Senior Leadership Team

Todd is a seasoned and experienced change leader. Along with his wealth of executive management skills, he brings an innate passion for building strong culture, an excellent track record in organisational transformation, and a commitment to understanding and leading teams towards a brighter future.

Todd has broad cross-industry experience in Energy, Technology, Telecommunications, Finance – as well as with New Zealand’s largest occupational health, personal welfare and physiotherapy rehabilitation provider: Habit Health – which includes the EAP service. During his career, he has honed his skills in transformational growth, strategy, operations and leadership. His enthusiasm is infectious and he has a true knack of bringing people with him on a journey.

With a genuine dedication to SPCA’s cause, and keenness regarding the world of animal welfare, Todd aims to harness the collective wisdom, passion, and expertise of our SPCA team members.

Arnja Dale has over 20 years working in the field of animal welfare science in New Zealand and overseas. Prior to joining SPCA, Arnja was a Senior Lecturer in Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law, headed numerous research projects, and also led the animal welfare investigations training programme at Unitec.

Arnja is passionate about animal welfare science and changing the hearts and minds of the next generation through evidence-based education initiatives.

Her house is filled with three cats (Tortoiseshell Lucy, Tabby Smallie and Bengal Leopard) plus Louie, a Chinese Hairless Crested dog who she adopted from the Auckland pound.

Jason is a finance and business leader with 20 plus years finance and operational experience, across a number of industries, including 16 years as CFO/CIO of premium department store Smith and Caughey’s, Property and Investment Business that is 48% owned by a charitable trust.

Jason is a qualified Chartered Accountant and member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors. He lives in Devonport Auckland with his wife, two children, Archie the dog and Weazal a ginger cat who rules the house (and the dog!).

Jason is passionate about using his finance and operational experience to help SPCA to grow and thrive. Over the years, he has had a number of wonderful animals from the SPCA who have all been amazing characters.

Cathy joined the SPCA team in 2020 as we embarked on a journey to optimise the contribution from Op Shops to deliver a sustainable income flow. She is passionate about retail development and bringing an entrepreneurial approach to realising our potential through retail and new business opportunities.

Cathy's background is in multi-channel retail general management. She has worked for New Zealand, Australasian and global retail chains, from boutique to large format companies. Cathy brings experience across sales, marketing, property and HR.

Cathy's love for animals comes from a childhood of growing up with pet cats.

Cathy is passionate about customer service and building sustainable revenue streams to support animal welfare throughout New Zealand.

Julia is an experienced leader across marketing, communications, partnerships, events and fundraising, with a strong focus on delivering work that makes a real difference.

She brings a donor and partner mindset to everything SPCA does, always viewing the organisation through the eyes of the people who support it — and the animals who depend on it.

Energised by innovation and collaboration, Julia works at the intersection of the private, public and non‑profit sectors, helping teams navigate complexity and work together to achieve positive outcomes for animals.

Liz is an accomplished and highly skilled Human Resources professional with 20 years of experience in the development and implementation of HR management, strategy and initiatives, in both global and local organisations in New Zealand and Australia.

Liz has worked in many industries including Manufacturing, Government, Medical Research and Retail. She is extremely passionate about ‘for purpose’ organisations, and this is her second NFP role after working in Australia for the Children’s Cancer Institute. She has extensive experience in engagement, culture change, reward, performance development, employee relations, diversity and inclusion, and health, safety and wellbeing.

Liz’s passion for animals saw her volunteering part time in our Māngere Centre for two years prior to joining the Senior Leadership team at SPCA. She is committed to leading with purpose to create a culture of trust and respect for all the SPCA team.

Leslie has a wealth of experience in organisational change and operational performance. She has worked across multi-site environments, built high performing teams, and helped organisations turn strategy into practical, measurable results.

Her background spans retail, FMCG and manufacturing, financial services, and professional services. She brings a balanced approach to performance, risk, and people impacts.

Leslie grew up on a lifestyle block where her love for animals began, and has since welcomed a number of rescue dogs and cats into her family. They now have two rescue cats, Luna (pictured) and Romeo, and regularly foster puppies.

Matt brings over 20 years of experience leading transformation work including senior roles at Mighty Ape and Lotto New Zealand. He’s been involved in programme and portfolio governance, strategic planning, and a whole range of organisation-wide improvement projects. He’s also led teams across IT, customer service, business intelligence and commercial areas.

Matt lives with his partner, their twin girls and Cosmo the Cavoodle. He loves spending time outdoors trail running, hiking and mountain biking. Matt is purpose driven and really wanted to join our SPCA family so he could make a real difference for animals that need extra care.

Matt is focused on making sure we have the right tools and processes in place to deliver the best possible outcomes for the sick, injured and vulnerable animals who come through our doors.