Rob Mayhew

Using his skills as a stand-up comedian, Rob found his ability to shine a light on the agency world with his funny sketches soon earned him over 162k followers on TikTok and 128K followers on LinkedIn and is one of the most shared individuals on adland’s Teams chats and work WhatsApp groups. The Drum called Rob “Adland’s favourite social media star”. 

Rob has over 20 years’ experience working at top agencies in London and New York. 

Rob was crowned Creator of the year in the Business and Finance category in 2023 and the UK’s No.1 Marketing Influencer in the Technology for Marketing Awards 2024.

Shaun Briggs

Shaun is the Director of Marketing Planning at Specsavers in ANZ taking overseeing the marketing activity across Australia and New Zealand from the iconic and enduring Should Have Gone To Specsavers campaigns across to hard retail offers. In his remit is the execution of media, creative and PR.  He has over 25 years’ experience in marketing, media and advertising. 

Fiona Lenahan

Fiona Lenahan is a passionate and dynamic brand strategist with a global outlook shaped by her experience leading marketing campaigns spanning APAC, EMEA and LATAM. Having worked both agency and client-side, she has held strategy roles at META, Facebook and ASOS, and has worked with iconic brands including McDonald’s, Unilever, Wrigley, the BBC and the Sydney Opera House.

Fiona now leads brand strategy at Canva, an online visual communication and collaboration platform with a mission to empower the world to design. As Global Brand Strategy Director, she is responsible for developing Canva’s consumer marketing and brand strategies, partnering with global marketing and channel leads and creative teams to bring marketing campaigns to life. She is passionate about building brands, customer experiences and product launches that both inspire and influence.

Tony Broderick

Tony Broderick leads Marketing for Netflix in Australia and New Zealand. With 20 years of experience at some of the world’s leading companies in content and culture like Fremantle and Twitter, he’s built campaigns, communities and partnerships for iconic entertainment brands, from global scripted franchises like Stranger Things, Bridgerton, and Squid Game, to unscripted formats like Got Talent and The X Factor. Tony is dedicated to investing in and empowering diverse teams and championing authentic local stories. His favourite recent titles are Adolescence, Apple Cider Vinegar and Running Point.

Jeavon Smith

As Chief Creative Officer at ‘Brand Experience Agency of the Decade’ Amplify, Jeavon is at the forefront of ideas-led thinking. Overseeing the creative output across Amplify’s global offices in London, Sydney, Los Angeles, New York and Paris, Jeavon has helped pioneer the agency’s approach to worldbuilding, a form of brand marketing that solidifies a client’s role in the cultural zeitgeist.

Tim Baggott

Mariane Power

Mariane Power is a Clinical Psychologist and Neurodiversity Specialist dedicated to advancing the personal and professional capabilities of neurodivergent individuals. With her unique blend of clinical expertise and lived experience as a Neurodivergent professional, Mariane is a sought-after speaker, Executive Coach, and consultant for organisations striving to integrate inclusive work-life design with neuroscience, positive and performance psychology principles, to unlock the potential of diverse teams.

Mariane’s evidence-based approaches help companies not only meet psychosocial safety legislation requirements but also foster neuroinclusive work environments to unlock the full potential of diverse teams, and her work has been trusted by organisations including Microsoft, Australian Institute of Sport, Unmind, Hollards Insurance, Singularity University, and NSW Education.

Recognised as a World Class Education Top Innovator by Uplink and Deloitte Global, Mariane is the author of The IMPACT Mindset Theory and creator of the IMPACT Framework. As the host of Classroom 5.0, a podcast exploring the future of work, learning, and leadership, Mariane continues to shape conversations on building communities and workplaces that leverage cognitive diversity to drive sustainable innovation for impact.

Leslie Beckman

Leslie is a dynamic force in driving corporate profitability through the fusion of marketing and sustainability. With a knack for systems-thinking, Leslie leads sustainable initiatives that break the mould, optimising everything from sales to product development, all the way to the bottom line.

Harnessing 25 years’ experience, Leslie has propelled businesses to success, from local startups to billion-dollar corporations. Her global journey has taken her to postings across the U.S., Australia, Singapore, China, and Indonesia, where she’s left an indelible mark on industries spanning software, non-profit, and consumer electronics. Drawing from this diverse background, Leslie brings a treasure trove of practical yet inspiring insights to the table.

As a sought-after advocate, Leslie has graced prestigious platforms globally. Her transformative work in integrated marketing, sustainability, and strategic leadership have garnered both local and international recognition, solidifying her role as a visionary driving results-driven change.

Abe Udy

In 1998, Abe Udy started a voiceover & audio production business in his bedroom with an old computer, fax machine, dial-up internet, and a microphone tucked between the shirts in his wardrobe.

Abe’s idea was to utilise emerging MP3 technology to allow him to record and email audio files to his clients, and he began producing TV and radio commercials for a handful of regional broadcasters & advertising agencies.

Since then, Abe’s Audio has grown to over 25 staff and produces audio content at scale for hundreds of creative agencies, media companies, video & content producers, animators and podcasters.

