Karen Kennedy will join the University in July.
As the first Director of the recently-established Strategic Partnerships Office, Dr Kennedy will be responsible for establishing and embedding the work of the office, which exists to further the University’s relationships with a range of partner institutions.
The Strategic Partnerships Office (SPO) will provide expertise and support, in many forms, to the University’s key strategic partnerships and relationships across the world. These are partnerships that further the University’s academic activity, and they can be with a wide variety of public- and private-sector entities, including other universities, research bodies, governments, companies, trusts, foundations and alliances. The SPO will be instrumental in all stages of establishing and maintaining strategic partnerships, as well as providing support to others across the University.
Dr Kennedy joins the University from the National Cancer Research Institute, where she has been Director since 2013. She has previously worked in strategic relations and programme management for several scientific research institutes, including Genome Canada and the Wellcome Trust. She holds a PhD in medicinal chemistry and conducted post-doctoral research in a number of different research groups, including at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge.
Emma Rampton, the Registrary, said “I am delighted to announce the appointment of Karen Kennedy as Director of the Strategic Partnerships Office. With her extensive experience of strategic relations, together with a deep knowledge of the research landscape, Karen is very well equipped to be the SPO’s first Director.”
Dr Kennedy said “I am very pleased to be returning to Cambridge as Director of the new Strategic Partnerships Office at a time when collaboration is becoming ever more important. This exciting role brings together my passions for research, education and collaboration across a wide range of areas and I look forward to consolidating and expanding the University’s work with its strategic partners.”