Our team is united in their passion for our region and their dedication to sharing this with current and potential talent, visitors, and investors.
Chief Executive
Fiona has extensive experience in regional, economic and tourism development, and has a particular interest in strategic development and innovation. She is passionate about improving the well-being of local communities through economic development.
Originally from Wales, having moved to Whakatū Nelson with her family in 2021 after time in Tasmania, in her spare time, you'll find Fiona exploring our region with her family, usually by kayak!
Finance & Commercial Manager
Meet Toni, a proud Nelsonian and mother of two talented twenty-somethings. After a stint in Australia and Christchurch, she returned to her hometown. Toni brings an extensive finance and commercial background, fuelled by a genuine passion for empowering individuals and businesses to achieve greatness. At the NRDA, Toni assumes the crucial role of managing finance and commercial activities. She supports the team as they work to foster the growth of our region's businesses and people.
Investment Attraction Lead, Part-time
Anna moved to Tasman in 2007 with her Irish husband and two sons, following 17 years in the UK. She works part-time as the NRDA's c and also develops innovation and business cases across the food and fibre sectors. In her spare time, Anna enjoys travel, cycling, hiking, and great food with friends and family. She lives 25 minutes from the Abel Tasman National Park, which is her favourite happy place.
Regional Strategy & Investment Manager, Part-Time
Melissa has an established commercial and investment banking, risk management, and accounting career. She is a qualified CA and human resources specialist who has worked in New Zealand and the UK. Melissa was born and raised in Nelson and travelled extensively after completing her studies before choosing to return to Te Tauihu with her family.
Innovation & Business Growth Manager
Mark relocated to Nelson Tasman after 13 years in Wellington. His strong commercial background includes 15 years of experience in corporate governance, operational design and strategy, product development, change management and succession planning. Mark manages the Regional Business Partner Programme delivery across the top of the south. The RBP programme focuses on helping businesses innovate and grow by providing information, independent advice, funding and connections to businesses seeking support in their growth journey.
Visitor Destination Manager
Craig grew up in Nelson Tasman but left for Lincoln University where he gained a BCom majoring Tourism. His affinity for tourism runs deep. His experience includes being a Team Leader in Guest Services at NZSki.com, Hotel Manager in Austria, and a tour guide for international students throughout Aotearoa. Previous roles in the region include marketing Marchfest and Nelson Beer Week and Marketing Manager at NMIT. Craig also spent three years as a Marketing Coordinator at Te Papa Tongarewa, Museum of New Zealand, Wellington.
Critical Skills Pipeline Project Lead & Strategy Executive
Leslie has a background in production management, project management and business process reengineering. Lesley enjoyed a variety of roles before joining the Nelson Regional Development Agency in 2013 to deliver economic development projects and economic insights. Lesley now has a dual role: first, delivering the Critical Skills Pipeline Project, and second, as Strategy Executive supporting the CE with NRDA strategic planning.
Events Lead
Rebecca completed a BSc and BCapS at Otago University before beginning her career in Account Management and Space Planning in the FMCG industry while studying marketing at Massey University. Rebecca first moved with her family to Nelson Tasman in 2006 but spent three years living and working in Abu Dhabi before securing her role as Events Liaison at the Nelson Regional Development Agency.
Rebecca's role includes marketing events through various media channels, co-ordinating the 3 Nelson City Council Event Grant Funds, and assisting in the delivery of major events and city activations by connecting people in the events and related industries. This benefits our communities, increases social cohesion, and brings positive commercial outcomes for local businesses.
International Lead
Originally from Palmerston North, Donna has lived, worked and travelled around New Zealand and other parts of the world, including her big ‘OE’ to the UK and USA. Donna’s passion for the tourism industry, particularly in New Zealand, was inspired by her work as a Scuba Diving Instructor at Dive! Tutukaka in Northland.
Donna is our International Lead, working closely with Tourism New Zealand to promote Nelson Tasman to travel agents and media worldwide. She invests a lot of her time in educating and upskilling the travel trade on what is available in the region. Donna also supports Mark Maguire in delivering the Regional Business Partner Programme, designed to enable local businesses to innovate and grow.
Marketing & Communications Lead
A born and bred Nelsonian, Charlotte skipped across the ditch to Melbourne after studying a Bachelor of Design (Hons) at Massey University to kick off her career in marketing. During her 8 years overseas, Charlotte worked in various media, events, design, and advertising roles. She returned home in 2018 to become a World of Wearable Art Marketing Executive. Charlotte joined the NRDA team in 2020 and is responsible for strategically leading and coordinating the Marketing and Communications functions for NRDA to ensure a strategic approach and alignment.
Marketing Executive
Alex is a data-driven digital marketer and passionate about all things digital. With over 16 years of experience in digital media, Alex transitioned to destination marketing in 2019, where she helped deliver strategic-led marketing campaigns for Destination Great Lake Taupō. Alex joined the NRDA team in August 2023. When she isn't working, she is mountain biking with her trail dog, Coya.
Business Events Lead & Events Support
Rita, a native of Canada, moved to New Zealand in 2004. For ten years she managed conferences in Canada and New Zealand.She then transitioned to managing sporting events in Nelson for ten years, including the South Island Masters Games.
An adventure seeker, she enjoys hiking, skiing, kayaking and anything that gives her an adrenaline rush. She loves exploring other cultures and has visited 58 countries so far. Rita works as our Business Events Lead, positioning Nelson as a desirable place to host conferences and events. She promotes upcoming events through social and print media and administers the It’s On website to maximise exposure for events in our region.
Skills & Workforce Projects Lead
Ange has travelled extensively in New Zealand and overseas and, after falling in love with the Nelson Tasman, decided to make our region her permanent home in 2016. She has worked in a wide variety of roles and industries over the years and brings strong project coordination, relationship management, and organisational skills to the team. She is extremely driven and loves to make stuff happen!
Ange's role is to help strengthen connections between local employers, schools, and students to achieve greater vocational education and employment engagement. The aim is to support sustainable careers for youth and regional economic prosperity and establish programmes and systems to help retain and attract youth employment in our region.
Business & Project Support
Originally from New Delhi, Anjali moved with her family to Nelson in 2018. Before joining their Quality Enhancement team, she studied for a Post Graduate Diploma in Applied Business at Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
Anjali has a lot of experience in corporate banking and ran her own corporate gifting business for ten years in India, where she also studied for a master’s degree in commerce. As Business and Project Support, Anjali supports NRDA's Business and Project Leads. She also assists the Chief Executive and the team with internal administrative functions and project coordination.