Dovetail Team
DR ADRIAN FIELD - DIRECTOR
Adrian Field (PhD) established Dovetail as a business platform to support positive social change in New Zealand communities. Adrian’s skill set includes programme evaluation, qualitative and quantitative research, stakeholder engagement, impact assessment and performance monitoring. These have been applied across more than 20 years of experience in the public, private, academic and NGO sectors.
Adrian’s experience has traversed such sectors as health, social services, arts, transport, sport and recreation, local government, and urban and environmental planning. His work helps individuals and organisations make decisions about funding, service development, and delivery.
Adrian is a member of the Kinnect Group of independent evaluation practitioners. Adrian is an honorary academic at the School of Population Health (University of Auckland). He is a former co-convenor of the Aotearoa New Zealand Evaluation Association (ANZEA), and also has membership in the Australian Evaluation Society, the Sustainable Business Network, and the Urban Design Forum. He has a PhD in public health, focusing on the role of urban environments in health and wellbeing.
RACHAEL BUTLER - SENIOR CONSULTANT
Rachael is a qualitative research specialist, with over 25 years’ experience as a social and academic researcher. Rachael has worked in research settings across a range of sectors, including health, arts and culture, housing, justice, community, local government, and education.
Rachael has particular expertise in research of a sensitive nature and is skilled at engaging with vulnerable and disadvantaged populations. She loves the challenge of unravelling and distilling complex information into succinct and accessible outputs for different audiences, and is passionate about the potential for research to support evidence-based decision-making.
Rachael holds a bachelor’s degree in Drama Studies and Master of Health Sciences and is a member of the Aotearoa New Zealand Evaluation Association.
EMILY GARDEN - SENIOR CONSULTANT
Emily is a social researcher with 12 years of experience in qualitative and mixed-methods research and evaluation. Her work spans diverse sectors including health, social services, philanthropy, education, sustainability, and academia. The focus of this work has included research communication, community development, food security, natural disaster preparedness, health, and housing.
Emily specialises in qualitative data collection and in-depth analysis and is adept at capturing nuanced stakeholder perspectives through clear analyses that support clients to make informed decisions. Emily has a background in communication design and before her research focus worked in the community-based mental health and tertiary education sectors. She is motivated by social and environmental justice. Emily holds a Bachelor of Design from AUT University and a Master's Degree in Sociology from Goldsmiths, University of London.
AMANDA HUNTER - SENIOR CONSULTANT
Amanda is a social researcher with experience in quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods research across sectors including health, criminal justice, education and social services. Amanda has a Masters degree in Criminology, and over the last four years she has been working with non-profit organisations to understand and build on the impact of social outcomes programmes and services. Most recently her work has focused on monitoring and evaluation frameworks that facilitate process improvement and help secure sustainable funding streams.
Amanda uses a range of evaluation tools and techniques in her research and has extensive experience working with vulnerable individuals and communities including children and whānau accessing social services, individuals with dementia, and clients seeking support for suicidal ideation. Amanda is passionate about producing research and evaluation outputs that are pragmatic and accessible, using mixed media, data visualisations and targeted report types to ensure that findings are approachable, and recommendations are practical.
DR ALICIA CROCKET - SENIOR CONSULTANT
Alicia (PhD) is an evaluation specialist with over 10 years of experience in conducting evaluations for government, non-profit, and philanthropic organisations. Her work has primarily focused on the health, community development, and social sectors. She is proficient in various types of evaluation, including developmental, formative, process, and outcome evaluation. Additionally, as a member of the Tuakana Teina Evaluation Collective, she regularly contributes to Kaupapa Māori evaluations.
Alicia possesses a comprehensive evaluation toolkit and is skilled in qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis. Her strengths lie in project management, data synthesis, and report writing. She is passionate about incorporating the voices of stakeholders in both the design of the evaluation and the evaluation outputs. Her goal for every evaluation is to provide relevant and meaningful information for decision-making while also telling the story of the programme so that those involved can see themselves reflected in the evaluation outputs.
Alicia is a member of the Aotearoa New Zealand Evaluation Association, the American Evaluation Association and the Tuakana Teina Evaluation Collective.
GEORGIA PARSLOW - CONSULTANT
Following her studies in sociology, psychology and digital media communications, Georgia brings a strong social research, visual communication and design skillset to her work. Since joining Dovetail in 2022 she has been involved in various research and evaluation projects across the arts, culture and heritage, health, education, and community sectors. Her experience as a content writer and digital marketer also brings a host of value to our business operations.
