Meet The Team
We are known for our passion, expertise, customer service (and sense of humour!).
Ailsa Atkins
Ailsa has a honours degree in Psychology and post grad certificate in Professional Recruitment Studies, both gained in the UK. She began her recruitment career in Scotland in 2000 before moving to London to work for one of the UK's leading recruitment companies. She had a 6 month stint in Perth, Australia before coming to NZ and finding her feet in Trade and Industrial recruitment.
Ailsa found her passion in trade recruitment, helped by the fact that most of her family are in the trades or engineering careers. Alongside Beccy Lane she founded Key Skills Recruitment in 2007 with a vision to ensure that job seekers were treated with respect and given every opportunity to advance their careers in the direction they chose.
Their approach has seen them help thousands of employees find work with hundreds of employers in the Wellington region. and although we are a temporary recruitment firm, many of these solutions are now permanent in nature. It's not just about finding jobs though, we are proud to have an active apprenticeship program as well as a strong involvement in local groups helping those without work experience.
Ailsa is a very proud kiwi even although she can't shake that broad Scottish accent! She is Mum to two fabulous boys and wife to Cliff, they have a lifestyle block where the chickens and sheep keep them busy outside of work. Call her on 0276179653 or email at ailsa@keyskills.co.nz
Jo - Onboarding Specialist & Admin Guru
Jo joined Key Skills this year, and from the very first phone call it was clear it was meant to be. Fresh from a redundancy in the civil construction world, she connected with Ailsa… and everything just fell into place.
From day one, Jo felt like "home" and the whole team felt exactly the same.
As our Onboarding Specialist, Jo is the engine room behind getting people work-ready. She makes sure every worker who comes through Key Skills is fully sorted: paperwork done, competencies checked, licences verified, visas confirmed, and anything that needs double-checking? She's already triple-checked it.
Her humour, her character, and her work ethic are pure Key Skills. She does whatever needs doing (and usually more), and we feel very, verylucky to have her.
Beccy Lane
Beccy began her Recruitment Career in November 2000. She was a Field Officer for an engineering training company in Australia, she managed a portfolio of clients and apprentice engineers for 2 years. She absolutely loved this position and especially enjoyed working in the Industrial Sector.
2002 brought her back to Wellington and she started in industrial recruitment. This was her 1st experience with a temporary employment agency and it didn't take long her to hit the ground running. In March 2005 she began working alongside Ailsa McGavin (now Atkins) a dynamic duo grew quickly! Growing frustrated by some of the limitations of working for other people they decided to take the plunge in 2007 to launch Key Skills Recruitment. Beccy's family were an amazing support to them during the early days, her Father's 45 years in business gave them great insights into the do's and don'ts of business ownership.
Beccy spends her time outside of work on the Kapiti coast looking after her sheep and horses, as an avid animal lover it's safe to say this is her happy place. Call her on 0274444584 or email at beccy@keyskills.co.nz
Josh Galuszka
Josh has an honours degree in Human Geography and English literature. He was the first person Key Skills employed, and for good reason! Josh has been recruiting Carpenters in the Wellington region since 2002 there isn't many people that can swing a hammer in this neighbourhood that he doesn't know. He has been hugely instrumental at getting Key Skills to where it is today. His tenacity, loyalty and energy is something both owners are incredibly grateful for. He heads up the Construction team and helped several younger consultants to learn the ropes. Josh works alongside Bailey and between them they help hundreds of builders and labourers find and retain work. He also looks after several apprentices, a task he is particularly passionate about. So much so he developed his own app for apprentices (Record of work) ROW allows apprentices to record images, unit standards and notes of their practical work on their phone so they can have a running work diary ready to show their assessor in their pocket. This is an award winning app has transformed many apprentices learning.
Outside of work Josh is a family man with 2 gorgeous kids, he loves to hunt and to stay fit. He also plays for NZ's parliamentary rugby team, For a quarter of a century, the New Zealand Parliamentary Rugby team have taken to rugby fields around New Zealand to raise money and play some bi-partisan, nail-biting games of our national sport. We are pretty sure a highlight for Josh was playing against Ashley Bloomfield in his beloved Wainui in 2020. Call him on 021590066 or email josh@keyskills.co.nz
Wendy Wallace
Our beloved Wendy has been with Key Skills since 2011. She is our payroll and accounts guru. As solid as a rock and able to spot an admin error at a 1000 paces! She processes all of our timesheet and invoices and there isn't much she doesn't know about payroll issues.
Wendy's background is as a Payroll administrator in the Construction industry so she understands our people and their requirements better than most.
In her free time she is generally to be found in her sewing room or helping her family with their homes. This woman can plaster, paint, build, break concrete, landscape…. You name it she can do it! Call her on 0211997733 or email accounts@keyskills.co.nz
Lamasi Sanele (Muss)
After 18 months away doing brilliant community work and contributing at the Laura Ferguson Trust, Muss is back with Key Skills as of September 30th, 2025 — and we couldn't be happier! He realised that while he loved giving back, his true passion lies in the hustle, pace, and people focus of recruitment.
Muss originally joined us in 2019, following in the footsteps of his best mate Mani, and quickly proved himself a natural recruiter. With a background in merchandising for the wine industry, he brought with him sharp sales instincts, people skills, and an easy-going, unflappable nature that clients and candidates alike love.
