Group Chief Executive: Barbara Disley
Barbara has extensive leadership and management experience leading large teams within the education and health sectors. She has held a number of senior public positions including Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation. From 1996- 2002, she was the inaugural chair of the Mental Health Commission and from 2002 till 2007 Barbara was Deputy Secretary Ministry of Education where she had responsibility for the integration of the special education service into the Ministry and for the overall leadership, funding and provision of special education services for children and young people. She worked as a Principal Consultant for Cognition Education Ltd leading their research and evaluation team prior to joining Richmond. Over the course of 2018 Barbara was a member of the Mental Health & Addiction Inquiry Panel. Barbara has a doctorate in education and in 2011 was made an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
Executive Director of Emerge Aotearoa Limited and Mind & Body : Karla Bergquist
Karla is a Registered Nurse and has a post graduate Diploma in Health Management. She has held clinical positions in a variety of mental health settings prior to assuming management roles. She was Manager of the Regional Eating Disorders Service and Specialist Services before she became Manager of the Acute Mental Health Services for the Auckland District Health Board, a position she held for eight years. For three years Karla took on the Mental Health and Addictions Workforce Development Coordinator position at the NDSA (now NRA) for the 4 Northern Region District Health Boards. Following this she moved to Waitemata DHB as Service Manager for District Mental Health Services for four years. Prior to returning to NZ in 2014, Karla was the Executive Director of the Mental Health Directorate in the Central Adelaide Local Health Network (DHB equivalent) in South Australia. Karla has many interests and achievements within Mental Health including the reduction of restrictive practices and the use of data to inform practice and service improvement. She is a strong supporter of peer-led services and the development of the lived experience workforce.
Group Director of People and Enterprise: Nicola Coom
Meet our Group Director for People and Strategy, Nic Coom. Nic oversees our people, strategy and communications functions. She is also the driving force behind Ignite Aotearoa, a new social enterprise established to improve access and remove barriers to effective wellbeing support and information.
Nic spent her early career as Senior Consultant with Australia’s largest EAP provider, consulting on workplace wellbeing. She moved home in 2007 to be closer to her whānau and since then has enjoyed leading People & OD teams across some of New Zealand’s largest public, private and not for profit sectors.
Nic is very active in the community having founded a charity that provides peer support to whānau impacted by hereditary cancer and was recognised for this work as a finalist in the inaugural Westpac Women of Influence Awards.
Nic is Canterbury born and bred. Returning home has meant she has had the unenviable experience of leading teams through the earthquakes and recent terrorist attacks, something she describes as a privilege. Nic is married to Shaun Aitken and they have three young boys aged 4, 6 and 7. At the weekend Nic and her whānau can be found riding the rapids of the Selwyn river in Whitecliffs or on the sideline of the boy’s cricket or rugby games.
Nic’s all-time favourite band is Dire Straits and her favourite quote is “Moments are only temporary but memories are forever”.
Group Chief Financial Officer: John Cook
A Chartered Management Accountant with 14 years experience across a variety of finance roles within the professional services sector, John has developed high performing teams and been involved in process improvement to ensure strong relationships permeate throughout an organisation. John has worked in the health (and more specifically) NGO mental health sector for the past 3 years and has developed a true understanding of what it means be able to meet the needs of the people we serve. John also has a particular interest in social housing and property related matters. Prior to returning to New Zealand, he spent 12 years in the UK, the last 6 years working for Colliers International where he was a Director.
Mana Whakahaere Partnership and Inclusion: Tania Tarawa
Tania is a lawyer by profession and has practiced in the areas of commercial law, governance and in the Waitangi Tribunal. With a background in economic development, she has specialised in strategic leadership, policy development and relationship management at senior levels within central and local government.
Prior to joining Emerge Aotearoa, Tania led Māori economic strategy and outcomes at Auckland’s regional economic development agency, ATEED, and led the Maori economic development programme for Auckland Council. Before that, she led strategic projects and oversaw the implementation of the Tāmaki Makaurau Treaty Settlement for the Department of Conservation in Auckland. Tania’s career has been spent at the interface of iwi Māori and mainstream organisations, acting as a conduit between world views and perspectives. As a strategist and advisor, she is particularly interested in organisational planning, performance management, and the development of cultural competency frameworks.
Outside work, she is committed to the development of her iwi, hapu and whānau and serves on several boards that advance this cause. Born and raised in Manurewa, she maintains a close affinity and affection for the communities of South Auckland. Her favourite place in the world is alongside her husband, next to Tikapa Moana, at their home in Kaiaua, within the tribal homelands of Ngati Paoa.