Meet the Team

Graham has over 10 years experience mentoring software development teams in how to increase productivity and quality. He has worked on software products for a range of markets including HR, health, travel, utilities, telecoms and online media.

"In my spare time I like sitting down in beautiful places."

Catherine studied marine biology at university in the UK, went to Japan to teach English, then bounced back to the UK to learn Welsh and work in quality control for medical devices. She then veered off into software testing, before immigrating to New Zealand and gaining citizenship here in 2008. Her testing background is diverse, ranging from tiny web start-ups to big telcos, but usability was always somewhere in the mix, ever since she stumbled across a Jakob Nielsen article at the beginning of the "intertubes" era.

"I like kayaking, my Dexters, and playing RPG with my mates. I haven't yet been able to find a way of combining all three."

Jonny joined Sonar6 as a 'Jack of all trades'. Trained in motion graphics, he has worked as a designer, trainer, developer and software architect. Some of his previous clients include The University of Auckland, Saatchi & Saatchi, Fisher & Paykel, the NZRU, Fuji, Schneider Electric, The Smithsonian Institute, NASA, US Healthcare Industry (AAHP), TVNZ and Compaq.

"I don't have a TV or landline and I live out in the country caring for an assortment of animals."

Nisy has a background in Electronics and Communications Engineering, working as a Software Test Engineer with the second-largest software services company in India. After immigrating to NZ in 2009, Nisy completed a Graduate Diploma in Computing (Testing & QA/Business Analysis). She then worked as Software Tester for a property management software company in Tauranga before moving to Auckland to join Sonar6. She is an ISTQB (ANZTB) certified Tester.

"Adaptability is a quality that is hard to acquire but it makes life a lot easier."

Xavier was born in France, raised in New Caledonia and moved to New Zealand 3 years ago. He has a degree in computer science and is a self-professed Flash junky, working on projects for a variety of clients including the NZRU, Vector, the Auckland Museum, the Ministry of Health and the Cartoon Network.

"In my spare time, I am an avid guitarist and enjoy skateboarding and the great outdoors. Check out my site."

Mai is originally from the Philippines and received a Bachelors Degree in Computer Engineering before moving to Canada to study for a MS in Applied Computing at the University of Toronto. Mai's diverse experience included studying photography and languages before she eventually settled on software testing.

"When I get a chance to relax I always find time for skiing, scuba diving, and parasailing - and I never leave the house without my cell phone!"

Jeremy has battled with Flash since futuresplash and still says "Macromedia". He enjoys creating human interfaces, especially for portable devices. He has a design degree from Wanganui School of Design and since then has worked primarily as a developer working on Internet delivered applications. He has also worked teaching multimedia at a tertiary level. In his spare time he recompiles open source software to work on an abacus.

"That's the last wipe, I'm hearthing."

Better known as Bobby, he was once sponsored by Google to fly to Shanghai to stay in a five star hotel arranged by ACM. In the process, he had the opportunity to play virtual soccer on the Blue Gene supercomputer provided by IBM.

"I tried to live life fast and with lots of mistakes but failed almost immediately."

Fahim is an internet junkie and RIA enthusiast who spends his is spare time watching movies and playing video games. Fahim has lived in NZ for the past 2 years, and loves travelling and meeting people from different places and cultures.

David comes to Sonar6 from the glamorous media industry, where big name clients like to throw money at short lived attempted brainwashing campaigns. He lives in an abandoned missile silo with his wife Paula and his infant son David, where he spends the majority of his time stressing out the afforementioned wife with home modifications that involve refactoring technology.

"I'm like 60% absolutely certain that it'll connect after i reboot."

Kai trained at the Wanganui School of Design as a graphic designer and has spent the last several years working on projects across a wide range of media, largely specialising in web and information design.

"I have always had an interest in facts, figures and information and I believe there is nothing more important in any business than clear, efficient (and aesthetic) communication."

