Community Trust, demonstrating his commitment to community leadership and excellence.

Divya John has over a decade of experience in the B2B sector, working across the spectrum from SMEs to large commercial enterprises. Her career spans both marketing and leadership roles, reflecting a strong commitment to highlighting the value this segment brings to New Zealand.

She has a proven track record of driving business growth and operational efficiency, underpinned by significant expertise in marketing and management. Divya’s professional journey includes key roles in the financial and energy industries, where she developed a deep understanding of customer behavior, market trends, and strategic insights.

Currently serving as Head of Z Business at Z Energy, Divya leads strategies focused on the SME segment. She is passionate about aligning data-driven insights with business objectives to enhance customer engagement and business performance. Her leadership style and diverse capabilities enable her to deliver impactful initiatives and foster exceptional customer experiences.

Kanchana Bamunuarachchi is a dynamic and experienced leader with over 18 years in executive roles across diverse industries including retail, FMCG, manufacturing, and transportation. Known for her strategic vision and people-focused leadership, she has a proven track record of driving organizational growth and transformation.

Her career highlights include leading the retail transformation of the John Keells Group’s supermarket chain and serving as Group CEO of the Rockland Group in Sri Lanka, where she propelled growth in a heritage business.

Currently, she works as Procurement Manager at Auckland Council, contributing to sustainable procurement and supporting small business development.

With a passion for innovation and community impact, Kanchana brings a balanced, forward-thinking perspective – making her well-suited to serve as a fair and insightful judge for business awards that celebrate unique success stories.

Simone-Ellen Keller is the founder of Genius You and a specialist in building strategy systems that help individuals and organisations move forward with understanding that holds under pressure. She began her career in branding, developing a strong foundation in how businesses position, communicate, and grow. Over time, her focus shifted toward people development, driven by the recognition that without understanding how to get the best out of ourselves, efforts to create meaningful results elsewhere are often limited. 

Simone now integrates both disciplines, external strategy and internal systems, to support leaders and organisations navigating complexity, growth, and change. Her work centres on helping high-functioning individuals understand and reconfigure the internal systems driving their performance, using their business as both the environment for practice and the proof of what is possible. 

She brings a distinctive perspective to judging, with a sharp focus on how strategy moves beyond intention and into action. Simone is particularly interested in businesses that are willing to look honestly at what is working, what is not, and what is possible, and who use that insight to create meaningful impact for both performance and the people within their world. 

I’m a passionate marketing leader and proud judge of this year’s NZ Business Awards, with a career dedicated to helping businesses grow through smart strategy, creativity, and customer focus. I bring over 20 years’ experience leading brand, retail, and commercial strategies for iconic New Zealand and global brands across FMCG, retail, tourism, QSR, property, and more.

With a unique blend of agency and client-side experience, I understand how to turn strategy into meaningful results—balancing creativity, data, and commercial acumen. As a former business owner, I also appreciate the passion, resilience, and commitment it takes to succeed.

Through judging the awards, I’m excited to help shine a light on the incredible talent, innovation, and determination that drive the success of Kiwi businesses.

Andrea Wulf is Director and General Manager of Wulf Security, a leading New Zealand security services provider. Since co-founding the business in 2016, she has played a key role in driving its growth, reputation, and operational excellence through a strong focus on customer experience, innovation, and people-centred leadership. 

Holding a Master of Business Administration (MBA), Andrea brings expertise across business strategy, operations, marketing, sales, and organisational development. Her experience building and leading a successful New Zealand business provides valuable insight into the challenges and opportunities faced by organisations at every stage of growth. 

As a judge for the 2degrees Business Awards, Andrea offers a practical, strategic, and balanced perspective, with a passion for recognising excellence, innovation, and sustainable business success. 

Kate Sutton is an accomplished innovation leader whose expertise in innovation has led her to working with large multinationals in UK, APAC governments, New Zealand growth businesses and exporters, start ups and scale ups globally. She has run training in innovation and given talks and webinars globally on how to innovate. She is a business founder and now consultant at Deloitte. 

