Key People

The Museum director is supported by a management executive team who coordinate the Museums core role of providing public programmes, presenting exhibitions, maintaining collections, providing education services and conducting research.

Ten curators oversee the following collections: applied arts, ethnology, pictorial, social history, Maori, botany, marine, land vertebrates, entomology, archaeology.

The following people are involved in governance of Auckland War Memorial Museum:

Auckland Museum Trust Board

David Hill – Chairman David Hill has post-graduate qualifications in anthropology and planning, and has been professionally involved with heritage, historic and environmental planning issues in New Zealand and overseas since 1980, including private and public sector institutional reform. David has extensive ties with the Pacific where he has developed environmental and resource management law. Past chairman of the Auckland Conservation Board (1996 - 2000), he has also been a Director at Hill,Young and Cooper Ltd – resource management consultancy since 1995.

William Randall – Deputy Chair William has Masters and PhD degrees in biology as well as an MBA in business/ finance. William has spent 15 years in banking and fi nance where he managed the treasury function for a large U.S. investment company (Fidelity Investments) and was the managing director of New Zealand stockbroking company ANZ Securities NZ Limited. Currently a director of Capstone Partners, William’s primary interest lies in helping the country to develop its biotechnological capabilities in science.

Bruce Anderson – Chairman - Annual Plan Committee Bruce’s background is in the public sector where he was a leader in the development of local government strategic management and customer service initiatives. He held the position of Chief Executive of Auckland City Council for 13 years. Before that as a professional and chartered engineer, he had a wide range of project engineering, contracts engineering and design engineering experience. Bruce is a past-Chairman of the Trust Board (1999 - 2003) and currently chairs its Annual Plan committee.

Dale Bailey Dale is the Counties Manukau regional manager for Career Services rapuara. He has a Masters in Geography, a Masters degree in Public Management and a teaching diploma. He has had a career in secondary education and has worked for the Education Review Office. Dale has been widely involved in the governance of heritage and arts organisations and was the founding chairperson of the Te Manawa Museums Trust in Palmerston North. Dale is an honorary life member of the NZ Historic Places Trust, and in 1994 was awarded a Nuffield Commonwealth fellowship to the Commonwealth Institute in London.

Timothy Hannah Timothy is an economist and former Foreign Affairs and Trade offi cial. He has represented New Zealand widely overseas and served as Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat. He is trained in public/private sector management and company directing (IOD). Since retirement he has assisted with the governance and structural review of the Auckland Philharmonia and development of ASEAN/NZ business relations, and is also Associate Member of Malay Studies at Victoria University

John McIntyre John’s background is in the service industry where he has had an extensive career in the travel industry sector, principally in the fields of airline sales, marketing, operations and corporate key account management. He has a strong interest in history and heritage and has participated in the strategic development of the UOABS special Business History Project. He is currently a freelance Marketing Consultant and is also a volunteer guide for the Auckland War Memorial Museum.

Wendy McPhail Wendy holds post graduate qualifications in Business Administration. Wendy has 20 years sales and marketing experience in senior management and professional consulting services. She established the highly successful leadership development organisation, Covey Leadership Centre in New Zealand in 1992 where she worked with organisations throughout Asia Pacific. This work subsequently led to her interest in strategic foresight where as a Director of In Touch Group she advises start-ups, private and public sector and not for profit organisations on their ability to be positioned effectively in a world of accelerating change.

Carol Gernhoefer Carol is a Chartered Accountant and has a post graduate degree in Japanese. Carol has over 15 years experience as an accountant and consultant working for one of the Big 4 chartered accounting firms and as a CFO for companies in the property, financial services and travel industry. Carol's work experience was gained in the UK, America, Japan and New Zealand and as such she applies a global perspective to business operations in New Zealand. Carol is currently a freelance accountant and business consultant and has a strong interest in not-for-profit organisations.

