Susan Doughty (Chair)
Head of Global Reward and Insights, Zespri
A former partner at Ernst & Young Limited and Director – Talent & Engagement with Fonterra, Susan has used her influence and expertise to raise awareness of equity issues and promoting positive change within New Zealand. Along with a corporate career spanning 30 years, she has been the director and co-owner of two entrepreneurial businesses. Susan is the past President of both the YWCA Aotearoa and Auckland YWCA, and led the design and launch of the YWCA Equal Pay Awards in 2013. She is a sought-after speaker and commentator on equal pay and diversity issues. Susan also worked alongside EY Tahi and Global Women to develop the business case for TupuToa, an internship programme creating pathways for Māori and Pasifika students into careers in the corporate and professional sectors.
Ranjna Patel (Deputy Chair)
Director of Tamaki Health and Founder of Ghandi Nivas
Ranjna has spent four decades growing Tamaki Health from a family business to 50 clinics with more than 1000 staff. She is the Founder of Gandhi Nivas. As well as Ministerial appointments to NACEW, the Lottery AK Distribution Committee, and the Ethnic Communities Development Fund, she is also a Trustee of Middlemore Foundation, the Mental Health Foundation, NZ Police Commissioners Ethnic Forum, Executive Trustee of Total Healthcare Otara and a member of the Global Women and Co. of Women boards.
John Christie
Director of Enterprise Dunedin
John is a senior management executive with previous director, CEO and project manager experience at several high-profile New Zealand organisations. In his role as Director of Enterprise Dunedin he is a member of Dunedin City Council’s executive leadership team. His governance experience includes roles with Otago Polytechnic, South Canterbury District Health Board Audit Committee, Warbirds Over Wanaka, Taieri-Strath Taieri PHO and New Zealand Chambers of Commerce.
Adrienne Miller
Consultant and Independent Director
General Manager NZ, Infrastructure Sustainability Council
Adrienne has worked as an executive and adviser for over 20 years in the waste, building products, construction & infrastructure industries and also in a public sector water utility - working for Downers, Fletchers, Carter Holt Harvey, Watercare & Waste Management. She is currently General Manager New Zealand at the Infrastructure Sustainability Council, a member-based, not-for-profit operating across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand ensuring all infrastructure delivers quadruple bottom line impacts - social (including cultural), environmental, economic and good governance.
As well as her executive role, Adrienne is a director of boutique consulting firm Cupola which she founded and also holds a number of other governance and voluntary roles. Adrienne was a foundational member of Infrastructure NZ’s WIN Advisory Board which looks to increase diversity and inclusion in the infrastructure sector and sits on the Building Advisory Panel (BAP) at MBIE.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts (History & Social Sciences) and an LL.B (Hons 1st), she is a solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand and a member of the NZ Institute of Directors. Through her boutique consulting practice, executive and voluntary work she is regularly requested to speak, facilitate and chair industry events and is also involved in mentoring and coaching others. She is passionate about making sure all the voices are heard.
Tracey Taylor
Chief Executive Officer, Yellow New Zealand
Leading with aroha and a people-first approach woven into commercial strategy, Tracey brings a background of 10-plus years in multi-channels operations, business management and sales/marketing agencies, both internationally and here in Aotearoa. Forging real change in gender pay equity, and intentional diversity using a cohesive approach has seen Tracey make impact at Yellow where she now leads as CEO.
Stepping into discomfort together, having tough conversations with love and sharing experiences is how Tracey forms the bonds of whānau and community that Yellow is so proud to hold dear.
As a mentor for the Graeme Dingle Foundation, wharenui host to TupuToa, and passionate supporter of The Aunties, Tracey’s heart lies in serving her community which she continues to grow. Lending her voice to both private and public sectors, more recently Air NZ and Aotearoa’s public sector CEOs, Tracey shares her own journey and advocates for diversity, inclusion, equity and love spearheading a business strategy. That if those things lead, the rest will follow.
Cultivated through Tracey, Yellow’s relationship with Diversity Works New Zealand is vast and varied, partnering together on workshops throughout the country, industry survey projects, creating diverse content, and now becoming an Alliance partner.