Kate has worked in fintech, health tech, skills tech and has invested in a variety of small businesses, supporting them to grow. Her interest is in Impact innovation – innovations that seek to change systems and global outcomes and has spent a significant amount of time working with governments to enable innovation through policy and systems change. She has an MBA and an MA and she is a BMW Global Responsible Business Leader. 

With sustainability emerging as a cross-cutting issue for all New Zealand businesses, we brought together a multi-disciplinary judging team led by Georgie Hills.

“I’ve always loved that Captain Planet line: ‘By our powers combined!’ I think of sustainability as a business superpower that can be a unifying force for good,” says Georgie.

Georgie is a senior communications leader and committed bike commuter. As Head of Communications at Public Trust, getting New Zealanders to think about the impact we make today and the legacy we leave for future generations is what spins her wheels.

Over the years Georgie has worked at TVNZ, the Royal New Zealand Ballet, and more recently Enviro NZ, where she championed the growing movement to address New Zealand’s throwaway culture and keep valuable resources in circulation. She has a Masters in Sustainable Development Goals from Massey University.

Tony is an industry leader in the field of Precast Concrete and has been actively supporting New Zealand’s Design and Construction industry on many of New Zealand’s award winning projects for over 15 years.

His solid background in FMCG, Convenience and Design has helped in his current role as Marketing Manager for Nauhria Precast. As former entrants and Supreme ‘Best of the Best’ Auckland Business Excellence Award Winners, Tony has experienced first-hand the significant benefits that can be attained through entering the awards. In continued support of the awards Tony enjoys giving back to the community and helping businesses grow and celebrate their wins upon their own journeys of success.

Tracy is a business leader with over 20 years of experience helping teams and organisations thrive in fast-paced, competitive environments. Having spent more than a decade in Australia before returning home to Auckland, she’s led large teams and worked closely with senior leaders across ESG, marketing, retail media, eCommerce, and loyalty.

One of Tracy’s proudest achievements was leading the first network-wide ESG strategy for IGA Supermarkets. She brought together over 1,600 independently owned stores to take meaningful action—resulting in more than 2.5 million meals donated each year through food rescue programmes, battery recycling rolled out nationwide, EV charging partnerships, solar and energy-saving initiatives, and a big boost in community donations, reaching $3.1 million annually.

Tracy has seen just how powerful sustainability can be – not only for the environment, but for the people and communities at the heart of every business. Now back in Auckland, she’s passionate about helping Kiwi businesses find their own path to sustainability, proving that doing good really is good for business.

Debbie van der Schyff brings more than 25 years of experience working with a global leader in electrification and automation technologies, including eight years as Product Marketing Manager for its e-Mobility division. In this role she supported organisations across New Zealand with their EV fleet transitions, providing guidance on decarbonisation pathways, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. 

She has contributed to national standards development through the industry Technical Advisory Group, supporting Standards New Zealand and MBIE in shaping EV charging installation standards for the local market. Debbie is an active member of Drive Electric, Women of EVs, and an associate member of the Master Builders Association. 

Through her consulting practice, she now helps heavy‑vehicle operators navigate not only the sustainability aspects of decarbonisation, but increasingly the financial and health‑and‑safety implications that come with transitioning to cleaner transport and renewable energy solutions. 

Debbie’s commitment to sustainable transport is deeply personal. When her eight‑year‑old grandson asked what the world would look like when he grows up, his concern became her catalyst for action, a promise to help build a cleaner, safer future for him and for generations to come. 

Oxana Metz is a commercial and sustainability solutions leader with over 20 years of international experience spanning consulting, enterprise sales, sales enablement, and sustainability-focused solution development.

In her current role at FleetPartners NZ, she has helped shape fleet emissions reduction consulting, supported decarbonisation planning for enterprise customers, and led complex optimisation and sustainability projects for major New Zealand organisations.

