Kate Byrne | EVER
Dr Kate Byrne is Chief Strategist & Managing Director at EVER, a full service change communications and employee engagement agency.
With a PhD in Communication and 20+ years in the field, Kate is an experienced strategist, change leader and communication practitioner who supports senior leaders through transformational business change and game-changing employee engagement.
Kate believes that great communication is the key to embedding transformational change initiatives and unleashing the full potential of employees and partners to do extraordinary things. She knows from experience that the best change communications are always a mixture of well-crafted strategy, impactful creative, disciplined execution, and compelling storytelling to draw people in and inspire them to action.
Kate is also a big supporter of women in business, and has been featured in The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and Sky News Business.
Q&A
1. Tell me about yourself: who are you, what do you love etc?
Hi there, I’m Kate! I live in Canberra with my partner Rod and our two dogs. Most days for me feel like: nerdy, curious, engaged and learning, doing my best, trying something new, stumbling, picking myself up, saying awkward shit, less organised than I want to be, soaking up some time outside, laughing with Rod, and falling into bed tired at the end of the day.
I absolutely love what I do, and also really love connecting with other women business owners and leaders.
When I’m not working, I’m at a Pilates sesh, planning my next trip, dreaming of Italy, eating pasta, loving on my doggos, connecting with friends, and reading about the future of work and permaculture. You can find me on IG over at @drkatebyrne
2. What do you do?
My consulting agency is called EVER (@everchangecomms). I work with senior leaders to help build high performing organisational cultures and embed new ways of working by designing and delivering smart, impactful communication campaigns and employee engagement initiatives.
I usually sum up my work by telling clients that I help their employees fall in love with new ways of working. I help build high performing, engaged teams. I help organisations build reputation from the inside out.
3. What's your 'why’?
I genuinely love Mondays, and want everyone else to feel that way too. We spend so much of our lives working these days. That’s why I want to make work great for as many people as possible.
4. What was the biggest turning point in your life?
Going to uni and finding something I loved doing. I’m a high school drop out, and so I felt like that meant I probably wasn’t very switched on. I also got the feeling many of the teachers had very low expectations for me. When I started going to night school and then onto uni, I realised that when I’m interested in something I can actually do very well at it. I’d been bored out of my brains at school!
These days I love learning. Excellence really is a habit, and as Einstein said “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid”. These days I know I’m smart and consistently have very high expectations for myself, the people I work with, and my clients.
5. How did you get to the point you're at now?
A genuine interest in what I do and desire to make a difference, curiosity, enthusiasm, drive, grit, late nights, early mornings, great friends, a very VERY understanding partner, and doing my best to ‘stay in the room’ even when it’s fucking hard.
6. Is there any advice you can share or something you wish you knew?
Own your strengths and the way you like to work. I wish this is something I’d given myself permission to do earlier in life.
For example, I’m definitely a mono-tasker. I can’t multi-task for shit - it just leaves me feeling overwhelmed and unproductive - but I have a great ability to focus. I can achieve great things, and feel much happier, when I focus on just one thing at a time and allow myself the space and time to go deep with it.
I’m convinced that giving ourselves permission to be fully who we are in healthy ways will help us thrive in all areas of life.