Abe’s passion to continually innovate and grow a thriving team culture has seen the business go from strength to strength. In December 2022, the company celebrated producing 500,000 jobs (over 1.2 million scripts!) and has developed new offerings, including the Australian-first ‘Ethical AI Voiceovers’ service – harnessing the power of AI technology and human authenticity.

Today, Abe is focused on developing and empowering his team of young leaders – and then getting out of their way!

Harry Badcock

Harry Badcock has a diverse background spanning audio production, hospitality, and media. With strong expertise in team leadership, marketing strategy, customer service and sales management, he has built a career around driving business growth and fostering strong client relationships.

As the Head of Client Partnerships and COO at Abe’s Audio, Harry plays a key role in shaping the company’s strategic direction, ensuring exceptional service delivery and forging meaningful relationships.

Harry is also heavily involved in the music and events industry and is currently spearheading Tasmania’s Good Gumnuts Festival – an independent music festival that has grown significantly in its 4 years.

With a commitment to excellence and innovation, Harry continues to significantly impact audio production and event management spaces.

Laura Nice

Laura Nice serves as Co-Chief Executive Officer of OMD Australia alongside Sian Whitnall.

Nice is driven to deliver growth and service excellence for OMD’s clients. She proudly cites her leadership style as people first. Her international client service, data and technology experience spans all major industry categories.

Passionate about mentoring future leaders, Nice spoke at the inaugural event for The Village, the industry’s community for working parents, alongside her involvement with the MFA5+ program. She is leading OMG’s involvement with Ad Net Zero as a founding member and is committed to delivering net zero carbon emissions by 2050 for the Australian media industry.

Together with Whitnall, Nice actively continues OMD’s enduring focus on its people and culture. The agency has been certified by Great Place to Work Australia for 16 consecutive years (2008 to 2024). Over the past year, OMD was named Campaign’s Gold Australian Media Agency of the Year for the second consecutive year, AWARD Awards Media Agency of the Year, UnLtd Good Company and awarded the MFA Awards Grand Prix.

Guy Burbidge

Guy Burbidge is a skilled commercial director, with extensive experience across various facets of media, from outdoor and digital to cinema and radio, with experience on both agency and publisher fronts.

Guy has played a pivotal role in propelling the growth of Val Morgan Cinema.

With a robust career spanning over two decades, Guy stands out as a true leader, motivating teams, crafting effective business strategies, and spearheading new business development initiatives, all contributing to his proven ability to drive positive commercial outcomes.

Andrew Raso

Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of OMG, Andrew has had a long, illustrious career in the SEO & Digital Marketing industry. After years of working for agencies, Andrew realised the system was broken and started OMG to remove the complexity from digital and provide simple, transparent results. He previously won a B&T 30 under 30 award in the Entrepreneur category, and has also been featured in and contributes to Entrepreneur, CMI, Jeffbullas, Search Engine Journal and more.

Mez Homayunfard

Co-Founder of OMG and Head of Partnerships & Sales, Mez brings a wealth of expertise to OMG after overseeing many campaigns and participating at some of the largest Ecommerce and Marketing events in Australia. Mez has also helped OMG win awards such as Financial Times’ 1000 High-Growth Companies APAC, SEMrush Search Awards Australia, Financial Review’s Fast 100, and many more. Mez loves all things Performance Marketing!

Colleen Ryan

Colleen Ryan is recognized in the international research industry for her notable contributions to innovation in research. Together with Wendy Gordon, she co-founded The Research Business International (TRBI), lauded for its pioneering role in the methodologies of insight gathering and application, and creating the boutique research category in the UK.

Over the last decade, Colleen has played a pivotal role at TRA as a partner, steering thought leadership and innovation strategies within TRA’s operations across Sydney, Melbourne, and Auckland.

Her expertise is extensive and multifaceted, encompassing brand strategy, cultural sociology, cognitive psychology, behavioural science, applying these disciplines to continuous innovation in research and its application to marketing.

Terri Hall

Terri Hall is an insights leader passionate about putting people at the heart of decision making, driving better experiences and commercial success. She believes in using multi-disciplinary approaches to uncover deep, inspiring insights that foster transformative change.

Terri leads the Sydney arm of TRA, a trans-tasman agency that champions cultural insight, behavioural science, brand and creative effectiveness, and innovation.

With extensive experience leading consulting teams in Australia and New Zealand, Terri excels at understanding, representing, and advocating for the voice of people, and translating these insights into tangible directions for brand success.

Mark Hobart

Coming soon

John McNerney

John is a seasoned digital advertising expert who has spent the last 20+ years immersed in the world of advertising data and technology. In his current role John leads Yahoo Advertising portfolio across Australia and South East Asia, focusing on helping partners deliver future-forward, full-funnel digital media solutions.

John sits on the IAB Executive Technology Council and is a leading expert in programmatic advertising and its evolution.

Rebecca Newton

Rebecca Newton is the Chief Marketing Officer and Director of Category at eBay Australia. Her experience spans more than 20 years across the UK and Australia, covering a wide variety of areas including brand strategy, loyalty programmes, digital products and advertising. Rebecca joined eBay in 2018, prior to this she worked in digital transformation and marketing at Crown Resorts and Woolworths. Outside of eBay, Rebecca advises seed stage startups with growth opportunities and business strategy.

