In 2002 Manderson returned to Canterbury to serve as District Commander for six years. In 2004 she travelled to Phuket, Thailand, to lead a disaster victim identification team in the wake of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. In 2008 Manderson was transferred to Washington D.C., where she spent four years as International Liaison Officer to the Americas covering the United States, Canada and South and Central America. Following the February 2011 Canterbury earthquakes Manderson returned to Christchurch to assist with police work in the aftermath of the disaster, then returned to Washington to complete her posting. On her return to New Zealand Manderson ran policing for a number of major events such as the 2012 visit of the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, the 2015 FIFA Under-20 World Cup and the World Masters Games, Lions tour and Rugby League World Cup in 2017.