This is a members-only event hosted by Microsoft. 

Dee Templeton is Vice President of Partnerships and Operations in the Technology & Research division at Microsoft, and serves as a strategic advisor to Chief Technology Officer, Kevin Scott.

In 2018, Templeton joined the Office of the CTO as one of its first Technical Advisors. She has since played a key role in developing and nurturing some of Microsoft’s most important technical partnerships. In particular, she has played a lead operating role in the OpenAI partnership from its inception, and is currently leading a team ensuring the success of the joint work undertaken by Microsoft and OpenAI. In 2024, Templeton joined OpenAI’s board as a nonvoting observer. Templeton has also taken on an increasing diversity of responsibilities over the years, and as a strategic advisor to Kevin, she leads the operations of the Office of the CTO. She is passionate about fostering a supportive, open, transparent, and inclusive culture within her team, which includes her work to build strong communities across the organization that support the growth and exposure of other leaders.

A 25-year Microsoft veteran, Templeton has held numerous engineering and product roles at Microsoft. She began her career as the first female technical employee at Microsoft New Zealand, where she was the lead architect for some of the subsidiary’s biggest software migrations. Templeton lives in Kirkland, WA with her husband and is mum to three (almost) adult children.

Please contact Chelsy at events@nzinitiative.org.nz for further information. For more information about being a member, please visit our Membership page.