Kat Duda - Director

The heart of The Conference Runner is its Founder, Kat Duda, CMP, with her unwavering passion for the meetings and events industry.

Kat was first introduced to the conference world in 2001, when she organised her very first multi-day conference in Poland for an International Association of Teaching English as a Second Language. This serendipitous discovery sparked an instant love for event planning and project management. The rest, as they say, is history. Kat has been in the industry ever since embarking on an incredible global journey and as of December 2025, her portfolio includes over 50 events on which she was a lead project manager.

These events range from one day meetings to multi-day conferences, both in person, virtual and hybrid, catering to a diverse array of associations and corporate clients. In addition to those 50 events, which alone brought over 30,000 attendees to learn and network together, Kat has also been involved in numerous projects in a supporting role.

In addition to 20 years plus experience, Kat is also a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP), as well as a member of the esteemed Professional Conference Organisers Association Inc. (PCOA) further solidifying her commitment to excellence and professional development. Maintaining various memberships includes attending annual educational conferences.