Marcelle Hoyek

Marcelle is an experienced agency leader with over 24 years in the industry. She is considered a jack of all trades, having worked in strategy, planning, client leadership, and investment roles throughout her career.​ ​

Marcelle has worked with some of the world’s most recognised brands, such as P&G, L’Oreal, Ikea, Tiffany & Co., Apple and more. She is well versed in building brands through a combination of the long and the short, and is passionate about the role that media can play in driving true business outcomes.​

She is seasoned in change management and passionate about authentic leadership and empowering her team. Marcelle is experienced in creating, leading and nurturing high performing teams who have been recognised locally and globally via industry award wins including Cannes Lions, AdNews, B&T and MFA Awards. ​

Andrew Gilbert

Andrew is a leading marketing and advertising technology expert with a history of building high performing commercial and technical teams that drive strong commercial growth regionally.

He has spent the last 15 years working within key sectors of the marketing industry across APAC from media agencies, to brands, publishers and technology companies. His expertise is in connecting all of these experiences, to build innovative, trusted and transparent partnerships that drive marketing success.

Most recently he has led the growth of Yahoo DSP across the Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia market. Andrew joins Afterpay in May, 2025.

He is also a member of the IAB Executive Technology Council and previously the IAB DOOH Council, where he participates in industry development and best practices.

Jordan Taylor-Bartels

Jordan Taylor-Bartels, CEO of Prophet, is a visionary leader blending his expertise as a founder and global marketing exec to shape the future of marketing. With a background in groundbreaking tech like Hyperloop and SpaceX, Jordan uses advanced mathematics and engineering principles to create actionable, data-driven products.

Having worked with top brands like JB Hi-Fi, Salesforce, and Woolworths, Jordan’s deep understanding of the marketing landscape fuels Prophet’s mission to empower businesses with real-time, data-backed decisions. Prophet’s cutting-edge platform uses Nobel Prize-winning math to predict the most cost-effective ways to influence consumer behaviour, providing brands with powerful decision intelligence at scale.

Founded in 2020 by Jordan and co-founder Sean Taylor, Prophet is revolutionising how companies optimise their marketing strategies and make smarter investments.

Avery Akkineni

A trailblazer in digital marketing, Avery Akkineni spearheads growth, innovation, and global impact as Chief Marketing Officer of VaynerX, a collection of modern-communication companies founded by Gary Vaynerchuk (@GaryVee). In her seven years at the company, she has redefined what’s possible in digital and growth marketing through a focus on emerging markets and industries. She has launched new companies, expanded VaynerMedia internationally, and has led key Fortune 500 client partnerships including Google, Diageo, Anheuser Busch, and PepsiCo, and many more. Building VaynerMedia APAC from the ground up, Avery scaled the office to 150+ employees across Singapore, Bangkok, Sydney, and Tokyo in just two years. Under her leadership, the region earned Marketing Interactive’s Agency of the Year recognition. In 2021, she founded Vayner3, an innovation consultancy exploring how global brands can enhance their branding through emerging technologies like AI and Web3. Her groundbreaking work earned accolades such as Ad Age’s Web3 Trailblazer, and AI Thought Leader recognition from Business Insider.

Dr Shannon Bosshard

Shannon is the Founder and Managing Director of Neuroconsulting Australia, a neurotech company that taps into the mind of the consumer to unlock the hidden drivers of behaviour. With over a decade of experience in the rapidly evolving consumer research space, Shannon has worked alongside some of the most respected brands and agencies worldwide, helping them enhance both creative and campaign effectiveness. By combining neuroimaging techniques with behavioural economics and advanced analytics, Shannon provides clients with insights that are affordable, actionable, and grounded in science. Shannon’s expertise spans consumer behaviour, neuroscience, and attention, making him a trusted advisor for brands navigating the modern media landscape.  

Phillip Ely

A communications and media strategist with over 20 years in agencies in Australia working with teams and clients from all over the world. Started Phil Ely Comms in 2024, which quickly evolved into JP&Co, partnering with his wife Jaci to help agencies and marketers solve tough strategic and business challenges. Driven by a sometimes unhealthy obsession to find a better way, Phil has teamed up with Dr Shannon Bosshard to drive a new evolution in brand tracking with GreyMattr.

Andy Morley

Andy is the Director of Marketing for Uber and Uber Eats in Asia Pacific, where he has spent the past 8 years steering the brands’ evolution from start-up disrupter to iconic category leader.  

Andy’s work leading teams to deliver bold, cut-through campaigns has helped drive rapid consumer adoption, unlock new growth categories, and drive brand fame that has seen the Advertising Industry recognise Uber and Uber Eats as the two most awarded brands during this period. Spearheading iconic campaigns like “Tonight, I’ll be eating…”  and “Get Almost, Almost Anything” Andy is now bringing this winning formula to other regions across APAC.  

Susan Coghill

As Tourism Australia’s Chief Marketing Officer, Susan Coghill is responsible for driving the organisation’s global marketing efforts. Her relentless pursuit of effectiveness and world class creativity has raised the bar in destination marketing. Some of her well known and well-loved, award-winning campaigns including the global ‘Come and Say G’day’ campaign, the ‘Dundee’ Super Bowl campaign in the US, and the Australian ‘Holiday Here This Year’ campaign. In her time at Tourism Australia, Susan has been recognised as one of the top CMOs in Australia and Asia Pacific on Campaign Asia’s CMO Power List, B&T’s CMO Power List, AWARD CMO of the Year and the CMO50.

