Dr Alana Piper is the inaugural Deputy Vice-Chancellor (External Engagement and Partnerships), a new division focused on enhancing UTS's relationships and collaboration with the public and private sectors.

Prior to joining UTS, Dr Piper was the founding Director of Ventures at The Australian Financial Review (AFR), where she leveraged untapped value and capabilities within the masthead to build a hugely successful portfolio of editorially-aligned businesses that reinforced the Financial Review's dominant position in market, as well as contributing significantly to its bottom line. She has expertise in creating and growing businesses, driving external engagement, building transformative partnerships and managing brand and reputation.

In addition to her commercial and corporate experience, Dr Piper is well acquainted with the university sector. She was a Clarendon Scholar at the University of Oxford, where she completed her doctorate in history, and she has consulted to various universities – including Oxford and UTS – in areas of external engagement over the past two decades. She was also the driving force behind the Financial Review’s Higher Education Summit, Higher Education Awards, and Best Universities Rankings, and a regular commentator on science and education.