Known for her strategic thinking, adaptability, and ability to bring people together across functions, Oxana combines commercial acumen with a practical approach to sustainability. As a judge for the Excellence in Sustainability category, she is particularly interested in businesses that can demonstrate both meaningful impact and strong execution. 

Diane Stanbra is the founder and driving force behind Rescued, an award-winning, purpose-led food company at the forefront of New Zealand’s emerging upcycled food sector. Under her leadership, Rescued has become the first company in New Zealand to achieve Upcycled Certified® ingredients, transforming surplus food into high-quality products while delivering measurable environmental, social, and economic impact. 

With a background spanning finance, business development, and customer relationship management, Diane brings both commercial acumen and a strong sustainability lens to her work. She is deeply committed to advancing circular economy principles within the food industry, leading initiatives that combine innovation, collaboration, and advocacy to reshape how food is produced and consumed. 

Diane is an active member of the Upcycled Food Association (US) and WasteMINZ, and holds certification in Circular Economy for Business through XLabs NZ. She also participated in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Big Food Redesign Challenge, contributing to global efforts to reimagine a food system that enables nature to thrive.

Phillipa Gimmillaro is a people and organisational strategy leader with over 20 years of experience in hospitality and beyond, spanning New Zealand, the UK, and the USA. Having worked across fast-paced, multi-site environments, she has built award-winning people functions founded on sustainability, inclusion, and community. 

As Chief People Officer at Hind Management and Sudima Hotels for over 8 years, Phillipa was a key architect of the company’s ESG Strategy and Framework, overseeing people, culture, L&D and health & safety across a 700-strong workforce. Her work delivered measurable outcomes: a tertiary scholarship pathway established for Maori and Pacifica youth, founding membership of the Accessible Tick programme, rollout of the Hidden Disabilities scheme across the group and created an internship for people with disabilities, improved protections for migrant workers alongside an employee satisfaction score nearly three times the industry average. 

“Phillipa believes that a diverse and inclusive workplace brings out the best in our people, enabling us to provide superior products and services,” reflects the CEO of a major New Zealand hotel group. 

A sought-after speaker at national conferences, including the National HR Summit New Zealand, Phillipa is a regular voice on people strategy, workplace inclusion, and the future of work. She is a Chartered Member of the Human Resources Institute of New Zealand (CMHRNZ), an accredited DEI Professional with Diversity Works NZ, recipient of the HRD NZ HR Director of the Year Award 2023, and founder of WorkTheory Co. – helping New Zealand organisations build the human foundations of sustainable, future-ready business. 

Tania is a former public services specialist interviewer in the justice sector, a lawyer and tech startup co-founder at Astute Access, a two time NZ Hi-tech awards finalist for the Tech startup of the year and manufacturing/hardware categories. 

Tania enjoys the challenge of wearing multiple hats and has helped build the business go from a tech startup to scale-up phase, now focused on rapid expansion and sustained growth.  

She’s a big picture thinker and enjoys being involved in business strategy, innovation and product development, as well as the creativity spaces and human centred areas of the business.  

Tania will utilise her expert interviewing skills and big picture processing skills to look for out of the box thinking, innovation and implementation strategies. 

Des Flynn is the Lead Judge for Employer of the Year, responsible for overseeing and managing the judging process for this prestigious category. With over 50 years of experience in the retail sector, Des is a highly respected figure in the industry and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the panel.

Des is now partially retired, having held several senior retail positions, including CEO roles across large retailers, including supermarket groups. Currently he is actively involved on the Board of Directors for Generating Real Industry Pathways (GRIP), Board of Governance for Pathways in Technology (P-Tech) programmes. Board of Trustees for a primary school.
Previously for several years, he was Chair of the Board of Directors for Retail New Zealand, and actively involved on various Boards at Massey University, and several Government Agencies, assisting in developing new learning and career opportunities for young people. His focus is on linking the education environment to commerce to assist educators in providing appropriate capability to ensure a smooth transition to commerce, leading to building meaningful careers. Beyond this, assisting businesses build a sustainable workforce through the investment and coaching in their most valuable asset – their people.

