Day 2 – NZEF speakers

Iain Rennie (CNZM) was appointed Secretary and Chief Executive to the NZ Treasury in November 2024. He is an accomplished economist and public service leader, with extensive experience in macroeconomic policy, fiscal management, and public sector reform.

From 2016 to 2024 Iain worked internationally advising national and state governments on public sector and economic reform. Prior to that he led the public service in the role of State Services Commissioner (2008 to 2016), and Deputy State Services Commissioner (2007–2008).

Iain began his career at the NZ Treasury in 1986 as an economic and financial analyst. From 1990-1993, he was an economic advisor in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, advising then Prime Minister the Rt Hon Jim Bolger.

For 10 years Iain was a Deputy Secretary in Treasury, overseeing the Budget and Macroeconomic Branch from 1997 to 2003, and the Regulatory and Tax Policy Branch from 2003 to 2007. He was the Independent Chair, Financial Statements of Government Audit Committee, from 2021 to 2024.

Rachel Smalley is a highly respected strategic communications consultant, following an extensive career in journalism. Over a 25-year period, Rachel worked in television, radio, and digital media as a programme host, foreign correspondent, and news and current affairs anchor.

In 2020, Rachel founded The Medicine Gap, a digital platform dedicated to elevating the voices of New Zealanders seeking access to life-saving and life-enhancing medicines. Her advocacy over three years played a pivotal role in securing funding for treatments targeting cancers, chronic conditions, and rare diseases, and contributed to the reforms which are now underway at Pharmac.

In recognition of her impact, Rachel was a finalist in the 2024 Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year, and was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) in the 2025 King’s Honours for services to health advocacy and journalism.

Kesh Naidoo-Rauf is a community pharmacist, pharmacy owner and a dedicated Hamilton City Councillor, with a passion for helping others.

As President and Chair of the Pharmacy Guild of New Zealand, Kesh draws on her board experience and passion for the pharmacy sector to advocate for unity, collaboration, and continuous improvement. She believes that patients should receive the best possible care in an ever-changing healthcare environment.

Born and raised in apartheid-era South Africa, Kesh's early exposure to racial segregation shaped her deep passion for equality and inclusion to create spaces where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. At 15, Kesh's family moved to New Zealand, where she pursued a career in pharmacy, eventually co-owning Unichem pharmacies in Hamilton and Cambridge.

Professor Rhiannon Braund is Head of the University of Waikato’s new School of Pharmacy & Biomedical Sciences, offering the first graduate-entry pharmacy programme in New Zealand. Prior to this she was President of the Pharmaceutical Society of New Zealand, and Director of the New Zealand Pharmacovigilance Centre.

Rhiannon has more than 20 years of experience as both a practising pharmacist and academic, with expertise in medicine safety, access and equity. Her research spans many clinical areas, including reproductive health, oncology, gastroenterology, anti-infectives and public health, where she works alongside clinicians, data analysts and patients.

Rhiannon is currently Deputy Chair of the Pharmacology and Therapeutics Advisory Committee for Pharmac. She is also a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Supreme Award for Tertiary Teaching Excellence.

A leading New Zealand educator, Justine Mahon is Chair of the Charter Schools/Kura Hourua Authorisation Board. She was Principal of St. Cuthbert’s College, Auckland from 2018-2024.

Justine has considerable experience as both a teacher and principal in primary and secondary education, as well as a senior lecturer and programme leader in teacher training and development at tertiary level.

She has expert knowledge in the strategic development of curriculum and pastoral programmes, across all sectors and socio-demographic profiles. Justine has played a leading role in the Knowledge-Rich School Project, and she helped establish an In-School Initial Teacher Education model in partnership with the University of Waikato.

Justine was a recipient of the Goethe Institute Teaching Fellowship. She is a former executive member of the New Zealand Association of Language Teachers, and was on the Bayfield Primary School board of trustees.

Kate Gainsford brings over four decades of expertise in education, with a distinguished career spanning teaching and management roles.

For the past 13 years, she has served as Principal of Aotea College, a co-educational state secondary school in Porirua, where she has championed student achievement and community engagement.

Kate is the current Chair of the Post-Primary Teachers Association (PPTA) Secondary Principals Council, and she had a two-year stint as national president of the PPTA.

Her previous leadership experience includes five years as Deputy Principal at Porirua College (2000-2005) and six years as Deputy Principal at Wellington East Girls' College (2005-2011).

Cameron Bagrie is Managing Director and Chief Economist at Bagrie Economics. He has established himself as a respected commentor in New Zealand providing authoritative analysis on economic matters.