Chris Donald

Bio coming soon

Priya Addams Williams

Priya is the Shift 20 Initiative Lead at the Dylan Alcott Foundation. Prior to joining the DAF, she spent nearly a decade working at some of Australia’s top creative agencies on major brands including ANZ, Netflix, Virgin Australia and Australian Red Cross Lifeblood. She is passionate about creating work that reflects the diversity of Australia’s people, and giving people with disability an opportunity to see themselves represented in advertising.

Katie Dally

Katie is the GM Brand, Creative & Operations at Endeavour group where she has spent the past few years shaping a creative culture that drives business growth. Evolving marketing content models to be more progressive, future fit and challenge the status quo has been her focus as evidenced through the launch of Howatson+Company’s, Plus Also Studios with Endeavour as their foundation client. This new content creation ecosystem will democratise creativity across the entire Endeavour business and in turn, enhance the customer experience across Endeavour’s intuitive ecosystem of beloved brands that come together to make good times happen for customers. 

Prior to joining Endeavour Group, Katie’s career spanned nearly two decades in creative agency’s, where she held senior roles at Thinkerbell, CHEP, VMLY&R & Ogilvy in Australia as well as other notable agencies in South Africa and the UK.   

Chris Howatson

Chris is recognised for his ability to design, lead and embed brand, customer and technology transformation of bluechip and scale up companies.  

In 2021, after 19 years with Clemenger Group. Chris founded Howatson+Company with the vision of creating a legacy agency brand, fully independent and responsible for re-establishing advertising as a multi-disciplinary profession, valued for generating economic value. Three years on, H+Co has grown rapidly with 180 staff, offices in the creative precincts of Sydney and Melbourne and has been recognised the world over, winning a raft of prestigious creative awards, including a Spikes Grand Prix, D&AD International Independent Agency of the Year, Cannes Global Independent Agency of the Year, and most recently Adnews Creative, Independent, Employer and Agency of the Year.  

In 2024, Chris founded Plus Also studios – a creative innovation business pioneering technology enabled production.  

Previously as Group CEO of CHE Proximity Australia, Chris imagined a new type of agency, perfectly balancing customer consultancy with creative expression. Over this time CHE Proximity was recognised as WARC’s most creative agency in Australia (2019), WARC’s 3rd most effective agency in the world (2020), Contagious’ top 10 best and bravest agencies on the planet 4 years in a row (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020), Australian Financial Review’s 3rd most innovative Australian company (2019) and winner of AFR’s most innovative marketing solution four years in a row (2017, 2018, 2020, 2020). In 2017 and 2018 he was recognised as B&T’s ‘male champion of change’ across Australia marketing and media industries.  

Hoang Nguyen

Born in Vietnam, Hoang Nguyen started programming at the age of six. At 12-years-old, he was recognised by Vietnam’s Guinness Record as the youngest person to have received a professional certification from Microsoft, a software patent at the age of 14 from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (a specialised agency of the United Nations). Hoang has competed in and won over ten national and international Information and Communications Technology awards in Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, Korea, Japan and Switzerland. 

During his time leading technology teams at several agencies, Hoang led and designed architectures for several blue-chip enterprises such as NAB and ANZ, Samsung, Telstra, and many financial and technology startups. 

Hoang is certified and awarded by many technology vendors such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Adobe. As Chief Data & Technology Officer at Howatson+Company, Hoang leads and expands the technology offering especially in the areas of AI, analytics, data modelling, privacy, security, platform engineering and product development. Hoang also leads the development of Plus Also Studios AI technology. 

Amanda Behre

Amanda is an executive marketing leader with almost 20 years’ experience from global organisations to scaleups spanning different category sectors such as Gumtree, Expedia, Wotif and Hireup. Amanda is also a career coach, Non Executive Director and Founder and CEO of Dear Thrive, a platform connecting mid-career professionals to advisory and coaching support. Her professional background spans USA and Australia and she has led teams  managing consumer and B2B marketing, communications, CRM, marketing automation, martech and CX, managing databases of over 7 million consumers. Connect with Amanda at linkedin.com/in/amandabehre. 

Nathan Low

Nathan Low has been the General Manager of Marketing and Insights at Meat and Livestock Australia since 2020, the marketing and research body that supports Australia’s Red Meat Industry. Nathan is responsible for brand marketing, business development, nutrition, consumer and market insights, and market information reporting across both domestic and international markets. The most visible of these activities being the Australian Beef and Australian Lamb brand advertising, with a focus on delivering highly creative campaigns that drive real commercial outcomes for the industry’s farmers, brand owners, and exporters.

Nathan is a commercial marketer with a passion for creativity, innovation, customer centricity, consumers, brands, insights, sustainability, and people. His background prior to MLA includes experience across FMCG, Retail, eCommerce, and Manufacturing in organisations such as Unilever, SunRice, Ladbrokes, and Pact Group.

