Curtin University

Monash University

Swinburne University of Technology

Partnership Brokers Association

Royal Children's Hospital 

Corporate Engagement Manager at The Royal Children's Hospital Foundation Melbourne

The Foundation is the fundraising arm of Royal Children's Hospital, which aims to support the hospital to transform health care for children and young people.

July 2019 – present.
Corporate Engagement Manager
Reporting to Director, Fundraising.

Responsibilities
•	Development of corporate fundraising strategy and operational plans, including budgets.
•	First-class stewardship of corporate donors to meet their corporate social responsibility and community goals. 
•	Growth through research of pipeline opportunities.
•	Development of all contractual agreements, including sponsorships, with corporate donors.
•	Development of acquittals and impact reports for corporate donors.
•	Responsibility for PR and marketing opportunities appropriate for corporate needs.

The Royal Children's Hospital Foundation Melbourne

Manager, Corporate Engagement

In an acting capacity manage a team of 4 reports, overseeing digital marketing for paid socials, appeals and acquisition campaigns, data base management, and donor experience.

Acting Supporter Relations Manager

In an acting capacity oversee all fundraising activities for major gifts, gift in will, community fundraising, auxiliary, and digital marketing campaigns, managing a team of 5 direct reports.

Acting Fundraising Director 

A significant event in the RCH150 commemorative program, the Anniversary Dinner brought 600 guests together for a fundraising dinner with a difference. Pledges were secured prior to the event and attendees had the opportunity to announce their pledges at the dinner. Spontaneous pledges were also secured on the night. This event was made more complicated due to COVID-19, which led to the dinner date changing 4 times over the period.

Responsibilities
•	Participate in RCH150 Committee meetings, including liaison with Chairman and key board members.
•	Secure sponsorship agreements with donors of all types at Visionary level (valued $50K), and Leadership level (valued at $35K).
•	Secure significant gift in kind sponsorship.
•	Liaise and steward sponsors, including securing appropriate marketing requirements.
•	Liaise with donors regarding pledge making before and at the event.
•	Communicate with guests, with information about the dinner and answering queries and requests.
•	Complete all financial transactions.
•	Research and prepare board folder outlining details of guests attending.
•	Liaise with RCH150 team and external event consultants.

RCH150 Anniversary Dinner Lead 

This was the showcase of the RCH150 program. The art trail sought to bring the community of Victoria together to celebrate our incredible hospital and its service to Victorians for 150 years. 

Responsibilities
•	Secure sponsorship of art sculptures with donors of all types across major donors, families, individuals, and corporates.
•	Individualise the agreement based on the needs of the donors.
•	Liaise and steward sponsors.
•	Find homes for sculptures before to the official auction night.
•	Administer payments and details of agreement with purchasers.
•	Liaise with RCH150 team and external event consultants.
•	Generate income up to $1M.

 RCH150 Sponsorship Lead Art Trail 

Berry Street is an independent Community Service Organisation and Australian charity. Berry Street offers services across family violence support, education services, including the Berry Street Education Model and Berry Street School, Trauma services, including our Victoria-wide therapeutic service, Take Two, Out-of-home care including foster care and residential care models, and parenting and family services.

Responsibilities
•	Manage fundraising of corporate portfolio, including stewardship, partnerships, and sponsorships.
•	Grow new opportunities for partnership.

Berry Street

Manager, Corporate Partnerships 

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 16 million volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. 

The Australian Red Cross provides crisis relief and care to vulnerable people both in Australia and overseas. It does this during and after emergency situations and in an ongoing way with disadvantaged communities. The Australian Red Cross Blood Service collects, tests, processes and distributes all blood in Australia.

Responsibilities
•	National management of the Red Cross workplace giving fundraising program, including stewardship and impact reports for 150+ companies.
•	Establishment of the internal workplace giving program and stewardship of growth.
•	Attendance at workplace giving events at corporates as needed.
•	Redesign of the Red Cross workplace giving page on the website, and development of collateral working across divisions. 
•	Creation of volunteering opportunity for significant donors with strong return on investment.

Australian Red Cross

Manager, Corporate Engagement and Communication, Major Donor Partnerships Team.

As an extension of the global brand Red Cross, Red Cross Shops has 150 op-shops and focuses on selling donated second hand and new clothing and bric-a-brac to raise funds for people in need.

Responsibilities
•	Budgeting and strategic direction.
•	Product procurement through donations from business and the public.
•	Warehouse operations including oversight of paid and volunteer workforce.
•	Marketing and brand stewardship for the Red Cross Shops brand.
•	Development of the annual marketing plans with creative agencies.
•	Management of retail communications to Red Cross Shops.
•	Management of Red Cross gift catalogue.
•	Development of online shop concept.
•	Through marketing, raising awareness of sustainability and recycling.

General Manager Merchandise, Strategy and Support, Red Cross Shops

The Ark clothing company is a boutique operation across retail, online, wholesale, and manufacturing, with product predominantly made in Australia. Workshop Your Shape aimed to teach women how to dress for their shape, this key business model still in use today. This concept generated excellent customer loyalty, additional sales and worked to develop the Ark branding and market positioning. As a segue from paternal leave, I undertook this role on a part-time basis.

