Meet Our Team

TKW Research is led by our COO, Sandhya Le Grand. Sandhya has worked in various roles within the financial services industry managing some of the country’s most challenging call centres over a 25 year period. She has brought that experience to TKW Research where she runs all of the company’s field operations for Melbourne, Sydney and New Zealand. Her experience spans all industries and sectors.

She manages a highly experienced and professional team who have the ability to capture a broad range of information either directly or discreetly.

Sandhya is incredibly well regarded amongst her peers and clients alike, the level of dedication and professionalism she displays is second to none.

Having worked with organisations such as Lend Lease, IOOF and AXA with emphasis on people management, she has been very successful in building businesses by the improvement of processes and people behaviour.

She also manages and coordinates the data processing team together with the market research staff members.

Sandhya has a Bachelor of Science (Hons) Applied Chemistry and is also a full member of The Research Society (formerly known as the Australian Market Research and Social Research Society – AMSRS).

On the rare occasions she finds herself not working, she enjoys her morning runs, spending time with her two Kelpie super pups Duffy & Missy, as well as a good wine.

Get in touch now to learn more about she can help ensure your next project is a success, or to discuss why New Zealand’s Pinot Noir from the Central Otago region is far superior than anything else in the market!

Mandy managed a healthcare recruitment agency for 11 years prior to joining TKW Research which allowed to gain valuable experience and establish a wide network within the healthcare space.

Mandy is also GM of our general research side of the business. With vast experience in social research, compliance and customer engagement research and over 18 years’ experience in client management and designing bespoke innovative solutions for high profile clients both domestically and globally. With extensive experience across all sectors and methodologies, she thrives on the challenge of designing customised solutions for her clients.

A true self-confessed research tragic, even after all these years, she still gets a kick out of running projects, seeing the entire process unfold and all the hard work cumulate to the end data file and a happy client.

Mandy is a graduate of Swinburne University with a Bachelor degree in Business Marketing and Media Communications, as well as a Post Graduate Diploma in Frontline Management and has additional training as a Certificate 3 & 4 ISO Lead Auditing of Management Systems. She is a full member of The Research Society (formerly known as the Australian Market Research and Social Research Society – AMSRS).

When she isn’t working, Mandy is with her family, either ‘trying’ to train their German Shepherd puppy or at her favourite chocolate shop having a double strength hot chocolate, extra hot with two pink marshmallows. She is also a tequila connoisseur. She always wanted to be a radio announcer, which would have been a good fit as she never shuts up. Always up for a chat and/or a hot chocolate/tequila so get in touch!

Kris is our General Manager for the NZ operations and is responsible for building and managing relationships with clients, developing and implementing strategies for the betterment of the projects and being available to meet client’s requests.

Acting as a business partner with over 13 years of experience in the industry Kris believes in working closely with clients to provide the highest level of service and providing them with strategies on how to successfully complete and deliver projects within the time frame and budget. At times clients have found themselves in difficult situations and required help externally from someone who can get to their request swiftly and help troubleshoot issues and work on an action plan on delivery. Kris has successfully managed to help multiple organisations in these situations and provided them with solutions and a favourable result.

Kris holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering and has previously worked in the Education and Manufacturing sector.

Outside work, Kris has a great appreciation for cars and will be found working with cars or going for drives with friends and family.

Dedication is key to Kris and he thrives on results. He will stop at nothing to follow through on what he has promised to deliver to clients. If you would like to learn more about how Kris could implement strategies for your organisation or hear examples of successful client projects, please get in touch!

As the General Manager of our Healthcare division, TKW Health, Dylan manages the entire operations of our healthcare department.

In addition to this, Dylan also has vast experience in general market research projects surveying businesses, opinion leaders and consumers to inform businesses strategic direction.

Dylan has diligently worked her way up through the organisation across all levels of the business since 2002, giving her an excellent understanding and insight on how best to serve our clients. Past roles include: CATI interview, Team Leader, Supervisor, CATI Manager, Project Manager and General Manager working across Healthcare, CATI, F2F, Qual and Online. The Research Society (formerly known as the Australian Market Research and Social Research Society – AMSRS).

With a Bachelor degree of Economics and over 17 years’ experience in the industry, Dylan continues to use this drive to deliver valuable insights to clients, helping our staff achieve KPIs & providing ongoing training to see them reach their full potential.

When not working Dylan can be found outside enjoying the fresh air and walking around her local area, usually seeking the sunshine. She also has a deep appreciation and love of Coffee, always ordering her favourite – Long black ¾ full single origin.

