This Privacy Policy explains how Dear Team collects, uses, stores, and protects personal information in connection with our website and our services. We are committed to complying with the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020.

 

Who We Are

 

Dear Team is an HR consultancy specialising in employee experience assessments and people & culture consulting, operated by Vanja Djukic and Vanja Babic, and based in Auckland, New Zealand. We can be contacted at hello@dearteam.co.nz.

 

What Personal Information We Collect

 

We collect personal information in two contexts:

 

A.  Website visitors

• Name, email address, and phone number submitted via our contact form

• Email address provided when subscribing to our newsletter

• Anonymous usage data collected via website analytics (e.g. pages visited, time on site)

 

B.  Clients and their employees (in the course of service delivery)

• Client contact details — name, job title, email address, phone number

• Employee survey responses — submitted anonymously via SurveyMonkey

• Interview recordings and transcripts — with explicit prior consent of the participant

• HR documents and policies provided by the client organisation

• Other information voluntarily provided as part of the engagement

 

How We Use Personal Information

 

We use personal information only for the purposes for which it was collected:

• To respond to enquiries and provide our services

• To deliver and administer employee experience surveys and assessments

• To conduct analysis, prepare reports, and provide recommendations

• To send newsletters and updates to subscribers (with consent)

• To improve our website and service delivery

• To comply with legal obligations

 

We will not use your personal information for any other purpose without your consent, except as required or permitted by law.

 

Survey Respondent Privacy

 

The privacy of employees who participate in Dear Team surveys and interviews is a core commitment, not just a legal obligation:

• Survey responses are collected anonymously through SurveyMonkey and are not linked to individual respondents in any report

• Interview recordings and notes are used solely for analysis purposes and are not shared with the client in a form that identifies the individual

• Reports present themes, patterns, and representative (non-attributed) quotes only

• Minimum response thresholds are applied to group-level data to prevent identification

 

Employees are not required to participate in surveys or interviews, and participation is entirely voluntary.

 

Sharing of Personal Information

 

We do not sell personal information. We may share information in the following limited circumstances:

• With trusted third-party service providers who assist us in delivering our services — including SurveyMonkey (survey platform), Google Workspace (document storage and collaboration), and Otter.ai (interview transcription). These providers are required to handle data securely and in accordance with applicable privacy laws

• With the client organisation — in the form of aggregated, anonymised reports and findings (never individual-level employee data)

• Where required by law or a lawful request from a regulatory authority

 

Where we share data with third-party service providers, we take reasonable steps to ensure those providers maintain appropriate security standards.

 

Data Storage and Security

 

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, or disclosure:

• Client documents and working files are stored in secured Google Drive folders with access limited to Dear Team and the relevant client

• Survey data is held within SurveyMonkey's secured platform

• Interview recordings are stored securely and deleted once the engagement is complete and the report has been delivered

• We use password-protected devices and accounts with two-factor authentication where available

 

While we take reasonable precautions, no method of data transmission or storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

 

Data Retention

 

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law:

• Client project files (reports, documents, communications) — retained for 3 years after project completion

• Interview recordings and transcripts — deleted upon delivery of the final report, unless otherwise agreed

• Survey response data — retained for the duration of the project and deleted within 90 days of project completion

• Website contact form enquiries — retained for 12 months

• Newsletter subscriber data — retained until unsubscription

 

You may request earlier deletion of your personal information at any time, subject to any legal obligations we have to retain it.

 

Your Rights

 

Under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020, you have the right to:

• Request access to any personal information we hold about you

• Request correction of any personal information that is inaccurate or incomplete

• Request deletion of your personal information (subject to legal retention obligations)

• Withdraw consent for the use of your personal information at any time

• Lodge a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner if you believe we have breached the Privacy Act

 

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at hello@dearteam.co.nz. We will respond within 20 working days.

 

Cookies and Website Analytics

 

Our website may use cookies or analytics tools (such as Google Analytics) to understand how visitors use our site. This data is collected anonymously and is used only to improve the website experience.

You can disable cookies through your browser settings. Please note that doing so may affect the functionality of some parts of our website.

 

Third-Party Links

 

Our website may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those sites, and we encourage you to review their privacy policies independently.

 

Changes to This Policy

 

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated policy will be posted on our website with the revised date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. For material changes, we will notify active clients directly.

 

Contact & Complaints

 

For any questions, requests, or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact us: hello@dearteam.co.nz or 09 941 5156.

 

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the New Zealand Privacy Commissioner at www.privacy.org.nz.

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