Ranby was keen to ensure that Red Cross staff and volunteers could work remotely, so that if the Christchurch building where they'd set up the temporary grants processing centre had to be vacated, they could work out of cars and vehicles. Connectivity was therefore enabled by mobile data cards.

In the immediate days following the February 22 earthquake, the focus was on the emergency. New Zealand Red Cross didn't activate its 0900 donation line until a week after the quake. When it did become available they were flooded with calls.

Managing the disbursement of grants to victims of the quake was another crucial role the New Zealand Red Cross played in both disasters.

Following the September quake Ranby says it quickly became apparent that the paper-based system they'd previously used wouldn't cope with the enormous task of distributing millions of dollars of grant money.