The humans behind the engine.

Mathew Stokes

Chief Executive

Mathew, or Stokes as he's commonly called, leads Usable with a philosophy of hiring the right people, setting clear goals, and then getting out of their way. Based in the Dunedin office conveniently situated above the Duke of Wellington pub, he's developed plenty of practice "herding cats," a skill honed by raising four children and navigating the high-stakes world of startups.

Stokes' career has been defined by a deep focus on the intersection of commercial banking and technology. Over two decades in fintech stretch back to the mid-2000s when he helped establish one of the industry's first-ever direct bank connections for an accounting platform. This was further sharpened at ASB Bank, where he led strategic integration initiatives and forged the complex bank-enterprise partnerships now central to the Usable strategy.

Before taking the helm, Stokes served as COO of the NZX-listed SaaS company PaySauce, guiding it through its growth phase to financial sustainability, scaling from a small team to a cashflow-positive business of over 50 people. With nearly 1 in 2 small businesses failing after five years, Stokes is leading the Usable team to change that trajectory by combining AI-native technology with the power of human advice.

Drew Broadley

Chief Product Officer

Originally from Manawatu and now based in Lower Hutt, Drew is a veteran of the fintech space with a deep founder's perspective, having successfully built and exited multiple ventures, from pioneering paperless receipts in San Francisco to co-founding a common ledger platform for accountants.

With a career spanning roles as founder, CTO, and executive leader across organisations of all sizes, Drew has seen firsthand the complexities of financial management. These experiences distilled his professional philosophy down to one core essential: the most critical factor for any business is knowing exactly how much cash is available to spend at any given moment.

At Usable, Drew uses his background in P2P lending and accounting platforms to build tools that strip away financial ambiguity. He loves adventures in plain sight, exploring the hills you always drive past, enjoying football before his body gives up, and fiercely protecting his family time.

Jason Danner

Chief Operating Officer

Based in the jungles of Titirangi, Jason brings a decade of experience running a technology company and has deep connections within the Information Security landscape. His expertise in managing risk, incidents, infrastructure, and operations is non-negotiable for a company handling sensitive financial data.

He's witnessed first-hand how successful businesses can fail by losing sight of their true cash position. His experience is critical for building the structure, governance, and security posture necessary for Usable to operate and earn trust in the high-risk financial market.

Jason likes going on adventures with his two young boys and relaxing afterwards with a craft beer. He dislikes that dodgy email whose link you're about to click on. Yes. That one. Don't do it!

Maja Jabucanin

Head of Partnerships

maja@gousable.com

Maja (pronounced Maya) was born in Croatia and raised in New Zealand, now based in Auckland. She sees New Zealand as a country of opportunity where businesses succeed and thrive, driven by the strong entrepreneurial spirit of its people.

Maja brings two decades of banking experience spanning retail to corporate, coupled with a strong passion for technology and innovation. During her 20+ years at ASB Bank she focused on high-impact areas like consulting, sales, customer experience and transformation, leading initiatives designed to help business customers simplify processes, grow faster and run better.

What truly drives Maja is helping New Zealand businesses be ready for today and the future. When not working, she enjoys travelling, experiencing new cuisines, and can often be found on the netball and soccer sidelines cheering loudly for her kids.

Grace Jackson-Findlay

Relationship Manager

grace@gousable.com

An Otago local through and through, Grace joined Usable following a successful career at BNZ. She brings extensive experience navigating high-stakes financial environments and a natural knack for turning complex operational challenges into practical solutions.

Grace is at her best when the pace is fast and the pressure is on. Known for being a straight-shooter, she has a low tolerance for overcomplicated processes or anything that gets in the way of efficiency. Having spent years helping business owners optimise cashflow and improve payment systems, she's focused on the practical "real world" tools that actually make a difference to a balance sheet.

Outside work, Grace navigates the rewarding chaos of life with a young family. You'll usually find her on the sidelines of a rugby pitch or dance studio, a firm believer in enjoying the best of the Otago region with a cheeky tipple in hand.

Jessie Turner

Implementation Manager

jessie@gousable.com

Otago born and bred, Jessie brings a diverse range of experience spanning Inland Revenue, banking and the startup world to her role at Usable. Fuelled by a natural curiosity and practical, no-nonsense approach, she has a knack for making organisational change a little less painful.

Known around the office for her sense of humour, she thrives on collaborating with a brilliant team and is constantly learning (she occasionally wonders how she snuck in amongst them!). She values authenticity and efficiency, and has zero patience for people who aren't genuine, and also dislikes waiting in long queues.

