2014

Dr Catherine Mohr is Vice President of Medical Research at Intuitive Surgical, a high technology Silicon Valley based company that makes the da Vinci surgical robot – the next frontier for minimally invasive surgery. In addition, she is a Consulting Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at Stanford School of Medicine and on the medicine and robotics faculty of Singularity University.

Dr Catherine has advised several start-up companies in Silicon Valley as well as government technology development programs and start-ups in New Zealand across alternative energy transportation, computer aided design software, medical devices and more.

She is a frequent speaker on the topics of surgical robotics, innovation, and the importance of science, at national and international conferences.

She is also the author of numerous scientific publications and the recipient of multiple awards.

Watch Dr Catherine Mohr accept her award here.

Sir Neville Jordan KNZM is a highly regarded entrepreneur, investor, advisor and philanthropist. In 1975, he founded MAS Technology Ltd, a telecommunications microwave company, which today remains the only New Zealand private company to have been listed on the NASDAQ mainboard. In 1998, he founded Endeavour Capital. As a venture capital pioneer, he has invested in more than 35 start-ups and early stage companies, from research, science and technology to horticulture and large-scale real estate.

He has chaired or been a member of numerous review panels and committees for the New Zealand and Australian governments. In 1995, Sir Neville established the Jordan Foundation to provide scholarships for higher learning, particularly for the disadvantaged and to support the performing arts. In 2014, Sir Neville was elected Chancellor of Victoria University Wellington. His awards and accolades include the Governor-General͛s Supreme Award for Exporting and induction into both the NZ Hi Tech Hall of Fame and the NZ Business Hall of Fame.

In 2014, he was awarded a knighthood for services to business, science and the community.

Watch Sir Neville Jordan accept his award here.

An international leader in technology, Craig Elliott co-founded and is the CEO of Pertino Networks, a cloud networking software company based in Silicon Valley. In addition, he serves on the Board of Directors of Global Vet Link and Xero and is a Strategic Advisor at NZTE in respect to Angel, VC and PE markets, helping guide New Zealand high-growth technology companies as they enter the US. He is also a member of the American Chamber of Commerce in New Zealand.

Prior to this, Craig spent 10 years at Apple where he launched online services in 80 countries and seven different languages, serving multiple senior roles, including International General Manager of Internet and Online Services. He was also CEO of Packeteer and took the company from three people to over 200 before going public in 1999 with a market valuation of over $2 billion.

Craig has written several top-selling books in computer science, home automation and automobile racing. 

Watch Craig Elliot accept his award here.

Professor Sir Murray Brennan GNZM is a specialist surgeon who has designed and conducted numerous clinical trials, which have produced major breakthroughs in the treatment of patients with soft tissue sarcomas, endocrine tumours, and pancreatic and stomach cancers.  In particular, he has created the world’s largest database of sarcoma patients, which will help doctors better design treatments to ensure that patients at the greatest risk of recurrence can be treated more aggressively, while patients at low risk can avoid unnecessary treatment.

Sir Murray’s resume is extensive, having served as Director of the American Board of Surgery, Chairman of the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, President of the Society of Surgical Oncology, Vice President of the American College of Surgeons, and President of the American Surgical Association, the oldest and most prestigious surgical association in the United States.

In 1995, Sir Murray was honoured with membership in the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, and in 2000, he received the American College of Surgeons’ highest award, the Distinguished Service Award. In 1994, the Murray F. Brennan Chair in Surgery was endowed at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre.

Watch Prof. Sir Murray Brennan accept his award here.

A serial entrepreneur, Claudia Batten has spent over 15 years in the technology sector.

She was a founding member of Massive, a first of its kind network for advertising in video games, which was sold to Microsoft in 2006. In 2009, she co-founded Victors & Spoils, the first advertising agency built on the principles of crowdsourcing. French company Havas bought a majority interest in the agency in 2012. In 2014, Claudia co-founded Broadli to redefine how we use digital connectivity to power networking.

Claudia is a regular speaker on digital innovation, digital media and building businesses for the future. She is passionate about New Zealand claiming its place in the digital world and participates regularly across the NZ Inc ecosystem.

She is currently the NZTE Regional Director for North America, supporting the growth of Kiwi businesses into the market.

In 2013, she was awarded a Distinguished Alumni Award from Victoria University in recognition of her commitment to New Zealand and her achievements as an entrepreneur.

Watch Claudia Batten accept her award here.

Andrew Adamson MNZM soared to fame for his role in directing the Shrek and Chronicles of Narnia films – the former of which was the first film to win an Academy Award for best animated feature.

Among his numerous major international nominations and awards, Andrew also won international acclaim for his adaptation of Lloyd Jones’ Mister Pip.

Andrew is known for being one of the few special effects artists to have so successfully morphed into a movie director.

In 2006, Andrew was made a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to film.

Next, Andrew will reportedly co-write, direct and executive produce Universal’s live-action Curious George movie.

Watch Andrew Adamson accept his award here.