Jess Robinson

From practising law at Russell McVeagh, to a decade in Japan working on digital projects, through to leading operations and people for The Experience Collective (Monteith’s Brewery, Tui Brewery, and The White Swan Hotel), Jess’s career has spanned countries and industries. With 120 staff under her leadership at The Experience Collective, she drove transformation in a complex, seasonal workforce and discovered her passion for people, systems, and culture.

Jess is the person who connects people and performance. She brings together operational smarts, people-centred strategies, and commercial reality to solve complex problems. Known for simplifying complex problems and creating efficient systems, she balances empathy with pragmatism, making workplaces better for people and stronger for business.

At The Experience Collective, Jess co-designed a new employee experience, reworking recruitment, onboarding, incentives, and EVP. The result: a major lift in retention, culture transformation, and business growth from $6m to $8.5m in revenue. She’s equally proud of building trusted relationships at every level, from frontline staff to leadership teams.

Jess believes people are every business’s greatest asset. She’s motivated by helping people feel purposeful and connected at work, because when teams thrive, businesses thrive. Her empathy drives her to make workplaces where people feel valued and succeed.

Relational, open, and commercially grounded. Jess brings people along for the journey, cuts through complexity, and gets things done. Clients and colleagues value her ability to combine legal precision, operational know-how, and people-first leadership into clear, practical outcomes.