Outside the office, Jessie manages a busy household of mostly boys (affectionately known as "the zoo"), gets stuck into DIY projects, goes camping, or indulges a slightly unhealthy obsession with cars. On quieter days, you'll find her buried in a gripping psychological thriller.

Holly He

Chief Financial Officer

Originally from Shanghai, Holly is a qualified CPA Australia member who brings a blend of financial rigour and strategic insight to Usable. She's successfully transitioned from a traditional accounting background into a data-driven leadership role.

Holly views herself as more than just a numbers person. She's a trusted advisor who bridges the gap between complex data and business strategy. With a deep understanding of both accounting principles and modern data analysis, she ensures every financial insight is backed by accuracy and translated into actionable results.

She's driven by the power of data-informed decision-making, focused on delivering the clarity needed to improve overall business performance. For Holly, the goal is always to move beyond the balance sheet to provide the strategic "why" behind the numbers. She's also the team's go-to for restaurant recommendations wherever she visits.

Mark Blundell

Head of Product

Based on Wellington's south coast, Mark leads Usable's product direction, ensuring the roadmap unlocks the greatest value for accountants and businesses as quickly as possible. He brings over two decades of experience building business software, from Payroll to Inventory to Accounting Engines.

Known for deep domain expertise in both local and international tax, and an extreme distaste for half-baked solutions, Mark is driven to see technology actually make a meaningful difference to people's lives rather than just promising it will. He's cautiously optimistic about what AI can do for people, but didn't board the hype train as it was leaving the station.

If he has free time, he can be found restoring old cars, spearfishing, growing superhot chillies, or shaking a craft cocktail. With two young children, free time is currently theoretical rather than actual.

Matt Crisp

Head of Engineering

By morning he's tending to cows and fence lines on his farm in Mākara; by day he's scaling technology and processes with a "pasture-to-production" perspective. Matt brings over 15 years of experience in software engineering, spanning everything from corporate banking through to fintech startups and greenfield businesses.

Previously the founding engineer and CTO of Sine, he grew the product from zero to serving millions of global users and supporting over 160 staff. Now he's back in the startup trenches, fuelled by a passion for security, system architecture, and scaling engineering teams.

If you ask Matt for technical advice, you'll likely hear his three fundamental laws of software engineering: Everything is a sandwich. Everything is a 3.

Jon Harker

Developer

Jonathan has a background in open source software development and devops, including 17 years at Catalyst in Wellington. Unlike most developers, he likes writing good documentation and unit tests, and probably missed a calling as a tester or technical writer.

In the evenings he can sometimes be found playing bass trombone or cimbasso in Wellington concerts and opera seasons, tooting his 3D-printed serpent, or editing Wikipedia articles.

Kate Broadley

Data Verification

A central Wellington native now based in Lower Hutt, Kate joined Usable with a wide background spanning science and education. She's driven by a sincere motivation to help others navigate challenges and is a natural problem solver who finds her stride in the details.

She enjoys the "investigative" side of the work, and at Usable leads the vital role of verifying transactions and data. Outside the office, Kate prefers the quiet of the outdoors with her family, exploring local bush trails on foot or by bike, always with a good coffee nearby.

While dedicated to supporting her clients and colleagues, she's famously modest; writing a bio about herself is easily her least favourite part of the job!

Sam Knowles

Advisor

Sam brings a rare combination of governance experience from within the accounting technology sector and deep foundational expertise in financial services. His past role on the board of Xero provides direct insight into the strategies required to scale a global accounting software company, complemented by his extensive history of supporting ambitious growth companies across various industries.

This potent growth-stage experience is built on a strong career in finance, highlighted by his decade as the founding CEO of Kiwibank. Sam led the bank from a startup concept to a major success, demonstrating a real ability to build and scale a financial institution in a competitive market. His leadership is further informed by senior executive roles in strategy and product management at major banks in Australia and New Zealand.

Owen Gibson

Advisor

A Fellow Chartered Accountant with over 30 years of experience advising private and family businesses, Owen brings critical financial and strategic oversight to the advisory board. His recent retirement from a 20-year career as a partner at PwC provides a deep understanding of the accounting landscape and the specific challenges entrepreneurs face in managing their financial operations.

Owen's expertise is particularly relevant due to his deep immersion in the technology sector. At PwC, he was a leader of the technology sector group and led the firm's relationship with the NZ Hi-Tech Trust. His continued role as a board member places him at the centre of New Zealand's technology ecosystem, providing invaluable industry connections and strategic perspective.