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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."

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Susan Toft

Founder and CEO of The Laundry Lady

JOIN US AT FWD>>>FEST 26

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