SPEAKERS

Nicolene Abrie is Data Science Lead at Australian agtech company, The Yield. Here she transforms agricultural practices through scalable digital technology, data and insights to solve real challenges for growers and throughout the food chain.

Nicolene is an experienced Data Scientist. With her background in mathematics and mathematical statistics, she specialises in machine learning, data science and analytics in a scalable production environment.
Prior to joining The Yield, Nicolene worked in different data driven roles across various industries, from consulting and banking to logistics optimisation, where she translated data into actionable value-added insights to assist cost saving and growth.

She is passionate about seeing people grow and apply innovative thinking to solve everyday problems in a business environment.

Dr Leila Alem has 25+ years of experience in helping businesses transform for the Digital Future. Her expertise includes designing awards winning digital products and new customer experiences leveraging emerging technologies such as AI, Wearables, AR/ VR and MR and using Design Thinking, Lean Start-up and Agile methodologies. Her clients include Boeing, Rio Tinto, Thomson, 3M and many more , as well as Government Departments at both state and federal level. She won the 2013 NSW State innovation Award in R&D for her work with Boeing and was finalist of The Women Infotech outstanding Career Achievements Award in 2015.

Leila has 10 years of experience in entrepreneurship, building new innovation programs and practices to drive client engagement. Her corporate entrepreneurship experience include government and consulting sector. Currently Leila is the co-founder of ArcSense, a wearable tech start-up in health and wellbeing. She teaches Product Design, Innovation & Entrepreneurship  in MBAs in Australia and France and mentors tech start-ups and social enterprises.
Leila is an Adjunct Professor in Human Computer Interaction at UTS and holds a PhD in AI. She was Principal consultant at Thoughtworks, a global innovation consulting firm, for 2 years and Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO for 23 years.

She is a sought after keynote at international conferences on emerging technologies and innovation. Leila has 100+ publications and is the editor of books & international journals in the next frontiers of Human Computer Interaction.

Gunjan's passion is making the world a better place, by helping organisations design their services around the humans that experience and use them. As a Masters-qualified, senior customer experience and marketing specialist, Gunjan has driven organisational transformation by putting the customer at the heart of everything.

Gunjan is a board director on Women in Technology (WiT), a Queensland association whose mission is to empower, connect and advance women in STEM. She is also one of the mentors for QldAi labs (www.qldailabs.com.au).

She is a CX and Marketing leader with senior experience developing and implementing research-based strategic plans that have driven customer centricity into organisational DNA, changed consumer behaviour, boosted sales, brand presence and operational wins in Government (eHealth & Transport), Travel & Tourism, Fresh Produce, FMCG and Franchising. Gunjan is known for using data, insights and relationships to inform strategies and guide teams to achieve results.

In addition to her 15+ years in corporate life, Gunjan is also involved in her successful family business in fresh produce. The business, in partnership with two other entities, was a disruptor in the industry and began operations in 2012 from a home office which quickly grew to be one of the four largest avocado marketers in Australia. They market domestically and internationally 20% of Australia’s avocado production.

Ronnie Altit is changing the corporate culture landscape. As the founder of Insentra, a global IT Services business, Ronnie has always dared to be different. His vision is to create an outstanding workplace where his people can be the best versions of themselves, love the work they do and amaze each other and their clients every day. Recently awarded number 2 in the Great Places to Work study, Ronnie believes that an organisation’s culture is paramount to running a successful business.

His approach to corporate culture is simple and based on transparency, honesty and creating an open environment where his team can flourish. Under Ronnie’s leadership, Insentra has been awarded Job Advisors Top 20 Coolest Company in Tech, CRN Fast 50, BRW Fast Starters and CRN Editors Award.

Prior to starting Insentra, Ronnie worked for an investment bank reaching CIO for Australia and then as General Manager with a global systems integrator. Ronnie is regularly called upon by the media as a spokesperson for entrepreneurship, leadership and corporate culture and is an inductee of the ARN ICT Industry Hall of Fame. He has been featured in BRW, The Huffington Post, The Collective Magazine, Dynamic Business and The Financial Review.

Cheryl Bailey is passionate about unlocking the power of technology for Indigenous businesses across Australia.

As a proud Indigenous woman growing up on the outskirts of Tamworth, Cheryl dreamed of how technology might transform the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people enabling Indigenous businesses to grow and thrive.
In her recent career at Qantas Airways, Cheryl has led complex and operationally critical implementations and enhancements to multiple business critical systems. Her aptitude to both innovates and lead technology upgrades and integrations have been demonstrated on many occasions. She has also worked in partnership with, and implemented technology solutions for Indigenous organisations.