Karen joined Sonar6 after 4 years as marketing executive at one of NZ's largest service companies. Her background includes an honours degree in Marketing & Information Systems, teaching everything from IP law to multimedia at tertiary level, freelance design and a brief foray into doughnut-making.

"I'm essentially a giant nerd, and love that I get the opportunity to explore that fully in my job. Which I'm usually trying to do while simultaneously entertaining and fending off the world's least sane pre-schooler. I work in interesting times."

Simon joined Sonar6 after a stint as a management consultant in a global professional services firm. Prior to that he worked in marketing & sales roles, primarily in NZ's ICT industry. His top achievements include acing some programming papers at Uni ('business guys' can hack too!) and appearing in a half-page newspaper photo with a chicken foot.

"I love people but I also love technology. Luckily I'm on a career path where I can work with both!"

Following the success of her exhibition –"I'm Running Away to Join the Circus", Shelly is taking a sabbatical to work on her documentary - International Carousels and Small Mammals, with cameraman Jack and sound specialist Molly.

Suzie came to Sonar6 with 20 years experience in the IT industry, where she held a variety of support and managerial roles. Her role as Implementation Manager involves translating customer requirements into the Sonar6 tool, and she is also Sonar6's telecommuter - working from a rural base 1 1/2 hours north of Wellington, NZ.

"When I'm not occupied with work, husband Dave and I are busy with 2 children, 5 cows and a dog."

Pete brings over 20 years experience in the management of a range of predominantly IT organisations with business in New Zealand and overseas. He has an unabashed passion for anything he is involved in and believes that if it is not fun or enjoyable then it is not worth doing.

"Love the Michael Pritchard quote: 'Fear is that little darkroom where negatives are developed.' I always try to be positive and prepare well for anything, be it sport, work or family. With my 3 kids, another passion for Triathlon - as an international official – my multisport (eg Coast to Coast) and Sonar6, life is busy and rewarding!"

Amy is a Chartered Accountant who has worked for Deloitte for over 7 years as well as being a founding co-owner and Financial Controller of the Lido Cinema Group for 8 years.

"I hail from the mighty land of the grape, Marlborough, so in my spare time I love enjoying a good glass of wine with friends. I also love just hanging out with my two young boys and watching movies of course!"

Mark has 15 years of experience in the software development field, including 5 years with Commsoft Group, a public company he founded in 1996.

"I just love challenge. Whether its pushing the boundaries of web development with the team in the lab, or working through a tough route on a rock climbing trip, I love that"

Jason has spent the last 10 years in the HR and software as a service space. He holds a degree in Organisational Psychology and has provided consulting services in the areas of human resources, business development, marketing and sales. Jason is passionate about helping organisations maximise their talent, leading to successful companies, happy employees and great working environments.

"I love participating in my two daughters' lives: coaching soccer, attending performances, and cheering at softball games! Living in the San Francisco Bay area, I am lucky to have sand and snow at my doorstep and outdoor activities are a great part of my life."

Patricia has spent the last 15 years working in the Fine Art/Publishing industry in all capacities of Sales Management and Marketing. She holds a degree in Design and Business Management and specializes in new business development, revenue growth, and client management. She is extremely diligent and thoughtful in her approach to issues and works for a WIN/WIN solution.

"Being an overly curious person, I am a wealth of useless information."

Peter has spent most of his career working in Marketing, Sales and Sales Management roles for a global technology company, and enjoyed working in an environment where performance and individual achievements were recognised. Peter is passionate about bringing innovative products of the greatest possible value to the market and working closely with customers to hold their respect and loyalty.

"Invite me for a game of golf, a good lunch or dinner, or a weekend skiing and I will most likely accept!"

Hendrik was born in Germany, lived for 1 year in Dublin and moved 2009 to New Zealand to start a new life in his dream country. Hendrik has a Masters degree in computer science and business administration and worked for 4 years as a researcher and software developer for the University of Ilmenau and Trinity College in Dublin. He was involved in various international research projects like the digital library DMG-Lib and the European e-learning project Share.TEC. Hendrik has published over 20 international journal and conference papers. He is interested in knowledge management, information retrieval and the next generation of the Internet.

