Who we are

Our purpose

The purpose of G-REG is to improve the leadership, culture, regulatory practice, and workforce capability of government regulatory organisations.

Our role

G-REG provides a space for regulatory professionals to connect, develop a common language and practice to build a regulatory workforce with transferable skills and common credentials. G-REG has been established by government regulators, for government regulators.

G-REG improves capability and facilitates the transfer of knowledge between regulators through advisory services, professional development activities, qualification programmes and sharing of resources.

Why is this important?

Government regulatory professionals collectively design, implement, and improve the regulatory systems that keep New Zealand and its people safe, secure, and prosperous.

To do this well, regulators need to understand and carry out their roles effectively.

They also need to meet the challenges of regulating in a rapidly changing world. 

G-REG supports local and central government regulators by:

• Developing people capability
• Developing organisational capability
• Connecting and supporting a professional community of regulatory professionals

Our people

The G-REG Secretariat Team

Lisa Docherty, Director

Lisa Docherty joined G-REG in the role of Director in February 2022. This role allows her to join up two strands from her background – regulatory practice, stewardship & strategy; and leadership in professional bodies. She has previously worked with DIA (Gambling) and MBIE (building) and was the New Zealand Manager of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, and inaugural Registrar of the Institute of Directors in New Zealand.

Lisa and her team are building on the original vision for the Government Regulatory Practice Initiative, developing fit for the future programmes and resources for regulators, and ensuring that the initiative endures, and will adapt and grow to achieve its potential. She is passionate about creating space for regulatory professionals to learn from each other, and to create and disseminate knowledge, and develop a shared culture. Lisa particularly enjoys connecting people and ideas – so has nabbed the role of Secretariat lead for our Peer Advisory services.

Ian Caplin, Principal Advisor Professional Development

Ian looks after G-REG’s professional development programmes and co-convenes the Investigations Community of Practice. He tells his kids his job is “to make films on the internet that help people who work for the government to do a good job”, including G-REG’s monthly Conversation’s series.

Before G-REG, Ian was hired from London to apply his legal, broadcasting and training background to help transform the legal, technical, policy, media, and commercial capability of Inland Revenue’s debt collection arm. He also had policy, legal and management roles in that regulator’s Business Transformation project and contributed to IR’s Covid-19 response.

After law at Oxford, Ian trained as a barrister in London and worked in leading UK and US international law firms. Ian later ran and presented a professional development film channel for lawyers and taught and lectured on the College of Law’s legal practice course, while becoming one of Britain’s best known TV news commentators on the law on the BBC, CNN, SKY and ITV. He also wrote about legal issues for the Times, Financial Times, the Economist, Wall Street Journal, and many others.

Wendy Kale, Principal Advisor Qualifications

Wendy looks after G-REG’s regulatory practice qualification programmes and co-convenes the Regulatory Capability Community. She brings people together, and provides direction and support to help improve learning opportunities for the regulatory community.

Wendy has been involved with G-REG and its predecessor since 2007, when the idea of creating common qualifications for central and local government regulators was first proposed. She’s played critical roles in the initiative – applying her learning and development expertise and leading the sector’s efforts to create and improve New Zealand’s regulatory practice qualifications and associated learning programmes.

Her work at Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency in creating ‘The Regulators' Room’, a resource hub and collaborative space for regulators, won the NZATD L&D Initiative of the Year award in 2016. Wendy’s big passion is taking G-REG’s qualification programmes to the next level – and bringing people together to be part of the ongoing evolution of regulatory and learning practice - supporting regulators to do great work for the good of all.

Eva Bostock, Senior Advisor Programme Planning and Delivery

Eva is the behind-the-scenes person running our online G-REG events and supporting the delivery of the annual G-REG conference. Her role is to ensure that G-REG uses the best methods to support, educate, inform, and connect our community of regulators. And that when we are actively doing these things that they happen smoothly and are meaningful.

Eva joins the G-REG team with a background as an Executive Assistant supporting senior leaders. Having worked within government and the private sector, Eva believes that building strong relationships with clients and community’s is the most important aspect of her work.

Ditaa Chand, Programme Coordinator

Ditaa is the organisational whizz, providing administrative support across the G-Reg secretariat with a focus on ensuring efficient operating across the board.

She joins the team from Ministry of Justice where she was a part of the Legal Aid Services team with an interest in Family and Criminal jurisdictions. She is passionate about everything to do with people connections, coordination, and organisation and always happy to learn new skills.

Chair in Regulatory Practice

Professor Jeroen van der Heijden, Chair of Regulatory Practice, Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University Wellington

Dr. Jeroen van der Heijden is the inaugural Chair in Regulatory Practice and a Professor of Public Governance at the Victoria University of Wellington. He works closely with G-REG to improve regulatory practice and regulatory stewardship in New Zealand and elsewhere.

Chair in Regulatory Practice(external link) – Victoria University of Wellington