We’re passionate about working with others to make the world a safer place and delivering better outcomes for all
About Us
Jeremy (‘Jerry’) Holmes is a qualified and experienced crisis and disaster risk management professional who has spent more than 30 years working in the area of crisis and disaster risk management.
Early Influences
Originally from the United Kingdom, Jerry grew up in Fiji before emigrating to Aotearoa New Zealand. As a teenage boy he saw first-hand the devastating impacts of a category five cyclone (the worst there is) and the remarkable resilience of the Fiji population as they prepared for, responded to and recovered from Cyclone Oscar in 1983.
Four years later, Jerry then saw the country he had grown up in changed overnight by its first two coups, led by Sitiveni Rabuka. In the first, Rabuka overthrew the newly elected Indo-Fijian-supported government of Prime Minister Timoci Bavadra. Rabuka said the coup was carried out to ensure indigenous Fijian political dominance. In the second, after attempts to forge a comprise government had failed, Rabuka severed Fiji’s ties with the Commonwealth and declared Fiji a republic.
During the first coup an Air New Zealand flight was hijacked at Nadi airport. In response, the then Prime Minister of New Zealand, David Lange, directed the New Zealand Defence Force to send members of the Special Air Service (SAS) to Fiji to resolve the hijacking. This direction was later upgraded to a plan to deploy a larger force to Fiji to protect New Zealand’s interests. However, the hijacking was resolved peacefully before any troops were sent.
Jeremy (‘Jerry’) Holmes, MNZM, MA, MInstD
New Zealand Defence Force
Studying law at Victoria University of Wellington at the time of the coups, Jerry promptly changed his studies from law to international politics and civil military relations as a result. Graduating with a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in international politics and languages four years later, Jerry then joined the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) as an Army officer. Graduating top of his class and completing a master’s degree in strategic studies at the Australian National University in Canberra a short time later, Jerry then held various appointments at the tactical, operational and strategic level in the NZDF over the next two decades - leading and developing teams of various sizes and compositions to operate safely and effectively in complex and uncertain environments around the world (Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Pacific).
In 1999 he was noted by the Australian Defence Force as having served with distinction in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. In 2006 he was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for providing “first class” intelligence and security advice during a deployment to Afghanistan. Upon leaving the NZDF he was described by the Chief of Army as someone who had “contributed to the development of his field” and had performed his duties “with the utmost professionalism”.
United Nations Peacekeeping Deployment - Bosnia and Herzegovina
Emergency Services
After leaving the NZDF, Jerry then travelled to the United Kingdom to complete a Security Managers and Consultants course run by Control Risks – an independent global risk consultancy that specialises in helping organisations manage political, integrity and security risk in complex and uncertain environments. Graduating top of his class, he was described by Control Risks training staff as “a very experienced individual with a quick mind who was able to produce very effective client focused solutions and deliver them to clients in an effective and collaborative way”.
On his return to New Zealand, Jerry then held various appointments in the New Zealand Fire Service (before it became Fire and Emergency New Zealand) and the New Zealand Police, helping improve their ability to work safely and effectively in complex and uncertain environments around Aotearoa. This work included two and a half years helping improve the resilience of the Canterbury region after the 2010 and 2011 Christchurch earthquakes.
2011 Christchurch Earthquake
Civil Defence Emergency Management
These appointments then led to Jerry being appointed Regional Manager of the Wellington Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM) Group at the region’s emergency management office (WREMO) in 2017 – helping improve the resilience of the greater Wellington region after the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake. In this role Jerry was responsible for leading and coordinating the effective delivery of CDEM services (risk reduction, readiness, response and recovery) for the region for a wide range of hazards and risks, including during and after the Covid-19 pandemic and Cyclone Gabrielle.
Over this period Jerry helped draft several parts of the national framework that New Zealand agencies and organisations use to respond to and recover from incidents and emergencies: the Coordinated Incident Management System (CIMS) 3rd edition. As Chair of the country’s Emergency Management Leadership Group, he worked closely with the country’s fifteen other CDEM Group Managers and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to provide a more collaborative and consistent approach to delivering CDEM services nationally. During Cyclone Gabrielle he was appointed one of four national controllers in the National Crisis Management Centre tasked with leading and coordinating the country’s response to the cyclone.
Seconded to the Greater Wellington Regional Council in 2024 to help improve the region’s flood risk management capability after Cyclone Gabrielle, Jerry then moved into the office of the Environment Group Manager to provide business improvement advice to help members of the Environment Group deliver improved environmental outcomes for the region in those areas (land, air and water) that the region relies on for its health, safety and general wellbeing. This was part of a wider piece of work focusing on environmental security as a foundational requirement for our very existence.
Cyclone Gabrielle
Consulting
Passionate about serving the community, working with others to make the world a safer place, and delivering better outcomes for all, Jerry is the Director of Strategic Consulting Services Limited – a consultancy that works with governments, sectors, organisations and communities to improve their resilience and their ability to navigate the challenges of the modern world. Jerry is a qualified emergency manager and a member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors.
Over his career Jerry has worked with various agencies and organisations to develop and implement integrated strategies, plans and performance frameworks to help them build new capabilities, improve their level of performance, and transform the way they work to deliver improved outcomes at the local, regional and national level. He has worked with a wide range of partners and stakeholders including tangata whenua, pasifika, infrastructure and utilities providers, businesses, non-government organisations, charities and community groups.
Partners
Drawing on his childhood experiences growing up in Fiji, his time in the NZDF working in the Pacific, and his time working in CDEM with members of the Māori and Pasifika community, Jerry partners with Te Tira Whakamātaki (the Watchful Ones) and Hono (the Māori Emergency Management Network) to include indigenous perspectives into the work he does and to help build indigenous resilience across Aotearoa and Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa (the Pacific Ocean). He also partners with other individuals and groups, as required, to meet the specific needs of individual clients.
