During her 15 year military career, best-selling author Matina Jewell tracked down warlords, worked with the US Navy SEALs, fast roped out of helicopters onto ships, and represented Australia as a peacekeeper with the United Nations in Syria and Lebanon where she found herself thrown into the middle of a devastating war.

Matina’s lessons of resilience and leadership have transformed some of the biggest companies and her message of courage continues to empower leaders from all walks of life. Her story has audiences on their feet time and time again.

With enthralling footage, stories of hardship and valuable learning from her many life-threatening missions, Matina will take you on a journey that will effect long lasting positive change in your leaders, teams and organizations for years to come.

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As the head of Architecture for Amazon Web Services in Australia and New Zealand, Rodney Haywood evangelizes the significant benefits of the transition to the AWS cloud from the customer’s real world perspective.

Rodney manages a team at AWS which creates architectural best practices and provides key insights into how customers can use the cloud for business transformation, providing guidance and expertise from enterprises to small-to-medium businesses and leading edge start-ups. This involves not only identifying the success factors to make cloud adoption easier but how to avoid missteps in cloud adoption.

Rodney is passionate about his customers and how the AWS cloud is changing business models, and more widely, how we live and work as a society. Drawing on his 20 years’ experience in IT Rodney is also interested in how people obtain the skills required for today’s innovative workforce – and how we develop the next generation of technical specialists.

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Rob England is an independent IT management consultant, trainer, and commentator based in Wellington, New Zealand. Rob is an internationally-recognised thought leader in DevOps and IT Service Management (ITSM) and a published author of seven books and many articles. He is best known for his controversial blog and alter-ego, the IT Skeptic. He speaks regularly at international conferences.

Rob is an acknowledged contributor to The DevOps Handbook, and to ITIL (2011 Service Strategy book), and a lead author of VeriSM. Rob was awarded the inaugural New Zealand IT Service Management Champion award for 2010 by itSMFnz, and made a Life Member in 2017.

Rob labels himself a “DevOps anticryptoequinologist”. (He’s interested in DevOps for horses not unicorns.)

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Karen Ferris is an organisational change and service management rebel with a cause. She is an author, consultant, speaker, facilitator, coach and mentor.

In 2014, itSMF Australia awarded Karen with the Lifetime Achievement Award as recognition of her contribution to the industry.

In January 2018, HDI named Karen as one of the top 25 thought leaders in service management for the second year running, and in 2017 Sunview Software named her one of 20 best ITSM thought leaders.

Karen has a passion for the people side of change and building a resilient workforce in a world of constant change.

http://www.karenferris.com

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Starting off in aviation mechanics and electronics Rocky has been involved with technology across a myriad of industries and applications. From hardware soldering to software security, cloud and the world beyond Virtual Reality he’s seen it all.

Rocky has spent the last 25 years surfing the leading edge of technology and using his passion for spreading the word to the masses to make customers and partners he’s worked with prepared for what’s next through consulting, speaking at conferences, and writing. From designing complex multi-faceted systems to designing tabletop board games, there’s stories and experience for just about any occasion.

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Mike Milford was appointed to the position of First Assistant Secretary, Major Capability Division in the Department of Immigration and Border Protection in August 2015. The Major Capability Division (MCD) is responsible for the design, coordination and project management of all new major capabilities for what is now the Department of Home Affairs.

MCD’s Sourcing and Vendor Management (S&VM) Branch provides specific expertise in undertaking sourcing and procurement activities, management of contracts, use of panels of providers and developing strategic partnerships with industry. The Strategy, Architecture and Innovation (SA&I) Branch produces strategic-level documents and blueprints that guide the Department in its use of technology and related capabilities. SA&I also lead the development of enterprise and technology architecture, and has a team dedicated to innovation and exploring emerging technologies.

The Business Engagement and Portfolio Management Office (BE&PMO) Branch is the enterprise planning and coordination function for both MCD and ICTD. BE&PMO works closely with the S&VM and SA&I Branches (as well as the Department’s ICTD delivery areas), to plan and develop a programme of work that enables Strategy 2020 goals and objectives. Finally, MCD’s Operational Capability Branch is responsible for providing the Department and the Australian Border Force with the operational capabilities that it requires to control the border (SmartGates, CCTV cameras, secure communications etc).

Prior to this appointment Mike was the Head of ICT Operations (HICTO) in the Chief Information Officer Group (CIOG) at Defence as a Major General in the Army. In this role he held overall responsibility for delivery of the Defence Single Information Environment as a global end to end information and communications capability, including the provision of satellite communications, electromagnetic spectrum and networks to support military operations and Departmental administration.

While posted to CIOG, Mike was also the Director General Information and Communications Technology Policy and Plans from 2008 and then went on to fill the role of Chief Technology Officer responsible for strategic guidance and technical direction for the architecture, design and purchase of ICT products and services in Defence. He retired from the Army in March 2015.

He is a Distinguished Academic Graduate of the National Defense University Washington and in 2006 he was made a Member of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day Honours list for his work in command and as Director of Personnel – Army. Mike is married to Jenni and they have three children, Rachel, Christopher, and Emily. Mike is an avid reader and fisherman.

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