Recognising excellence in security. We celebrate the winners and finalists of the inaugural Women in Security Awards Aotearoa!
Established to recognise women who have advanced the New Zealand security industry, the Women in Security Awards Aotearoa initiative attracted an impressive 37 nominations across seven categories following a fleeting 10-day nomination period.
Supported by the Women in Security & Resilience Alliance (WISECRA), Defsec Media, ASIS New Zealand, and the New Zealand Security Association (NZSA), the awards were launched on November 10.
Following consideration by an international judging panel, the following outstanding women in security were identified as the category winners:
- Educator: Ngaire Kelaher of RISQ New Zealand
- Consultant: Sai Honig of ANZ
- Indigenous Awareness: Tash Bettridge of Vodafone
- Executive: Natasha Hallet of Maritime NZ
- Rising Star: Ankita Dhakar of Security Lit
- Thought Leader: Kendra Ross of Duo
- Engineering: Grace Lee of Cyber Research
Also identified by the judging panel were a select group of Finalists consisting of the following exceptional nominees:
- Jill Priest of FIRST Security
- Melonie Cole of Mind Shift
- Michelle Welten of Global Security
- Georgia Kitt-Lobo of SecOps
- Toni James of SafeStack
- Rosario Soria of IAG
- Maniaiwaho (Sarah) Philips of SSS
- Jazz Kaur of Global Security
- Marie Ahokava of Global Security
- Carla Edgar of Alpha Security Services
- Angela Beaumont of Seacom Guardall NZ
- Janine Anderson of VR Security
- Sam Wheatley of Advanced Security
- Suliana Jacobsen of Auckland War Memorial Museum
- Helen Alai-Stowers of Platform 4 Group
- Erina Edmonds of Seacom Guardall NZ
- Yvonne Bruce of FIRST Security
Comprising the international judging panel were Dr Carrine Teoh Chooi Shi, CISSP, CBCP, Chief Strategy Officer at Westplan Resources Sdn Bhd; Sir Kenneth McKenzie, Head of Security, Health & Safety at Auckland War Memorial Museum; Bonnie Butlin, co-founder and Executive Director of the Security Partners’ Forum; Nicholas Dynon, Chief Editor at Defsec Media; and Jennie Vickers, CEO of the New Zealand Defence Industry Association.
Profiles of each of the winners will be released over coming days.
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