Meet Our Leaders

With 15 years of healthcare experience, Tony is an accomplished leader with a strategic mindset and strong commercial acumen. He has previously held multiple roles at ProCare Health, including interim CEO, CFO and GM of Corporate Services, and has held several executive positions at Atlantis Healthcare Group. Today, he is the CEO of Third Age Health.

Tony’s passion lies in ensuring future generations in Aotearoa New Zealand can live fulfilling lives, and he is committed to giving back through his work in the sector. He actively contributes his skills through governance and mentoring, aiming to make a positive impact on the community. He currently holds directorships at Digital Health Association, Synergia and Dementia Auckland.

Tony is a certified chartered accountant and holds membership with both the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA).

Bernice has an extensive background in education, high-performance sport, media and healthcare. She currently serves as Head of People and Programmes at Auto Drive Holdings. This follows her previous role as Programme Manager at Hyundai New Zealand, where she played an instrumental part in expanding the company’s corporate social responsibility programmes.

As a passionate advocate for community engagement, Bernice has been involved in several high-profile government projects, including Education for Secondary Futures, the Constitutional Conversation and the Coach Corp Programme. She has also contributed to the development of the Tania Dalton Foundation, held the Innovation Manager role at Vaka Tautua and was a Project Manager for Paralympics New Zealand.

Bernice has held numerous board of trustee positions, including at the Foundation for Youth Development, NZ Community Trust, Auckland University Faculty of Education and NZ Netball Players Association. She currently serves on the governance boards of Netball NZ, NZ Olympic Commission’s Education Commission and St Paul’s College Ponsonby.

A highly respected figure in the industry, Bernice was awarded the Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) and played for the NZ Silver Ferns for a decade, captaining the team for three years.

Denise is a seasoned leader with over 30 years of experience steering large, complex organisations across New Zealand and Australia. Her career spans CEO and senior executive roles in government, not-for-profit, and private sectors, with a strong focus on achieving both social and commercial outcomes.

Most recently, she led Presbyterian Support Northern (PSN) as CEO for five years, managing the delivery of critical social, health, and disability services under brands like Lifeline, Shine, Family Works, and Enliven. Her diverse leadership background includes leading the Victorian Work Cover Authority in Australia, senior roles at ACC, the Office of the Auditor-General, and Housing New Zealand.

Beyond her professional work, Denise is deeply involved in the community, serving on boards for NGOs and social enterprises. She is also a dedicated supporter of New Zealand’s contemporary art and design scene, championing emerging talent.

Dr. Arash Tayebi is a technology leader, entrepreneur, and advocate for accessibility. He is the co-founder and CEO of Kara Technologies, pioneering AI-driven digital humans to make sign language more accessible.

Arash earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Auckland, where he was recognised with the Blue Award for Innovation (2019) and named among the university’s 40 Under 40 Disruptors & Innovators. A fellow of the Edmund Hillary Fellowship, he is committed to leveraging technology for social impact, creating scalable solutions that address real-world challenges.

Winston is a highly experienced managing director with expertise in social impact and change consultancy. He currently leads JETT Consulting Limited and provides strategic advice to the faith-based and sport and recreation sector. His role also involves advising Pacific Presbyterian Church leaders and congregations across Auckland.

Winston played a key role in establishing Auckland’s new regional NASC in 2002. He was also instrumental in the consolidation of three Primary Health Organisations into one organisation, as part of 2012’s Health Sector Reforms. Previously, Winston was a member of the Council of Assembly and the Church Property Trustees of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa NZ.

Winston was on the committee that updated the traditional Kilikiti rules and format for Pacific communities, creating a mix of cricket and Kilikiti played across the Auckland Region. This new version has been embraced by Pacific communities in New Zealand and Australia as a traditional sport and way to have fun

Sonia has led Taikura Trust since 2002, shortly after the service commenced. She oversaw its growth into the nation’s largest independent Needs Assessment and Service Coordination (NASC) provider, and its evolution into Kaikaranga. Combining her experience in policy development, the Crown-Māori relationship with her commitment to social justice, and strategy and relationship skills, Sonia has dedicated herself to influencing government support systems and strengthening the value Kaikaranga contributes to the lives of disabled people, their families, whānau and aiga.

