The People Taking the Stage

As Head of Marketing at New Zealand’s largest arena spectacle, Ange Monaghan is responsible for attracting the world’s best wearable art designers and more than 60,000 fans to the WOW Competition and WOW Show every year.

In a challenging and competitive climate, she and her team have delivered a hat-trick of record-breaking box office and economic impact results, powered by customer-first thinking, commercial nous, and digital smarts.

Part strategist, part storyteller and part growth marketer, Ange is passionate about the power of content and data, and the art of balancing insight with instinct.

Rae Baker is the General Director of the New Zealand Comedy Trust and the founder of Rebel Female, a consultancy helping organisations create more impactful events, stronger partnerships, and sustainable event strategies. With more than 20 years' experience delivering festivals, events, and destination programmes across New Zealand and Scotland, Rae is passionate about the power of events to connect communities, drive economic impact, and create meaningful experiences. She is known for bringing practical insight, creative thinking, and a fresh perspective to the future of the events industry.

David Dome is the General Manager of Wellington Phoenix FC, having led the club since 2011 after initially joining as Marketing Manager. He has overseen the growth of the Phoenix from a single mens professional team into a broader football organisation with men’s, women’s and eight team youth academy programmes, while driving a strong focus on youth development, community engagement through the club’s award winning Football For All community programme which enables refugee and low socio-economic groups access to football. Dome is also closely involved in football education initiatives, including the development and directorship of the New Zealand Performance Academy Aotearoa, New Zealand’s first sports oriented charter school.

Greg Peters is experienced as a successful sports administrator with a career spanning nearly 30 years, including five years as the Sydney-based CEO of SANZAAR; two years with the Argentinean Rugby Union in the General Manager role; four years as CEO of the Hurricanes and Wellington Rugby; and eight years working for the New Zealand Rugby Union in various roles from grassroots to the professional game; and his first role in sport as CEO of Bay of Plenty Rugby.

Until recently Greg held the CEO role at New Zealand Rugby League for eight years and during this time he oversaw significant growth in revenue and the financial position stabilised, after some rocky years prior to 2018. The game has also almost doubled in participation numbers, and the international game is now a regular highlight of the season.

He has wide commercial and sports business experience, including leading the global sales and negotiation process for some of the southern hemisphere's largest media rights deals.

He has also been involved in leading some of the biggest events in Aotearoa including the Wellington Sevens, All Black and Kiwis/Kiwi Ferns test matches and with a personal highlight of the Kiwis v Tonga at Eden Park last year.

Greg has an in-depth knowledge of high performance environments and the leadership and culture traits that are required to for high performing sports and business organisations to thrive.

In his time at NZRL Greg was inspired by something deeper than the game of Rugby League itself, the people, the community, and the sense of whānau that surrounds the Sport. For him it’s about the generations of families who make the game what it is. That sense of belonging is something incredibly powerful and transcends the sport into everyday life - More than a Game®.

Nick Sautner is the Chief Executive of Eden Park. A respected leader in the global stadium and events industry, Nick was recognised as Executive of the Year and Supreme Venue Person of the Year at the EVANZ Awards 2019 and also received Executive of the Year at TheStadiumBusiness Summit 2019. He is a Certified Venue Executive (IAVM), a designation held by only a select group of venue professionals worldwide.

With over 20 years’ experience across venues such as Colonial Stadium, Etihad Stadium, Domain Stadium and the West Australian Football Commission, Nick brings deep expertise in stadium economics, fan engagement, and commercial innovation. His leadership has transformed Eden Park into a world-class, multi-purpose venue known for its community focus and pioneering approach to non-traditional event formats.

Nick holds an MBA, along with Bachelor degrees in Business and Arts, and has studied internationally in China, Germany and the USA. A former elite athlete, he played 260 VFL games, kicked 883 goals, and holds the record as the league’s leading goal scorer. He also serves on the boards of the Auckland Children’s Christmas Parade Trust, the Akarana Marine Sports Charitable Trust, and the British New Zealand Business Association.

Deborah Jones is the Major Events Manager at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), leading the team that advises the Government about investing in major events, and partners with the events sector to attract events, boost sector capability, and leverage event benefits for New Zealand. Deb brings extensive experience across government and large-scale event delivery, with a proven track record in leading complex, high-profile programmes. Her career also includes senior leadership roles across the Rugby World Cup and Cricket World Cup programmes, demonstrating her expertise in delivering major international events that drive economic and cultural impact.