1. Rodney Kenneth Drury was born on 1966 and is a New Zealand technology entrepreneur, predominately known for his association with accounting software company, Xero.
19 Facts About Rod Drury
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Rod Drury made his initial fortune through Glazier Systems, a New Zealand software development and consulting company, which was sold in 1999.
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Rod Drury subsequently established Context Connect and an email technology company called Aftermail.
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Rod Drury is a former director of Trade Me, and was involved in the now-defunct Pacific Fibre project.
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Rod Drury is the son of a tradesman and an executive assistant and grew up in Hawke's Bay.
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Rod Drury is reported to have Maori heritage, with his father tracing a lineage to Ngai Tahu.
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Rod Drury attended Napier Boys' High School, which is where he says he developed an interest in computer programming, before going on to study commerce and administration at Victoria University of Wellington.
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Rod Drury says that overcoming his stutter was crucial to starting the Xero business.
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In 1995, Rod Drury established Glazier Systems, a New Zealand software development and consulting company.
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Rod Drury subsequently co-founded Context Connect and then founded and served as CEO of AfterMail which was acquired by Quest Software.
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In July 2006 Rod Drury founded Xero, a publicly listed software as a service accounting-software company, and served as its CEO.
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In October 2007, Rod Drury was a judge for the New Zealand Open Source Awards.
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Rod Drury co-founded Pacific Fibre, a company which attempted to build an internet cable between Australia, New Zealand, and the United States.
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Rod Drury was awarded the Hi-Tech New Zealand "Entrepreneur of the Year" award in 2006 and 2007.
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Rod Drury is only the 21st person to be awarded the title in the Society's 48-year history.
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In 2012, Rod Drury was awarded NZ Herald Business Leader of the Year.
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In 2013, Rod Drury was named Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
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Rod Drury has said that he enjoys surfing, skateboarding and mountain biking in his free time.
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In 2020, Rod Drury donated $1,000,000 to the iwi charity Mana Tahuna to clean up Queenstown's Lake Hayes.