The National Institute for Health Innovation (NIHI), based at the University of Auckland, has appointed a new general
manager to lead the strategic development and day-to-day work of transforming research into innovative approaches to
today’s most pressing health problems.
Vanessa Ding has a background in psychology and biology as well as wide-ranging leadership experience in product development,
strategic sales, marketing and social enterprise. Most recently, she was head of development at Ignite Aotearoa, a
mental health and wellbeing social enterprise run by Emerge Aotearoa, a national charitable trust.
“At the National Institute for Health Innovation, we discover and develop solutions to big public health problems,” said
Ding. “University of Auckland researchers discover the issues and potential ways to address them, while NIHI supports
the programmes, clinical trials, technology and commercialisation of what’s needed to turn the research evidence into
something that has an impact in our communities. I’m excited to have the opportunity to help implement innovative
approaches that can bring greater equity and accessibility to hauora in Aotearoa.”
NIHI is managed by UniServices, the research commercialisation and knowledge mobilisation company of the University of
Auckland.
“Vanessa understands that high-quality, policy-relevant research and research-informed service delivery come from a
collaborative organisational culture in which the whole team – project managers, digital developers, financial analysts,
and researchers – work hand-in-glove together,” said Professor Chris Bullen, Director of NIHI. “I am delighted with Vanessa’s appointment as NIHI’s new GM and look forward to working closely with
her as she leads the team into the challenges and opportunities ahead in 2022 and beyond.”
Ding’s first major professional success was in research – in her early 20s, she had a paper published in the New Zealand
Journal of Psychology that was well cited for its findings about workplace discrimination against overweight women.
“While I didn’t end up pursuing a research career, the experience helped me understand the power that quality research
can bring to making change in health and social outcomes,” said Ding. “In the private sector, I’ve seen products with
great user experience and engagement but not always a robust evidence base, while the reverse is often true in the
academic space. NIHI bridges the gap between evidence and user-centred solutions.”
As general manager, Ding aims to grow NIHI in capability, scale and impact as a centre of excellence for the development
of evidence-based solutions and policy ideas for public health issues.
“I’d like us to be the go-to for any public or private organisation looking to solve complex health problems in ways
underpinned by research evidence,” said Ding. “That means ensuring NIHI has the strong, stable infrastructure to do this
in a modern, innovative way. I’d also like us to live up to international standards for health institutes across the
world and contribute to solutions globally. For me it’s all about supporting people to thrive, not just survive.”
“NIHI is more relevant than ever in today’s world, not only because of Covid-19 but also because of the public health
crises we have related to addiction, mental health and obesity,” said Toni Laming, UniServices Executive Director of Business Units. “Vanessa brings in the skills and passion needed to enable the
delivery of equitable and transformative healthcare solutions.”
About the National Institute for Health Innovation
At NIHI, we measure our success by our contribution to improving people’s health in New Zealand and around the globe. We
discover, develop, test and deliver innovative approaches to today’s most pressing health problems. Our work is focused
on preventing disease, improving people’s health, reducing health inequities and enabling the delivery of more effective
and equitable healthcare. We provide independent scientific evidence that supports individuals, communities, clinicians
and policymakers.
Supported by University of Auckland and UniServices infrastructures, we are experts in providing researchers with
complex project management, IT, data management and analytics support, delivery of commercial health projects and
commercialisation/ deployment of health initiatives. Our team consists of academic researchers who identify areas of
potential research, design studies and analyse and communicate the results; project managers who ensure projects are
delivered on time, scope and budget; developers who build and maintain our products; data managers who are responsible
for reporting and data; and biostatisticians who help us analyse the data we collect.