James Brooke

Principal

Where was I born?

I was born, bred, and educated in Palmerston North. Having been in Auckland since 1988 I do support "The Blues", but my heart is also still with "The Hurricanes" and the mighty Manawatu.

What was I doing before I joined Numero?

After graduating from Massey University in 1988 with a Bachelor of Business Studies degree (Double major Land Valuation and Property Management and Development), I worked in marketing roles in finance before joining Jones Lang LaSalle, the largest property consultancy in the world. My role involved managing the New Zealand property interests of mainly off-shore investment organisations and wealthy individuals. With a real desire to work for myself since I was at school, the opportunity presented itself to become a founding Principal at Numero in 1992. Since then we have built Numero into one of New Zealand’s leading recruitment organizations, and established a second successful brand Numero.

Why do I work at Numero?

I work here because I think I’ve got one of the best jobs in New Zealand! Not only am I involved with the strategic development of the business in a highly competitive market, but I get to work with fantastic brands, and alongside leaders within our Client organisations, exposing me to some of the great sales and marketing brains in the country. At Numero we are also fortunate to work with an amazing group of people - motivated, committed, and just plain fun to be around.

What do I do at Numero?

I jointly run the business, and have accountability to deliver the best possible service to a host of our major Client accounts. This involves virtual leadership of teams across our business, and lots of strategic work with Clients on how to add value to their organisations through people.

What do I do with my spare time? 

My family are the big priority in my life. With 4 children we have a busy time of it, but we have a lot of fun and try to get as much out of life as we can. As with most NZ males I’m into sport, having played rugby, and I’ve completed a few events like the Auckland Marathon, the Rangitoto to St Heliers swim, and the Round Taupo 160 km cycle event. My interests now include tennis, golf, and studying and competing in Taekwondo. I’m teaching myself the guitar (but I’m very average), and we spend as much family time as possible on the Coromandel. My passion is books.