Ahmad Jubbawey - Chief Executive Officer 

In 2005 Ahmad founded Vensa which previously traded as AY Technologies as a Mobile Marketing company, and shortly afterwords the company became involved in health sector offering health provider mobile messaging communications with their patients for applications such as appointment reminders, test results alerts.

Ahmad did not learn about business through reading conventional business books, but by following his instincts and having an eye for what customers and consumers want. Through the years, Ahmad was able to manage cash-flows, raise capital, acquire grants and surround him self with good advisors and staff who are proud of the impact Vensa is making.

Ahmad aspires to creating a global brand which represents allowing people to achieve what they want to achieve in their day-to-day life. Vensa Group will expand its offerings in multiple industries offering various solutions and services through its subsidiary companies with the years to come.

Ahmad is spending a lot of time in Dubai (UAE) and Asia now as he has been invited to speak at the first global Mobile Health conference in September 2010 and he is currently looking at launching Vensa Health UAE to take the business internationally.

Roger Hatrick-Smith - Chief Financial Officer 

Roger has a deep understanding of the issues and challenges facing businesses wanting to grow both in New Zealand and offshore. He has advised many businesses through various stages of growth offering insights and knowledge acquired through many years of working closely with entrepreneurs and their businesses.

Roger’s career has included senior line accounting positions in distribution, hotels and process manufacturing industries followed by a number of years in consulting roles. Roger assisted small to very large organisations undertake strategic reassessments of their business objectives in light of changing market circumstance - often supported with the implementation of organisational and information systems change projects in support of those objectives.

His consulting experience spanned all major business process activity areas including operations and supply chain, management and support processes More recently Roger has provided strategic, business and financial advice to high growth New Zealand businesses as leader of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneurial and Growth Markets Group and its Transaction Advisory service line in New Zealand. Roger currently handles the CFO functions for Vensa Health.

Dr Helen Cross - Strategic Advisor

Helen is Managing Director of Cross Ventures Limited, a business focused on helping New Zealand technology companies expand internationally, which she founded with her husband Greg Cross eight years ago. 

She specializes in providing a strategic framework which enables some of New Zealand’s fastest growing export companies to step up to the next level of market and financial performance. 

Formerly a Business Analyst and Mergers and Acquisitions manager at Advantage Group Ltd (now called Provenco) and a Business Strategy Analyst for Cullen Investments.

Helen has a PhD and First Class Honours degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from University of Auckland. Her PhD topic was in Digital Mobile Communications. During her studies she won the Telecom Fellowship Award. Telecom also provided Research Grants to the University for her PhD. She has published eight papers including two International publications and has been a part-time lecturer.

Helen has worked with some of New Zealand’s leading start-up and high growth companies and has helped her clients raise Angel, Venture Capital and Government funding.

Denis Snelgar - Strategic Advisor

Denis has worked in the New Zealand health sector for over 20 years and for ten years as a high performance consultant.  

He helped formulate and implement new health care systems for New Zealand.  He then had 12 years in health management, including five years as Chief Executive of one of the largest health care entities, Waitemata Health in Auckland, New Zealand, employing over 5000 staff in community, mental health and hospital services.

In the last decade Denis worked in Asia Pacific as an international management consultant with Fortune 500 corporations on achieving extraordinary performance. Upon returning to NZ he has worked as a consultant to many organisations including start ups bringing contemporary thinking and practices to the assignments. Considerable focus is given to the use of Alliancing/partnering strategies combined with building Leadership Teams that deliver sustainable results. 

The last five years has seen Denis be a mentor and judge to the University of Auckland’s MBA programme and their entrepreneurial initiative Spark, mentoring the winning team in 2009 and 2010 in the $100k challenge. His involvement with SMEs is extensive and has advised and mentored 2 companies that have featured in the Deloittes Fast 40 with annual growth in excess of 200% while entering major global markets. His governance roles are extensive from being a Chair and Director. More informally he has chaired a number of start up and SME Advisory Boards and been a seconded Director to companies to assist them to grow.

Denis has published articles on health management, health planning and epidemiology in health and medical journals. He has a degree in economics and a post-graduate health care qualification.