If you would like to learn more about Dylan’s appreciation for end to end project management, and managing projects then get in touch!

As the National Recruitment Manager for J&S Research, Kristy is the immediate point of contact for clients, from their initial project enquiry to the successful completion of the project. A multi tasker that keeps a cool head and is able to adapt to constant change with a smile and reassuring attitude.

Kristy oversees the entire project management process from providing feedback to client’s along the way, troubleshooting and liaising closely with our recruitment team to ensure delivery of on-spec respondents every time.

With over 14 years’ experience in the industry and educated in New Zealand with a background in advertising before the shift to market research in 2005, Kristy is respected for her hands on approach, and for remaining calm in a crisis (on the surface anyway).

When not in the office Kristy can be found spending time under her favourite tree at Balmoral Beach with friends and family (and usually planning the next holiday). If you would like to learn more about Kristy’s ability to bring all facets of the recruitment process together, even on the most challenging of projects then get in touch!

With over 12 years of experience in customer service, people management and event project management, Vani comes perfectly equipped for the role Project Manager with My CX. She takes the overall responsibility for the successful initiation, planning, design, execution, monitoring, controlling and closure of a project. She works seamlessly with the internal team, clients and the shoppers alike to ensure the success of campaign and delivers exceptional data each and every time.

When she is not juggling multiple national mystery shopping campaigns, Vani has a very full and colourful life. She enjoys spending time with her daughter, creating TikTok content and hosting her radio show and many community cultural events – this girl does not like to sit still!! Vani is certainly a person who lives life to the fullest and is never afraid of challenges!!

Naomi is our Operations Manager for New Zealand responsible for ensuring all day to day activities are running smoothly and overseeing staff performances. With over 9 years of experience in the industry Naomi enjoys regular interaction with all our clients to ensure that there is an open communication and follow-up to meet their ongoing needs.

Taking a practical approach to problem solving Naomi enjoys the satisfaction of seeing tasks and projects through to completion. Always eager to learn and overcome any challenges that come her way, Naomi believes in giving 100% to anything she sets her mind to.

Always up for a challenge and developing her skills and knowledge, Naomi holds a Bachelor’s Degree of Education Primary and a Diploma of Architecture.

When not working Naomi can be found spending time with her friends having a laugh, sketching on occasions and spending time with her son. If you have a client question in New Zealand for Naomi or you’d like to know more about how she has supported our clients, feel free to reach out!

Ashley Leahy has over 15 years of experience in collecting data within the market research space. As TKW Research’s CATI Manager he runs our CATI team ensuring that the data is collected efficiently and accurately.

Ashley holds a Bachelor of Business Marketing and an Advanced Diploma of Business Marketing, providing him with a strong foundation for understanding market research. His expertise lies in managing high-quality market research studies using the CATI methodology. He also has a passion for technology and always looking for innovation to increase the efficiency and quality of his team.

When he’s not working, Ashley is a dedicated family man, he can be found hanging out with his little man Lincoln, enjoying quality time with friends, and indulging in his love for food and good coffee. Ashley also maintains an active lifestyle and plays piano, trumpet, and has an amazing singing voice, showcasing his creative side.

Whether he’s navigating the complexities of a market research project or enjoying a symphony of his own creation, Ashley exemplifies a distinctive mix of professional dedication and personal enthusiasm.

Working as our Quality Assurance & Compliance Manager, Tony focuses on ensuring quality & ethical standards are being met across all levels of the business. To best meet the needs of the clients Tony will ensure company policy is being followed by all department members and that the organisation’s messaging and behaviour reflect the rules and regulations of the company and our governing bodies.

Tony also reviews and analyses data in order to develop plans to recruit, motivate, and encourage employees while striving to improve processes and product quality.

Tony is a true coffee connoisseur. If you would like to know more about our QA or compliance processes, get in touch!

As a Project Manager for our Healthcare Department Marisa works closely on quantitative and qualitative surveys for medical research, online market research, focus groups and in-depth interviews.

Marisa’s key strength is managing a large number of projects simultaneously while bringing them in under budget and on time each time.

With over 11 years’ experience working within our organisation and previous experience as an Office Manager, Marisa has a strong set of skills well suited to help you and our other clients. She also holds a Certificate II in Business.

When not at work Marisa enjoys letting her creative side shine through painting and working with textiles. If you would like to find out how Marisa could use this creative energy and her project management expertise to help you, get in touch!