Sonia has held various advisory and governance roles with the common purpose of bridging the health and social equity gap for vulnerable members in our communities. She was the Chair for NASCA; is a Trustee for STRIVE Community Trust and for ManAlive. She is a member of  Te Hunga Roia Māori o Aotearoa/The NZ Māori Law Society and the NZ Institute of Directors.

As our People and Development head, Rachelle is the driving force behind our talent strategy to lift capability and performance within the organisation. She supports our leaders in building a strong, empowering culture where our employees feel supported and enabled to achieve our mission.

Rachelle also directs a range of operational projects and business development programmes. In that capacity, she supported new investments to meet the emerging needs of disabled people, tāngata whaikaha and their whānau.

Prior to joining Kaikaranga, Rachelle gained extensive change management experience at Emirates in Dubai. This experience has armed her with the skills and expertise to enable agile and sophisticated HR strategies across large transformation programmes within the organisation.

As the Head of Standards and Assurance, Keven ensures that we comply with quality standards and processes, which is crucial for delivering reliable and effective services. His development and implementation of comprehensive quality frameworks for operations, training, systems and processes, ensures that our people are well-equipped to provide high-quality support. He also provides broad oversight over data strategies, privacy risk and complaints management.

Keven’s journey with us started in 2003 not long after Taikura Trust began its service as the NASC for Tāmaki Makaurau. He brought his experience working with the Health Funding Authority and Ministry of Health to Taikura’s early contract performance management systems.

Keven moved to Counties Manukau DHB in 2009 as the Business Manager for the ACC and Eligibility Team, where he planned and implemented strategies to enhance internal audit programmes and data collection integrity. He joined Kaikaranga in his current role in 2021.

Kelly  joined Taikura Trust in 2007 as an intensive service coordinator and developed as a leader supporting frontline practice, designing specialist autism support and expanding on her passion for children and young people. She oversaw the development of a wraparound service pilot for Auckland with the Ministry of Health.

Kelly leads our Managed Support team. She’s focused on improving the provision of holistic and interconnected support for individuals and whānau with high and complex needs. Under Kelly’s direction, we established programmes of work on early multidisciplinary involvement, safeguarding, kaitūhono facilitation and crisis response. She supports our ambition to shape culturally appropriate engagement with key population groups, through an equity lens.

Kelly has a diploma in child protection, advocacy and policy development.

Sarah leads our largest service delivery team, Facilitated Support, dedicated to providing direct, personalised service to disabled people and their families. She has dedicated her career to making a positive impact on the lives of young people, their families and whānau.

She started out as a social worker in Education and then moved to Mental Health, where she found a passion for supporting those who often face significant challenges.

Over the years, Sarah has moved into management roles within both mental and physical health sectors, working in public and not-for-profit organisations. Her leadership is driven by a deep commitment to ensuring that everyone has access to the care and support they need, regardless of their circumstances.

In her time at Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa, Sarah took on roles such as DECIDE Manager and Northern/Midlands Regional Manager for Clinical & Health Promotion Services, always with a focus on creating inclusive, accessible services. At Auckland District Health Board, she managed key outpatient services at Kari Centre, Auckland Regional Pain Service and Auckland Sexual Health Service, bringing a compassionate approach to their leadership.

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Social Work from Massey and Post Graduate Diploma in Health Science (Child & Adolescent Mental Health) from Auckland University.

Hemant is a registered social worker with three decades of experience in the disability sector and has worked in the areas of special education, consumer rights, systemic advocacy, quality and risk management and disability service provision. Hemant’s doctoral thesis titled: ‘When I am no longer alive’ explored the wishes, worries and the support needs of the parents concerning long-term future of their disabled adult children with high and complex needs.

Hemant has previously held senior management positions with disability service providers and at the Health and Disability Commissioner. As the lead of our Community Engagement team, Hemant manages our stakeholder relationships including its multiple work strands such as Pathways, Outreach and Whānau Ora.

Simon spearheads the development and implementation of tech solutions – ensuring our people have the right tools and resources to do their best work, both today and in the future. He is also responsible for meeting our compliance obligations and establishing internal controls to protect the organisation’s assets.

Before joining Kaikaranga, Simon worked in a broad range of commercial businesses – covering start-ups, technology, manufacturing, FMCG, services, research and development.

Simon has a BCom Hons from University of Auckland and is a registered Chartered Accountant (CAANZ).

Shelley plays an essential part in ensuring the smooth running of the CEO’s office and executive management team. She co-leads in organisational event planning and execution.