Principal

DaVinci Tech Performance, L.L.C.

BIO:

Katherine Andrea Lemos is a life-long safety and operations professional, an expert in accident investigation and prevention, decision-making, and safety management systems. She is recognized for her innovative and strategic approaches leveraging advances in analytics and autonomy, with a documented record of turning new technologies into solutions trusted by operators, overseers, and the public they serve.

Throughout her career in government and industry, Dr. Lemos has focused on improving safety and efficiency for both individuals and organizations. She has contributed individually as a researcher, professor, and technical expert, and also as a leader in managing programs and initiatives, bringing strategic consensus and order to efforts that result in tangible outcomes.

Dr. Lemos previously served as a senate-confirmed Chairperson and Board Member of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB), and prior to this, as Program Director for Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Aerospace Sector, driving performance improvements across the product life cycle and value stream. Previously, she was as a technical leader and program manager for research and continued operational safety in Aircraft Certification and Aviation Safety at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). She also worked for the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as Senior Human Performance Investigator in Aviation Safety and Special Assistant to the Vice Chairman providing counsel across all NTSB transportation domains.

In academia, Dr. Lemos focused her research on decision-making in aviation and medicine, studying the influence of information and technology on beliefs and behaviors to yield safe outcomes more reliably during risky, time-limited and uncertain conditions. She conducted applied research to balance the strengths of technology and humans for optimal performance. Her research and expertise have been applied across transportation and industrial domains.

Dr. Lemos earned a B.B.A. from Belmont University, a M.S. from California Lutheran University, and a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa, and continues her role as a professor teaching and mentoring.