With his extensive experience and deep understanding of business, Des is dedicated to identifying and celebrating the businesses that excel in creating exceptional workplaces and fostering a culture of innovation and excellence. His contributions to the awards are invaluable, and we are proud to have him as a Lead Judge for Employer of the Year.

Deen Dayal is a highly accomplished Leadership Coach and Business Mentor with extensive experience in managing relationships with various international brands and handling nationwide business operations. As a previous lead judge for eight years for Employer of the Year, Deen has a wealth of knowledge and expertise in recognizing exceptional employers who prioritize their employees’ well-being.

With over 40 years of experience, Deen has coached company leaders on how to analyse performance metrics and identify performance gaps, patterns, and trends. He has a particular focus on performance outliers, which has led to his success in implementing performance, productivity, and quality improvements in various businesses and organizations. His strong leadership capabilities and proven success in identifying and implementing these improvements make him a valuable addition to the judging panel for Employer of the Year. We are honored to have him as part of our team, and we are confident that his insights and guidance will help us recognize the best of the best in employer excellence.

Since April 2022, Martin has been a self-employed Business Improvement/Development and Management Consultant. He reviews processes, prepares IT specs, updates professional development material, and manages projects, including CRM implementation and developing a leasing product. With 33 years in sales and 18 years in marketing and business management, Martin has extensive experience. His 26 years in finance and banking have equipped him with expertise in business sustainability and debt servicing.

Early in his career, Martin served in the NZ Army, learning leadership and teamwork. Before consulting, he held a senior role in a startup finance company, growing its distribution channel and finance book significantly. He led a rebranding initiative and developed training for sales agents. Martin specialises in sales relationship management, business planning and management, sales and business development, training development, sales and marketing, business assessment, branding and identity, risk and credit management, communications and business writing, business compliance, contract and sales negotiation, and project management.

Martin believes employee leadership and recognition are crucial for business success. He prioritises people in his work, recognising them as a business’s most valuable resource. His interest in the Employer of the Year category underscores the importance of effective employee leadership and retention.

Sue Ironside is a seasoned legal professional with more than 30 years of experience in the fields of commercial and intellectual property law. As a Director of Ironside McDonald Intellectual Property, Sue brings her expertise in trademark and branding to her clients in New Zealand, Australia, and overseas. Prior to her current role, Sue worked as an in-house attorney, providing her with a unique perspective on the challenges faced by businesses.

Sue was previously the lead judge for Excellence in International Trade, but now focuses her attention on judging the Employer of the Year category. With her deep knowledge of various industries, Sue is passionate about identifying businesses that prioritise employee support, growth initiatives, health, and wellbeing. She believes that a company’s success is closely tied to its ability to provide an excellent working environment for its employees, and is excited to recognise those companies that are doing just that. With her impressive legal background and experience, Sue is an asset to the judging panel for Employer of the Year.

Lisa Oakley is the Director and Lead Consultant at People Associates and one of New Zealand’s most trusted advisors in employment relations and leadership. With over two decades of experience working with organisations such as Air New Zealand, Spark and a wide range of SMEs and high-growth businesses, Lisa is known for stepping into complex, high-stakes situations and bringing clarity, direction and confidence when it matters most. Her expertise spans employment relations, workplace investigations, leadership development and organisational design, with a reputation for delivering practical, commercially sound outcomes that stand up under pressure.

What sets Lisa apart is her ability to operate at the intersection of people, performance and risk. As a qualified coach, mediator and licensed private investigator, she brings deep insight into how organisations really function beneath the surface. Lisa works closely with senior leaders and boards to navigate conflict, build capability and strengthen culture, helping organisations move forward with confidence. Recognised as an industry leader and named on the HRD Hot List 2025, Lisa is valued for her direct, pragmatic approach and her ability to turn complex challenges into clear, actionable solutions.

