Board Members

  • Jason Shoebridge profile image

    Jason Shoebridge

    Board Chair

  • Rohini Ram profile image

    Rohini Ram

    Trustee

  • Shelley Katae profile image

    Shelley Katae

    Trustee

  • Denise Atkins profile image

    Denise Atkins

    Trustee

  • David Tse profile image

    David Tse

    Trustee

  • Mataroria Lyndon profile image

    Mataroria Lyndon

    Trustee

  • Penny Hulse profile image

    Penny Hulse

    Trustee

  • Ian Olan profile image

    Ian Olan

    Trustee

Jason Shoebridge

Board Chair

A highly experienced Chief Executive Officer, Mr Shoebridge is currently Chief Executive with the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research. His significant governance experience includes two terms as Deputy Chair of Sport New Zealand and Chair of its Audit, Finance and Risk Committee, as well as being a former Director of the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research and as a current or former trustee on the boards of a number of schools and charitable organisations. 

Mr Shoebridge also has consulting expertise gained in leading consulting assignments across a range of industries in New Zealand and overseas. With an MBA and a Bachelor of Commerce in Economics and Finance, he is a chartered accountant and member of the Institute of Directors. 

Rohini Ram

Trustee

Rohini Ram is a Partner for EY New Zealand and the New Zealand leader of the People Advisory Services team. She is a member of the New Zealand Markets Board for EY; a founding member of the organisation’s New Zealand Diversity & Inclusiveness Council; and the EY Ambassador to Auckland University, an example of her commitment and passion for youth development.

Ms Ram is also the Treasurer on the board of Oxfam and a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, India NZ Business Council and NZ Asian Leaders.

Shelley Katae

Trustee

Shelley is General Manager Strategy and Performance with Tāmaki Regeneration Company. She has held a number of general management and operations roles in businesses across New Zealand, Australia and Fiji, and has built significant networks in the course of her community-based work.

Shelley is currently a board member of Taupo Moana Ltd (Ngāti Tuwharetoa).

Denise Atkins

Trustee

Dr. Denise Atkins is a senior lecturer and academic development advisor in the Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences at AUT University lecturing on both the North and  South Auckland campus. She is a recipient of the Vice Chancellor’s Excellence in Teaching award and undertakes research in the fields of Health & Physical Education, pedagogy, play and children’s voice.

As a previous senior advisor with the Ministry of Education, Denise worked in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Sport New Zealand (formerly SPARC) and was responsible for implementing the Physical Activity Initiative (2005-2007). Denise is Chair of Drowning Prevention Auckland and is a member of the ABSL Board as the Basketball Auckland representative.

David Tse

Trustee

David is a strategic thinker in the field of digital innovation, gleaned from over 30 years in senior management, sales and marketing positions in the technology sector. A high achieving professional, he is a mentor, coach and leader of high performing teams. He has a reputation for thinking outside the square, managing complexity, speed of engagement, excellent communications and sincere people skills.

Currently the Director Sales and Marketing for Jade Software, he sits on their Senior Leadership Team responsible for Jade’s overall sales, marketing and communications strategies. Prior to Jade he held senior management roles at NEC, Spark, IBM, Oracle, Sun Microsystems and StorageTek.

Bringing a diverse set of insights and thinking to the Executive and Board governance table is something David thrives on. Apart from his Aktive role, he is also an Advisory Board Member of NZ Asian Leaders, a member of the NZ Institute of Directors, the Information Technology Association of NZ (ITANZ) and numerous Chinese Associations and Communities including the NZ Chinese Association and Future Dragonz.

Mataroria Lyndon

Trustee

Dr Lyndon is a public health doctor, a Senior Lecturer in Medical Education at the University of Auckland, and Equity Lead at Mahitahi Hauora Public Health Organisation in Northland. He is also a Clinical Director at Tend Health. A Board member of the Northland District Health Board and the Health Promotion Agency, Dr Lyndon also co-hosts the TVNZ medical series ‘The Check Up.’ He completed his Master of Public Health at Harvard University as a Fulbright Scholar in 2017 and his PhD is focused in medical education. He was also awarded the Deloitte IPANZ Public Sector Young Professional of the Year 2016.

Penny Hulse

Trustee

Ms Hulse stepped down as an Auckland Councillor in 2019 after a 27-year career in local government. Over this time, she held various leadership roles including Deputy Mayor of both Auckland and Waitākere cities and chair of a number of council committees, including the Environment and Community Committee which had oversight for a range of key policy platforms including provision of sport and recreation. Building on a solid understanding of council processes and issues facing the Auckland region, Ms Hulse is currently a member of the Waitākere Licensing Trust, the Kaianga Ora Board, and the LinkPeople Board. She is also a member of the Conservation Authority, the Community Waitākere Board and chairs the Waitākere Anti Violence Essential Services.

Ian Olan

Trustee

Mr Olan brings over 25 years’ international experience in business strategy, transformation and finance, after starting his career with PwC in Mexico.

Mr Olan has an MBA and a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Accounting and Auditing from Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, is a Chartered Accountant and a Fellow member of CPA. He is also Chair and Director with Counties Manukau Rugby League, and a Board Member and Chair of Audit & Risk committees with Athletics New Zealand and Family Planning New Zealand.