"Thanks to the WWW, today, we have access to more information than ever before in human history. However, we all are drowning in information but thirst for knowledge. I want to help to make a difference."

Linda was born in China, moved to New Zealand when she was 9, and speaks fluent English, Cantonese and Mandarin (as well as a little bit of Japanese!) Linda joined Sonar6 right after receiving an honours degree in Computer System Engineering, where she majored in Information Systems and Operations Management.

"I like trying different things and exceeding my own expectations. When I'm not working, Perfect World (the MMORPG) takes up most of my time!"

Sarah joyfully resides in the beautiful Sonoma County Wine Country in Northern California where she is surrounded by friends and family. She spent several years traveling the globe, until it became apparent she was destined to infiltrate the IT world. She has a collective total of 15 years experience in the Software Technical Support industry, Healthcare IT, Population Health Management, Implementation Project Management and Customer Relations.

"My favorite thing to do is to learn and grow both personally and professionally. One of my very favorite hobbies is reading. I love to spend time outdoors and connecting with friends, family and just people in general. This quote from Maya Angelou best describes my attitude towards life - "People may not always remember what you said or what you did, but they will always remember the way you made them feel."

James is originally from Taranaki and moved to Auckland to study mathematics at the University of Auckland. From there he entered the workforce, gaining experience in support roles including working for internet and VOIP (Voice Over IP) providers. He also volunteers his time to support a server environment for Gameplanet where he has gained experience in PHP/MySQL and maintaining servers.

"I love learning new things and a challenge."

Jim joined Sonar6 not long after spending some time at the University of Auckland stumbling into a degree in Computer Science and Linguistics. He pursues an interest in human language parsing and the development of a semantically sensitive word net.

"I am interested in language, particularly errors, and role playing games. As it happens, these things seem to go hand in hand."

Mike originally trained in Artificial Intelligence but ended up spending much of his career in consumer marketing for global corporations. Mike has worked in over 20 countries. His big claims to fame include establishing a number one market share position for HP as they launched their Pavilion home PC in Asia/Pacific and crashing a plane into the sea.

"I admire anyone who takes their chosen field to the very limit."

Jacky started his software user interface design long before 'UI' and 'UE' became internet buzz words. With a bachelor degree in computer graphic design, he worked at The Hyperfactory for three years, where he designed smartphone apps for some of the biggest brands in the world. Presenting data in a easy to understand, user-friendly way is Jacky's biggest passion.

Sam Morgan started his career at Deloitte Consulting before founding NZ's most visited website, online auction website TradeMe, which sold in 2006 for $700 million. He has also built online dating businesses in New Zealand, Australia and Canada, and runs New Zealand's largest friend reunification site, Old Friends. Sam is active as an international speaker on electronic business topics and is recognised as a thought leader in web based consumer applications. His ventures focus on three things – usability, empowering consumers and connecting people.

Chris has extensive experience in investment banking, regulation, private equity, venture capital and consulting in London, Hong Kong and Australasia. He was previously an adviser to Cable and Wireless plc, director of Optus Communications, Chairman of the Hong Kong Takeovers Panel, Investment Committee Member of GEMS Oriental & General Fund and Chairman of New Zealand Venture Investment Fund Limited. Chris is currently a director of Macquarie Media Group and Mobilis Networks Limited.

Gavin joined Sonar6 after receiving an Information Systems degree and working in the IT industry with various Web Applications for a few years. He is an avid learner and always seeks to try out the latest technologies as soon as they become available.

"Have you tried turning it off and on again?"

John is a successful global entrepreneur and intrapreneur across a broad range of industry and business including computer hardware and software, financial services, property, construction, hospitality and security.

"The common ground amongst all top businesses is great people. Maybe its sounds odd, but I'm passionate about people."