Cheryl decided to take the next step and create her own technology start-up business and aptly named it "Indigenous Technology". Indigenous Technology is 100% Indigenous owned and run. The business provides technology services for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Businesses

Cheryl is also studying for her Masters in IT  and Business Management at University of Technology Sydney.

Maree Beare is the founder and CEO of Wanngi, a health management app for people with chronic conditions who see multiple doctors who feel vulnerable, out of control and helpless in managing their health.

Maree is passionate about using innovative technology to positively impact the lives of others. She is renowned as a forward-thinking leader in the technology sector, with extensive experience advising leading organizations in transforming their businesses and delivering high-profile technology programs.

62% of people don't have enough information about their health, leading to costly health care for everyone. The whole world has moved to telehealth and digital health. But how do people then manage all their health records in this new digital world?

So Maree created Wanngi, which is a health management app, designed to house all of those digital health records. She is helping to shake up the digital health space for consumers, by providing a central place for people to track their symptoms, their health records and their treatment, so they can improve their diagnosis and, and help them have conversations at their next medical appointment.

Her work with Wanngi has been recognized by Forbes in the top 50 women-led startups disrupting HealthTech and CNET, showing the Australian company is becoming a growing influence in the digital health sector. She was also named in the top 100 Women in Wearables for 2019.  

With Wanngi you can track and manage your symptoms, injuries, medications, allergies, immunizations and fitness progress and goals. You can upload and store medical documents such as scripts, pathology and referrals and share your health history during a Telehealth Consult

Fiona is an experienced C-Level Executive and Director with a broad set of skills, capability and contacts across multiple industries and international markets.

Her expertise is in Technology, Financial Services, E-Commerce, Digital Marketing, Customer Experience, and International Operations, within major corporates and start-up companies.

She is a driver of innovation and growth through multi-channel, digital transformation strategies with Company director experience on local and international subsidiary boards and as sole Australian director of global start-up.

She has Chair and Advisory roles on Diversity & Inclusion, Technology & Investment, and Emerging Leader programs.

Jo Burston is one of Australia’s most successful female entrepreneurs. She has launched six businesses, the standout being Job Capital which went from $0 to $40-million turnover in five years and has kept her on the list of Australia’s top 30 female entrepreneurs since 2013. Jo has worked in partnership with the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) and Office For Women (OFW) as well as global brands such as Microsoft, Google, EY , PwC and XERO. Her most recent launch is startup.business, which runs entrepreneurial Learning in Action programs for school-aged children in curriculum in every state in Australia.

Jo is passionate about the idea that you can’t be what you can’t see and uses these programs, as well as her globally recognised social impact business Inspiring Rare Birds, to inspire, support and educate entrepreneurs with the goal of providing opportunities in entrepreneurship and leadership for everyone.

Maria Calibo-Sales is the Zebra founder of Calmar Corps - a Tech Start Up based in Sydney. It is a Profit-for-Purpose business - wholly aligned to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Profits fund the “Capability with Conscience” program which empower and uplift marginalised and economically disadvantaged groups by investing in community initiatives.

Maria is absolutely passionate about using technology to share economic prosperity, drive diversity, full inclusion, gender equality and making flexible work mainstream.

In the last 2 years, the CwC program has:
• Provided 150,000L of clean drinking water per day to 9,600 families.
• Cleared over 1.2 million square metres of landmine-affected land to UNESCO Heritage site for food production, economic and cultural purposes.
• Funded direct intervention programs saving 238 girls from child marriages.
• Rescued, rehabilitated and restored 716 survivors of human trafficking.
• Donated 2 years’ worth of school supplies, hygiene products and clothing to 103 children.

Megan Capriccio is the Co-Founder for the FemTech Collective in Australia. As an entrepreneur, product manager, and business strategist, Megan has dedicated her career to ensuring that women have more control over their realities: Health, education, and career.

From researching the role of women on the international stage at the University of Sydney, to establishing a tequila company that empowers and celebrates women in the wine and spirits industry, to launching the FemTech Collective in Sydney, Megan's various roles have gained her recognition as a champion for positive change for women.

She is currently working with and consulting for FemTech companies, investors, and partners across Australia and the US to grow the ecosystem, offer additional support for women to manage their health with the help of technology, and to re-educate the public on how healthy women create a healthy society.

