
Conference Program (Brief)
Start - Finish
10:30am - 7:00pm REGISTRATION - Opals Room, Opal Cove Resort
12:45pm - 1:00pm Welcome to Country \ Welcome from the Mayor, City of Coffs Harbour
1:00pm - 1:30pm Cyber Security in the age of AI - Martin Buckland, Security Specialist - Local Government. Microsoft Australia
1:30pm - 2:30pm KEYNOTE PRESENTATION: Layne Beachley AO. Revive and Thrive Masterclass 2:30pm - 3:00pm Afternoon tea
3:00pm - 4:15pm CYBER SECURITY PANEL
Gergana Winzer NSW Local Government Lead Partner. KPMG Cyber Security – Mid Market Lead
Dr Amit Chaubey, Chairman of AISA NSW. Australian Information Security Association
Cr Jeff Whitton, independent expert in Cybersecurity.
5.00pm - 6.50pm Welcome function in the trade exhibition area at Opal Cove Resort
6.50pm - 7.00pm Address by Welcome function sponsor, Extreme Networks in Opals Room
7.00pm - 9.30pm Welcome dinner in Horizons Restaurant, Opal Cove Resort sponsored by Extreme Networks
Start - Finish
8:00am - 4:00pm REGISTRATION
8:30am - 9:00am Building a Positive Security Culture - Kirsty Backhausen, Cyber Security Specialist. City of Newcastle
9:00am - 9:30am Data Maturity in Local Government: Meeting Councils Where They Are. Tracy Whitelaw, Chief Digital Officer. LGAQ
9:30am - 10:00am - GOLD SPONSOR PRESENTATION: Securing the Hybrid Council: Simplifying Access and Connectivity with SSE and SD-WAN. Steve Isles, Security Lead. HPE Aruba Networking
10:00am - 10:45am Morning tea & trade exhibition
10:45am - 11:45am KEYNOTE PRESENTATION: Dr Michelle Dickinson. Re-Wiring for the Future: Building Human-Centric Digital Capacity in Local Government
11:45am - 12:15pm GOLD SPONSOR PRESENTATION: Breach to Burnout: What Real Incidents Teach Us About Cyber Readiness. Aaron Jacobs, Principal Sales Engineer. Sophos
12:15pm - 12:45pm From Zero Trust to Essential 8: Navigating Australia’s Evolving Cyber Policies to Achieve Local Government Uplift. Tom Scully, Director, Principal Architect - Government and Critical Infrastructure, JAPAC. Palo Alto Networks
12:45pm - 1:45pm Lunch & trade exhibition
1:45pm - 2:15pm Strategic Data Governance: Frameworks for driving Trust, Innovation and Value in Local Government - Angela Johnson, Data & Information Governance Manager, Trust Advisory Digital Identity and Verifiable Credentials Identity.NSW
2:15pm - 2:55pm KEYNOTE : The hard reality of AI for LGAs - Simon Kriss, Chief Ai Officer. Simon Kriss Ai. 2:55pm - 3:25pm Cyber Uplift in Practice - Danijel Andric, Chief Information Officer. Bayside council
3:25pm - 3:55pm Afternoon tea & trade exhibition
STREAM 1 - Council showcase - Campbelltown City Council
3:55pm - 4:20pm How to Drive a Successful Transformation in Local Government - Muhammad Tasleem, ICT Program Manager. Campbelltown City Council
4:20pm - 4:45pm Practical Applications of AI in Local Government ICT - Muhammad Saad Aslam, AI and Cyber Lead. Campbelltown City Council
​STREAM 2 - Council Showcase - Port Macquarie Hastings Council
3:55pm - 4:20pm Technology Innovation Framework - Rochelle Foster Technology Project Manager Digital Technology and Customer Service Port Macquarie Hastings Council
4:25pm - 4:45pm Integrations and workflow automation - Mamoon Irshad, Corporate Applications Officer . Port Macquarie Hastings Council
4.45pm CLOSE OF DAY ONE
6.30pm Networking in the Trade Area
7pm Conference Dinner Sponsored by Nitro
10pm Dinner close
10pm - 11.30pm After Dinner Function - Games Room sponsored by Ethan Indigenous
Start - Finish
8:50am - 9:00am Comments from the Chair
9:00am - 9:30am The Secret Sauce of Cyber Security Governance. Leanne Siveyer, Chief Information Officer. Sutherland Shire
9:30am - 10:00am Practical applications of A.I. in Local Government. Jane Howard, Chief Information Officer. Penrith Council
10:00am - 10:30am Securing your data in the era of AI: key steps for local government. Heng Mok, CISO in Residence – Asia Pacific and Japan. Zscaler.
10:30am - 11:15am Morning tea / Passport draw in conference room
11:15am - 12:15pm KEYNOTE PRESENTATION: Simon Waller. The Art of Future Thinking. Find better answers to big problems by thinking like a futurist?
12:15pm - 12:20pm CLOSING COMMENTS from the chair
12:20pm Grab & Go lunch
* Program subject to change without notice