She is drawn to projects that tackle prickly social issues, including those that involve the perspectives of youth or other groups that are often excluded in research methodologies. As a youth engagement specialist, she is skilled at creating safe spaces for young people to share their experiences with programmes and interventions. Motivated by Dovetail’s public good orientation, Georgia enjoys applying her design, interviewing, reporting and analytical skills to projects that aim to address social inequalities and systems that will have enduring impact for years to come.
LEAL RODRIGUEZ - CONSULTANT
Leal (ipa: Leˈal; she/her) is a researcher with over 10 years of experience in education, development work, and gender advocacy. She began her career as a community development specialist, gaining expertise in all aspects of project management, including grant applications, project design, data collection, analysis, report writing, and program evaluations. Her people-centred approach and lived experience deeply inform her analytical methods.
Leal specialises in gender and education policy analysis and qualitative research. Her advocacy for gender justice and passion for storytelling through data inspired her to pursue a PhD at the University of Auckland. Her interest in culturally responsive evaluation processes is informed by her experiences as a tau iwi and new migrant in Aotearoa, New Zealand, as well as her PhD research on emic Filipino values and masculinity formation in Philippine universities.
Leal holds a Master’s in Women and Development from the University of the Philippines. She is also a member of the Aotearoa New Zealand Evaluation Association.
leal@dovetail.co.nz
OLIVIA GREGG - RESEARCHER
Olivia is a researcher who joined Dovetail following work in health promotion, content creation, and mental health support. Olivia holds two bachelor's degrees in psychology and criminology, and Global Studies from the University of Auckland, with an aim to pursue further study to build upon her existing qualitative and quantitative research experience.
Volunteering and working in community sectors including the arts, education, and in public health, has fostered her keen interests in social justice and community health and wellbeing, and the desire to work with vulnerable populations and the non-profit sector to improve social inequities in New Zealand. Olivia joined Dovetail so that she could use her research, design, and communication skills to support the implementation of meaningful projects that produce positive social outcomes.
ADELA WPYCH - DATA ANALYTICS
Adela Wypych is a data analytics researcher, who joined Dovetail following a career shift from physiotherapy practice.
Adela has a Graduate Diploma in Computer and Information Science from Auckland’s University of Technology, majoring in data analytics. Her interests include using her health background and analytical skills to work on projects that aim to improve health and social inequalities.
RAEWYN MCLEAN - BUSINESS MANAGER
Raewyn provides core administration and management services for Dovetail. Raewyn has worked in the healthcare sector in both Australia and New Zealand in logistics, operations, project management and customer service management. Raewyn likes to help and develop new ideas with businesses to streamline them through Business Optimisation.
Raewyn spends her down time with family, a strong network of friends along with cultivating a growing passion for gardening.
Dovetail Partners
Aneta Cram - (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Pahauwera) Kaupapa Māori evaluator with extensive experience in this space, and who brings her knowledge of Kaupapa Māori and her academic learning of evaluation practice to her work.
Dr Julian King – Public policy consultant who specialises in evaluation and value for money, helping people use evidence and values to make good decisions
Kate McKegg – International leader in developmental evaluation with a strong depth of experience in evaluation capacity building, research, teaching, training and facilitation.
Dr Hamish Mackie – Human systems researcher, leading major research initiatives in cycling and road safety, sustainable transport, physical activity, and sport and recreation sectors.
Dr Aaron Schiff – Data scientist and economist, with consulting experience that includes economic modelling, cost-benefit analysis, and evaluation projects in many different sectors in New Zealand and the Pacific.
Professor Melody Smith – Researcher in public health and physical activity, specialising in children’s social and built environments, and with specialist knowledge of the integration of objective physical activity measurement and associated tools.
Cat Ruka (Ngāpuhi, Waitaha) - A respected arts leader with over 20 years of experience working in Tāmaki Makaurau. She has developed a broad and unique skill set spanning arts governance, artistic direction of festivals celebrating the arts, venue management, arts education and mentoring. Cat has a passion for assisting arts and culture providers in their evaluation design, strategic visioning, and overall journey of meaning-making.
Kellie Spee (Ngāti Maniapoto) - An independent research and evaluation consultant working primarily in the field of health research and evaluation, with experience across government, non-government and kaupapa Māori organisations
Louise Were - (Rongowhakaata, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) Weaves together a Māori world view, with evaluation and capability development to assist organisational learning and decision-making. Louise is inspired by the transformative potential of evaluation, and the ability to give voice to whānau and organisations to share their performance story.
Dovetail partners with highly skilled people whose work supports communities and organisations across New Zealand and internationally.
We collaborate because we trust, respect and complement each other's contribution and skills.