Matt Michael

Matt Michael is Group CEO of Droga5 A/NZ, part of Accenture Song, encompassing Australia and New Zealand, and Managing Director, Marketing Practice, Accenture Song ANZ.

As Group CEO of Droga5 A/NZ, Matt oversees all aspects of the agency’s activities. He is responsible for the strategic and creative output as well as the people and financial management spanning three core offices. As Managing Director of Marketing Practice, Accenture Song ANZ, Matt leads Song’s entire marketing consulting practice, including advisory, marketing strategy, above the line comms, customer technology, data, personalisation and loyalty as well as the newly formed media organisation.

Joining The Monkeys (now Droga5) in 2011, Matt has worked across all disciplines in the business and helped to steer a portfolio of blue-chip clients, including Telstra, Qantas, NRMA Insurance, Tourism Australia, Amazon, Beam Suntory, Meat & Livestock Australia and Blackmores.

Kellie Hush

Kellie Hush is considered one of the most influential people in the Australian fashion industry. Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Harper’s BAZAAR Australia, a role she held for six years, Kellie has over 25 years’ experience in the media and the Australian and international fashion industries and today consults to fashion brands and start-ups locally and globally.

Kellie is a co-founder and the Chief Brand and Strategy Officer of the world’s largest peer-to-peer fashion rental platform, The Volte. The Volte is at the forefront of digital fashion re-commerce and in 2025 launched globally.

Kellie is the CEO of Australian Fashion Week 2025 and was a co-founder and former acting CEO of the Australian Fashion Council. She also consults to a number of brands and businesses including Carla Zampatti and the Macquarie Group.

Kellie is also a current Board Director of M.J. Bale and the Best Group. Her previous board positions include Trustee of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences where she was the driving creative force behind the museum’s 2022 exhibition, Zampatti Powerhouse, a retrospective of Carla Zampatti’s prolific career. A former Melbourne Fashion Festival Board Director, Board Director for the Royal Hospital for Women Foundation, raising over $2 million for the RHWF Fertility and Research Centre, and a St George Foundation Governor.

Christina Aventi

Christina started her career as a client at Unilever 25 years ago. After getting a solid grounding in marketing and category management, she jumped ship and found a permanent home as a strategist, speaking the many languages of strategy – business, marketing, brand and comms.

Christina has contributed to award-winning, effective campaigns across an array of clients (Retail, Finance, FMCG) and is most proud of the behaviour change work she has been part of in both the commercial and social marketing sector, including domestic violence, anti-vaping and road safety initiatives.

An industry commentator (diversity and memory science) and regular panellist on ABC’s Gruen, Christina has led BMF to be the most effective agency in Australia (2017, 2019 and most recently 2024) and number 3 in the world in the WARC Creative Effectiveness ratings.

Matt Stoddart

With over 20 years experience spanning across New Zealand and Australia, Matt currently sits as the ECD of TBWA Melbourne and Eleven. His work is most known for being non-traditional and disruptive, gaining more than his fair share of earned media attention.

Matt has been acknowledged at every major international and local advertising festival, with over 350 award recognitions including a D&AD Yellow Pencil, Cannes Grand Prix, One Show Pencils, Effies, and four Spikes Grand Prix. In 2019 he was named as one of the top 25 innovators in communication for Asia Pacific.

With a strong passion for nurturing and developing the creativity of advertising students, Matt currently sits as the Chair of the Advertising Industry Advisory Committee for the RMIT University, Bachelor of Communications Degrees.

Tara McKenty

Tara has spent over 17 years working in the creative industries across the APAC region, including at award-wining creative agency BMF and eight years working as a Creative Director at Google Australia, and the last two years leading Google’s Creative across APAC, where her remit included working directly with international brands to create work on Google products and platforms.

Tara is a thought leader both in the local and global creative community. She has served on high profile awards juries across the world, including the prestigious Cannes Lion Innovation Jury.

She’s presented to industry leaders on four different continents, including at Google Beach in Cannes.

Tara’s work awarded at all the major awards shows including a highly sought-after gold for Creative Innovation at Cannes. In 2016 her work for OPSM won WARC’s most effective global campaign.

A strong advocate for Diversity Equity and Inclusion, Tara founded D&AD RARE, a global initiative which gives underrepresented groups opportunities to thrive in the creative industries.

Sian Binder

Sian is a Group Creative Director at Special where she’s been for the past four and half years leading pitches and working across clients like Bonds, eBay and her favourite tinned tomato brand, Mutti. Before Special, she was a Creative Director on McDonald’s and Head of Art on Seafolly and Aldi. Sian cares deeply about craft in advertising and building unique brand voices. She is a big believer in creating inclusive and supportive creative departments, where different thinking can thrive. When she isn’t busy at Special you can find Sian at her partner’s brewery helping build his brand, Freshwater Brewing.

Sarah McGregor

Sarah has close to 25 years of experience in Melbourne and London agencies including Dentsu Creative, Leo Burnett, Karmarama, Y&R, Grey and cummins and partners.

Over her career she has partnered with some of the world’s best-loved brands and has been recognised at every major award show including Cannes Lions, The Effies, Spikes Asia, One Show, LIA and AWARD.

An industry leader, Sarah is the first Melbourne-based member to join the AWARD Council.

