Written by Sasha Karen
Published in ARN 2 November 2026
AI and data consultancy firm V2 AI has strengthened its senior leadership team in applied AI and in Brisbane with the hiring of three executives to continue meeting demand for enterprise-focused solutions.
The firm has taken two former heads from Versent — head of digital and AI Josh Lopez and head of Australia and New Zealand major accounts Shane Rendoth — and ex-Elastic principal solutions architect Sam Harley.
Lopez has been appointed to partner of applied AI to help organisations turn emerging AI capabilities into practical business outcomes.
“AI is moving rapidly from experimentation into solving core business outcomes, and organisations need the architecture, data foundations, governance and engineering capability to make AI work reliably at scale,” he said.
Lopez joins after previously working at Versent for more than nine years. Before this, he worked in various technical roles at GE Capital for more than 12 years.
Meanwhile, Rendoth has joined the firm as its Brisbane partner to lead V2’s business in the state, assisting Queensland-based organisations in linking business ambitions with practical technology and AI strategies.
“The biggest challenge for many organisations is knowing where to focus their effort and investment to achieve the outcomes that matter. I’m looking forward to working with V2 AI’s customers to cut through the complexity, challenge conventional thinking and help leadership teams make confident decisions about where data and AI can create lasting value,” he said.
Rendoth comes to the company following six years at Versent, as well as various leadership positions at RedMan Solutions, ThoughtWorks, Blix, The Tasmanian Gourmet Food Company, The Rendoth Group, and PGi. Rendoth also founded MyWitness and Digital Exchange, and has acted as an advisor to Fiter, TruckTracker and BRIDJ Technology.
As for Harley, he joins as solutions director of applied AI, where he will work with the firm’s customers to design and deliver solutions that connect enterprise data, systems, and workflows with emerging AI capabilities.
He also said he will work with V2 to support scaled enterprise adoption while ensuring agentic trust, accuracy, and governance.“There’s a ripe opportunity to help organisations build AI systems that can operate reliably within the complexity of enterprise environments,” he added.
Prior to his two years at Elastic, Harley spent over 20 years’ spent in various technical roles at the likes of Airwallex, Stax, Databricks, MongoDB, xMatters, BMC Software, Tiberone, and Planwell Technology.
V2 AI CEO Craig Howe said the trio of appointments strengthens the business’ ability to support organisations with the strategic and technical elements of AI adoption.
“We’re focused on helping organisations address the practical challenges that come with AI implementation. We combine deep technical expertise with an understanding of how AI operates within complex enterprise environments,” he said. “Josh and Sam bring deep applied AI and technical expertise, while Shane brings a strong commercial and strategic perspective on how organisations turn technology investment into meaningful outcomes.”
V2’s November wave of hires comes months after the firm made a quadruple appointment in July in the form of Clare Cranston as general manager consulting; Millicent McCutcheon as partner; Gulnnar Grover as director, data and AI; and Dwayne Helena as director of AI engineering.
It also follows its launch into the Singapore market later that month under the leadership of managing director Hannah Williams.
