Ms Claire McCafferty

Claire has extensive experience in general management and program management within the research and tertiary sector, both nationally and internationally. Claire's career in higher education started in 2007 at The University of Queensland.

In 2009, Claire relocated to London to manage an international research institute – the British Institute at Ankara, where she worked for eight years. As well as managing the day-to-day operations of the institute, she was the liaison between the London head office and the research centre in Ankara. The British Institute at Ankara supports, enables and encourages research in Türkiye and the Black Sea region across the arts, humanities and social sciences.

Claire returned to Australia in 2017 and joined Queensland Genomics, where she led the program team overseeing a complex portfolio of projects. In 2020, she secured the BDHP (now Health Translation Queensland) Program Manager position overseeing the broad program of work that aims to translate research into clinical practice.

In June 2023, Claire joined the team at Queensland Rural Industry Development Authority (QRIDA) where she supported the creation and development of the Program Management Team. At QRIDA, she established the PMO and managed the work being delivered by the Program Management Team, while simultaneously driving the operationalising of the Program Management Framework.

In November 2023, Claire returned to health and medical research in a Program Managment role at CSIRO Australian eHealth Research Centre. Managing a Joint Venture program of work, coordinating and supporting a portfolio of projects, engaging with stakeholders from across the Queensland Healthcare ecosystem – especially Queensland Health and Queensland research partners to deliver upon CSIRO’s health agenda.

Claire's early career started in publication retail. Prior to this, her love for adventure and travel started in the UK and eventually landed her in Turkey. Claire's first career highlight was transforming a small family-run business in Turkey to a streamlined operation and gaining its entry into the Lonely Planet travel guide. The business remains successful to this day.