NZHIT Board Nominee's for election 2019-2020

As a not-for-profit, incorporated society NZHIT's Board is made up of 6 elected directors (serve a 2-year term and are elected by NZHIT members) and can have up to 4 co-opted directors (serve a 1-year term and are appointed by the elected directors). NZHIT's constitution has a board rotation policy that requires three of the elected positions come up for election each year. Elected directors that come to the end of their 2-year term are eligible to put themselves forward for re-election. All board directors represent the interests of NZHIT members, the health IT sector and the wider health and disability sector in general. All board positions are undertaken on a voluntary basis.

The current board members can be viewed here. NZHIT also has a Board Diversity Policy in place that can be downloaded here.

There is always considerable interest each year from people wanting to be on the NZHIT Board and this year is no different with the following nominees having put themselves forward for the election process. Voting has commenced and the three successful nominees will be announced at the NZHIT Annual General Meeting being held in Hamilton (in conjunction with the annual HiNZ Conference) on the 20th of November 2019. NZHIT members are welcome to attend the AGM - click here for more information and a link to register.

Jacqui Williams, Managing Consultant, Orion Health

With over 15 years’ experience working in IT Service Provision and Management, eight of which have been in Healthcare, I have a true passion for the Health IT industry.   

I began my career with Orion Health eight years ago as an implementation consultant, and quickly moved into the role of team lead for some very highly skilled professional services consultants. My team and I have played a pivotal role in the delivery of a transformational program of work for the South Island’s Health System during this time which has seen the region transform to an integrated and connected system. 

I believe that as consumers of our local health system we should have a vested interest in its improvement. As we move towards a new phase, where interoperability and the sharing of data is critical, I am keen to be actively involved in helping shape the NZHIT collective voice. As a born and bred Southerner, I will bring with me a strong South Island voice.  

The New Zealand health landscape is complex and siloed. No one company can do it all. I believe that working collaboratively is the only way we will enable quality healthcare, and that through organisations like NZHIT this can be achieved.

Kyle Forde, Chief Information Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Director

As a highly driven and successful senior executive I bring 20+ years of experience driving successful business outcomes. I possess a wide range of knowledge and experience that will allow me to contribute toward the success of NZHIT.  I am committed to fostering the growth of our innovators by applying my skills in active collaboration, leading new initiatives focused on advocating for the membership. 

I studied at Otago Polytechnic for a Bachelor of Information Technology and have completed my Masters in Professional Practice focused on Interoperability in the Health Sector. My governance experience extends into the social sector where I am a board member serving Anglican Family Care where I provide governance advice relating to technology and cross sector interoperability. 

Following on from 4 years in the public sector on the back of 20 years in the private sector I am passionate in connecting the private and health sector to open up the opportunities for our local and international innovators. I have an appreciation for navigating the private and public sector in my role as Chief Information Officer for WellSouth Primary Health Network, Chief Operating Officer for Karo Data Management Limited and Private Consultant for IT Culture Limited. I firmly believe in fostering a connection between private and public sector agencies to ensure we freely innovate across the health ecosystem. 

I believe in consumer driven innovation and have a dream to ensure every New Zealander has better access to health through the use of innovative technology.

 Ross Peat, Executive Director and Co-owner

Ross is executive director and co-owner of the HealthSoft pharmacy platform companies which develop and market the RxOne solutions in New Zealand and Australia. He has extensive public sector governance experience and is currently deputy chair of REANNZ (govt-owned specialist telco focused on universities and crown research agencies) and is a former deputy chair of the Crown-owned Institute of Environmental and Scientific Research Ltd (ESR).

Ross is active in start-up and angel investment and is founding investor and investment committee member of the Tuhua Ventures Fund (part of the Icehouse Ventures ecosystem) and is a member of the Ice Angels. He is also a director of Mint Innovation which is a NZ e-waste start-up now building and testing world-leading bio refinery technology for the extraction of gold and other precious metals.

He has had 25 years experience with multi-national tech companies and is a former CEO of Microsoft New Zealand(2002 to 2006).  