She has spoken at panels and events including This Way Up, Copyschool, AWARD School and The Aunties.

And she was recently nominated for Creative Leader of the Year by CreativePool.

When she’s not working Sarah is Mum to Wyn aged 9, and believes that being a parent makes you a better creative – “It makes you more efficient, ambitious and gives you a real sense of perspective.”

Jeremy Weiss

Jeremy has 25 years’ experience delivering customer and commercial value in large consumer services organisations. He has launched, transformed and grown some of Australia’s leading brands with senior roles at Telstra, GE, Latitude Finance and Origin Energy, and is currently the Chief Marketing Officer at the Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, where his team literally help save lives every day. Jeremy is a Marketing Academy Fellow (APAC, 2024) and holds strategic advisory roles with Melbourne City Football Club and the Australian Centre for AI in Marketing.

Amy Bradshaw

Amy Bradshaw is a dynamic leader in media, advertising and technology, with a career spanning North America, Europe, and APAC. As the Head of Partnerships for TikTok AUNZ, Amy leads enterprise sales and strategic collaborations across the region, helping advertisers harness the power of the platform. Prior to this, she played a pivotal role in expanding VaynerMedia’s presence in Australia, scaling the global creative and media agency from the ground and delivering significant client expansion and revenue growth. Her expertise in traditional & digital marketing, social media and brand partnerships has made her a trusted advisor to some of the world’s leading companies across industries such as technology, finance, CPG, telco, and media.

Over the past 15 yeas, Amy has worked at the intersection of communications, media, and advertising, developing innovative strategies that drive engagement and business impact. Her global perspective, having worked in Sydney, London, and New York, gives her unique insight into the evolving global digital landscape.

Dave Annesley

Bio coming soon.

Dennis Wong

Dennis has over 25 years experience in finding and applying insight to help brands and businesses grow. He’s the principal of Ground Swell Advisory, formerly the Managing Partner of Kantar Consulting and previously Managing Director of Added Value.

He’s fluent in the languages of insight, marketing and growth and has worked with loads of businesses across categories from Alcohol to QSR, Finance to Aged Care, Lifestyle to Retail to build their brands in culture.

He has led the development of cultural insight capability within businesses as well as client organisations and is of the belief that the ability to lead cultural conversations is the special sauce that separates the good from truly great brands.

Steve Coll

Currently M+C Saatchi Group CCO ANZ and ex Meta Head of Creative Shop, Steve has 30+ years experience producing award winning, world-class advertising for brands in Ireland, Australia and the UK. Formerly ADMA’s Australian Creative of the Year and the Havas Network’s Worldwide Person of the Year, he is proud to have won 21 Lions in his career, including the inaugural Cannes Creative Effectiveness Grand Prix. He has also previously been named in Campaign Magazines ‘Top Ten UK Creatives’ and as the creator of one of Campaign Brief Top Ten ‘Ads of the Decade’. His success as a leader stems from his passionate belief in diversity, and he is a proud mentor to many of the Australian industry’s emerging creative leaders. 

Maurice Riley

Maurice Riley serves as the Chief Data Officer for Publicis Groupe Australia & New Zealand. In his role, he partners with the Groupe’s agency CEOs and data leads to further elevate Publicis ANZ’s data specialisms and products. He also works closely with Publicis Groupe ANZ’s Chief Creative Officer, Dave Bowman, and Chief Media Officer, Imogen Hewitt, to drive connected data, creative and media ideas through leveraging proprietary data and technology solutions.

Prior to this position, Riley was with Digitas for eight years, most recently as Chief Data Officer of Australia and New Zealand. In this role, he masterminded data-fuelled creativity and technology solutions for a distinguished client roster, including Tourism Australia, Arnott’s, Johnson & Johnson, Westpac, and McDonald’s. He was also previously VP Strategy Directory at Publicis New York (formerly Publicis Kaplan Thaler).

With over two decades of experience in data analytics, Maurice is more than just a seasoned expert—he’s an industry visionary. He pioneered 1-to-1 marketing well before it became an industry buzzword.  Launching his career at Nielsen in New York, Maurice played a pivotal role in creating the first U.S. household-level consumer segmentation and PRIZM-TV, a ground-breaking segmentation system that was the first to measure the correlation between media consumption and lifestyle choices.

Recognised globally for his influence in the field, Maurice served as President of the Creative Data Cannes Lions Jury in 2021 and is a frequent contributor to industry and news publications.

Sophie Langton

In her relentless pursuit of craft excellence, Sophie has been consistently recognised as one the of ‘Best of the Best’ planning directors in Australia. She focuses on the principles of marketing effectiveness and the practical application of those theories into action. She strives to foster a culture of curiosity and critical thinking and values the complementary magic of data, media and creative.

Jonathan Pease

Jonathan Pease (JP) is a renowned creative and communications expert with more than 25 years of experience in the marketing and media industries.

During his career, JP has worked with some of the most influential global brands, including Nike, Disney, UBS, Coca-Cola, and Chanel.

His commercial creativity career began in the ‘90s at BBDO New York, where he first discovered the power of ideas and cultivated a talent for pitching.

Returning to Australia in 2003, JP founded the highly awarded creative agency Tongue, which STW/WPP later acquired.