Executive Team

  • Jennah Wootten profile image

    Jennah Wootten

    Chief Executive

  • Debbie Curgenven profile image

    Debbie Curgenven

    General Manager Strategy, Investment and Environments

  • Joanna Redfern-Hardisty profile image

    Joanna Redfern-Hardisty

    Communications and Marketing Manager

  • Manu Pihama profile image

    Manu Pihama

    Kaihautū Kōtui – Māori Partnership Manager

  • Simone Spencer profile image

    Simone Spencer

    Manager, Sport

  • Daniel Mitchell profile image

    Daniel Mitchell

    Manager, Play, Recreation and Education

  • Tom Duffy profile image

    Tom Duffy

    General Manager, Finance and Corporate Services

Jennah Wootten

Chief Executive

Jennah brings significant sector knowledge and experience to the role, and is a proven people and organisational leader. Her credentials, connections and expertise have seen her sit on both sides of the board table, and successfully navigate complexity and challenges.

Jennah has deep knowledge of both Tāmaki Makaurau and the sport and recreation sector. She has held a number of leading sports administration positions, including General Manager Partnerships & Communication with Sport New Zealand, Chief Executive of the World Masters Games 2017 and General Manager – Destination at ATEED. She is currently the Deputy Chair of Tataki Auckland Unlimited and was previously a Director of Cricket 2021 Limited (2021 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup) and Regional Facilities Auckland.

Debbie Curgenven

General Manager Strategy, Investment and Environments

Debbie has more than 20 years’ experience working in the sport and recreation sector, having spent time working in England, the USA and New Zealand. Prior to arriving in New Zealand, Debbie was Head of Sport for a local authority and also spent time developing sports lottery projects on behalf of Sport England and local government. Whilst in New Zealand, Debbie has worked for a Regional Sports Trust, had experience working in local government and immediately prior to joining Aktive, Sport New Zealand.

Joanna Redfern-Hardisty

Communications and Marketing Manager

Jo has previously held senior leadership roles with McDonald’s New Zealand, with responsibility for corporate affairs, stakeholder engagement and customer services and played a key role in the launch of McCafe. She has also worked with a range of other organisations including Westpac, AA Smartfuel, Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust and Transaction Services Group. In addition, she is involved with coaching and managing various secondary school sports teams.

Jo is on the Northern Region Football Board and is Deputy Chair on the Carmel College Board of Trustees. She has a Bachelor of Communication Studies majoring in Public Relations and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business.

Manu Pihama

Kaihautū Kōtui – Māori Partnership Manager

Manu is of Tainui, Patuharakeke (and Dutch) descent, and joins Aktive from KPMG where he was in Management Consulting with a focus on the Māori sector. He also brings a broad background of relationships and experience across Central and Local Government. He has worked at Auckland Council and the Ministry of Social Development in management and strategic leadership roles including collaborative sessions between Central and Local Government, Iwi and Non-Government Organisations in Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Tai Tokerau.

​Manu is passionate about partnering to achieving positive outcomes for our communities and whanau through sport and active recreation.

Simone Spencer

Manager, Sport

Simone has worked in sport management for more than 10 years. As Manager, Sport, she is the strategic lead for the organisation's work across the following areas: Sector Support, Youth Sports and Women and Girls. She is also the co-lead of the Sport NZ and Aktive national rollout of Good Sports.

Prior to working at Aktive, Simone was Sport Manager at Surf Life Saving Northern Region for six years. She has also been a business owner and was a Constable in the NZ Police for five years, resulting in operational, strategic and governance experience.

Simone is still actively involved in Surf Life Saving and is a member of the Mairangi Bay Surf Life Saving Club. Her involvement has included everything from coaching and officiating to team management, and she was appointed to the International Life Saving Federation Sport Commission in March 2021. She is also a member of the Canoe Racing New Zealand Board and chairs the Participation Subcommittee.

Simone is passionate about seeing young people have quality sport experiences and committed to seeing women and girls realise their potential through sport and recreation.

Daniel Mitchell

Manager, Play, Recreation and Education

Daniel has worked within education for the past 20 years holding numerous senior leadership roles within secondary schools. Prior to joining Aktive, he was Deputy Headmaster at King's College in Auckland. Throughout his years of teaching Daniel has seen firsthand the value of physical activity for tamariki and rangitahi and has promoted lifelong participation in physical activity through the New Zealand Curriculum. 

Daniel has coached and supported many sports teams and values the holistic approach to increasing student activity levels while holding Hauora central to their own development. 

Daniel also supports tamariki through his involvement on the Board of the New Zealand Centre for Gifted Education whose vision is to see that all gifted Kiwi kids receive the specialist educational support they need to thrive. 

Tom Duffy

General Manager, Finance and Corporate Services

Tom is a Fellow member of CPA Australia and has a Bachelor of Management Studies from Waikato University. He has significant experience in finance, IT, risk management and business partnering. Tom is responsible for the finance and corporate service functions, supports the external accounting service delivery offering to sector clients and also serves on Aktive’s Audit and Risk Committee.

Tom has married to Racheal and has three school-age children. He enjoys supporting his children in their school and club sports and is President of Maungakiekie Golf Club.