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FWD>>>FEST 26 SPEAKERS
Come and hear from industry leaders, all running businesses on the Sunshine Coast.
FWD>FEST 26 KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
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Rob is a 50-year entrepreneur who has built and exited multiple international ventures and now leads a global fintech infrastructure company, Securely Group, licensing patented identity and payments technologies. He now focuses on strategy, IP stewardship, governance and global scaling - the realities faced by entrepreneurs playing the long game.
ROB NEELY
Founder & Director,
Securely Group
FWD>DAY ONE
Wednesday 20th May
FWD>LUNCH & LEARN
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Luke set out to revolutionise safety and quality management in 2004 when he created SafetyCulture, which developed the world's most used safety and quality inspection app, iAuditor. Today, SafetyCulture is a global technology company helping frontline teams get better every day.
From humble beginnings in a garage in Townsville, to a valuation of $2.5 billion AUD, the company's momentum continues to build with over 85,000 organisations worldwide relying on SafetyCulture to power their operations.
LUKE ANEAR
Founder & CEO,
SafetyCulture
FWD>DAY ONE
Wednesday 20th May
FWD>KEYNOTE
Breakfast
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CRAIG SCROGGIE
CEO & Managing Director,
NEXTDC
FWD>DAY TWO
Thursday 21st May
THOUGHT LEADERS LUNCH
Craig leads NEXTDC, Australia’s leading Data‑Centre‑as‑a‑Service provider and has been instrumental in building the company into critical national infrastructure underpinning the digital economy. With more than three decades of experience across global technology and ICT organisations, Craig brings deep insight into leadership, scale, governance and long‑term strategy.
Beyond NEXTDC, Craig is an active board member and contributor to academia, bridging industry and education while shaping future business leaders. His perspective spans enterprise technology, public markets, innovation at scale and the responsibilities of leading organisations that sit at the backbone of modern business.
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DANIEL FLYNN
Co-Founder & Managing Director,
Thankyou
FWD>DAY TWO
Thursday 21st May
FWD>KEYNOTE
Daniel Flynn is the co-founder and managing director of Thankyou, one of Australia’s most successful social enterprises. He co-founded the company at just 19, and over the past 12 years, Thankyou’s products have been stocked by major Australian retailers, raising over $17 million to improve lives across 22 countries.
Daniel is also the author of the best-selling book Chapter One, which generated $1.4 million in sales in its first month through an innovative ‘pay-what-you-want’ model. Renowned for his disruptive marketing strategies, he has received widespread media coverage for campaigns that have propelled Thankyou onto the shelves of Australia’s biggest retailers.
His entrepreneurial achievements have been recognised globally. In 2014, Daniel was named an honoree in JCI’s Ten Outstanding Young People of the World. He won EY Entrepreneur of the Year (Southern Region) in 2015 and was named in Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 for Social Entrepreneurship in 2016.
Known for his storytelling ability, Daniel engages and inspires audiences to see that their ideas can become reality, showing how vision, creativity and persistence can create meaningful change.
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BILL OVENDEN
Co-Founder & CEO,
The Lad Collective
FWD>DAY TWO
Thursday 21st May
FWD>CELEBRATE
Bill Ovenden is the Co-Founder and CEO of The Lad Collective, a Sunshine Coast bedding business he started with his brother Ed after realising the chaos of their post move out bedrooms wasn't a discipline issue, it was a design one.
What began with corner-tagged fitted sheets and the JoeyPouch storage system has grown into a business built on a simple principle: when behaviour matters, design for ease before you ask for effort. The same idea now turns up in how Bill talks about teams, customer experience, government services and regional ecosystems.
A recent TEDx Brisbane speaker, Bill is closing FWD>FEST 26 at the FWD>CELEBRATE dinner.
FWD>FEST 26 SPEAKERS
DEAN ALLE
Angel Loop
FWD>INCUBATE - 'Funding 101'
MAT BARMENTLOO
Sunshine Coast Young Chamber of Commerce
FWD>YOUNG PROFESSIONALS WORKSHOP
CAITLIN BETTENAY
B.A.L.A. Academy
FWD>INCUBATE - 'From Side Hustle to Scalable'
ALEZEIA BROWN
Main Sequence Ventures
FWD>INCUBATE - 'Funding 101'
TERRENCE CONWAY
Jacobian
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'A Customer Centric Culture: A Realistic Playbook'
ROBERT EASTON
CFOPRO
FWD>SCALE - 'CFO Priorities 2026'
NIKKI FOGDEN-MOORE
The Mojo Maker & Clara Luna AI
FWD>INCUBATE - 'Super Leadership from the Start'
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Accelerating Your Business with Trust!'
JASON GARLAND
Sunshine Coast Tech Industry Alliance
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'Thought Leaders Forum'
MAYOR GLEN HARTWIG
Gympie Mayor
FWD>SHOWCASE
ORIANE JUNCKER
Radium Capital
FWD>WELCOME
KATE LANGFORD
Kate Langford Consulting
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'A Customer Centric Culture: A Realistic Playbook'
REBECCA MASCI
Brisbane 2032
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'The Eternal Startup: Brisbane 2032 from the Beginning'
MATTHEW MILLER
Mogul
FWD>LUNCH & LEARN
SARAH MORGAN
SIPBN
FWD>INCUBATE - 'Funding 101'
KARL NIELSEN
White's IGA
FWD>SCALE - 'Transformation Fatigue: Leading Through Continuous Change'
CRAIG SCROGGIE
NEXTDC
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'Thought Leaders Forum'
ROB STEFFLER
Silicon Coast
FWD>KEYNOTE Breakfast
FWD>SCALE - 'Innovate and Disrupt - the World Depends on it!'
