Katie Schlenker

Dr. Katie Schlenker is an Associate Professor in the Management Department at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Business School and currently serves as Associate Dean (Education) in The Dean's Unit. She holds a PhD in Tourism Management from the University of Western Sydney (2003-2006) and a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) in Tourism Management from the same institution (1998-2001). Her academic roles include Program Director of the Master of Event Management and teaching in postgraduate/undergraduate event management.

Her research focuses on event evaluation, social impacts of events, event legacies, business events, and sport-for-development. Notable projects include developing an event evaluation toolkit for the Sustainable Tourism CRC, studies on business event legacies, and applying design thinking in sport organizations. She has led multiple industry-linked projects with Business Events Sydney, the Sydney Entertainment Centre, and others.

Dr. Schlenker’s scholarly contributions span over 80 publications, including peer-reviewed journals like Event Management, Sport Management Review, and Frontiers in Sports and Active Living. She has held editorial roles, including Guest Editor and Reviews Editor for Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, and is a Member of the Editorial Board for Event Management.

Her funded research includes grants on bridging theory-practice gaps in event management education, understanding the Australian festival industry, and exploring exhibitor motivations at business events. She actively supervises Masters and PhD students in event management and tourism-related fields.

Dr. Schlenker is affiliated with the UTS Business School Faculty and has served as Deputy Head of the Management Department (2018–2020). Her work emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration, particularly between academia and industry, to advance practical and impactful event management strategies.