Helen is the Chief Digital & Information Officer for the ABC. She joined the ABC in 2017 following a 30-year media career across the UK, the Middle East and New Zealand.

Beginning her career in the UK, Helen has held numerous roles in television production and operations management. These include Studio Manager at LWT Granada’s London studios, and Director of Operations for Aljazeera English Channel in Doha, Qatar, where she led a team that delivered the first High Definition 24/7 global news channel from four broadcast centres around the world. From 2007, Helen played a crucial role at TVNZ in Auckland as Chief Product & Information Officer, where she was responsible for major business transformation and delivering the company’s largest technology projects.

Helen is passionate about delivering technological change and innovation for the benefit of audiences. She brings a dynamic range of abilities to her role, which is vital to the future development of the ABC.

Vanessa is the Global Chief People Officer at Art Processors, a global experiential design consultancy, where she designs and executes the people and workforce strategy.

Before joining Art Processors, Vanessa co-founded Code Like a Girl, a groundbreaking social enterprise that challenges the significant imbalance of gender representation in Australia’s tech industry. As Chief Operating Officer, Vanessa introduced and optimised programmes to attract and retain girls from all walks of life in STEM education and technology careers.
Throughout her professional career, Vanessa has held several senior and executive positions in People and Culture, working with organisations across the tech, legal, health, education and government sectors. An unswerving commitment to social justice and gender equality have been concurrent themes across her diverse career, imploring organisations from inside and out to do better when it comes to their most valuable asset – their people.

With a Masters of Management and over 10 years’ in business development, Julia’s experience covers: security and sales strategy, leading teams, driving sales growth and improving bottom line profitability. Julia is an experienced Digital Transformation Leader, who is focused on her clients success.

A background at Macquarie Bank, Iron Mountain, amongst others, Julia is passionate about helping clients utilize their digital processes and enhancing their users experience. She is a driver of innovation and growth, who loves to find new ways to solve complex problems. Julia is a bubbly, passionate go getter!! She isn't afraid to go above and beyond for her goals and is an active volunteer for Lord Somers Camp and Powerhouse.

Rose Herceg has built a career as one of Australia’s most respected futurists and social forecasters.

Rose’s first business, Pophouse launched in 1999, became known as Australia’s best regarded company for innovation, social trends and business strategy. In 2007, Rose sold her company to the STW Group.
Rose has maintained a close working relationship with STW consulting on a regular basis to STW-owned companies in areas of strategy, social forecasting and innovation.

In March 2015, Rose was appointed as the Chief Strategy Officer for the STW Group, now called WPP AUNZ after its merger with global communications powerhouse WPP.

Rose has written three books – her latest ‘The Power Book’ has been translated into several languages and is selling in Europe, Asia & the Middle East and is soon to be launched in the US market.
Rose received the Small Businesswoman of the Year Award from Prime Minister John Howard in 2002.

Successful entrepreneur with over 25 years’ business experience.  Jane is currently indulging two of her passions,  startups and tech, as co-founder & CEO of Catador , building & supplying global tech teams.  Having previously started her own recruitment business in regional Australia & growing it to having National presence, Jane appreciates the importance of building and maintaining business relationships, teams, and networks.

With a thirst to understand business & the ever-changing world we operate within Jane completed a Global Executive MBA which furthered her understanding & desire to play an integral role in the development of  tech today and into the future, taking up the role as Global Director of People Performance & Culture for Cafeto Software.  Jane has been supporting others, particularly women, in business throughout her career and is current angel investor, mentor and advisory Board member.

Lisa is a senior Technology leader, with over 20 years experience at Macquarie Bank, Origin Energy and Aussie Home Loans, amongst others. Currently she is the Head of Technology at QBE, looking after the Commercial and Underwriting functions. An engaging leader with proven ability in building and leading high performing teams both on and offshore. A change agent who loves to find inventive ways to solve complex problems.

Catherine Hollyman, the founder of Behind The Scenes Communications, firmly believes that as the world leverages the power of technology, the need for effective interpersonal communication skills grows ever-stronger. Why?

Because as a current and emerging business leader, you have a powerful contribution to make to the world, whether that’s your own small slice of it or society at large. But you can’t do it alone. You first need to connect with and persuade your team, customers, suppliers, investors and networks to support you on your journey. That’s why Catherine’s purpose is to empower leaders like you to maximise your influence and leadership impact through effective purposeful and purpose-led communication.

By equipping you with the knowledge, skills and resources to communicate in a way that connects more meaningfully with your employees and other stakeholders, Catherine helps leaders create highly engaged, high-performing teams.