Public Sector
Alex Chadwick
Assistant Deputy Commissioner Equal Pay, Te Kawa Mataaho Public Services Commission
Alex is a senior manager, lawyer and diversity and inclusion practitioner with expertise in devising and implementing strategy to effect positive workplace culture change.
She currently leads the Government’s Taskforce established by Te Kawa Mataaho Public Services Commission and Ministry for Women to close the gender pay gap in the Public Service and to support achievement of pay equity in the wider State sector. She is responsible for coordinating a system-wide response to gender pay inequality in the public sector and for delivering against an ambitious set of milestones in the Public Service Gender Pay Gap Action Plan. Under Alex’s leadership, the Public Service gender pay gap has recently experienced the biggest drop in over 17 years.
Since joining the Public Service, Alex has continued to champion positive workplace behaviours and has participated in a cross-agency working group set up to embed the Public Service’s new Positive Workplace Standards.
Alex is an active member of her community and the legal profession. She previously served on the Auckland District Law Society Employment Law Committee and was an elected Board member of the Grey Lynn Community Centre Governance Committee between 2015 and 2017.
Renee Graham
Chief Executive of the Social Wellbeing Agency
Renee was appointed as Te Tumu Whakahaere, Chief Executive of the Social Wellbeing Agency in June 2021. She has a track record of delivering strategic policy agendas and has a strong social policy background and experience across a range of domains, including education and employment.
Prior to this role, she was the Secretary for Women and Chief Executive of the Ministry for Women, a position she held since June 2017. She has previously held senior policy roles at the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Social Development.
As Secretary for Women, Renee’s achievements included the development and introduction of an online tool Bringing Gender In – to help policymakers explore and understand the gender impacts of their policies, the development and implementation of an action plan to eliminate the Gender Pay Gap in the public sector, and work to increase the representation of women senior leadership and governance roles across the public and private sectors.
She is also Chairs the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Policy Partnership on Women in the Economy (PPWE) and the Social Services Accreditation Board.
Renee is of Ngāti Toa and Ngāti Raukawa descent.
Laulu Mac Leauanae
Chief Executive of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples
Laulu is Chief Executive of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples. Since he started in the role in July 2017 he has led the development of a bold and unifying vision for Pacific communities in New Zealand, and has secured new investments and Pacific-led initiatives to lift the economic, social and cultural wellbeing of Pacific peoples.
Laulu actively contributes to the public sector’s diversity and inclusion programme and leads Pou Mātāwaka, which aims to eliminate ethnic pay gaps.
In prior roles, he was Chief Executive of the Pacific Cooperation Foundation and the General Manager of Pure Pacifika Limited, a company that exported horticultural products from the South Pacific primarily into Asian markets.
Before this Laulu worked in the primary healthcare sector for ProCare Health Limited.
Earlier in his career he worked in Pacific community and business development with a role at the Pacific Business Trust. He started his career practicing as a lawyer.
He is of Samoan descent and holds the Chiefly title of Laulu from Fa’ala. His aiga reigns from Fa’ala, Iva and Sa’anapu.
Dr Nicola Ngawati
Director (Kaiwhakahaere Matua), Joint Roopū
Manatū Wāhine Ministry for Women
Nicola Ngawati (Ngāpuhi, Ngati Hine) is the Director (Kaiwhakahaere Matua) of the Mana Wāhine Joint Roopū at the Ministry for Women, leading the government’s response to the Mana Wāhine Kaupapa Inquiry. Her role is focused on improving outcomes for Wāhine Māori through increased coordination across the public service. Prior to this Tier 2 position, she served as a diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (including postings in Belgium and the Cook Islands). Most recently, she was the Deputy Senior Official for the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus (PACER Plus) in the Trade Negotiations Division.
Nicola has extensive experience in diversity and inclusion, equal employment opportunities and the interface with the Crown/Māori partnership. A passionate advocate for increasing representation of Māori in senior roles, she has led organisations to shift from an engagement focus with Māori to a Treaty of Waitangi based partnership. Her PhD focuses on the symbolism of the use of Māori (people, images and practices) in New Zealand’s diplomacy. Nicola has also published on the interface between EEO Māori and a bicultural public sector and has previously worked in legal practice (in the private and community sectors) and at the Human Rights Commission