Rahul brings a wealth of experience in leadership and personal development to the judging panel for Employer of the Year. He has been mentoring for over 25 years on a voluntary basis and is inspired by companies that prioritize the well-being of their employees. As a seasoned hotel leader with 35 years of experience in managing and leading hotels around the world, Rahul has a deep understanding of the importance of creating a positive and supportive work environment.  His commitment to personal growth and development combined with his passion for health and fitness make him a valuable member of the judging panel. 

Rahuls enthusiasm for living an abundant life and his love for outdoor activities such as cycling, SUP boarding, kayaking, mountain biking and trekking demonstrate his dedication to promoting a healthy work-life balance. 

He is the founder of www.thankyouhealthcare.co.nz, which is a not for profit platform that celebrates and supports healthcare and emergency services workers in New Zealand. He is involved with a range of philanthropic endeavours particularly in the field of mental health. He is also an author of several books, including the compilation best seller ‘Living an abundant life’, ‘Buy and hold for all that Gold’, ‘ Buy and hold – simple steps to real estate investment in New Zealand’ and ‘Repurpose me – your path to a contentment mindset’. 

Jason McMenamin is a seasoned retailer, with international experience, who has led large teams in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Jason joins the Auckland Business Chamber judging panel for the first time in 2023. Across all the roles Jason has had in his career, and more latterly as CEO at Tank Juice, Jason has been, and is, responsible for delivering safe, reliable, and profitable operations to the Tank Juice Board. However, he knows that this is totally dependant on the team of people he works with and supports. Jason is a new judge at the Auckland Business Chamber, joining the Employer of the Year judging panel this year. With his deep understanding of what it takes to build and lead successful Teams across several industries, Jason knows what it takes to be successful. Jason is passionate about identifying talent and helping to support individuals reach their goals, while building a track record of success. Jason is also extremely interested in understanding how companies develop their culture, their working environment, and how a company ensures that every member of the team is included, understands how they contribute and that they feel valued by the business. We are looking forward to Jason adding his perspectives and opinions to the Employer of the Year panel.

Rachel McDonald’s expertise in intellectual property and experience working with clients across various industries make her an excellent judge for the Excellence in Community Contribution category. As a Co-Founder and Director of Ironside McDonald Intellectual Property, she has a deep understanding of the importance of protecting and leveraging intellectual property in achieving business success.

With over 18 years of experience providing senior-level IP advice to her clients, Rachel has developed a keen eye for identifying innovative and impactful community contributions. Her appreciation for diverse industries in New Zealand allows her to bring a well-rounded perspective to the judging process, ensuring that all entries are evaluated fairly and thoroughly. We are fortunate to have Rachel as a judge for the Excellence in Community Contribution category, and her contributions will be invaluable in recognising and celebrating businesses that are making a positive impact in their communities.

Gurdeep Talwar, Certified Management Consultant, is a governance specialist with a strong international outlook and extensive cross-sector experience. As a member of the Global Governance and Nomination Committee at the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI) in Switzerland, he contributes to shaping global standards and best practices for the management consulting profession.

Gurdeep is also the founder of MyTrademark.co.nz , a platform dedicated to helping businesses and organisations protect their intellectual property and build strong, scalable brands. Through this work, he actively supports businesses in preparing for growth beyond New Zealand, with a particular focus on brand protection as a critical step in international expansion.

In addition to his dozen governance roles in public and community sector, Gurdeep mentors and advises businesses on how to enter and succeed in global markets. His experience across international networks and multicultural environments gives him a practical understanding of what it takes to scale sustainably and compete internationally.

Gurdeep values businesses that demonstrate innovation, strategic foresight, and the ability to build meaningful international partnerships. He is honoured to recognise organisations that are successfully expanding beyond borders and showcasing Auckland’s capability on the global stage.

Alistair Crozier has served as Executive Director of the New Zealand China Council since April 2022. 

Alistair was a New Zealand diplomat for 25 years, serving three times in China (Beijing and Chengdu), Papua New Guinea and Viet Nam, and holding various roles in the NZ Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Wellington.  In 2019 Alistair served as Chief of Staff to the Mayor of Christchurch. 

In 2020-21 he established a South Island presence for the Asia New Zealand Foundation and led its international business programme. 

