Agenda

Tuesday, 24 June 2025

“Digital Excellence & Being Ridiculously Easy to Do Business With”

Please note that 1:1 meetings will be running throughout the day.

07:45 - 08:30

Registration & Check-In

Jim Berry

CEO & Founder at ADAPT

About

Jim is known for exceeding expectations in execution.His entire career has been spent connecting the right people at the right time in roles across Europe and Asia Pac. ​

He founded ADAPT to deliver quality outcomes with integrity – with a vision to help Australia thrive commercially, now and for the future.To enable that, Jim leads ADAPT’s mission to connect, inform and equip our local business and tech leaders. ​

At the centre of agenda creation and strategic partner management for two decades, Jim is uniquely experienced to be the voice of the end-user, the customer and the vendor. ​

He satisfies C-suite attendees with all agendas across ADAPT Edge events. He also regularly presents “Know your Customer” webinars and guides the world’s largest vendors with their GTM and content strategies.​

Through entrepreneurial product development and a servant leader mentality with his team and clients, ADAPT grows annually with clearly differentiated value for all stakeholders.

08:30 - 08:50

Welcome to the 10th Digital Edge: Digital Excellence & Being Ridiculously Easy to Do Business With

Jim Berry - CEO & Founder at ADAPT Read More

Sales are moving online, revenues from digital products are booming, AI is evolving, and competition is fierce.
This means an explosion in customer facing apps, internal data, and systems – all driving new management challenges and opportunities.

Meanwhile, Customer and Employee expectations heighten – along with the need for improved digital trust, experience, and personalisation.
The operating models, products and structures of the past must evolve to deliver innovation, speed, CX and UX.
It’s time for radical modernisation and change – but most are underprepared to harness AI because of gaps in organisational data and digital maturity.

To tackle this, we gather the nation’s leaders and proudly bring you Australia’s top Digital Strategy event – with a focus on outcome based ideas you will remember and be able to action after the day.

Gabby Fredkin

Head of Analytics & Insights at ADAPT

About

Gabby’s primary role is managing ADAPT’s overall strategy for Data Analytics. He has extensive experience in using data to identify trends in technology that help shape Australian organisations. Utilising modern Data Science techniques, he provides ADAPT and their customers with confidence in the accuracy and validity of the information used for ADAPT’s Research, Advisory, and Events.​

With a passion for creating stories with data, Gabby is consistently rated as one of the top speakers at ADAPT Events. In round table discussions, he specialises in using statistics to initiate thought-provoking discussions. Gabby is effective in translating information into insights, enabling ADAPT’s customers to become more data-driven.​

Gabby’s primary areas of expertise are: ​

• Advanced AI and ML practices, including AI ethics.​
• Building models to benchmark and predict IT performance.
• End-user behaviour and human-centred design.​
• Cross-functional team design and value, such as DevSecOps.​

08:50 - 09:10

ADAPT Insights: The State of CX, Transformation and ROI in A/NZ Enterprise

Gabby Fredkin - Head of Analytics & Insights at ADAPT Read More

ADAPT’s Research and Advisory team reveal the latest data-driven insights from over 1000 local surveys from regional Heads of IT, digital, security and finance enabling companies responsible for over 60% of Australia’s GDP.

Assessing digitisation and CX maturity, performance, capital allocation, and the unique challenges facing Australian Heads of Digital Transformation, Product and Customer Experience.
Helping you to benchmark and validate your priorities and thinking, ADAPT reveal the core findings distilled from your aggregated pre-event surveys and examine which tactics have the biggest impact – and how best to scale that success.

Tenar Larsen

Head of People & Performance, Executive Programs

About

Tenar has spent the last 18 years working in sales, running her own company consulting to corporate Australia around Workplace Wellness / Employee Experience and now she finds herself back over on the dark side as an employee, part of a well oiled machine – and loving it! As a Senior Manager of the ADAPT Advisory team, Tenar runs the team that fulfils over 60 private advisory events each year across Asia Pacific. Tenar builds genuine relationships quickly and easily, loves connecting people, finding out how to solve a problem and then delivering.

09:10 - 09:15

Get an Edge: Making the Most of Your Day

Tenar Larsen - Head of People & Performance, Executive Programs Read More

David Avrin

World Leading CX Consultant

About

David Avrin, CSP, GSF is one of the world’s leading Customer Experience speakers and consultants. He helps CEOs and organisations better understand and serve their changing customers and clients to help future-proof their businesses by becoming ridiculously easy to do business with. David’s the author of seven books: It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You!, Why Customers Leave (and How to Win Them Back) and his newest book: Ridiculously Easy to Do Business With: A practical guide to giving customers what they want-when and how they want it. His business insights have been featured worldwide.

09:15 - 09:55

"Ridiculously Easy to Do Business With” - Serving a New Generation of Customer Wants, Needs and Expectations

David Avrin - World Leading CX Consultant Read More

How, when and where we buy has changed dramatically, with customers’ now prioritising speed, simplicity, and convenience over quality. Winning in today’s competitive marketplace is dictated by those who can deliver faster while being ridiculously easy to do business with.

