Coding to Consulting – Anything is possible

When Kathy announced she was retiring we were not surprised but that did not curb the feeling of loss. Kathy has been with Escient from the beginning and is highly valued by her colleagues as well as her clients. She has had an extraordinary career and life and we wanted to celebrate that in this short tribute. In an interview this is what she told us…

How being a geek helped me discover my passion.

My father was a Nuclear Physicist (PhD). His ancestors had come from Prussia in the 1800’s and were clockmakers by trade. This led to a natural connection of wanting to know how things worked. Although initially in cancer research in the early 60’s at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute, he moved from that role into the Director of Technology when the hospital was first computerised. This was in the time of IBM mainframes and green screens. This is when I learned to code. We would often go into the office with him and use cards to develop programs. I loved it.

I was always interested and excelled in maths and science. When it came to university it was a toss-up between biology and computers. Computer science won out and I went on to complete a Bachelor of Applied Science in Robotics & Digital Technology.

Work is not all I am.

Like everyone I have a personal story. I have a strong interest in art and in particular love painting. I am also a qualified Dive Master and have a deep affinity for the ocean.

I live in the Dandenong Ranges and between my husband and I we have five kids and four grandchildren who keep us very busy.

Building a career I loved.

I started my working life as a graduate with General Motors Holden. From there I worked in the UK in the early 80’s as a coder and developer before returning to Australia. Contracting was my focus in the early years of my career, which resulted in many opportunities to work with different organisations. During this time, I moved from Programming to Business Analysis and then to Project Management – many great roles which helped round out my range of skills. I also took some time out to run my own businesses, including my own Life Coaching business.

In the early 2000’s I was lucky enough to secure a role at Sensis managing their Siebel platform. This led to many great opportunities at Sensis where I ended up as the Head of Shared Services, managing 70 applications and 120 people. From there I made the decision to move into consulting and worked with SMS Management and Technology for 6 years. Again, a fantastic opportunity to broaden my skill set and work with some fantastic companies. One role was working as a Program Director in Singapore with BHP. This was an invaluable experience as I managed a team of over 200 people across multiple continents building out new BHP Data centres.

Consulting suits me well. As I like working as a contractor, I can get a job done and move on to something new. I learn new skills, tools and meet new people constantly. At one time at SMS I was on four projects at the same time, and I loved it – multitasking, fixing problems and variety are key to my happiness.

In 2016, Stephen Mabbs asked me to join him at Escient. The business had just started in Adelaide, and it was three months before Victoria opened. I had worked with both Stephen and Rebecca Campbell-Burns before and was excited to build something new with them. The first nine months was basically connecting and networking as we sought our client base. We drank a lot of coffee.

“Working at Escient is like working with a bunch of your best friends.”

My main client with Escient has been World Vision. I have now delivered four large projects with them over five years. The projects have been complex and interesting.

The best things about working at Escient is the trust shown in individuals and how everyone gets along. Even as we grow. Since 2017 I have seen the business start to change. Where we had initially relied on our personal experience to progress, we were now bringing in skills and expertise to functions and capabilities. I totally applaud this as the team now has the ability to move between roles and grow new skills and leadership.

What next?

Although I am finishing up in November full time I will continue as a contractor and my days will drop back. I have lots more to do now. We have renovations and travel. I am very involved with Probus and I intend to learn to sail! My husband I are really looking forward to this next stage of our life.