Summerset has an experienced Board with a diverse range of skills and experience.  The Board is responsible for supervising and directing the management of the company, guiding the strategic direction of Summerset and ensuring strong corporate governance.

ON THIS PAGE

Mark VerbiestDr Marie Bismark - Stephen BullVenasio-Lorenzo CrawleyFiona Oliver - Gráinne Troute - Dr Andrew Wong - Andrea Scown

Mark Verbiest

Chair, Independent | LLB CFInstD

Mark is Chair of the Board.

Mark is an experienced professional company director with over a decade of experience. A lawyer by training, he spent many years in private practice as partner of a large national law firm. He subsequently joined the senior executive team at Telecom New Zealand as Group General Counsel, also having executive responsibility for other corporate groups as well as two business units.

He is also currently the Chair of listed company Meridian Energy.

Mark has previously been Chair of Freightways, Spark, Transpower NZ, Willis Bond Capital and a director of a number of other companies and entities, including ANZ Bank, the inaugural board of the Financial Markets Authority and the advisory board to NZ Treasury.

In 2022 Mark was named Chairperson of the Year at the Deloitte Top 200 Awards, and in 2023 was awarded the Beacon Award for Corporate Governance by the NZ Shareholders Association.

Mark has been Chair of Summerset since July 2021.

Dr Marie Bismark

Independent | MBChB, LLB, MBHL, MPH, MD, MPsych, FAICD, FAFPHM

Marie is Chair of Summerset’s Clinical Governance Committee. She holds degrees in law, medicine, bioethics and public health, and has completed a Harkness Fellowship in Healthcare Policy at Harvard University. 

Marie works as a Consultant Psychiatrist at Te Whatu Ora, Capital & Coast, and as a Professor at Melbourne University. Her research focuses on patients' rights, quality of care, and medical regulation.

Marie is an experienced company director, serving on the boards of GMHBA Health Insurance, The Royal Women's Hospital in Melbourne, and on the Veterans' Health Advisory Panel. 

Marie has been a director of Summerset since 2013.

Stephen Bull

Independent | BCom, BPsych (Hons), CA (Australia and NZ), MAICD, MInstD

Stephen is the Chair of Summerset's Development and Construction Committee and a member of the Audit and Risk Committee. He has over 25 years’ experience in real estate, community creation and finance roles. He has held executive roles at Westfield, AMP and Stockland.

Stephen finished executive work in 2018 and for the last five years of his executive career was a Group Executive at Stockland and CEO of their retirement village business. Prior to his real estate career in Australia, Stephen spent several years working in investment banking in London.

Stephen holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) and is a member of Chartered Accountants (Australia and New Zealand). In addition, he is a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (MAICD), and the NZ Institute of Directors (MInstD).

He is currently Chair of Bridge Housing Ltd and sits on the investment committees for the MaxCap Industrial Opportunities Fund and the NSW Government Transport Asset Holding Entity.

Stephen has been a director of Summerset since 2022.

Venasio-Lorenzo Crawley

Independent | MBA, BA

Venasio-Lorenzo is a member of all the Summerset sub-committees. He has career experience in multiple sectors that include banking & financial services, oil & energy, health, education and retail.  

He is an independent director at Orion NZ, Te Whatu Ora (People and Change sub-committee), and Chair of the AUT Business School Industry Advisory Board. He also completed a term as a Future Director for The Warehouse Group. 

Venasio-Lorenzo completed his executive career as the Chief Customer Officer at Contact Energy with the successful turnaround of their Retail, LPG, Broadband, and Commercial and Industrial businesses.

He has international experience working in the United Kingdom, Australia and NZ markets and has diverse skills in profit growth strategy, transformation, technology, digital, data monetisation, operations, logistics, marketing and his passion - customer experience. 

Venasio-Lorenzo has been a director of Summerset since 2020. 

Fiona Oliver

Independent | LLB, BA, CFInstD

Fiona is the Chair of Summerset’s Audit and Risk Committee. Fiona is an experienced professional director with a governance career spanning a variety of sectors, including renewable energy, natural gas, technology, commercial property, financial services, professional services, and sport. These roles ranging from Board Member to Audit & Risk Committee Chair, have been in commercial, public sector and not-for-profit entities including Freightways (NZX), Clarus (formerly First Gas group), Gentrack (NZX/ASX), and Tilt Renewables (NZX/ASX).

Fiona has held Executive leadership roles in funds management for Westpac (BT Funds Management) and AMP in New Zealand. She has also held commercial roles in asset management and private equity in Sydney and London. Prior to her management career, Fiona practised as a senior corporate and commercial lawyer in New Zealand and overseas, specialising in mergers and acquisitions.

Fiona has been a director of Summerset since 2023.

Gráinne Troute

Independent | BA, GradDipBusStuds, CMinstD, CFInstD

Gráinne is Chair of Summerset’s People and Culture Committee. She is a Chartered Fellow of the Institute of Directors, a director of Tourism Holdings and Investore Property, a board member of Duncan Cotterill and Chair of Montana Group. 

Gráinne is a professional director with many years’ experience in senior executive roles. She was General Manager, Corporate Services at SKYCITY Entertainment Group and Managing Director of McDonald’s Restaurants (NZ). She also held senior management roles with Coopers and Lybrand (now PwC) and HR Consultancy Right Management.

Gráinne has vast expertise in operating customer-focused businesses in highly competitive sectors. She has also spent many years as a trustee and Chair in the not-for-profit sector, including having been the Chair of Tourism Industry Aotearoa (TIA) and Chair of Ronald McDonald House Charities New Zealand. 

Gráinne has been a director of Summerset since 2016.

Dr Andrew Wong

Independent | BHB, MBChB, MPH

Dr Andrew Wong is the Managing Director of HealthCare Holdings Ltd, a private healthcare investment company.  He qualified as a specialist medical practitioner with a Masters in Public Health, and with a Fellowship of the New Zealand College of Public Health Medicine. 

He has extensive experience in strategic planning and implementation, business development, leadership and operational management.  This has been gained over a 30 year career in public and private health both in New Zealand and overseas.

He is a director of a number of companies through his HealthCare Holdings role.  These include Auckland Radiation Oncology, MercyAscot hospitals, Kensington Hospital and Mercy Radiology.  Other present and past directorships include companies providing services in the areas of interventional cardiology, healthcare property development, medical supplies, day and inpatient surgery and endoscopy, and veterinary medicine.  He has held government appointments with Health Workforce New Zealand and the Health Innovation Hub, as well as sitting on the Executive of the New Zealand Private Hospitals Association.  Andrew is an Adjunct Professor of AUT.

Andrew has been a director of Summerset since 2017.

Andrea Scown

Future Director (IoD) | BBUS, ACA, MInstD

Andrea is a future director under the Institute of Directors’ (IoD) Future Directors programme which aims to develop New Zealand’s next generation of directors and provide experience of governance in large companies around the country. Future Directors fully participate in all Board matters but do not have voting or decision rights.

Andrea is CEO of Mitre 10, an enormously successful retail company with renowned customer experience, and has expertise leading significant business units within complex organisations for some of NZ and Australia’s most iconic brands in sectors including Home Improvement, Apparel, General Merchandise, Property, Investment and Dairy.

Andrea has been a Future Director with Summerset since 2022 and has been appointed for a term of 18 months.