Kia Ora! We Are Gambit
Welcome to Gambit Recruitment, a boutique IT recruitment agency based in beautiful Auckland, New Zealand. We are made up of a small but mighty team - Thomas Hoksbergen, the recruiter, and Caitlin Harvey, the compliance and operations expert.
After spending the past couple of years living and working abroad, we’re excited to re-enter New Zealand’s technology recruitment industry with fresh insights, global expertise, and the same passion for connecting great tech talent with great opportunities.
Meet Thomas – Founder & Recruiter
My journey in IT recruitment began in 2018 with Robert Half New Zealand. After completing a Bachelor of Commerce in Economics and Commercial Law, I joined the company’s permanent technology recruitment team in its early days. My passion for technology, strong work ethic, and ability to build lasting relationships helped me progress quickly—from Consultant to Senior Consultant, and then Division Manager within two years.
During my five years at Robert Half, I developed strong relationships with clients across New Zealand, particularly in the SME sector. I also built an extensive network of talented professionals, from software developers to architects. I found a passion for permanent recruitment, as it allows me to build real relationships as I help businesses bring their long-term strategies to life.
In 2022, Caitlin and I packed our bags and moved to London for a new adventure. Being Dutch-born, I was excited to put my language skills to use in an Associate Director role at a UK recruitment firm, specialising in the Dutch tech market. There I led a talented team across Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Germany, expanding my expertise into the world of freelance recruitment with a primary focus on Software & Data. Later, I transitioned back into permanent recruitment for another London-based firm still recruiting into the Netherlands with a wider focus on technology across software development, data, and infrastructure.
The UK and European recruitment market is very saturated and of course much larger in comparison to New Zealand. The feedback that I received from my newly established network over the two years was that a substantial amount of recruitment companies would operate in a very transactional manner. They were motivated to do so due to the market saturation and were able to some extent get away with it due to the size of the market. The ‘good’ recruiters must and should take a long-term and relationship-first approach. This is even more important in New Zealand due to the market size, where to some extent, everybody knows everybody. This long-term and relationship-first based approach is one of Gambit’s founding principles and every decision has this thought process at the front of mind. One of the positives of operating in a larger and more saturated market is the investment within the industry, especially in technology. I have tested and researched a variety of different third-party software, not only built to give recruiters back more time and therefore allow them to be more efficient, but also from a candidate sourcing perspective. I’m very excited to bring this to Gambit.
Meet Caitlin – Compliance & Operations
I come from a strong academic background, with a Bachelor of Science, a degree in Business, and I am currently in the process of finishing my Bachelor of Law with honours from the University of Auckland. During my two years in London, I did a hands-on Compliance Program at a recruitment firm, before becoming a Compliance Officer for a renewable energy consumer protection code. My passion for law, consumer protection, and process improvement ensures that Gambit operates seamlessly, efficiently, and ethically.
Between 2022 and 2025, Thomas and I lived by a “work hard, travel hard” motto, visiting 24 countries while managing busy careers. Along the way, we even found time to get married in Dundee, Scotland!
Why We Started Gambit
During our time in London, somewhere between work and travel, the idea for Gambit Recruitment was born. While the plan took shape in a tiny London flat, its roots are firmly Kiwi with a relationship-first approach to providing our services.
Now, back home in Devonport, Auckland, we’re excited to hit the ground running and introduce Gambit! As a boutique agency, we are able to prioritise quality over quantity. This means we can provide personalised advice, exceptional opportunities, and unwavering support as we help you build your team, or grow your career. We believe in fostering genuine connections because, at the end of the day, your success is our success!
Having a strong background in technology recruitment, we’re confident that we have the network and the expertise to ensure that we find the perfect fit for the candidates we are representing. This is why we decided to launch a market-leading 110% Gambit Guarantee. We also appreciate the trust and loyalty that clients put in us, so our way of saying thank you, is through our 10% Back, Every Year rebate program. Operating as a start-up has allowed us to launch programs like these to ensure that we attract New Zealand’s best possible companies for the candidates that we represent.
Whether you’re a company looking to build your team with top IT talent or a candidate looking to grow your career, we’re here to help you make the right move.
Let’s connect!
Thomas Hoksbergen | Founder | 09 355 8324 | thomas@gambitrecruitment.co.nz