Our team

E: carl.church@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Carl (Kāi Tahu) is the Kaiwhakahaere Matua and a co-owner of Niche. Carl is a natural connector and is committed to the building of diverse and inclusive organisations. He has a passion for looking at innovative ways of identifying and attracting talent, and recognises the benefits of skills developed locally, regionally, and internationally.

Carl has had a wide-ranging career covering financial and professional services, energy, recruitment, consulting, and technology. He has built out services practices for Deloitte in the UK and Asia Pacific, and has been focused on the governance, strategy and day-to-day operations of specialist and disruptive Australasian businesses. His time as a COO and CFO has given Carl considerable experience in running successful recruitment, finance, legal, IT and operational delivery teams. Carl is proud to serve as an elected member of his Rūnaka executive.

Carl is a Chartered Accountant and has been admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor in New Zealand. Of Kāi Tahu descent, his tīpuna whakapapa to Ōraka Aparima, and he has lived and worked in London, Hong Kong, and New Zealand.

E: jane.temel@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Jane (Ngāruahine, Ngāti Ruanui, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Ngāti Porou and Pākehā) has been a co-owner of Niche since 2010 and she has led the diversification of the business from legal into other specialist fields. This included the development of our Public Sector and People Culture and Capability portfolios, as well as managing executive appointments, especially for some of Aotearoa’s leading charities and NGOs.

Jane has been involved in recruitment in the UK and New Zealand since 1996, with roles including NZ Manager for the IT and Executive division of a global recruitment firm and General Manager for a large NZ-owned business. She has led large-scale recruitment campaigns for public sector clients, including reorganisations at the senior management level.

Jane completed a Bachelor of Music with First Class Honours at Victoria University of Wellington and she maintains a strong interest in the arts. She has been a parent Trustee on primary and secondary school boards and has served on a church Board of Management and on the RCSA All-of-Government Working Group.

E: rebecca.berney@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Rebecca joined the recruitment profession in 1999 and has worked across both the Wellington and London markets. Since 2018 Rebecca has specialised in recruiting contract, fixed term and permanent roles in the Marketing and Communications space.

Rebecca’s experience spans the full spectrum of roles, from Advisor level to General Manager level appointments. Notably, Rebecca has spearheaded large-scale recruitment projects, showcasing her skill in executing meticulous search efforts.

Rebecca has an extensive network in the Wellington market, a testament to her reputation as a trusted and reliable recruitment partner.

E: phillipa.mcdonald@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Phillipa has 20+ years recruitment experience in New Zealand and the UK, working across diverse portfolios within agency and in-house teams.

For the last decade she has been a public sector specialist and has a strong track record in the recruitment of policy, governance, research and evaluation and project/programme management professionals.

E: maria.lyons@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Maria has over 10 years’ recruitment experience in New Zealand and the UK, working in temporary, contract and permanent recruitment. She has trained and led recruitment teams and run large scale international recruitment campaigns. Maria has also worked within organisational development as a Practice Manager and as an HR generalist within a large primary health organisation.

Maria has a particular passion for working in the People, Capability and Culture field. She provides consistently exceptional service, building strong client relationships, offering tailored recruitment solutions and enabling candidates to realise their potential throughout their career journey.

Maria has a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Education.

E: awhina.kanohi@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Awhina (Ngai Tuhoe me Ngāti Porou) brings a wealth of experience across corporate, government, mana whenua, and not-for-profit sectors, with a strong focus on improving Māori outcomes through culturally driven kaupapa. She previously worked at the Independent Māori Statutory Board, Ngāti Whātua Ōrakei Whai Maia, Te Puni Kōkiri, and most recently, TupuToa as a Partnership Manager.

Passionate about uplifting Māori economic prosperity, Awhina is dedicated to building strong, mana-enhancing relationships, always guided by the values of manaakitanga that Niche is well known for. She is also a governance member of the Manukau Institute of Technology Rūnanga, where she continues to advocate for positive change for rangatahi and kaimahi Māori.

E: katy.elliott@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Katy (Te Roroa, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Whātua) specialises in legal recruitment at Niche. She has previously worked as a lawyer at both a large full-service New Zealand law firm and a boutique specialist firm, practising in the areas of Resource Management, Māori Legal and Treaty of Waitangi law. This background has given Katy a comprehensive understanding of the legal environment in New Zealand, which better enables her to service the needs of both our clients and our candidates alike.

Katy is passionate about connecting people and about delivering a successful fit for both clients and candidates. Her diligence, attention to detail, strong relationship building skills, and friendly nature set her apart in this space.

Katy has a Bachelor of Laws with Honours and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Auckland.

E: amaia.muru@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Amaia Muru (Tainui) has completed a Bachelor of Business at Auckland University of Technology. She has worked in the digital marketing field for international brands and brings a strong set of business skills. Amaia recently desired a career change that involved building pathways for exceptional people. She is passionate about connecting with people and incorporating Māoritanga within her work to unlock a lens that is in her words ‘Unique and impactful’.

'He aha te mea nui te ao? He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata!'

'What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people!'

E: nicholas.waitoa@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Nicholas (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Tamatea, Ngāi Tahu) is currently in his third year of a conjoint Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts majoring in criminology at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington.

As a part-time Talent Sourcing Consultant, Nicholas will gain valuable skills and insights into the legal and public sectors before he graduates in a couple of years. Nicholas has four years customer service experience, and he confidently interacts with people from all walks of life.

Nicholas is passionate about te ao Māori and incorporating it in his work.

“Whāia te iti kahurangi, ki te tūohu koe me he maunga teitei”

“Seek the treasure you value most dearly: if you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain”

E: alysha.hiha@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Alysha is a Ngāti Kahungunu ki te Whanganui a Orotu, Kai Tahu, Tuwharetoa wahine, proficient in te reo Māori and English. Alysha has extensive organisational administration and IT experience. Her previous role, managing the business administration of a national tertiary education provider, meant she dealt with a range of activities to maintain over 30 sites of commercial and community programme delivery in rural and urban settings. She has strong IT technical and software support, as well as marketing and promotion design capabilities.

Alysha’s relationship management skills, alongside her other abilities and qualities, make her the ideal person to keep our Auckland office running smoothly.

E: accounts@nicherecruitment.co.nz

Ann is a Chartered Accountant with over 30 years experience spanning a variety of roles and industries including private practice and Corporate work. Ann began her career with Ernst and Young before specialising in banking at Westpac, where she held several senior positions, predominantly in Treasury and Business Banking. Her banking career also took her to San Francisco to work for Bank of America in Foreign Exchange.

A stint in Melbourne saw her running her own CA practice and, upon returning to New Zealand, Ann spent many years as the General Manager of a creative agency specialising in film and visitor attraction production with clients in New Zealand, Australia and the US. In her spare time she worked with the New Zealand Basketball Academy on a pro bono basis.

Ann provides a diligent, professional approach across the full breadth of Niche’s strategic and operational finance functions.