Her individual coaching programs, group workshops and consultancy services are all designed to help you inform, inspire, connect and unite your team or organisation behind a common purpose, mission, vision, strategy and values. In doing so, you build your presence and reputation as a leader and fulfil your potential to make a positive contribution to your team, organisation, and the customers or community you serve.

For nearly two decades, Catherine has provided communication coaching and consultancy services to leaders at Fortune 500 organisations; some of Australia’s leading corporates and small-to-medium businesses including Foxtel, Atlassian and Optus; as well as entrepreneurs as they launch and scale their start-ups. Whenever you’re ready to maximise your impact as a leader, Catherine is waiting Behind The Scenes to support you on your journey.

Natasha has worked with AI, big data, industrial/automation solutions for over 12 years. At UBTECH she is the Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand.
Natasha has rich experience on IT/IoT and robotic related industry, client field included 1st tier fortune companies, Public sector, Banking, Financial services, Telecom, Government, Technology, Transportation, Healthcare..etc, strength on strategized, tactical consulting context related solution from ML/AI/SAAS/RPA aspect solution and angle and define service value proposition.

Hands on experience on operation for fortune company brand global expansion, contract solution architect, client/partner relationship, operate relationships and government contracting, manage key stakeholder relation. Also experience in manoeuvring/risk managing in complex business/cooperate structures.

Prior to UBTECH, Natasha spent years at Pegatron, a Fortune 500 company, leading a cross-functional team that worked on AppleCare's global service, involving centralized big data, AI, integrated machine learning processes, and front end solutions/ASP management.

Rik has spent nearly two decades in customer experience management, from operations to product and commercial. And thern one day, she fell in love with the way technology has the potential to make humans better at being human. 

Rik now heads up Stellar's Intelligent Automation business, where she and her team of digital optimists are building and nurturing bots and tech solutions that bring out the best in people. 

Emma founded social impact business Project F to improve gender-balance in technology teams and leadership. Her career in people & talent spans over 25 years across global markets.

Originally from London, Emma’s career has seen her live and work in the UK, US and for the last decade, Australia. Emma’s career has centred on the IT&T sector and, since arriving in Sydney, in digital technology.

Emma is driven by purpose and is an unapologetic, albeit accidental, feminist. She's on a mission to change the world of tech with Project F's gender-balance accreditation program, Program 50/50. She is also the founder of not-for-profit tech community "Men Championing Change".

Emma is a strategist, mentor, gender equality advocate and busy mother of four.
 

Ingrid is a passionate believer that the combination of people, processes, data and technology can enable not just business, but it has the power to change governments, organisations and entire economies. She is a leader focused on achieving great outcomes while, constantly fostering a positive client experience.

Ingrid is the Chief Digital and Information Officer at Wollongong City Council and although relatively new to Local Government, Ingrid has extensive experience in similar roles in NSW Government across a number of different portfolios including the health, justice, human services and the utilities sectors.  Ingrid has Masters degrees in both business and IT.

Angela is a career IT Professional with a broad history across many industries and has a particular interest in people management and future technologies. She is an accredited Business Mentor, Executive and Director who speaks regularly at industry events on managing in times of change, technical disruption, diversity and women in IT.

Cindy is the CEO of serendipID. A pioneer for consumer centric identity verification since 2013, she has been instrumental in shaping Australia’s future around Digital Identity by supporting industry programs across private and public sectors.

Cindy held a seat on the board with ADCA throughout the merger into Blockchain Australia and continues to support Blockchain Committees. She developed a Digital Identity Verification platform to service enterprises with regulatory obligations, and more recently initiated a BlockChain based, citizen centric ID application to improve customer experience and address cyber security threats.

She has a track record of successfully building software companies on a global scale. At serendipID, she provides solutions for managing identity verification and authorisation processes across people and things. 

Danielle Owen Whitford, former Business Executive that moved into Start-ups in 2016. A boundary pusher throughout her career, she’s constantly challenged the notion of “we can’t do it differently, so we live with what we have”.
Using technology and curiosity to create a new normal, Danielle founded startup Pioneera in 2019.

Pioneera was founded to tackle the crippling issue of workplace stress, using the simplest of approaches – our words and behaviour. Pioneera’s AI platform combines technology with psychology to predict and prevent workplace stress and is gaining strong traction across both corporate Australia and small businesses.

