Kate has been working in the Kiwifruit industry since 1995. Most of these years have been spent undertaking seasonal recruitment, however since 2000 she has been undertaking generalist HR roles. She has been at Hume Pack-N-Cool since late 2010.

Kate’s passion is using her skills and enthusiasm to assist individuals and teams achieve personal and organisational success. She prides herself on her integrity, professional ethics and loyalty.

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During 2002 my family moved to beautiful NZ from South Africa. Initially spending five years in Wellington, we then decided to move to a warmer place and accepted a position in the chemical industry in the stunning BOP.

Following school, I completed a National Diploma in Environment Health and Occupational Hygiene, and after completing further studies obtained a Diploma in Work Health and Safety and a Bachelor of Commerce. Since 1992, I have worked for several large companies in the fields of Health and Safety in South Africa, Australia, Fiji and New Zealand, with my last role being in the forestry industry in Gisborne.

When not working, I am very involved with cricket, walking and trying to cycle when the weather permits.

I grew up in Bournemouth a coastal resort town on the south coast of England. After completing school I entered a 4-year City and Guilds apprenticeship in Engineering, adding an extra year to receive certification in the Union of Engineering Institute.  I emigrated to Hamilton New Zealand in 1996 where I have been fortunate to work with good people and companies, having spent the last 15 years of my time in Hamilton working for a family company that has deep seated values. My wife and I originally purchased a house in the Bay of Plenty in early 2018 to use for the weekends to get away from the city life. We soon realized with the last of our children moving out we no longer needed the house, or the traffic congestion in Hamilton opting to relocate full time to the beach in August of 2018.

Over the past 40 years I have spent most of my career managing businesses and staff, now moving onto the challenge at Hume Pack-N-Cool to apply my learnings in a unique industry, that consumes the time of management and staff during the packing season, with a limited time to reflect before the next season starts.

To my own determent my favorite past time is playing golf.

 “A game that depends less on strength of body and more on the strength of the mind”- Arnold Palmer