Kia Ora Tatou,

I whanau mai au I te taha o te tawa o Delhi.
He uri ahau no India.
I tipu ake au ki England.
Kei tei noho au kei Te Whanganui-a-Tara.
Ko Cook toko whanau.
Ko Aditi toko ingoa.
Tena koutou katoa.

A bit about me professionally and personally.

As in my pepeha, I was born in Delhi, India and grew up in England graduated from Exeter University with Hons in English Literature and subsequently a MBA.

My procurement journey began in 1999 at the Environment Agency, in the UK and I have been a career public servant having worked at UK Ministry of Defence and in New Zealand at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Inland Revenue, Ministry of Defence and now Ministry of Education.

I have significant experience in Procurement and my career highlights have included establishing and delivering procurement transformations, leading diverse teams and establishing highly effective cross agency groups that deliver to national security priorities, economic recovery, broader outcomes, wellbeing and kaitiakitanga.

I have worked in culturally diverse environments and have developed policies and practices that improved outcomes for Māori, other ethnicities, smaller businesses and groups that often find it hard to engage with government.

We are part of a global environment that continues to face challenges that are unprecedented in our lifetimes. While the impact of COVID-19 continues to be assessed, procurement will have a pivotal role to play in leading (and delivering) to emerging challenges and opportunities.

As CPO, at the Ministry of Education, my current focus is to ensure that procurement continues to play a pivotal role to play in leading (and delivering) to emerging challenges and opportunities. One of my priorities is to strengthen Māori medium and Kaupapa Māori education pathways, including engagement with Māori and other marginalised communities to ensure equitable outcomes for our communities.