Meet the team
Education and Engagement Team
Management Team
Chief Digital Officer
Deputy Chair
Elle Archer joined the N4L board in November 2022. Mrs Archer has extensive governance and strategic foresight skills and experience, with more than 15 years spent in development, delivery, maintenance, and review of technology-based services, and digital transformation projects. She has also worked for more than a decade in underground infrastructure, while leading the regional efforts for digital equity, inclusion, and excellence for Waitaha/Canterbury in connection with the national portfolio of works.
Mrs Archer is currently Chair of Te Hapori Matihiko (Māori DigiTech); Director, Tū Ātea, Telecommunications; Iwi Economic Development Lead, Ngāti Tamaterā; Director, AgriTech NZ; Chair, Waitaha Regional Digital Equity Joint Committee; Director, Aotearoa New Zealand Emergency Managers Association; Director, Regional Civil Defence Emergency Management Recovery Advisory Panel; and Trustee, Central Plains Water Trust. She currently works as a Senior Consultant at ELG Global, as well as presenting and guest lecturing at the University of Canterbury.
Director (Audit & Risk Committee Chair)
Ms Wu is also a board member of the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board; Board Member of the Pharmacy Council of New Zealand; Board Member of the Chinese Medicine Council of New Zealand; Board Chair of Altrusa International Incorporated; and Board Trustee of the Wellington Community Fund.
Tony Brennan
Director
Tony Brennan joined the Network for Learning (N4L) board in August 2024, bringing over 20 years of senior leadership and governance experience across the education, technology, and government sectors. As a CEO, he has driven global innovation in education and has served as an independent director and chairman for more than 19 listed and unlisted Australian companies and government entities.
Tony’s diverse background includes his work as a corporate lawyer and Adjunct Law Professor, where he taught corporate governance and facilitated board training for the Australian Institute of Company Directors. He co-founded and served as director and chairman of Australia’s peak body for education technology and innovation, fostering connections among educators, providers, government representatives, consultants, investors, and EdTech entrepreneurs.
Currently, Tony is an Independent Director of Education Services Australia, a ministerially owned company instrumental in delivering national education priorities and initiatives across Australia.
Deidre Shea
Director
Deidre Shea joined the N4L board in December 2024. Deidre’s career has centred around education and educational leadership.
Deidre currently serves as a Commissioner with the Tertiary Education Commission and as a Board Director of Education Payroll. Additionally, she is the Chair of the Alternative Education Consortium Te Hīkoi and a leadership advisor to Zayed College for Girls.
Deidre’s previous roles include Principal of Onehunga High School, and executive member of both the Auckland Secondary School Principals’ Association and the Secondary Principals’ Association of New Zealand (SPANZ), the latter of which she served as President from 2019 to 2021. She has also previously chaired the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) Professional Advisory Group for the Minister of Education.
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