Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, February 2026 — Coles Group has announced the appointment of Cate Harris as General Manager Sustainability, strengthening the company’s commitment to delivering sustainable outcomes across its business, communities, and supply ecosystem.
Coles shared that Cate is a highly respected sustainability leader with extensive experience delivering transformational initiatives that bring sustainability strategies to life across both private and public sectors. In her new role, Cate will work closely with teams and stakeholders to drive meaningful environmental and community impact, supporting Coles’ long-term sustainability priorities.
Before joining Coles Group as General Manager Sustainability, Cate Harris spent over seventeen years at Lendlease, where she was widely recognised as a trusted leader who helped shape and drive the organisation’s sustainability direction at scale.
In her most recent role at Lendlease, Cate served for over seven years as Group Head of Sustainability & Lendlease Foundation, reporting to the Chief Operating Officer and leading the company’s ambitious sustainability strategy, climate and social value targets, and broader ESG agenda globally. She managed a functional team of 30 people and led major transformation in sustainability strategy refresh and simplification, including delivering industry-leading climate and social value targets.
Earlier, she held senior leadership responsibilities at Lendlease as Global Head of Lendlease Foundation, where she managed foundation programs, partnerships, budgets, and governance reporting to Lendlease executive and board structures.
Cate also played a key role as Project Director – Lendlease Workplace Transformation and Global HQ, where she delivered the new Lendlease Global Head Office at Barangaroo, Sydney, managing complex delivery across design, change management, communications, technology, health & wellbeing, and relocation for a large cross-functional team.
A significant part of her earlier sustainability leadership at Lendlease was her work as Head of Sustainability – Australia, where she integrated sustainability across investment management, development, construction, and engineering businesses and helped create sustainability frameworks that later influenced global strategy.
In addition to her corporate sustainability leadership, Cate also served on secondment as Executive Director / Managing Director at the UN Global Compact Network Australia, supporting network operations, strategic planning, communications, and stakeholder engagement across the sustainability ecosystem.
Her earlier experience includes a role as Associate Director ESD at Hyder Consulting, where she established a new ESD consulting practice and supported major organisations including DEXUS, Coles, Lendlease and others. Cate also built strong public-sector sustainability credentials through local government roles including at Merri-bek City Council and Manningham City Council, focusing on sustainable design tools, scorecards, and planning processes.
About Coles Group
Coles Group is one of Australia’s leading retailers, operating an extensive national footprint of over 1,800 retail outlets. With a workforce of more than 115,000 team members and engagement with over 8,000 suppliers, Coles serves millions of customers each week through its store network and digital platforms.
The organisation’s vision is to become the most trusted retailer in Australia and grow long-term shareholder value, guided by its purpose: Helping Australians eat and live better every day. Coles continues to focus on delivering food, drink and home solutions that are delicious, sustainable, and healthy for customers across Australia.
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