Bay of Connections Operational Team

Dean Howie
Programme Manager - Regional Economic Development

Dean leads the regional economic development programme for Bay of Connections to support the sustainable growth of the wider Bay of Plenty region. He works with central government, local authorities, economic development agencies, iwi and industry to identify and advance future opportunities for the region.

Dean is an experienced stakeholder engagement practitioner with a background in tertiary education and the advertising industry. A self-described ‘generalist’, Dean’s skills in relationship building, communication and systems thinking are valuable in his Bay of Connections role.

Jacky James
Communications – Bay of Connections

Jacky is a senior communication consultant who has worked for many of New Zealand’s top companies and organisations. This experience includes government agencies, as well as private and publicly listed organisations.

Jacky has extensive experience in strategic planning, community engagement, internal communication, media liaison and issues management, as well as events management.

Jacqui Rolleston-Steed
Analyst, Data and Insights

Jacqui has a wealth of experience within local government. Her strengths are project and event management, which is where she will help guide our data project for the region.

Jacqui’s role is to explore key common datasets that are critical to support future decision-making, while also enabling us all to better tell the story of sustainable regional development.