What I believe.
The best thing you can be on a complex project, with a demanding client, and a team under pressure, is the grown-up in the room. Present when it's hard, direct when it matters, and steady when everything else isn't.
Great work doesn't come from great pitches. It comes from teams that feel supported and clients that feel trusted. My job is to create the conditions for both: protecting the work, making the hard calls, and having the conversations nobody else wants to have.
I've never believed in selling the next thing before you've delivered the last. The clients I've built the deepest relationships with, including some of the largest companies in the world, came from a simple discipline: do what you said you'd do, do it well, and make the person who hired you look good. Everything else follows.
Finance isn't admin. It's a leadership responsibility. A well-run account is a healthy one, and clarity on the numbers is how you earn the trust to do bigger, bolder work.
And finally, know your technology. In a world full of AI buzzwords and overpromised platforms, the most important thing a technology leader can do is understand what they're actually building. Not to write the code, but to never be mistaken for someone selling something they don't understand.
Brought in to lead the Creative Origination arm of the Apple account before expanding to Channel Interactive (131% growth) and Business and Education (132% growth). Following the acquisition of Vixen Labs, also leads the Amazon and Verizon accounts across a team of up to 25.
- Deliver AI platforms, web products, and voice applications for the world's largest consumer technology company across 15+ markets.
- Grew key technology account monthly revenue by 131% through targeted commercial strategy.
- Transformed team productivity from 53% to 99% in under a year.
- Trusted advisor to Amazon C-suite, presenting at quarterly business reviews.
- Reports directly to CEO and CFO.
Led all business development and client relationships for dentsu Aotearoa's Design and Experience team - delivering digital strategies, platforms and applications.
- Drove 300% increase in team profitability from FY2020 to FY2021.
- Onboarded Ministry of Social Development, Subaru, and Silver Fern Farms.
- Delivered a family violence digital platform, a UK/AU/NZ e-learning platform, and a petrol company app.
Created and sold digital strategies for leading New Zealand businesses including BMW, Volkswagen, and Fletcher Building.
- Grew Giltrap Group retainer from $5,000 to $25,000/month.
- Managed delivery of websites, software platforms and app builds across design, development and QA teams.
Client-facing roles across four of Auckland's largest branches, managing in-branch customer engagement and services.
We worked with Verizon to develop sandbox solutions that enhance conversational flows across its digital touchpoints, leveraging advanced AI capabilities. The collaboration focuses on improving customer experiences through AI-powered conversation management, personalised user journeys, and intelligent access to technical knowledge bases - demonstrating our expertise in transforming enterprise-scale customer service systems with generative AI.
We work directly with the Amazon Audio Ads team to deliver custom Brand Experiences via Alexa for major consumer brands. These voice-first experiences create engaging, informative interactions that connect users with brands and their products through natural conversation, whilst maintaining brand control and accuracy. Our work with Amazon represents the evolution of rule-based voice experiences into LLM-powered conversational systems.
We built Help Me Choose, an interactive Mac recommendation tool for Apple.com, designed to help new-to-Mac customers find the perfect device through a short, conversational questionnaire. The experience needed to be instantly understandable, require minimal handholding, and feel tactile and natural - all within a 20-second attention window. The tool launched to widespread press coverage and social buzz.
We developed Dyson Care, an Alexa Voice Assistant that helps Dyson cordless vacuum owners troubleshoot problems and maintain their products through natural conversation. Designed to deflect customer service volume while enhancing the support experience, Dyson Care provides 24/7 assistance and positions Dyson as the first home appliance brand to offer conversational customer service. The project won Best Use of Audio at the 2023 Digital Impact Awards.