Now back in the hot seat running our pumping manufacturing desk, Muss is looking forward to reconnecting with old mates, matching great people to great jobs, and (of course) talking through the latest Waratahs dramas.
Outside of work, Muss is a proud dad — his son Senio was recently selected for the New Zealand U20 rugby squad and is made his debut for the Wellington Lions against Hawke's Bay. Rugby has always been close to his heart: known in his playing days as "Harry Potter" for his on-field magic, Muss now coaches young players to reach their potential.
An excellent recruiter, an all-round good bugger, and a valued part of our team — welcome back, Muss!
Call him on 021 368 813 or email at masi@keyskills.co.nz
Liam Va’ai
PERMANENT Recruitment Specialist
Liam Va'ai is a highly experienced PERMANENT Recruitment Specialist with over 18 years of proven success delivering strategic recruitment solutions across professional, technical, and trade based roles. His expertise spans manufacturing, production, construction (commercial and residential), civil, logistics, warehousing, and engineering, as well as white collar positions including office executive, professional, operational, and management roles. Liam's depth of experience enables him to support organisations across a wide spectrum of industries, tailoring recruitment strategies to meet both immediate and long term business objectives.
Liam adopts a consultative and outcomes focused approach to permanent recruitment. He partners closely with leadership teams to understand the full context of each organisation, its culture, operational goals, and future growth plans, ensuring that every appointment strengthens capability, performance, and continuity. Known for his strategic insight and practical guidance, he consistently identifies candidates who not only meet technical requirements but also align with organisational values and long term objectives.
Since joining Key Skills in 2019, Liam has earned a reputation for professionalism, integrity, and a people first mindset. He is proactive, well connected across multiple sectors, and committed to delivering results that benefit both clients and candidates.
Beyond his professional achievements, Liam remains deeply committed to family and community. He actively supports his children in sport and music, volunteers as a coach and parent mentor, and brings the same genuine, hands on approach to his recruitment work. This combination of expertise, cultural grounding, and personal integrity ensures his work is always guided by respect, care, and long term perspective.
For organisations seeking strategic permanent recruitment solutions across professional, technical, and trade based roles, Liam can be contacted on 021 368 813 or Liam@keyskills.co.nz
Rebecca Francois
Becs started in recruitment in 2006 with a small Lower Hutt recruitment firm specialising in administration and manufacturing. She looked after some very large clients in the area including government departments. She started with Key Skills in 2015 as our manufacturing and administration consultant. In the office we always say there isn't a job Becs can't fill…… and they stay filled!! She has an incredible track record for ensuring people gain and keep their employment. She makes great matches and has transformed many careers. Many, many of her temporary solutions are transferred to be permanent jobs. In these instances our clients show their faith in Becs to get the right person first time. She works alongside Ryan and Liam and keeps us all in line!
Outside of work her dog Buddy is her pride and joy along with her two grown up kids. Call her on 021350919 or email rebecca@keyskills.co.nz
Ryan Hunter
Ryan started at Key Skills on the tools for one of our construction temps back in 2020 and he quickly shot up the ranks from labourer to right hand guy for the site foreman. With his robust work ethic and spritely attitude he quickly stood out for the team at Key Skills. It was an easy decision for them to invite him into their office when an internal role become available in mid-2021.
Ryan has a huge personality and has an amazing ability to relate to both candidates and clients and takes great pleasure in finding candidates for our available roles. Starting in the Construction team Ryan now heads up the Engineering team and is responsible for resourcing talent as well as looking after our social media platforms. He especially enjoys this industry because of his own technical aptitude and curious mind.
Call Ryan on 021786989 or email at Ryan@keyskills.co.nz
Toby
Toby belongs to Ailsa and comes to work each day, his dream job is to be the Key Skills greeter, he meets everyone with a wagging tail and big smile!
Sarah
Sarah started with Key Skills in 2020, unfortunately she called in sick on her first day!! Covid quarantine was the culprit, we are glad to say that was not a sign of things to come. Sarah started with us looking after our construction labourers before taking a break to have her beautiful daughter Sophie in 2023. Back to work in 2024 but this time as our payroll expert.
Sarah is a Hutt Valley local, married to a Carpenter and a living the dream on the flat in Lower Hutt 😊
For any payroll enquiries give Sarah or Wendy a call on 04 920 1695
Bailey
Bailey started with Key Skills as one of our most amazing Manufacturing temps. His work ethic and attitude stood out and we asked him to join the office team as the consultant in charge of Construction Labourers in 2023 and boy has he got that desked whipped into shape!!
Bailey plays Hockey in his free time and lives with his gorgeous lady Zoe in Wellington city
For Construction entry level positions give Bailey a call on 021781613
Ally
Ally joined Key Skills in early 2025 and works alongside Josh on our construction team, keeping our labourers organised and supported.
She knows the job inside out, having been a labourer herself and spending time working for her father's building company—doing everything from moving gib to leading their COVID response. Her practical experience and down-to-earth approach make her a natural fit for the role. When she's not busy wrangling crews, you'll find Ally with her family or out on the beach doing the surf lifesaving she loves.
Call her on 021 781 613 or email at ally@keyskills.co.nz
Marley and Bonnie
Marley and Bonnie are Beccy's pups, Marley loves food & sleeping, Bonnie eats for fuel so she can run and boy can she!