Responsibilities
•	Supporting the Founders with operational areas such as people management, rostering, store operations, and marketing, supporting the Founder’s.
•	Supporting wholesale operations.
•	Establishing Ethical Trading accreditation.
•	Assisting with the office and warehouse set up during head office move.
•	Developing Workshop Your Shape as a concept, including recruitment and training of staff, growing sales and brand awareness.

The Ark Clothing Company

General Manager Operations

Career Break

Full-time parenting

Sussan Corporation is an established Australian brand that has been part of the Australian fashion scene for decades. At the time privately owned, and part of the Sportsgirl, Suzanne Gray stable of brands, with over 400 stores across the three brands. Sussans started in 1939 and at this time had 200 stores.

Responsibilities
•	Sales and margin management for the apparel divisions.
•	Management of purchasing budgets working with Planning departments.
•	Development of the range working across all divisions with buyers, designers, coordinators, and assistants.
•	Overseas travel to keep abreast of retail trends, managing a significant travel budget.
•	Partnership stewardship with suppliers working with the sourcing team.
•	Ensuring the new marketing line of “Forever Thirty” was fulfilled from a product perspective.
•	Merchandise processes from concept through to end of product life management.

Sussan

National Apparel Buying Manager

With a desire to emulate the Gap in America, Jeanswest Group established the opportunity to work on a greenfield project, Old Garage was born to offer a similar offering as Old Navy in the States. As project lead in the concept development stage, I created the Old Garage brand and concept from scratch working with creative agencies including branding, marketing, store design and fit-out concept whilst also developing all aspects of operations from staffing, training, lease negotiation, and the entire product offering.

Responsibilities
•	Development of strategy and concept for the Old Garage brand.
•	Development and approval of the strategic business plan.
•	Management of all budgets.
•	Management of operations
•	Margin management.
•	P&L oversight.
•	Store location and landlord negotiations.
•	Liaison with agencies and consultants in relation to retail concepts including fit out, marketing, branding.
•	Recruitment of sales and operations teams and development of training materials.
•	Development of merchandise strategy across all divisions including menswear, womenswear, childrenswear, and accessories.
•	All merchandise processes including buying, quantification, product lifecycle.
•	Overseas supplier partnerships.
•	Customer experience oversight.

Old Garage, part of the Glorious Sun Group, trading as Jeanswest in Australia.

General Manager

Jeanswest moved its operations to Victoria, from WA, and ownership changed. I was invited to return to the group to consolidate their womenswear business which had been declining significantly. 
During this time the operation developed into a Group of brands with 208 stores across Australia and New Zealand, and during this time as Director, I attended board meetings and was part of the senior leadership team.

Responsibilities
•	Growth in sales and margins for the womenswear division, to secure the viability of the business.
•	All merchandise processes including buying, quantification, product lifecycle processes across men’s and womenswear divisions.
•	Trend setting.
•	Overseas supplier relationships.
•	Product marketing direction.
•	Market research with third party to determine what drives shoppers.
•	Customer experience oversight.
•	Development and growth of teams.
•	Product and trend direction working with the Chinese division in the development of the China based Jeanswest store base of 1000+ stores (launched in 1993).
•	ISO 9000 accreditation.
•	As a Director, I attended monthly Australian board meeting with oversight and decision making in all operations including;
o	Budgets.
o	P&L.
o	Store locations and landlord negotiations.

Jeanswest

Group Product & Trend Director 

The Sportsgirl brand, at this time, was well established as the go-to brand for teenagers and young women, however this was a period of high debt and instability with the changeover of ownership of from Founder David Bardas. Across the three brands there were 140 stores across Australia.

Responsibilities
•	Achievement of margin budgets for the apparel divisions.
•	Management of Open to Buy, working with Planning departments.
•	All merchandise processes including buying, quantification, quality control, product lifecycle.
•	Overseas supplier negotiations and sourcing.
•	Overseas travel to keep abreast of retail trends.
•	Understanding of the Australian market.
•	Management of the team.
•	Advocacy for product range to Marketing and Visual Merchandising departments, ensuring the right “story” is told.

Sportsgirl

National Merchandise Manager

Jeanswest began as a boutique brand in the 1970’s, focusing on denimwear buying major brands. Commencing with 10 stores in WA only, during this time this expanded to Queensland and grew to around 100 stores.

In a period of fast growth, entrepreneurship,  process change from selecting to product development, development of a strong skillful team, and excellence in supplier relationship management, were crucial, along with clarity of vision.

Responsibilities
•	Concept development of the Jeanswest Fit System.
•	Development of company owned brands.
•	Development of successful vertical operation increasing profitability and control of brand.
•	Sales and achievement of margin budgets for womenswear division.
•	All merchandise processes including buying, quantification, product lifecycle processes.
•	Overseas supplier negotiations and sourcing.
•	Overseas travel and trend analysis.
•	Marketing processes including television commercial production.
•	Management of a team of up to 6, including performance management, development and growth.

Kate Dear