William Payne was appointed Chief Digital Officer in March 2020. He is responsible for the strategic information technology capability as well as the broader digital strategy for the Group.
William has over 25 years experience leading technology driven change across industrial and commercial environments in industries that include construction, waste and recycling, logistics and informati on management. He has worked in Australia, New Zealand, the US and Europe.

Prior to joining Mirvac, William’s roles have included Chief Information Officer for Boral, a similar role for Veolia in the UK and Executive General Manager for Strategy and Perfor mance for Veolia Australia. He has also held the role of CEO for a technology scale- up operating in ANZ and North America.

William holds a Bachelor of Science (Hons) degree and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Carmen is a procurement and commercial professional with 15+ years’ experience in leading and managing strategic procurement and contract negotiations.

Known for being able to simplify highly complex, commercial and contractual information and making it accessible to different audiences, she drives a high performance approach to procurement.

Fresia has led the implementation of many large ICT programs across government and private entities and is seen as a leader and innovator in delivering customer centric solutions.
A proven Experienced Chief Information Officer focuses on the ICT governance, strategy, operations, systems and infrastructure elements. She has demonstrated a consistent legacy of continuous improvement and major change management with an exceptional track-record in the Strategic Leadership and Operational Management of large-scale Information and Communication Technology (ICT) functions.

Dr Nandita Sharma is a Director in Artificial Intelligence and Automation at the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). She is experienced in leading data science initiatives in government, banking, private and research industries. She has considerable understanding of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies in industry and deeply interested in educating organisations to embrace analytics and AI for enhanced success.

She is a strong engineering professional with a PhD in AI (Australian National University) and holds numerous International publications. Her research interests are in Deep Learning, Computational Intelligence, Optimisation, Machine Learning and Natural Language Understanding.

Abhishek current role focuses on Workplace transformation, Complete Migration to the Azure Cloud, Information Management roll out using Sharepoint, Unified Comms transformation, Data Operations, Data & IT Team Management, Data Migrations from Raiser's edge to the Salesforce CRM, Cyber security compliance, PCI Audit, Privacy Impact assessments. He is responsible for Privacy non compliance and adherence to Australian Privacy Principles. He enables digital transformation using Salesforce. Information security testing, Vulnerability assessments and maintenance of policies and procedures using ISMS standards.

Jacqui Visch is a dynamic technology and data leader, passionate about the adoption and implementation of new ways of working and cultural transformations.  All business, process, data and technology are centred around the customer. 

Through approaches such as scaled agile, customer centred design, DevOps, lean, shift left and servant leadership practices, Jacqui has reduced lead and cycle time by 900%, cost reduction by 70% and created pipelines of customer defined offerings.  The foundation of this success is through building high performing and engaged teams drawing on ecosystems of strategic partners to drive progressive change. 

In her spare time Jacqui is a keen runner, swimmer and traveller.  She is an active member of the Bronte Surf Lifesaving Club with her husband and three children.

Elizabeth role focuses on Implementation Delivery in EMEA and APAC regions. Her leadership style focuses on personal growth and teamwork. She has developed organisational capabilities from the ground up, and is passionate about empowering members of her team with clear pathways and support structures to deliver their own individual best work for clients.

Elizabeth's client work focuses on setting expectations about outcomes, and helping clients value different delivery options and success metrics. Over the last 15 years, she's gained significant experience helping companies expand into new regions, and managing the resulting global teams.

Elizabeth has worked across many regions, markets, and roles, including delivery, customer success, sales, and consulting. Elizabeth holds Master's degrees from University of Southern California, and University of Arizona.

Nareen Young is Industry Professor, Indigenous Policy (Indigenous Workforce Diversity) at Jumbunna Institute of Indigenous Education and Research at University of Technology, Sydney. She leads the UTS Jumbunna Research Indigenous People and Work Research and Practice Hub, launched in March 2019, an international first.

Prior to her current appointment Nareen has spent over twenty years developing her standing as one of Australia’s leading and most respected employment diversity practitioners, leading two peak diversity employment organisations (NSW Working Women’s Centre and Diversity Council Australia) to enormous impact and success.  She has lead diversity thinking and practice in Australia, and most recently as employment lead for PwC’s Indigenous Consulting where she developed many concepts for Indigenous employment diversity practice, and is influenced by her own Indigenous and culturally diverse heritages in this regard. Nareen has received many awards and accolades for her work, has commentated widely and published and presented Nationally and internationally.

Additionally, Nareen has significant governance experience. She spent a three year term as a Director of Indigenous Business Australia and currently serves as non-executive Director of Souths Cares, BlakDance, Diversity Arts Australia and Per Capita.