Austen Kernohan brings a global mindset to the International Business judging panel. He has held senior roles across New Zealand, Australia and Asia, spanning sales leadership, general management, import contract manufacturing and strategic advisory work.

Austen understands international business from direct experience. Early in his career, he led machine system sales into Thailand, the Philippines and Chile, and later worked on launching new packaging systems in both New Zealand and Australia. He then moved to Australia to help grow the business, giving him first-hand experience in developing export markets.

He has also led businesses on the ground in major Asian markets. His roles included General Manager of a joint venture in Qingdao, China, and President Director positions in both the Philippines and Indonesia, where he led manufacturing restructuring projects while growing business with multinational customers.

For the past ten years, Austen has run his own business advisory practice, working with Australasian businesses across a range of sectors on growth, performance improvement and import restructuring initiatives.

Austen brings to the panel a mix of international import and export experience, strategic judgement, and practical commercial insight.

An experienced business leader with extensive experience in management and leadership roles in various countries through several industries. Have great knowledge and understanding of international trade through my work experience in Middle East, Fiji, India, Australia and New Zealand.

Effective relationship builder who is highly regarded by key customers, suppliers and business Sameer is a Member of the Institute of Directors (NZ), Director on the board of Bank of India (NZ), Trustee on the board of Auckland Health Foundation (AHF) and Trustee on the board of Refrigerant Recovery NZ Ltd.

Avi Shenkin is a technologist, strategist, and venture builder with years of experience helping businesses turn complex problems into commercially focused, working solutions. She began her career as a full-stack software developer before moving into strategy and product leadership, working across the ecosystem – from early-stage founders to established corporations.

With over a decade in governance and as an active startup mentor, Avi brings a rigorous, outcome-driven perspective. She is known for bridging the gap between technical possibility and commercial reality, asking not just, “Can we build it? But will it get to the outcome, and will it actually create value?”

Her work covers product development, strategic execution, AI and systems implementation, and go-to-market validation, with a particular focus on helping ventures move fast, make evidence-based decisions, and build for the right market. Avi is a firm believer in lean startup principles, a commercially grounded approach and delivering outcomes over outputs.

Nyssa Waters is a founder and CEO building at the frontier of enterprise AI, with recent international expansion seeing Possibl AI launch in Singapore and Australia & a Joint Venture in India, to serve a growing roster of global clients.

As Co-Founder and CEO of Possibl Group, Nyssa is building both a high-growth AI services business and a proprietary AI product platform in parallel – a dual model that has seen the company scale from start-up to over $4M ARR organically in under two years. Possibl’s services business pairs a world-class AI Engineering Centre of Excellence in India and Sri Lanka with local solution experts across Auckland, Wellington, Sydney, Melbourne, and now Singapore. Alongside this, Nyssa co-founded Ritual – an AI-native enterprise application platform powered by Possibl’s proprietary RCRT engine — now expanding into international markets.

Before founding Possibl, Nyssa led AI adoption at Google Cloud and held senior enterprise technology roles across global organisations. She is a regular keynote speaker at international forums including the India-NZ Business Connect, the M2 AI Summit, NZCreatorCon, and Pathfinder/Revved. Nyssa brings a founder’s lens and a pragmatic, outcome-obsessed approach to the judging panel – combining deep AI expertise with first-hand experience navigating the commercial, cultural, and operational realities of scaling a technology business across Asia-Pacific.

Eoghan Neligan is the founder of Gravity, a product innovation and commercialisation firm that specialises in taking ideas from zero to one – turning complex business problems into working commercial products, fast.

Over the past six years, he has worked with some of New Zealand’s largest organisations, including One NZ, Sky, Mitre 10, Fisher Funds and AA Insurance, building the products and commercial infrastructure behind some of their most significant launches.

Eoghan brings to the judging panel a rare combination of technical depth and commercial instinct. He is particularly focused on whether innovation is genuinely viable, not just novel, and on the gap between a good idea and something that actually works in market.