Jason Nockels
15+ years running digital products, marketplaces and commercial teams. Co‑founder of Mighway, former GM at NZME, now CEO of Autoplay. I still build the software myself.
Autoplay
Autoplay is the leading lead management system (LMS) for franchise dealer groups in New Zealand, and it's growing quickly in Australia.
- Leading an AI-first transformation
- Change management across the business
- Owning the product strategy
NZME
- GM, Commercial Platforms, Digital Products & Experience 2024 to 2025
- GM, Digital Revenue Products & Lifestyle 2023 to 2024
- GM, Digital Revenue Products 2022 to 2023
Three GM roles in three and a half years, each bigger than the last.
- Led 85 people across five commercial functions
- Delivered the enterprise move from Salesforce to HubSpot
- Took the lifestyle brands to a digital-first operating model
IAB NZ Digital Ad Operations Excellence 2024, won by my ad ops team
Omnicom Media Group
- Strategy Director, OMD (contract) 2020 to 2021
- Consultant (part time) 2021 to 2023
Strategy, then automation, at one of the world's biggest media groups.
- Performance and social strategy for a major retail group
- Automation that freed teams for strategic work
Cruise Sale Finder
Led Online Republic's award-winning cruise brand across Australia and New Zealand.
- Full P&L, with a team across four countries
- Won the funding for a full tech re-platform
- Built a single customer view and a new sales incentive model
CLIA Online Agency of the Year, New Zealand, 2020
CLIA Cruise Promotion of the Year, New Zealand, 2020
Jason immediately stood out as more than just your usual General Manager. Jason is completely at home in the digital space and understands crucial concepts on how IT should work for a modern business.
Grant Taylor Chief Technology and Transformation Officer, SBS Bank
Mighway
Co-founded a peer-to-peer motorhome rental marketplace, now part of Camplify.
- Launched the brand in New Zealand and the US
- Led global product and marketing on the senior team
- Content-led growth, with international press on Fox News
1Above
Recruited to take 1Above into the US and grow direct online sales.
- Set the digital strategy for a US launch
- A new website that doubled online revenue in three months
He just gets it. He's analytical, creative, technically astute and 'marketing smart'.
Daniel Phillips Founder & Digital Marketing Strategist, Aftermath Digital
Grabaseat
Digital Product & Content Manager at Air New Zealand, and producer of the Grab a Random video series.
- Owned product and digital marketing for the airline's deals brand
- SEO and a responsive rebuild drove step‑change growth
We enjoyed working with Jason in part because he had reasonable technical knowledge and was fun to be around, but mainly because he made astute decisions that lead to increased revenue
Stephanie Radich Programme Manager, Kiwibank
The early years
- Online Manager, Jasons 2011 to 2012
- Online Marketing Executive, UCOL 2009 to 2011
- Insurance Consultant, IAG 2007 to 2009
- Communications Consultant, Spark 2005 to 2007
Where I learned digital marketing, ecommerce and running a team.
Bachelor's degree, UCOL, 2007 to 2009: graphic design major, top graduate for design
Jason has done a superb job at building social media at UCOL, creating one of the most successful examples of engaging students and potential students in New Zealand.
Dave Guerin Trustee, VUWSA Trust
BioPortal
Water and microbial testing for fuel storage and distribution. I built it end to end and secured the first enterprise client.
- AI reads lab report PDFs and pulls out the results
- Compliance across every site, in one place
NZ Optics
New Zealand's ophthalmic trade publication, rebuilt from the ground up.
- Around 6,000 articles migrated
- Alfred Eye, an AI assistant for readers
AGB Solutions
Waste oil collection south of Auckland. I built the tech and planned the launch.
- A driver app that runs the day's pickups
- Website and launch plan, live 5 October
La Casa Nido
An impulsive land purchase in Mérida turned into two years of building through a pandemic.
- Three apartments, a café space and a pool
- Finished December 2023, website by me
Two games I made
Both install on your phone like an app and play offline. Go on.
In Safari, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen.
In Chrome, tap the ⋮ menu, then Install app.
Click the install icon at the right of the address bar.
On iPhone, open this in Safari to install it.
Work with me
Hiring, building something, or keen to talk digital product, marketplaces or AI in a real business? LinkedIn is the quickest way to reach me.
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FAQ
Who is Jason Nockels?
Jason Nockels is the CEO of Autoplay and a digital product and marketing leader from New Zealand. He co-founded Mighway, founded BioPortal, and has held GM roles at NZME and Webjet’s Online Republic.
What does Jason do at Autoplay?
As CEO he leads AI-first transformation, change management and the Autoplay product, the leading lead management system (LMS) for franchise dealer groups in New Zealand, which is growing quickly in Australia.
What is BioPortal?
BioPortal is a SaaS platform Jason founded and built for managing water and microbial testing in fuel storage and distribution. It reads lab reports with AI, schedules sampling and reports across sites. Its first enterprise client covers 27 locations.
What has Jason built recently?
Alongside Autoplay: BioPortal, a new NZ Optics website (in progress) with an AI assistant called Alfred Eye, a website and driver app for AGB Solutions, and two games for fun, Fire Cat Boom and Murray Grylls D.O.C Legend.
Which industries has Jason worked in?
Travel and tourism (Air New Zealand, Mighway, Cruise Sale Finder), media (NZME), advertising (Omnicom Media Group), and now lead management software for franchise dealer groups at Autoplay.
Where is Jason based?
Auckland, New Zealand, with time spent in Mérida, Mexico.
What awards has Jason’s work won?
Cruise Sale Finder won Online Agency of the Year, New Zealand at the CLIA Awards, and Jason also holds CLIA’s Cruise Promotion of the Year, New Zealand (both February 2020). His NZME ad operations team won Digital Ad Operations Excellence at the 2024 IAB New Zealand awards.
How can I contact Jason?
LinkedIn is the quickest way. His email and phone number are on this site behind a quick robot check.