Why vote for me:

1.      I’m passionate about the clear and present opportunities for delivering better health outcomes for both patients/consumers, for health professionals and for funders - through a real focus on personalised wellness services and digital technologies.

2.      I fully support the NZHIT ‘Vision for Interoperability’ and the innovative outcomes this will deliver in 2020's for the health and wellness sector.

3.      I have been an elected member and deputy-Chair of the NZHIT board since 2017, and this has given me the privilege of serving the interests of our members in both local and A/NZ forums while working closely with the board, Chair and CEO. I’d value the opportunity to continue this work with a focus on the development and representation of the pending NZ Health Sector Report.

4.      I appreciate the issues and challenges that small and medium health IT providers experience in both serving and complying with Government requirements on both sides of the Tasman.

5.      I’ve personally experienced the risks and rewards of the very sharp end of tech start-up and angel investing and have extensive networks in this sector including connectivity into Asia/China.

Russell Craig is Microsoft New Zealand’s National Technology Officer and a member of the Microsoft New Zealand leadership team.

Based in Wellington, he works with regulators and policy-makers on a wide range of issues related to the use of digital technologies across the public and private sectors.

In his current role with Microsoft, Russell has been regularly engaged with the Ministry of Health – most recently in relation to the evolution of its policy regarding cloud services. In this work, he advocated for change on behalf of both Microsoft’s customers and the NZ health IT industry.

Looking forward, Russell will continue to work with Microsoft’s global healthcare team to help enable digital transformation across the NZ health system, and support local health IT industry partners to develop innovative products and services that are locally and globally relevant. Russell was co-opted to the NZHIT Board in 2016 and was then elected to the Board of NZHIT in 2017.

Tony Wai, CFO & GM of Corporate Services, ProCare

ProCare Health is New Zealand's largest network of family doctors (GPs), nurses and general practice teams. They provide community-based healthcare to more than 870,000 people across the Auckland region.  

Tony has been at ProCare as CFO and GM of Corporate Services since early 2016 and oversees the Technology portfolio for ProCare as well as the commercial, financial management and other corporate functions of the organisation.  He has been a key participant in overseeing the recent move of ProCare forming a Co-operative with the PHO transitioning to a charity.

For the last 12 months Tony has been serving as a co-opted board member of NZHIT and actively contributed to the current success of the organisation.

He is a fully qualified accountant, holding both NZ (CA)and UK (CIMA) professional accountancy qualifications. He has more than 20 years finance and management experience working across healthcare technology and FMCG organisations.  

Prior to that he held the role as CFO/COO of Atlantis Healthcare Group where he helped in setting up the respective behavioural health technology businesses in Atlantis' international expansion through Europe and the USA, as well as guiding the technology and finance teams of the organisation.  

Tony has also worked in senior finance roles in some of New Zealand's largest companies (including Fonterra Brands and Fletcher Challenge)and has also run a number of successful start-ups and high growth companies. 

 Why vote for me?

• I bring the voice of Community and Primary Care needs from a large provider perspective.

• With a focus on commercially viable, patient focused, and health outcomes I believe I can represent and assist NZHIT translate needs between the provider sector and the technology industry partner community.

 • I believe in genuine public-private partnership ‘win win’ approaches across the sector to foster not only innovation but avoid unnecessary duplication.

 • With a background of skills and experiences across public and private settings I understand the key needs for industry partners and providers when looking to build upon their appropriate road maps, and commercial models around their technology offerings.

Scott Herschberger, National Manager – Health Metrics New Zealand

Experienced Territory Manager with an aptitude for MNC logistics (Berkshire Hathaway, United States) and the applications of technology in healthcare (Health Metrics, New Zealand).

Scott has extensive knowledge of the technical and practical requirements of New Zealand’s Aged Care, Home Care, Disability Support and Public Health sectors.

As a contender for the NZHIT Board, Scott brings his insights, networks and command of Healthcare Consulting, Management Consulting, Capital Budgeting, Business Process Improvement and Market Growth Strategies