Board & leadership

Board
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Justine Smyth

Independent Chair

Justine joined the Board and was appointed the Chair of Mondiale VGL in March 2023. She has extensive experience in governance, mergers and acquisitions, taxation and financial performance of large corporate enterprises, as well as actively investing in small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Her background is in finance and business management having been a Partner with Deloitte and Group Finance Director at Lion Nathan. Justine is currently Chair of both Spark New Zealand and The Breast Cancer Foundation, New Zealand as well as a former director of Auckland International Airport Limited. In 2020 Justine was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to women and governance. Justine has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Auckland and is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants of Australia and New Zealand and a Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Directors.

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Heath Kerr

Non – Executive Director

Heath has more than 25 years’ experience in corporate finance, investment banking and private equity in Australia and New Zealand.  Heath is a partner at Direct Capital and a member the firm’s investment committee.  Prior to joining Direct Capital, Heath was a partner at Sydney based boutique advisory firm Greenstone Partners, and worked at Credit Suisse/First NZ Capital and PwC. Heath is a CA and holds a Bachelor of Management Studies from the University of Waikato.

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Martin Goldfinch

Non – Executive Director

Martin is Head of Private Markets at the Accident Compensation Commission (ACC) in New Zealand. He has more than 20 years of experience across a range of industries and has worked in senior executive roles for organisations including Telecom New Zealand and Lloyds Corporate Finance. Martin is currently a Director for Mondiale VGL, Youi New Zealand, Parts Trader Markets. He had held previous Directorships at Syft Technologies, Augusta Capital and Cavalier Wool Holdings Limited. Martin holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Laws from The University of Auckland.

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Ross George

Non – Executive Director

Ross has been in the private equity industry since 1985. He established Direct Capital in 1994 following his return from Hong Kong where he had been a director and shareholder of the BKW Group, a Hong Kong based private equity firm. Ross has primary responsibility for developing and managing the firm's relationships and he currently holds directorships with Bayleys Real Estate, Qestral Corporation, Beca as well as Mondiale VGL.

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Vittorio Tarchi

Executive Director / Chief Executive Officer – Europe/USA

Vittorio has more than 40 years’ experience in freight forwarding and is accountable for driving revenue growth and directing commercial activity for Mondiale VGL across the European region. Vittorio founded Visa Global Logistics in 1982 in Australia before moving to Italy to extend European office locations for Mondiale VGL, where he currently holds the position of Executive Director.

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John Sargent

Executive Director / Chief Commercial Officer – NZ

John is an experienced freight forwarder and business leader with a career spanning more than 40 years in supply chain optimisation across the globe. John commenced his career with Columbus Line and throughout his career has held various roles in shipping, logistics, sales and freight forwarding in both New Zealand and the United Kingdom. He is a founding Director of Mondiale Freight Services and holds the position of Chief Commercial Officer for Mondiale VGL in New Zealand. In his current role, John provides strategic leadership, manages day-to-day operations with a key focus on growth and profitability opportunities mentoring a large group of executives.

Leadership
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Ray Meade

Group Chief Executive Officer

An industry veteran with more than 30 years’ sector experience, Ray has a deep network of global customer, carrier and supplier relationships. Ray joined the business in 2009 and became Group Chief Executive Officer of Mondiale VGL following the merger in 2021. Prior to this, he held leadership roles at Mondiale Freight Services in both New Zealand and Australia. Ray began his career working in military logistics for the New Zealand Army, before gaining experience at leading supply chain management and logistics companies DB Schenker, Emery Worldwide and Bolloré Logistics.

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Scott Martin

Group Chief Financial Officer

Appointed in March 2022, Scott brings deep experience in the shipping industry to his role of CFO at Mondiale VGL, having spent eight years as Chief Financial Officer at Maersk Line New Zealand and Oceania. More recently, Scott held management and senior leadership roles at Fletcher Building, one of the largest listed companies in New Zealand. Scott holds a Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Arts and Diploma in Commerce from the University of Auckland, as well as a Master of Accounting with Distinction from the University of Dundee. He is an associate member of the Institute of Directors New Zealand and a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand.

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Brodie Collins

Group Chief Strategy Officer

Brodie has over 24 years’ experience in the shipping & logistics industry across both Australia and New Zealand, including 10 years’ experience managing mergers and acquisitions. She is a driven and experienced executive manager with superior skills in strategic client solutions, P&L management, ocean freight procurement & employee engagement. Brodie has held Senior Management roles in multinational companies including Panalpina and NYK/Yusen Logistics. Brodie joined Mondiale Freight Services in May 2018 and held the position of General Manager - Freight Forwarding Australia before being appointed Group Chief Strategy Officer for Mondiale VGL in May 2023, following the successful management of the merger of Mondiale and Visa Global Logistics, two years prior.

