Program

The Residence

DEA’s Practitioners’ Forum in Association with genU Training

Wayne Herbert – Director of Progress and Property, LEAD Disability Services

Matt Levy OAM – Author, gold medal winning swimmer, motivational speaker & inclusion advocate

Lauren Peacock – CEO, Institute of Capacity Building

Dan Gavin – National Manager of Disability Employment, GenU Training

Paul Diviny – CEO, Prospert

Rana Kordahi – Reverse Marketing Sales Coach, Employment Services Training

Keryl Neville – CEO, Lead Employment

Tania Jovanovska – Campbell Page

Mayfair 1 Room

Tender Writing Workshop

Darren Coppin – CEO & Chief Behavioural Scientist, Azurum

Jess Barwood – APAC Account Manager, AutoGen AI

Malene Rohde – Chief Operating Officer, Prospert

Peter Bacon – Chief Executive Officer, Disability Employment Australia

Tim Flowers – Principal, Insight First

The Residence

DEA’s Practitioners’ Forum in Association with genU Training (continued)

Mayfair 1 Room

Tender Writing Workshop (continued)

The Residence

DEA’s Practitioners’ Forum in Association with genU Training (continued)

Savoy Ballroom

Welcome to Country

Uncle Colin Hunter – Wurundjeri Elder

Savoy Ballroom

Welcome – Day 1

Brett de hoedt – MC, Hootville Communications

Savoy Ballroom

The Disability Royal Commission: what did we learn?

Alastair McEwin AM – Disability Consultant

Savoy Ballroom

The Australian economy in 2024, labour market movements, trends and indicators for disability employment

Callam Pickering – Senior Economist, Indeed Hiring Lab

Savoy Ballroom

Diversity Pathways: co-designing an accessible and inclusive workplace with employers and people with cognitive disability in the hospitality and retail industries

Dr Jung Yoon – Research Fellow, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), College of Business, Government, and Law, Flinders University

Dr Claire Hutchinson – Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), College of Business, Government, and Law, Flinders University

Lachlan Dunn – Community Researcher, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), College of Business, Government, and Law, Flinders University

Michelle Strudwick – Project Officer, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), College of Business, Government, and Law, Flinders University

Mayfair 1 Room

Shaping the workforce of tomorrow

Natalie Turmine, GAICD – CEO, Service and Creative Skills Australia

Bristol Room

Building employer confidence to recruit and retain employees with communication disability and low literacy

Ashana Comport – Project Worker, Speech Pathologist, Communication Access Consultant, Scope (Aust.), Australia

Jacob Matthew – Project Worker, Scope Australia

Savoy Ballroom

Brokering employment pathways from Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISE) to the mainstream labour market

Dr Perri Campbell – Research Fellow, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), Swinburne University

Dr Jenny Crosbie – Principal Industry Fellow, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), Swinburne University

Savoy Ballroom

IncludeAbility – Ensuring equality in employment

Rhiannon Walker – Senior Project Officer, IncludeAbility, Disability Rights Team, Human Rights Commission

Professor Erin Wilson – Director, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), Swinburne University

Mayfair 1 Room

Celebrating Abilities: The Focus on Ability Short Film Festival

Martin Wren – NOVA Employment

Anne Goyer – General Manager, NOVA Employment

Bristol Room

Creating a Future Together: The Journey Towards Fully Accessible Digital Spaces

Aamir Qutub – CEO, Enterprise Monkey

Savoy Ballroom

Unlocking Potential: Empowering Participants and Employers

Rebecca McIntyre – Employment Services Manager, The Disability Trust

Savoy Ballroom

Platinum Sponsor Address

Dan Gavin – National Manager of Disability Employment, GenU Training

Savoy Ballroom

Reforms to the disability employment system to support more Australians living with disability into work

Julian Hill – MP, Australian Government

Savoy Ballroom

Panel Session – Unpacking DES Reform

Catherine McAlpine – CEO, Inclusion Australia

Mathew McIntyre – Executive General Manager, The Disability Trust

Dr Ann Nevile – Social Policy Researcher, ANU

Peter Bacon – Chief Executive Officer, Disability Employment Australia

Suzanne Colbert AM, GAICD – Advisor, NED, Founder and former CEO of AND, and Inaugural DEA chairperson

Professor Erin Wilson – Director, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), Swinburne University

Savoy Ballroom

Adversity, Resilience and Success

Balendran Thavarajah – CEO, GetMee

Savoy Ballroom

In our words

Wayne Herbert – Director of Progress and Property, LEAD Disability Services

Yenn Purkis – Autistic author and advocate

Alastair McEwin AM – Disability Consultant

Savoy Room 3

Yoga – Sponsored by Populi (registration essential)

Aaron Petty – Om Som Yoga & Ayurveda

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

Welcome & Acknowledgement of Country

Brett de hoedt – MC, Hootville Communications

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

DES Reform

Kellie Spence – General Manager – Disability Employment Group, Department of Social Services

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

Creating Neurodivergent Inclusive Workplaces

Sonny Wise – Author, advocate and public speaker

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

Getting ready for the sub 8 hour benchmark participants – how do we effectively work with these clients?

Catherine McAlpine – CEO, Inclusion Australia

Luke Nelson – Policy Officer, Inclusion Australia

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

What do good quality jobs look like for People with Disabilities?

Professor Jo Ingold – Professor, Australian Catholic University

Daniel Valiente-Riedl – General Manager, JobAccess, Australia

Saraya O’Connell – General Manager, Hotel Etico Australia

Dr Karina Davis – CEO, Jobs Bank

Joshua Bamford – Human Resources Director, M&H Ward Group

Rebbecca Jurkiewicz – Training And Placement Specialist, Chapter 1 Employment

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

A systemic change approach: explore and improve school to work transition for young people with disability

A/Prof Sue Olney – UoM-BSL Principal Research Fellow, University of Melbourne, Australia

Sinead Gibney-Hughes – Senior Policy Officer, Brotherhood of St Laurence, Australia

Michelle Wakeford – Senior Advisor Youth Transition Disability, Brotherhood of St Laurence, Australia

Mayfair 1 Room

Performance measures and other program updates

Pene Futcher – Branch Manager, Department of Social Services

Savoy Room 3

Getting workplace adjustments out of the “too hard” basket

Dr Catherine Maitland – Research Lead, Australian Disability Network

Bristol Room

Vocational supports within a person’s primary human service- the headspace experience

Carolyn Watts – Head of Vocational Programs, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation, Australia

Karen Fletcher – National Manager for Work and Study Online, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

The importance of employment in the NDIS

Mary Hawkins – Director of Engagement, Employment Outcomes, National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA)

Mayfair 1 Room

Partnering with employers

Suzanne Colbert AM, GAICD – Advisor, NED, Founder and former CEO of AND, and Inaugural DEA chairperson

Savoy Room 3

New tools for commissioning services for complex clients

Professor Mark Considine – Australian political scientist

Bristol Room

DES Reform and what it means for the Sector

David Best – Policy Manager, Disability Employment Australia

Mayfair 2 Room

Australian and International Service Delivery Models that support participant’s back to work

Dr Kylie Henderson – Adjunct Research Fellow, USQ

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

Pop Culture & Policy – Why Visibility of Disability Matters

Lisa Cox – Inclusive Communications Professional

Savoy Rooms 1 & 2

Closing Remarks

David Coles – DEA Board, Disability Employment Australia