Kate Thorpe is Head of Innovation and Business Partnerships at the University of Sussex, where she supports innovation, business collaboration and knowledge exchange between the university and external partners. She has spent over ten years at Sussex, with roles spanning business partnerships, executive coaching and business liaison, helping connect organisations with student talent, research expertise and collaborative opportunities. Alongside her university role, Kate is an elected Executive Council Member at Gatwick Diamond Business. Her earlier career includes workforce development and training leadership at East Sussex County Council, as well as project management and technical sales support roles in the technology and information services sector.