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Allister Lowe

Group Chief Information Officer

Allister started his career in the United Kingdom at American Express and spent 14 years in business and information technology management positions within the card, merchant services and banking divisions. In 1998 he moved to New Zealand and has more than 24 years’ experience working in the freight & logistics industry, having held senior IT group management positions at New Zealand Post, Toll & Linfox. Allister has directed, managed and delivered enterprise-wide application and infrastructure replacements, ICT / business transformations, new company acquisitions / mergers, EDI, and technology integrations to deliver strategic capability and positive business outcomes. Allister excels in a fast-paced senior leadership role enhancing a company’s ability to support a diverse portfolio of information technology systems.

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Natasha Dunbier

Group Chief People Officer

Natasha joined Mondiale VGL in November 2022 in the role of Chief People Officer. She brings proven experience in partnering with C-Suite leaders to facilitate and embed people strategies, having held senior human resource management roles at Coca Cola Europacific Partners and Fonterra. Natasha previously worked with Fletcher Building across several divisions holding General Management roles in People and Performance, talent management and strategic planning. Natasha holds a Bachelor of Business, Management and Human Resources from Manukau Institute of Technology in Auckland, New Zealand.

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George Schirato

Chief Commercial Officer - Australia

George has more than 40 years’ experience in freight forwarding and is accountable for driving revenue growth and owning the go-to-market efforts for Mondiale VGL in Australia. He commenced his career with Burns Philp Australia in the International Shipping Trade then moved into Freight Forwarding and was subsequently appointed as a Director of IFC Global Logistics. George joined Visa Global Logistics in 1998 and following a period of rapid growth, merged the business with Mondiale Freight, forming the now established entity of Mondiale VGL. In his current role as Chief Commercial Officer – Australia, George provides strategic leadership, manages day-to-day operations with a key focus on growth and profitability opportunities mentoring a large group of executives.

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Andrea Gandolfo

Chief Commercial Officer – Europe/USA

Andrea has more than 24 years experience in the logistics sector with senior management expertise and experience in both strategic business development including mergers and acquisitions and global procurement. Andrea began his career in logistics at JAS WorldWide and subsequently held business development and Trade lane roles at DB Schenker, before his senior management positions in Australia with Mondiale VGL. He was appointed Chief Commercial Officer Europe in 2018 and Chief Commercial Officer Europe and USA in 2020.

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Gerard Morrison

Chief Operating Officer – NZ /China

Gerard joined Mondiale VGL in 2021 as the Chief Operating Officer with responsibility for the group’s activities in New Zealand and China. Gerard has over 25 years’ experience in the shipping and logistics industry and prior to joining Mondiale VGL, spent 16 years working for AP Moller Maersk where he held several senior positions including 4 years as the Managing Director of Maersk in Oceania (Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands). Gerard was also the Chief Executive Officer at Coda Group between 2018 and 2021. Gerard has a passion for working within the international trade environment and during his career has focused on finding innovative ways of solving business challenges, transforming organisations and assisting customers with the development of their businesses internationally.

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Chris James

Chief Operating Officer - Australia

Chris has more than 27 years’ experience in freight forwarding and customs brokerage across Australia and New Zealand. He has held various senior executive positions including Managing Director New Zealand and Australia, Bollore (formerly SDV Logistics) and Director, Australia for the former Mondiale Freight Services. Chris has proven strategic capabilities in driving business transformation in complex industries and delivering positive outcomes incorporating improved processes and technologies for industry-leading multinational freight companies. Chris commenced in the role of Chief Operating Officer for Australia in March 2021 following the merger of Mondiale and Visa Global Logistics. Chris holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Curtin University in Western Australia.

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Stefano Giardini

Chief Operating Officer - Europe

Stefano has more than 30 years experience in the logistics sector with senior management expertise and experience in both airline industry cargo sales, operations, procurement and freight management. Stefano has worked with Mondiale VGL for over 8 years and was appointed to the role of Chief Operating Officer – Europe in January 2023.

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Roberto Caiulo

Global Procurement Manager

Roberto has more than 30 years experience in the logistics sector with senior management expertise and experience in procurement, sales and management. Roberto was General Manager at Visa Global Logistics Hong Kong from 2012 to 2022 responsible for the joint venture in China and for all procurement activity in Asia. He was appointed to the role of Global Procurement Manager for Mondiale VGL in September 2022. Roberto holds a Bachelor of Economics and Business from the University of Pavia and a Masters of Business Administration from CIS – School of Management Unindustria Reggio Emilia.

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Justin Bentley

Director - South East Asia

Justin joined Mondiale VGL in February 2024 in the role of Director, South East Asia and is based in our Singapore office. Justin is an accomplished leader with over 17 years of domestic and international experience in leading strategy, operations, and people and joins us from EV Cargo where he held the role of Regional Vice President, Southeast Asia. Prior to this he held a number of senior roles with Toll Group in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. Justin holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Flinders University in Australia.