Danny Tumahai Te Puna Tumahai is a nationally recognized kaumatua (elder) of Ngati Whatua o Orakei and chair of their Kaumatua Council. From 1996 to 2007 he was chair of the Museum’s legislated Maori Advisory Committee: Taumata-a-Iwi (comprising Ngati Whatua, Tainui and Ngati Paoa). This year he replaced the late Sir Hugh Kawharu as the Taumata’s second appointee to the Museum Trust Board, carrying overall responsibility for alignment of Maori Values (mana Maori, mana whenua, manaaki) at governance level. Te Puna advises departments of Courts, Corrections and Education; serves on the The Edge (Auckland City Council’s Arts Board), the Orakei Reserves Board, National Maritime Museum Trust. On top of this he continuously fulfills Ngati Whatua civic duties in partnership with the Mayor of Auckland.

Paul Reynolds

Auckland Museum Management Team

Dr Vanda Vitali – Director For the past five years, Dr Vitali has been Vice President of Public Programmes and Director of Content Development at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Dr Vitali is internationally recognised for her innovative approach to exhibits and programming. She places a strong emphasis on accessibility and public engagement to create compelling experiences for visitors of all ages and interests. She believes that museums should inspire more, and as a result motivate people to learn. Her exhibitions are influenced by current issues in science, culture and art and are known for reshaping the intellectual agenda of museums. Along with her significant work in programming and exhibitions, Dr Vitali has considerable curatorial experience in both research and collections.

Dr Paul Tapsell, Tumuaki – Director Maori Ko Paora Tapihana (D.Phil. Oxon): Mai Maketu ki Tongariro me Maungatautari hoki. E noho ia i te mana o te whenua o Ngati Whatua o Orakei. Paul has been the Tumuaki at Auckland Museum Tamaki Paenga Hira since 2000. He provides senior executive support to the Trust Board and Taumata-a-Iwi. He is responsible for the Maori Values Team, overseeing the Taonga Database Project, Repatriation of Ancestral Human Remains to Source Communities Project and the Ko Tawa Project. Beyond the Museum Paul is Adjunct Senior Lecturer in Anthropology and Co-coordinator of the Museums and Cultural Heritage Graduate Programme, University of Auckland. He is an Eisenhower Fellow (2005) and sits on Te Maori Manaaki Taonga Trust and the Pukaki Trust.

Mr James Dexter – Head of Public Programmes James Dexter began his career in the cultural sector in 1986 as a lecturer at the National Gallery of Australia. In 1989 he was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to study the provision of outreach services and barriers to public access in museums in the USA. Upon his return he took up the position of Manager Public Programs before taking the position of Director Public Programs at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. He returned south in 1997 to Melbourne Museum first as Manager Planning and Operations and later as Acting Director. In 2003 he crossed the Tasman to take up the position as Head Public Programmes at Auckland War Memorial Museum. He also has special responsibility for the War Memorial.

Mr John Cowan – Head of Finance and Facilities John is a Chartered Accountant who, after working in public accounting, held senior finance roles in listed New Zealand companies and at The University of Auckland. He served on the Accounting Research and Standards Board. After joining the Museum in 2000 he was promoted to leading the team which looks after the building and the money.

Dr Oliver Stead – Head of Collections Oliver has worked continuously with collections of cultural and scientific heritage since 1981. He has MA(Hons) and PhD degrees in Art History. Before joining the staff of Auckland War Memorial Museum in 1996, Oliver was Registrar/Collection Manager at Dunedin Public Art Gallery 1990-1996. His previous collection management roles were in the University of Auckland Library, where he held a permanent position in Manuscripts and Archives 1986-1989. Oliver chaired the University of Auckland/Auckland War Memorial Museum Joint Committee 2000-2007. A personal career highlight was participating the the Tamaki Makaurau Senior Kapa Haka Regional Pipiri 2006, as part of the group Tamaki Paenga Hira.

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