Boasting a career of more than 30 years in banking, finance and economics, Cameron has a deep understanding of financial markets. He is known as a straight shooter who takes a forthright stand, and has the experience and credibility to tackle tough economic issues.

Cameron served as the Chief Economist at ANZ from 2006 to 2017, heading a team consistently ranked #1 for its analysis of the New Zealand economy. He has also held positions at the National Bank, Treasury and Statistics New Zealand, and is currently a board member of the Life Education Trust.

Hon. James Shaw has worked all over the world with innovators, businesses, and political leaders to face some of the greatest challenges of our time.

James co-led the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand for nine years (2015-2024) and served as Minister for Climate Change for six years (2017-2023). In Government, James championed the Zero Carbon Act, and he reformed the NZ Emission Trading Scheme.

Before politics, James spent 15 years as a management and sustainability consultant based in London. In May 2024 he became an Operating Manager at Morrison, focused on accelerating investment opportunities that support global decarbonisation and the net-zero economy. His new mission is to reduce or remove 150 million tonnes of climate pollution from global emissions by 2030.

James is also a strategic advisor to green energy supplier Sunshine Hydro, on the board of WWF New Zealand, on the Sustainability Advisory Panel of Air New Zealand. He is also Director of Climate Opportunity and Global Development for Greenbridge Capital Management.

Penny Nelson is Director General of the Department of Conservation (DoC), which is responsible for managing a third of New Zealand’s land area and protecting native species and ecosystems on both land and water.

Before starting at DoC in 2021, Penny was Deputy Director-General for Biosecurity NZ. She joined the Ministry for Primary Industries in 2018 as Deputy Director-General Policy and Trade, where she led work shaping the future of the primary sector - enhancing the sector’s sustainability and growth.

Prior to that, Penny was Deputy Secretary at the Ministry for the Environment, where she was responsible for climate change, the marine environment, environmental reporting, and the science system.

She has also worked in the private and science sectors, including roles at DairyNZ, the Sustainable Business Council, and Landcare Research. Penny is a recipient of Lincoln University’s Bledisloe Medal for advancing New Zealand’s interests through her contribution to conservation.

Dr. Veronica Jacobsen is an economist specialising in the economic analysis of law. Based in Wellington, she is currently a Director at Sapere Research Group, a leading Trans-Tasman expert services firm.

Veronica has a deep background in public policy across a wide range of issues including environment and natural resources, international trade, science and technology, education, justice, social policy, labour markets, and standards and conformance.

She has extensive experience at senior levels in government with the NZ Treasury, Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment, Ministry of Science and innovation, and Ministry of Justice.

A particular focus of Veronica’s work has been in developing programmes to build the policy and economics capability of public servants. She has wide international consulting experience with APEC and the World Bank in Kenya, Cameroon, India, China, Thailand, Colombia, and Chile.

Malcolm Johns was appointed Chief Executive of Genesis Energy in 2023, with responsibility for leadership, strategic direction and management of Genesis’ business interests.

He previously served nine years as CEO of Christchurch Airport, where he led an extensive digital transformation and sustainability programme. Under his helm, Christchurch Airport doubled in value and became the world’s first airport to achieve the highest global accreditation for decarbonisation.

Malcolm is Convenor of the New Zealand Climate Leaders Coalition, and he served as Chair of the APEC Business Advisory Council leading the regional trade policy task force for climate change. He was also CEO of InterCity Group and held several governance roles in the transport, infrastructure, and tourism sectors.

Margaret Cooney leads Octopus Energy's operations in the New Zealand market, driving innovation in the global energy sector. The New Zealand team, comprising over 120 dedicated professionals, supports Octopus' businesses both locally and worldwide.

Before joining Octopus, Margaret had established and led Meridian Energy's Powershop business. She has also held roles in energy and technology companies across the UK, US, and New Zealand.

With deep expertise in innovation and energy market regulation, Margaret currently serves on the Electricity Authority's advisory group. She is a proud founder of the energy sector diversity network, Mana Wāhine.

Stuart McCall is the Managing Director of Methanex New Zealand.

Methanex is the world's largest producer and supplier of methanol, which provides a pathway to a low-carbon future as a key chemical building block or fuel, when made from renewable sources.

Before his current role, Stuart worked for Methanex as Director, Business Development NZ, as well as in corporate development roles in Vancouver in the early 2000s.

A Chartered Accountant, he spent 10 years based in Australia as Chief Financial Officer for Spirit of Tasmania ferries. Prior to that he held CFO roles in both Sydney and Auckland.

