Kate McKenzie

Kate McKenzie is an MBA qualified relationship manager with more than 20 years of experience in creating partnerships across a broad range of industries. As a student of foreign languages (Japanese, Spanish and French), she developed empathy and interest in the world around her.  During the earlier part of her career in international business and supply chain management she established a strong foundation in customer service excellence, cross-cultural communication, internal and external stakeholder liaison, process improvement, project management and strategic planning. She now applies these skills to building partnerships to support transformational research programs.

In April 2023 Kate commenced a leadership role in the Major Research Initiatives team in the Office of Research. This small but agile team focuses supporting academic leaders to build and deliver complex, multi partner projects, such as Cooperative Research Centres and ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hubs and Training Centres.

Previously, from March 2016 - March 2023, Kate was a key member of the Development and Alumni Relations team at UWA, with a focus on  financial and in-kind support of teaching/learning and research activities, particularly for health related projects. During this time, Kate developed relationships with individuals and organisations, including Trusts and Foundations.

Kate is a proactive network builder who is genuinely interested in engaging with individuals of diverse professions and organisations of all sizes including corporate, entrepreneurial, government and non-profit organisations. 

She welcomes inquiries from academics who are thinking big and seeking to plan future grant applications, as well as industry and community partners who see the value of working together to achieve an ambitious goal.  

Ask Kate how you can  leverage the power of research collaboration to create and disseminate transformational knowledge and discover solutions to industry or societal challenges.

Kate is also  a dedicated volunteer who is inspired by interaction with diverse cultures and the opportunities that others gave her to develop. She has been a member of Rotary for 9 years and is currently a member of the Rotary E-Club of Western Australia (E-WA Rotary). Through Rotary, she hopes to make a positive impact on social issues locally and globally.