He is currently affiliated with the University of Canterbury (New Zealand) and the University of Sydney (Australia), reflecting his long-standing global research partnerships.

A strategist at heart, Professor Naidoo brings a rare blend of scholarship, sector leadership, and real-world strategic expertise.

His early career started in industry, later moving into public policy roles with both Australian and New Zealand government agencies. He has also served as an adviser with global strategy firm, Bain & Company.

As Lead Policy Advisor with the New Zealand Ministry of Education, he represented NZ at the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland and during major free trade agreement negotiations, positioning education as a strategically significant global service sector.

In Australia, he was instrumental in designing and driving one of New South Wales’ (NSW) most consequential tertiary education policy reforms — the integration of VET and Higher Education through the establishment of the NSW Institute of Applied Technology (Digital Tech) in partnership with Microsoft. The success of his work was profiled as a best practice case study by the Australian Productivity Commission and in the Australian Commonwealth Government’s review of tertiary education (the Accord process).

Professor Naidoo brings this same systems-level perspective to academia. He has held academic leadership roles as Program Director, Head of Department, Dean, Pro Vice-Chancellor and (Acting) Deputy Vice Chancellor. He has worked at the universities of Auckland, Deakin, Curtin, Canberra and Sydney, where he is known for embedding evidence-based strategy and fostering international collaboration.

As an educator, he has been nominated for best teacher awards and his scholarly research focuses on the micro-foundations of consumer behaviour, with particular interest in how people respond to emerging technologies, cultural contexts, and shifting service environments.

Across all roles, Professor Naidoo is known for turning data and behavioural insights into strategy, informing institutional positioning, policy reform, and sector-wide innovation. He is driven by a clear throughline: designing education systems and experiences that are globally relevant, culturally intelligent, and future-ready.

Professor Naidoo has studied at the the University of Auckland, Victoria University of Wellington, and Harvard University. His academic honours include the Governor General of Canada’s Academic Medal, and graduating as a Senior Scholar at the University of Auckland.