Today, JP leads the strategic consultancy firm Delorean and is the Founder of the executive coaching program Winning The Room.

In 2023, JP authored his debut book based on his coaching program, titled Winning the Room – Public Speaking Skills for Unforgettable Storytelling, which reveals how he overcame a debilitating childhood speech disorder to become one of the world’s leading public speaking coaches. The book offers expert guidance that teaches the skills and inspires the confidence needed for readers to overcome stage fright and transform into influential and affable communicators.

Along with his corporate career, JP has always been involved in media and entertainment. JP starred on Foxtel’s smash hit TV series Australia’s Next Top Model as the Style Director and Judge for five years, is the Co-Owner and Publisher of iconic fashion and lifestyle title Oyster Magazine, and has held multiple roles as a journalist, including being a regular columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald. JP also writes and directs feature films, ads, and other content and was awarded Best Director for his film Two Bites at the Sanctuary Cove International Film Festival.

His philanthropic endeavours include co-founding the Sohn Hearts & Minds conference, an event that has donated over $85 million to vital Australian medical research and established an associated $780 million investment fund, HM1. As part of this role, JP coaches the conference speakers and works with them on their pitches. Speakers include thought leaders like Ray Dalio, Cathie Wood, Bill Ackman, Charlie Munger, Dan Ariely, and Professor Scott Galloway.

JP holds a Master of Business from the University of Sydney and a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from the University of Technology Sydney/AdSchool. JP is currently a Campaign Ambassador for the University of Sydney.

JP is a sought-after keynote speaker on communication, leadership, and influence. He is currently an Advisor to SXSW and has contributed to major platforms, including Vivid, Mumbrella SAGE, and SXSW Sydney.

He lives in Australia, dividing his time between Los Angeles, Sydney and Byron Bay with his wife Maddison and their four children—Kingston, Ripley, Ocean, and Lumi.

Kate Gildea

Kate Gildea is the Growth Marketing & Communications Director ANZ at The Estée Lauder Companies. A graduate of the University of Queensland Business School, Kate commenced her beauty career on the cosmetics floor of MYER and has previously held positions in sales, marketing and communications across companies including Cosmax Prestige Brands, LVMH, ModelCo and COTY. 

Kate has had a notable career since joining The Estée Lauder Companies in 2013 as Communications Manager for Estée Lauder and Tom Ford Beauty. In this role, Gildea established the first influencer marketing programs for Estée Lauder and oversaw the launch of the AERIN brand in the market, in addition to Tom Ford Beauty’s distribution expansion, and launching the brand’s first digital advertising campaigns in Australia. 

In 2017, Kate took on the role of Corporate Media Marketing & Communications Lead as part of the Enterprise Marketing team. She has been instrumental in the development of best-practice media strategies across ANZ, working closely with agency partners to drive ELC ANZ’s digital transformation. 

In her current role as Growth Marketing & Communications Director, Kate serves on the ANZ leadership team and oversees media, CRM, consumer insights, market analytics and corporate communications.

A passionate beauty fan, Kate loves working with a wide range of stakeholders to build consumer-centric brand strategies and create engaging content. 

Amanda Bosch

Amanda Bosch is the Group Social Lead for entertainment and streaming company, Foxtel Group, including Foxtel, BINGE, Kayo Sports and Hubbl. 

 A highly innovative and data-driven social media advertising leader with 20+ years’ experience working in digital marketing & content, specialising in social media performance. Prior to Foxtel group she has worked with leading Australian agencies, companies and brands, with a passion for creators and the wild world of digital and social media.   

Jessica Wood

Jessica Wood brings a wealth of experience and innovation to her role as Head of Brand Partnerships at Click Media. Her impressive career spans notable positions at Snapchat and News Corp, equipping her with a deep understanding of client needs and industry trends. At Click Media, Jess excels in guiding top brands like Maybelline and Optus through the complexities of working with creators with a specialised focus on the gaming world. Click Media, renowned for its expertise in connecting brands with often hard to reach audiences through talent, strategy, production and game development. 

Ben Gunn

Ben Gunn is co-founder and chief revenue officer of leading creator economy platform Fabulate.  

A highly experienced media sales executive, he has held senior sales roles, leading teams across many of Australia’s largest media/technology businesses including Nine, Fairfax Media, and Red Planet.  

In the five years, Fabulate has firmly established itself as a central player in the Australian Creator Economy activating thousands of creator-led campaigns and being recognised as the AiMCO Marketing Technology Platform of the Year for the past two consecutive years.  

Nic Christensen

Nic Christensen is a Corporate Affairs specialist who runs a consultancy advising some of Australia’s leading advertising, media and technology companies. . 

He is a former Head of Corporate Affairs for Australia’s largest locally owned media company Nine and also public broadcaster SBS. Prior to moving into communications he was a Media Writer for The Australian and Mumbrella. 

Karen Stein

Karen Stein is an Executive Coach, Keynote Speaker, Menopause Champion and Leadership Workshop Facilitator. She is the multi-award-winning author of Be Your Own Leadership Coach and brings over 30 years of experience in professional services, including 24 years as a partner at Deloitte. With more than 2,500 coaching hours, Karen supports leaders in developing self-coaching practices to enhance their leadership impact. 

