You have been with the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) for almost seven years, where the past year was spent as general manager. How did you feel when you were entrusted with the general manager role?
It was such a privilege to step into this role and I’ve felt nothing but support and positivity from the team, my colleagues, and the industry. It has been genuine, heartfelt, and very much appreciated.

I’m grateful for this wonderful opportunity to continue my passion for the business events industry in such an exciting way.

How do you feel about the project finally coming to fruition, with the impending opening of NZICC next year?
Yes, it has been a long time coming but it will be worth the wait. I am working alongside an amazing team to ensure we deliver something truly special for our clients and New Zealanders.

There is still much to be done in preparation for the opening, but we are excited for the day we get to deliver our first event.

Once it opens, what are some of your immediate to-dos? Will it be any different from what you have been doing in the past few years?
Over the last 12 months, we have been working with our customers on Customer Experience workshops with a focus on how we can best work together, and what we can do to make their engagements with us the best they can be. Delivering to those expectations will be our priority.

We will be planning for the future, and always looking at how we can improve. Our main focus on opening will be to make sure we consistently deliver great events.

Which inbound markets is NZICC targeting and what type of industries or sectors are you targeting to attract from those markets?
It will be no surprise that the Asia Pacific market is a key focus. However, our international team has also seen great success in securing global conferences beyond just our region.

We are aligning the industries and sectors that we target to the priority sectors of Auckland and New Zealand: Agritech, Medicine, Education, Earth Sciences and Indigenous conferencing

New Zealand is well known for its Māori culture, and we believe we have an opportunity to shine brightly and lead the way in the Indigenous conference space.

Please also share more about NZICC’s plans for the next five years, and what challenges you foresee?
We expect to host around 500 events and half a million visitors each year; this will be a mix of business and non-business events.

We want to ensure NZICC supports our community, has a vibrant portfolio of events all year, and becomes an asset Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland is proud of.

We are committed to future-proofing the NZICC with world-class sustainability to meet the desires of a younger generation of conference attendee who want to know their visit is being offset in innovative and principled ways. This includes a focus on integrating art and culture, demonstrating a holistic approach to sustainability (pre- and post-event) that extends beyond the building’s physical features.

What are some of the business events trends you see in the market now and how is NZICC planning to tap into those?
We are working alongside our clients to understand what the trends are in their world. This way, we can support them in enhancing the visitor experience, which only continues to grow in importance.

For example, we are designing our food menus to accommodate the growing demand for interactive and immersive experiences. And the global emphasis on wellness and inclusivity has seen us design all-inclusive bathrooms, and spaces with special furniture that accommodate our neurodiverse community.

For our own operations, we are also investigating options for automation and AI, as these present great opportunities to evolve our operations by streamlining processes, improving efficiency, and reducing costs. It is still early days, but we hope that by embracing this, we will become more agile, responsive, and scalable, ultimately enhancing productivity and our client and visitor satisfaction.

What do you envision Asia-Pacific’s business events industry will look like in 2025, and how does New Zealand play into this?
It’s an exciting time for business events in Asia Pacific. The region represents a huge opportunity for membership growth for global organisations, and New Zealand is well-placed within the region to be a strong player. We’ve already had two excellent convention centres open, with NZICC on the way.

Ranking fifth in the world for business friendliness, seventh in Asia and Oceania for innovation, and fourth out of 146 nations for gender equality, New Zealand is a great destination for all business events.