As a cofounder of Straker Translations, Grant Straker has extensive experience in the translation market. He is a member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors and along with Merryn Straker, was the winner of the 2018 master category for New Zealand Entrepreneur of the Year. A New Zealander of Maori decent, prior to founding Straker in 1999, he served in the British Army as an elite paratrooper. After leaving the Army, Grant taught himself to program computers and founded Straker as a technology company. He has since taken the company from startup to an IPO and built it to more than 180 staff with offices in ten countries.