Hobson Leavy Recruits Chief Revenue Officer for Serko Limited
October 12, 2023 – Auckland, New Zealand-based executive search firm Hobson Leavy has assisted in the recruitment of Liz Fraser as the new chief revenue officer of Serko Limited. “Liz has extensive experience driving revenue growth across both the travel and media sectors in senior leadership roles at TVNZ, Air New Zealand and most recently as commercial director at MediaWorks,” said Darrin Grafton, CEO. “We are thrilled to welcome someone of Liz’s caliber and experience to the executive team at Serko.”
“Liz Fraser is an impressive individual, offering extensive experience in driving revenue growth at a senior executive level, particularly in both the travel and media sectors,” Hobson Leavy said. “Revenue generation and a growth mandate have been at the heart of most of Liz’s roles to date. She has driven growth through existing business, as well as new revenue streams, through product development and customer segmentation strategies and developing strong relationships with customers and partners.”
“Liz is skilled in financial management and has managed revenue and operational budgets in both large and small organizations,” the search firm said. “Lastly, Liz is a strong and inspirational leader. She is strategic in her thinking with a strong desire to achieve results and thrives on complexity and challenge.”
“Embarking on this new journey with Serko, I am looking forward to stepping back into the world of travel and exploring the limitless horizons of innovation in this space,” said Ms. Fraser. “I’m excited to be joining a team that is truly passionate and dedicated to creating products and providing services that make a difference in the world of business travel.”
Serko is an integrated online travel and expense management technology provider. Headquartered in New Zealand, with offices in Australia, United States, China and India, Serko’s technology is used by hundreds of thousands of organizations in more than 180 countries and employs over 360 people worldwide.
Hobson Leavy, founded in 2006 by Carrie Hobson and Stephen Leavy, focuses on CEO and executive-level and non-executive director appointments across all sectors in New Zealand. The firm has completed searches in sectors ranging from agriculture to wealth management. It has offices in Auckland and Wellington.
Related: Hobson Leavy Recruits Chief People and Culture Officer for Beca Group
Ms. Hobson has over 25 years of corporate experience, initially in banking and finance and later in executive search. She has held senior positions in corporate banking with major banks in both New Zealand and the U.S. and has worked with top-level executives optimizing financial performance and implementing company strategy. She has held directorships in both the private and public sectors, with particular expertise in finance, health and human resources. Prior to Hobson Leavy, Ms. Hobson was a partner with another New Zealand executive search firm.
Mr. Leavy has extensive international experience in senior-level executive recruitment. He began his career as a solicitor with New Zealand law firm Russell McVeagh. He then moved to London where he joined professional services recruitment firm Quarry Dougall, becoming an associate director. He remained with the firm after its acquisition by Nasdaq-listed TMP Worldwide. Mr. Leavy later returned to New Zealand and was a partner with another leading New Zealand executive search firm before co-founding Hobson Leavy.
Recently Acquired
Earlier this year, recruitment company Accordant Group Limited acquired Hobson Leavy. “We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of another well-respected and market leading brand into the Accordant Group,” said Jason Cherrington, CEO of Accordant Group. “Hobson Leavy’s commitment to quality work and excellent outcomes is well regarded across the business community and aligns strongly with our existing culture and ethos. We look forward to working with founders Carrie Hobson, Stephen Leavy, and the team over the coming months as we bring added capability in executive search to Accordant clients, whilst introducing our wider group expertise and capacity to the Hobson Leavy team.”
“We now have the backing of a listed company, but what’s more pleasing is that we are part of a group whose entire focus is on solutions for the unique needs of New Zealand’s labor market,” said Ms. Hobson.
Related: Hobson Leavy Recruits CEO for Financial Markets Authority
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; and Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