Passionate about women’s sustainable careers, she designed and delivered Deloitte’s Women Partner Coaching Program and co-leads their Managing Menopause in the Workplace Working Group, helping Deloitte become the first Australian company accredited as a Menopause Friendly Employer. Karen has since been appointed as an Independent Panel member assessing organisations towards their accreditation.  

As a Group Coaching for Managing Menopause in the Workplace, Karen supports organisations by empowering their workforce to be their best selves through menopause. She is currently writing her second book in support of the same. 

Lisa Saunders

Lisa Saunders is the Marketing Director for Miele Australia and New Zealand—the company’s third-largest market globally behind Germany and the USA. With 28 years of diverse, blue-chip experience, Lisa is an engaging, commercially minded marketing leader who has shaped premium brands across multiple continents. 

Her impressive career spans multinational corporations including Nestlé, Sainsbury’s Supermarkets UK, and Treasury Wine Estates, where she has held Marketing Director roles for TWE and Asahi Beverages in Australia. Lisa’s recent experience in high-growth, scale-up Cross Border E-Commerce for China complements her extensive background across marketing, category management, sales, retail, and e-commerce. 

Lisa’s expertise in premium brands spans diverse global markets including Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan, Southeast Asia, USA, UK, and Europe. As both a marketing professional and a Miele customer herself, she brings a unique perspective to luxury consumer targeting. Currently, Lisa is partnering with Starcom to implement precision targeting of premium consumers, maintaining Miele’s position as the #1 premium appliance brand. 

Beyond her professional achievements, Lisa is a qualified yoga instructor with a passion for cooking and fine wine—embodying the premium lifestyle values that align with the Miele brand. 

Robert Millett

Robert Millett is Head of Digital for Starcom Melbourne. Rob is an outgoing, collaborative and innovation focused digital leader.  

He has 15 years of media agency experience spanning client service, communications planning and digital across both London and Melbourne.  

His passion for innovation, data and technology leads him to always look for ways to guide his clients through digital transformation.  

Rob has been working closely with Miele over the past 5 years and has been a key figure in their digital evolution and growth trajectory.  

Mark Duffy

Mark Duffy is the National Head of Digital and Solutions at Starcom. A digital maturity evangelist, Mark is passionate about bringing future-focused solutions to life for clients.

With 19 years of media agency experience, his background spans client service, digital strategy, performance media, data, and technology.

Mark thrives on collaboration and is driven to help clients accelerate their digital maturity connecting the dots to navigate the rapidly evolving media landscape with effective, forward thinking solutions.

For the past five years, Mark has worked closely with Miele, supporting their digital acceleration journey.

Aliya Hasan

Aliya Hasan, Head of Strategy at Nature, brings 20 years of experience across B2C and B2B sectors, specialising in brand strategy, communications, cultural intelligence, and innovation. Having worked with leading brands, Aliya is renowned for helping brands grow through effective go-to-market strategies and tactical activation plans.   

A published commentator and speaker, Aliya’s work has received international recognition including Cannes Gold and multiple Effies.   

Nature has been named the Research Society’s Organisation of the Year for 2023 and 2024.  

James Jayesuria

James Jayesuria is a Partner and the Managing Director of Nature in Sydney, leading an agency dedicated to delivering strategic insights that drive informed business decisions. With 17 years experience, James has broad expertise across a range of industries and research methodologies, with particular specialisation in brand performance tracking, communications evaluation and creative development. He combines strong commercial acumen with a natural ability to transform complex data into actionable insights.   

Adam Ferrier

Adam began work life as a criminal psychologist, before becoming a cool hunter (and completing his masters in psychology in ‘Identifying the Underlying Constructs of Cool People’) and then co-founding Naked Communications APAC. Naked was a wild trip and became one of Australia’s most audacious and successful agencies, embracing a strategically focused behavioural change model. Following that, Adam co-founded Thinkerbell – where they practice ‘measured magic’ – bringing together marketing science and hardcore creativity. After just 3 years Thinkerbell was officially recognised as Mumbrella’s 2021 Creative, Full Service, and PR Agency of the Year – the first time one agency has won all three awards. It’s currently AMi creative and Adnews independent agency of the year There are now approximately 200 people at Thinkerbell across Australia and New Zealand.

In other news Adam is also the author of two books “The Advertising Effect” (Oxford), and ‘Stop Listening to the Customer’ (Wiley). Adam co-hosts the potentially multi-awarding winning podcast ‘Black T-Shirts’, and is a regular media commentator on Sunrise, The Project and Gruen.

Brent Smart

When Brent isn’t doing Black T-Shirts, the popular podcast on the business power of creativity he co-hosts with Adam Ferrier, he is the Chief Marketing Officer at Telstra, Australia’s largest telco and according to Brand Finance now the fourth strongest telco brand in the world. Previously, he was CMO at insurance giant IAG where he led the creative transformation of the NRMA brand, taking it from 36th strongest brand in Australia when he joined to 5th and picking up over 100 major creative awards. He spent 20 years in the agency business, leading NZ Agency of the Decade Colenso BBDO and as CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi New York he worked on iconic American brands Cheerios, Tide and Walmart.