2025 Conference Speakers

Scott Simpson is the Minister for ACC and Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. He has been the MP for Coromandel since he was elected in 2011.

Scott has extensive business and commercial experience. Prior to entering Parliament, Scott was CEO of the nationwide children's charity Make-A-Wish New Zealand. He has also previously held roles as New Zealand General Manger of several businesses.

Scott resides in Thames and his extended family have been farming in the Coromandel region for four generations. Scott has a law degree from the University of Auckland and is also a Justice of the Peace.

Dr Kirsten Wooff is a clinical psychologist who has more than ten years' experience with a large range of clients and their challenges. She is adept in managing all levels of psychological challenges, including more complex clinical presentations and circumstances, getting to understand the core issues and presenting straight forward information and strategies to ensure lasting change. She is the clinic director of well-regarded private practice Resilience Psychology in Auckland and Wellington. 

Dr Pushpa Wood is the Director - Financial Education and Research Centre at Massey University. She has a long history of adult and financial literacy advocacy. She was previously the Education Manager at the Commission for Financial Literacy and Retirement Income. She has worked across the school, tertiary, and industry sectors to improve adult literacy and financial literacy, and is a member of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority’s project advisory group reviewing financial literacy unit standards.

She is also the current Chairperson of the Adult Literacy Practitioners’ Association. Dr Wood has extensive experience in developing teaching and learning resources, training and development and stakeholder relationship. Her research interests include identifying trigger points that motivate people to change their financial behaviour and testing culturally appropriate evaluation tools.

With a background in law and alternative dispute resolution, Karen Stevens was appointed as the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman in 1998. She is a qualified arbitrator and mediator, with her most recent qualification being a Masters in law from LaTrobe University in Melbourne, majoring in conflict resolution.

Karen is a founding member and on the Executive Committee of the Australian and New Zealand Ombudsman Association (ANZOA), the professional association and peak body for Ombudsmen in Australia and New Zealand. She is a member and former Chair of the International Network of Financial Services Ombudsman Schemes (INFO Network).

Chris is Legal Counsel at the IFSO Scheme, and has worked as a case manager at the IFSO Scheme for more than 20 years. She has a Master’s degree in dispute resolution and is currently undertaking a PhD, investigating the decision-making processes of consumers experiencing vulnerability.

Katie de Roo is a PhD Candidate at the University of Otago within the Faculty of Law. Her PhD focuses on consumer protection and the design of financial dispute resolution systems. Prior to commencing her PhD, Katie worked in Australia and New Zealand as a dispute resolution practitioner for various financial Ombudsman schemes. She has also managed the internal complaints process at a New Zealand bank. Her diverse professional experience offers a unique perspective on financial dispute resolution in New Zealand.