2. IMPROVING
PEOPLE’S LIVES
Project Manager, Mercedes traded a two-
hour a day commute for a leisurely swim and
carpooling when she joined us from Buenos
Aires. At the time, she was most excited
about the projects she’d be taking on but a
few years later, it’s our values and culture that
have made the biggest impression and led to
Mercedes becoming a volunteer mentor for
new graduates and an engagement coach.
‘If you have a good experience, you have
to give it back. Everyone wants to be in a
good environment. As an engineer, I’ve gone
through the graduate process, I know what’s
required and I’ve had mentors help me – it’s
important to do the same. The mentoring and
engagement work I do now is another way
I can help with that – to pay it forward.’
Mercedes Santos
Project Manager
3. PUTTING THE
CUSTOMER AT
THE HEART OF
EVERY PROJECT
Seven years after joining the Transport Agency,
Janeane is still incredibly passionate about her
role. She’s currently focused on understanding
our customers’ journeys and how we can
improve them. After spending 18 months
designing and implementing an entirely
new approach, she’s back on the ground
making it happen.
‘We spend a lot of time on technical research
which is important for our decisions, but I also
love just talking to people and finding out what
they really value in their journey. For example,
when people travel throughout our country,
what experiences are they looking for – and
how can our planning and investment decisions
help achieve that? We’re just starting to touch
the tip of what’s important to them and I want
to run with that.’
Janeane Joyce
Organisation Improvement Manager
4. CONNECTING BUSINESS
AND COMMUNITIES
Tam’s career path reads a little like the
mountain bike tracks you’ll often find him riding
in his lunch breaks. He started with commerce,
shifted to business computing and worked
as a systems tester before coming on board
with the Transport Agency – all of it providing
valuable training for his role as a business
analyst – or, as Tam describes it, a translator
who happens to sit within Information Services.
‘People come to us because they’ve got a
business problem or need, but I see us as the
human bridge to a solution that’s going to help
them do what they do best. What I love most is
that it’s tangible – I can see the difference we’re
making. We’re trusted. And it helps that the
people are really cool.’
Tam Cao
Senior Business Analyst
5. BEING PART OF
INCREDIBLE THINGS
Behind every project is a fantastic team of
people dedicated to making it happen. One
of those people is Tauranga-based Denys,
whose job has evolved over the last six
years to provide support in everything from
meeting coordination within the Highways
and Network Operations team, managing
tenders, to getting behind the social club
and arranging fun events.
‘We’re a smaller region, so in my role I’m
not just wearing one hat. That’s what keeps
it challenging and interesting. We’ve built
some incredible projects and it’s fantastic
to be part of that, from the sod-turning to
the ribbon cutting. I’ve only lived in the Bay
of Plenty for eight years and it’s impressive
to see the difference we’ve made. I am
immensely proud of what we are achieving’
Denys Taylor
Senior Administrator
6. KEEPING IT SAFE
Ask Jon how he got into health and safety
and he’ll admit it’s not an industry he set out
to work in. He’ll tell you he ‘fell into it’, like
so many others. In his case, it was a start in
engineering and a stint supporting the police
in bomb disposal that ultimately led him to the
Transport Agency’s Zero Harm team, where
he’s helping to transform the way our entire
industry views safety.
‘What joined the dots for me was I was
involved in a situation where there were
fatalities. I felt powerless to do anything.
When I was offered the position in health and
safety I saw an opportunity to do something,
and to make up for that situation. I get
incredible fulfilment out of what I do.’
Jon Harper Slade
Zero Harm
7. MANAGING
THE JOURNEY
Managing journeys is a fairly huge task,
because each one is so different. That’s part
of the attraction for mainlander Jenny, whose
role as a regional advisor sees her travelling
the country and working with many different
partners across a number of projects. One
project aims to improve the safety of visiting
drivers when they take to our southern roads,
while another focuses on freight and the next
generation of supply drivers.
‘Right from the beginning I felt supported
in my role here and people were welcoming
and forthcoming. I very much enjoy the role.
It has flexibility and a wide range of work. I
have the ability to analyse data, critique and
communicate my ideas, in written and verbal
ways and I get to work with a wide range of
people. I’m not constrained.’
Jenny Dickinson
Principal Regional Advisor
