Purpose-driven and values-led

My name is John Chung, I’m a Fijian Chinese/European from New Zealand. In a nutshell: I’m a food motivated process nerd. I’m forever fascinated by how things are done and firmly believe that there is no such thing as a bad idea, only poor execution (which has proved the ground for many a pub debate). That said, the foundation of everything I do is rooted in values and purpose. I want to leave the world in a better state than when I came into it.

I'm a purpose driven operations executive and non-executive director with a passion for driving the growth, innovation and efficiency of organisations. Over 15 years working in the technology industry and a couple successful ventures (as well as some hard lessons) under my belt has led me to where I am today.

Areas of Expertise

  • John has served as Chief Operations Officer across multiple startups and scale-ups, with experience spanning private, public, and government environments.

    When required, John steps into complex operating contexts and works directly with leadership teams from the inside, helping resolve specific operational challenges through hands-on execution and judgement rather than layered consulting teams or generic frameworks.

  • Governance is often underestimated in early-stage and growing organisations. In practice, the absence of sound governance only becomes visible once it is urgently needed.

    John brings hard-earned experience across board operations, governance tooling, governance audits, and high-stakes environments including crisis management, turnaround, and insolvency execution. His focus is on building governance that supports decision-making, accountability, and scale before complexity forces it.

  • John undertakes a small number of advisory engagements each year, typically working directly with founders, boards, or CEOs at critical inflection points.

    These engagements are execution-oriented, and designed to help organisations address operational or governance challenges where senior judgement and experience make a material difference.