A finance and economics generalist, Aaron loves weaving financial and non-financial data together to help clients understand value and achieve better performance and results for the people of Aotearoa

A Chartered Financial Analyst and experienced financial modeller, Aaron loves turning seemingly random data points into useful information that helps organisations make a difference. He has a broad range of financial modelling and accounting skills, and has applied them in many different contexts, both inside and outside government, and in different kinds of roles, including research. 

Before he joined us in 2023, Aaron was a key member of the strategic finance team at Oranga Tamariki, and relied on when it came to wrapping financial information around a new concept or idea. Before that he worked in the funds-management industry, evaluating investments for superannuation accounts and charitable trusts.

Aaron is always highly engaged and curious when working on a project. He’s a great listener, and puts plenty of searching questions to his clients so he’s aware of all the key drivers and levers in their world and can then work out the right solutions. Aaron knows the importance of putting in the time and effort upfront to understand the client’s context and needs. 

A natural collaborator, Aaron loves working with others to get the best result, engaging widely with both leaders and the “doers”. He understands that no one person is going to have all the necessary information and expertise – you need a team for that.

Outside work Aaron enjoys everyday life with his wife and five kids. He is also involved with his local church.

Examples of Aaron's work

• Leading work on the Cost to Serve and Cost of Care – Aaron brought together financial and non-financial data held across multiple sources within Oranga Tamariki to show senior leaders visually which children were being impacted and how funding was being used to meet their needs.

• Developing a costing model for prototypes for devolved social-service partnerships – Starting with just the intent of developing a new strategy for true partnerships, he crafted the financial implementation plan that helped convince the Treasury and joint ministers to release funding to support nine prototype partners to design approaches they know work.

• Budget bids – Aaron successfully led cost-pressure bids over multiple Budget cycles and the financial cases for new policy initiatives and business cases, resulting in a stable baseline for Oranga Tamariki to operate from.

Aaron's qualifications

Aaron is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and has an Honours degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Waikato.