Hon. Andrew Little is a prominent figure in New Zealand politics and law. Since leaving Parliament in 2023, he has taken up a new role as an employment and treaty law consultant for Wellington-based firm Gibson Sheat Lawyers.

Andrew was elected President of the Labour Party from 2009-2011. He first entered Parliament as an MP in 2011, before being elected Leader of the Labour Party from 2014-2017.

During his two terms in Government, Andrew is well known for his tenure as Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, Justice, and Health. He also held the ministerial portfolios for immigration, workplace relations and safety, the Pike River re-entry, public service, courts, NZSIS, GCSB, and the Government's Response to the Royal Commission's Report into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Mosques.

Andrew was National Secretary of the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) - Zealand’s largest private sector union – which he led for a decade from 2000-2010.

Hon. Murray McCully (CNZM) was New Zealand’s Minister of Foreign Affairs for nearly nine years and an MP for 30 years, retiring from Parliament in 2017.

As a strategic consultant and barrister, Murray draws on his extensive knowledge of national and global affairs, political risk/crisis management, and his strong network with key decision-makers in the Pacific region and beyond. He also chairs the boards of Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust and Northern Housing Ltd.

Murray served nearly 17 years as a Minister in the Bolger, Shipley, Key and English Governments. His term as Minister of Foreign Affairs saw a resolution of the 30-year diplomatic standoff with the United States, the building of stronger relationships across Asia, a strong emphasis on New Zealand’s role in the Pacific, and a successful two-year term on the United Nations Security Council.

As Minister of Sport and Tourism, Murray was a key advocate for events like the Rugby World Cup 2011 and the America’s Cup 1999 in bringing economic and branding benefits to New Zealand.

Dr. Anna Powles is an Associate Professor in Security Studies at Massey University. Her research focuses on geopolitics and security in the Pacific, and New Zealand foreign and defence policy. She co-leads the ‘Pacific Defence Diplomacy Project’, a study evaluating defence diplomacy across six Pacific nations from 2018 to 2023.

Anna co-founded the Research Network – Pacific Security and Defence, and she is on the steering committee for the Pacific Dialogue on Security and Geopolitics, hosted by the University of the South Pacific. She received Massey's 2024 College of Humanities and Social Sciences Research Award for Exceptional Research Citizenship. Anna is a visiting fellow at the University of Canterbury’s Pacific Regional Security Hub; a non-resident fellow with the National Bureau for Asian Research, and an expert associate for Australian National University’s National Security College.

Prior to joining Massey in 2013, Anna worked in humanitarian emergencies and security sector reform with the United Nations, INGOs, and the International Crisis Group.

Matt Bolger joined the University of Waikato in 2020 as Pro Vice-Chancellor for Waikato Management School / Te Raupapa. Prior to that Matt held a variety of senior leadership roles over 18 years at Fonterra, New Zealand's largest multinational company.

His work ranged from corporate strategy and financial structuring; to managing global sales teams based out of Chicago; to leading teams focused on grassroots environmental and agritech programmes.

Matt is also Chairman of the Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ), the industry body for New Zealand's world-leading dairy processing, marketing and exporting organisations.

In March 2025 he will return to Fonterra to take up the role of Managing Director Co-operative Affairs. However, he will also retain the part-time position of Senior Fellow in the Vice-Chancellor's Office at the University of Waikato.

Prof. Anna Strutt is a Professor of Economics at the University of Waikato's Management School, where she specialises in international trade modelling and analysis.

She has served as a consultant to a range of national and international organisations, including the Asian Development Bank, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), and the World Bank.

Anna has contributed to modelling the impacts of trade agreements for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She also recently worked with UNESCAP on modelling the sustainability impacts of digital trade, and is currently leading a team contributing to UNCTAD's international database on non-tariff measures.

An accomplished businessman and politician, Hon. Steven Joyce brings a unique combination of experience to his work as an independent commercial and public policy advisor.

Steven co-founded and later became CEO of RadioWorks, served as a New Zealand Government Minister from 2008-2017, and he chaired the National Party’s campaign for five general elections.

During his time in government, he managed a string of ministerial portfolios, including finance, infrastructure, transport, economic development, science and innovation, tertiary education, skills and employment, and ICT. He led the economic growth programme, ultrafast broadband rollout, and the country’s largest highway building programme in decades.

Steven's deep understanding of the public sector complements his success at establishing and growing his own business. He currently chairs the business advisory board of Waikato Management School at the University of Waikato, and advises the board of RCP, a New Zealand-owned international consultancy firm.