FWD>AFTER HOURS
FWD>LEADERSHIP - FWD>BREAKFAST
SUSAN TOFT
The Laundry Lady
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'The Blood, Sweat & Tears of Overnight Success'
ASHTON WOOD
DV Safe Phone
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'The Blood, Sweat & Tears of Overnight Success'
LUKE ANEAR
SafetyCulture
FWD>KEYNOTE Breakfast
ERIN BARNES
A Human Edge
FWD>AFTER HOURS
MEL BETTENAY
B.A.L.A. Academy
FWD>INCUBATE - 'From Side Hustle to Scalable'
KRIS CARVER
ENTAG
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'Thought Leaders Forum'
PETER DEANS
Notwithoutrisk Group
FWD>SCALE - 'The Executives New Mandate: Managing Risk & Opportunity'
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'A Voice for the Region - Unpacking Regional Advocacy'
ALISTER EISEMAN
Kawana Chamber of Commerce
FWD>KEYNOTE Breakfast
ADAM FRANKLIN
Blue Wire Media
FWD>YOUNG PROFESSIONALS WORKSHOP
KAT GIUDES
Silicon Coast
FWD>WELCOME
FWD>SCALE - 'CFO Priorities 2026'
FWD>SCALE - 'Transformation Fatigue: Leading Through Continuous Change'
FWD>AFTER HOURS
FWD>LEADERSHIP - FWD>BREAKFAST
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'Thought Leaders Forum'
FWD>CELEBRATE
LIZZIE HENEBERY
Sunny Comms
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'A Customer Centric Culture: A Realistic Playbook'
TONY KELLY
TKRG
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'The Blood, Sweat & Tears of Overnight Success'
JASON LAW
Regional Development Australia - Moreton Bay Sunshine Coast
FWD>CELEBRATE
TASCHI MAXWELL
Mooloolaba Chamber of Commerce
FWD>WELCOME
BRETT MILLS
Ken Mills Toyota
FWD>AFTER HOURS
MAYOR ROSANNA NATOLI
Sunshine Coast Mayor
FWD>KEYNOTE Breakfast
BILL OVENDEN
The Lad Collective
FWD>CELEBRATE
DEV SINGH BATRA
Arrow Digital
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Choose Your Adventure - Unlimited Funding Paths'
MIN SWAN
White House International
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'A Customer Centric Culture: A Realistic Playbook'
CARLOS VELASQUEZ
SoundX
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Choose Your Adventure - Unlimited Funding Paths'
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Accelerating Your Business with Trust!'
MARK WOODLAND
Kismet, EDGE Education & Xplor Technologies
FWD>SCALE - 'Innovate and Disrupt - the World Depends on it!'
AARON ZAMYKAL
Actualisation.ai
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Accelerating Your Business with Trust!'
STEVE BARBER
Blackflag Brewing
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Choose Your Adventure - Unlimited Funding Paths'
BRENDAN BATHERSBY
Maroochydore Chamber of Commerce
FWD>AFTER HOURS
SEAN BOHANNON
Trade Investment Queensland
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Choose Your Adventure - Unlimited Funding Paths'
ETHANN CASTELL
Atlassian Community
FWD>LEADERSHIP - FWD>BREAKFAST
JACQUI DELANEY
Sunshine Coast Thunder
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'High Performance Leadership Panel'
DANIEL FLYNN
Thankyou
FWD>LEADERSHIP - FWD>KEYNOTE
SHAHIRAH GARDNER
ACS & Skalata Ventures
FWD>INCUBATE - 'Funding 101'
TYRONE GLENBAR
Indigenous Energy Australia & Kabi Kabi Peoples Aboriginal Corporation
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Choose Your Adventure - Unlimited Funding Paths'
DAMIEN HICKS
ENTAG
FWD>SCALE - 'CFO Priorities 2026'
CHRIS KERRISK
Cerge
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'The Blood Sweat & Tears of Overnight Success'
CHERYL LING
BeWell Brands
FWD>SCALE - 'Transformation Fatigue: Leading Through Continuous Change'
DANIEL MCKINNON
Fractional CTO
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Accelerating Your Business with Trust!'
STEVE MINNIKIN
Minister for Customer Services and Open Data & Minister for Small and Family Business
FWD>LUNCH & LEARN
ROB NEELY
Securely Group
FWD>LUNCH & LEARN
JENNA SANDERS
Kenilworth Bakery
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'The Blood, Sweat & Tears of Overnight Success'
DANIELLE SMITH
Brisbane Lions AFLW
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'High Performance Leadership Panel'
RICHARD THOMPSON
Thompson Legal
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'High Performance Leadership Panel'
BRYTON WISHART
Cured Compliance
FWD>ACCELERATE - 'Accelerating Your Business with Trust!'
AMANDA YEATES
ARUP
FWD>LEADERSHIP - 'Thought Leaders Forum'
"FWD>FEST is a super exciting event to be part of. I've made great collaborations and built new networks at this event in the last couple of years that I've attended. It's great to be able to go along to all the different streams, depending on where you are in your business. Whether you're interested in scaling your business, or getting investment, there are lots of different pathways."

Susan Toft
Founder and CEO of The Laundry Lady


