Rees Ward

Rees Ward is Executive Vice President and New Zealand COO at Bridgewest New Zealand. Rees leads the administrative and operational functions and plays an integral role in advancing New Zealand portfolio companies, the technology incubator and the real estate portfolio. His diverse experience in legal, commercial and public sector backgrounds, combined with his genuine passion for New Zealand and positivity, stands him in good stead to inspire and support key initiatives, executives, entrepreneurs, stakeholders and entities. Be kind, be present and persist, are core to the way Rees lives his life and encourages team spirit. He enjoys leading by example, connecting people, and facilitating the ongoing growth of teams, entrepreneurs and businesses to being as successful as possible.

Rees joined Bridgewest in 2017 and has worked to grow Bridgewest Group's activities, investments and operations across New Zealand. Previously, Rees was the founding Director of the Wellington ICT Graduate School and New Zealand's Deputy Consul General to Western USA based in Los Angeles. Rees gained his Bachelor of Laws (L.L.B.) and Bachelor of Commerce and Administration (B.C.A. specializing in Management, Marketing & Japanese) degrees from Victoria University of Wellington.