Three new members have been appointed to the Board of ALGIM, the Association of Local Government Information Management following the retirement of Jim Higgins and Mike Wanden, and resignation of Valerie Davis who has left local government.
“I am thrilled to welcome three outstanding new members to the ALGIM Board. They will bring valuable perspective, energy and experience to help us deliver on our vision for a digitally transformed local government sector” says ALGIM President Billy Michels.
Dr Kimberley Tuapawa is a distinguished academic with over 13 years in higher education and six years’ leadership and corporate experience in local government. Her research has focused on understanding human experiences using technology in tertiary environments. In 2018 she returned to her hometown to take up the role of Group Manager Information and Customer Experience at Wairoa District Council.
Kimberley leads the delivery of customer experiences across the areas of information services, cybersecurity, GIS and mapping, customer services, after hours, long-term and annual planning and engagement, the public library, digital hub, archives, records, and administration. Through ALGIM she wants to contribute her energy and expertise to develop insights and build intelligence around best practice for customer experiences for all local authorities.
Mark Denvir is Director ICT, Auckland Council, Patron of Taitamariki Potentia and 2020 IDC Dx Leader of the Year - Australia and New Zealand. He brings 20 + years' experience leading significant ICT environments in the private and public sectors. He is passionate about the impact ICT can make on how local government operates and believes the sector can be seen as one that leads New Zealand’s digital uptake.
With clear signals about future local government reform, Mark wants the ALGIM Board to take the opportunity to help signal how the sector can deliver better outcomes for our communities, leveraging our combined scale and expertise.
Duncan Blair is the Business Analyst Lead at Invercargill City Council. He has worked with four New Zealand councils in various leadership roles involving technology. His technical expertise with systems infrastructure and cybersecurity has helped him advocate with his councils for innovative solutions that benefit the community.
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He is keen to help the lower South Island Councils benefit from inter-regional collaboration and participation. In particular, he wants to help smaller councils understand the potential of incremental changes by focusing on human-centric design, process improvements, and affordable technology solutions. Duncan is a strong advocate for ethical digital practices that focus on inclusion, environmental sustainability, equity and the protection of individual privacy.
Retiring Board Member and Founder of ALGIM
Retiring after 46 years ALGIM President Billy Michels acknowledged the huge contribution Jim Higgins made to the organisation he founded in 1975. ALGIM was initially known as the Information Technology Management Group (ITMG), which was part of the New Zealand Local Government Association (NZLGA). In 1995 ITMG became independent of the NZLGA. As a result, the Association of Local Government Information Management (ALGIM) was officially established on July 1, 1996.
"It feels like the end of an era with Jim, the ‘father of ALGIM’ stepping down. His insight and understanding have been invaluable to us all over the many, many years and he will be greatly missed,” said Billy Michels.
Jim received the New Zealand Computer Society (now IT Professionals NZ) Award for the Greatest Contribution to NZ Public Sector Computing in the 20th Century. He has, over the years, served on many mainly IT-oriented companies and other organisations. Jim is a Fellow of the NZ Computer Society and of InternetNZ. Although retired from the ALGIM Board, he is still a life member and will be attending his 50th ALGIM conference in November.
