Catherine DeVrye

Australian Executive Woman of the Year

Catherine De Vrye has the energy of a Gen Y and the experience of a baby boomer. She is a best selling author, winner of Australian Executive Woman of the Year and a Thought Leader. A former IBM executive, Catherine held roles in sales, marketing, communication and management development; and spent 2 years in Tokyo as Asia Pacific Headquarters Human Resource Manager.

Catherine has delivered presentations on five continents to clients including Fortune 500 companies, government, small business and associations. A highly professional key note business speaker, she brings the latest theory and research to life through practical, common sense examples. In dynamic presentations to board level or front line staff, she combines substance with humour to inspire, motivate and serve as a catalyst for others to strive to achieve the best in themselves and their organisations.

Catherine is a best-selling author of many non-fiction books, translated into over a dozen languages, including...Hope Happens! Words of encouragement for Tough Times- Hot Lemon & Honey... reflections for success in times of change-The Customer Service Zoo-Japan, an A-Z Guide-Sports Marketing & Promotion- and Good Service is Good Business...7 Strategies for Success, which was a # 1 best seller in Australia and Taiwan. DeVrye has also co-authored other books and corporate histories.

In her book Paper Clips Don't Grow on Trees (2010) Catherine De Vrye proved her business aptitude once again, by offering business owners and managers positive, practical advice on what they can do to add value yet reduce costs to their operation.

Her autobiography, Who Says I Can't? was first released by Random House and nominated for the Australian National Biography Award. It was published in North America by McArthur Press as Serendipity Road...a memoir with the quote on the cover from Bryce Courtenay 'story of hope and perseverance-when's the movie?' High profile achievers including Sir Edmund Hillary, first man on top of Everest, Jack Canfield, co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul; best-selling novelist Bryce Courtenay and countless business leaders have endorsed her books.

More about Catherine De Vrye:

Catherine's heart warming personal story began with growing up in an orphanage in Canada and has included a battle with cancer. A keen sportswoman and adventurer, she's bicycled over the Andes, scaled peaks in the Antarctic and climbed 20,000 feet to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa.

Catherine's incredible business journey has included being honoured as an Australia Day Ambassador, and National Speaker's Association of Australia Keynote Speaker of the Year in 1999 and 2010. Catherine was a former board member of the third largest police service in the world, past CEO of Junior Achievement Australia and worked for Ministers of Consumer Affairs, Education and Sport, where she was involved in the establishment of the Life. Be In It fitness campaign.

One of the most sought after speakers in Australia today, Catherine has spoken to business leaders, prime ministers and elite athletes.  Catherine has featured in the Who's Who of Australian Women and been honoured as Olympic Torch bearer on the day of the opening ceremonies of the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

All this and yet she still believes that the biggest challenges of all....are those we face in our everyday lives-as we adopt a positive attitude in the face of adversity.

Catherine DeVrye talks about:

These are sample topics from a selection of Catherine's most frequently requested presentations-but you can chose one topic or a mixture of messages-and the presentation is always customised to your conference needs and theme. While her messages are serious, thought provoking and educational, they are delivered with humour and passion.

Good Service Is Good Business

• Boost your bottom line without increasing cost
• Use service to differentiate you from your competition
• Gain market share through exceeding customer expectations
• Fight complacency.... Success today does not equal success tomorrow
• Increase brand loyalty by turning complaints into opportunities

• Make minor improvements which make major impacts

Conquering the Challenge of Change

• Change is inevitable. Learning from change is optional
• The 7 most expensive words in business - 'We have always done it that way'
• Turn common sense into common practice
• Build on past success but recognize that success today doesn't equal success tomorrow

• Be victors from change rather than victims of change

Success - Turning Obstacles into Opportunities

Catherine tells her inspirational life story from her early days in an orphanage in Canada -to an education in the USA -to an international career with IBM in Japan, the Australian Executive Woman of the Year outlines:

• We can't always control circumstances but we can always control our attitude
• Focus on what you can do rather than waste energy on what you can't do
• Focus on the positive to produce professional and personal success
• Incorporating analogies from cycling over the Andes and climbing mount Kilimanjaro, participants are reminded not to make mountains out of molehills.