David will shine a light on this profound shift in CX, UX and EX – driving an alignment of product development, processes, and policy.

How do we deploy effectively and compliantly – while eliminating friction in the buying process, responding to prospects, and creating experiences worth sharing?

Participants will gain actionable insights to:

  • Better understand the cause and pervasiveness of the shift in customer behaviour.
  • Recognise how and why customer service and experiences are distinct.
  • Create alignment between customer needs and deliverables.
  • Recognise what it takes to compete on social media and AI, and the ramifications of under-performing.

David Avrin, CSP, GSF is one of the world’s leading Customer Experience speakers and consultants. He helps CEOs and organisations better understand and serve their changing customers and clients to help future-proof their businesses by becoming ridiculously easy to do business with. David’s the author of seven books: It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You!, Why Customers Leave (and How to Win Them Back) and his newest book: Ridiculously Easy to Do Business With: A practical guide to giving customers what they want-when and how they want it. His business insights have been featured worldwide.

Simon Bowker

AVP, CRM & Industry Solutions, Asia Pacific at ServiceNow

About

Simon Bowker is Area Vice President of CRM & Industry Solutions in Asia Pacific for ServiceNow. He is responsible for managing sales, strategy and customer success for ServiceNow’s Customer and Industry Workflow Solutions that drive fierce customer loyalty with connected digital workflows. Simon and his teams’ partner with ServiceNow’s customers on their digital transformation journey. They help leading organisation’s in the region deliver ‘next generation’ customer experiences, increase productivity, reduce complexity and significantly improve customer satisfaction.

Before joining ServiceNow, Simon led Financial Services and Strategic Accounts at Adobe, helping the largest brands in Australia build world class experiences. He also served as the APAC AVP of Marketing Applications at Teradata, where he launched the Marketing Resource Management, Campaign Management and Digital Marketing Solutions in the region. Prior to moving to Australia, he was the UK Managing Director of European SaaS start-up, eCircle. There he managed over 100 digital marketing professionals to become the leading digital marketing platform in the UK, before successfully leading the integration of the eCircle and Aprimo businesses following acquisition by Teradata.

Simon was an elected member of the UK Direct Marketing Association Council from 2010-2013. He has consulted on digital transformation strategies for clients including Sony, Asda, Argos, Lloyds Banking Group, Bank of America, Qantas, ANZ Bank & Telstra and continues to speak publicly around Customer Experience and Digital Transformation.

09:55 - 10:25

Revolutionise your CRM: Transform Service and Sales with AI

Simon Bowker - AVP, CRM & Industry Solutions, Asia Pacific at ServiceNow Read More

AI is revolutionising customer service by delivering faster resolutions, enhancing self-service, and fostering more meaningful customer interactions. Discover how ServiceNow empowers organisations in any industry to sell, fulfill, and serve customers through its AI-powered platform.

By leveraging AI agents and automation, businesses can significantly reduce costs, free human agents from repetitive tasks to focus on complex customer needs, and accelerate resolution times. The result? Increased revenue, lower service costs, and transformed customer experiences that build lifelong loyalty.

10:25 - 10:45

Morning Break

Refreshments, Snacks & Connections

Peter Hind

Principal Research Analyst at ADAPT

About

Peter Hind has spent the last 25 years as an analyst and commentator on the ICT industry. He says his primary areas of interest are the potential of technology to transform the way organisations operate, the change management obstacles executives encounter in realising this potential and the tactics and techniques leaders have deployed to overcome these difficulties.

Peter now takes on multiple roles within ADAPT including the moderation of private events and roundtables, interviewing business executives about the strategies they are pursuing and assisting with the structuring of our delegate surveys and the interrogation and analysis of ADAPT’s treasure trove of end-user and C-level data

Jesse Arundell

Head of Emerging AI at Optus

About

Jesse Arundell leads the new Emerging Artificial Intelligence function in the Artificial Intelligence Division at one of Australia’s largest telecommunications, media, entertainment and technology companies, Optus.

In his role, Jesse is responsible for accelerating the discovery, delivery, embedding and scaled adoption of Artificial Intelligence within the Corporate Services, Enterprise & Business, IT & Security and Networks divisions at Optus. To achieve this, Jesse’s teams design, build, deploy, integrate, validate and scale new Artificial Intelligence systems, products, platforms and experiences to Optus’ people and customers.

Outside of Optus, Jesse is a mentor, advisor and angel investor to technology start-ups and scale-ups. He has participated in the last three cohorts of StartMate as a Mentor and has developed an extensive, independent portfolio of 10+ angel investments, where he has invested alongside the world’s largest VCs.

In addition to his work in the start-up community, Jesse led the formation of Australia’s proposal to participate in the development of international standards for innovation management. He is now a member of the Australia Technical Committee (MB-279) and the corresponding International Technical Committee (ISO/TC279) for innovation standards. The intent of these committees is to standardise the terminology, tools, methods and interactions between businesses, governments and academics to enable innovation at scale.

Tom Gao

Chief Tech & Digital Services Officer at City of Sydney

About

Tom is a seasoned digital and technology leader with extensive experience in project and line management across digital and Microsoft platforms. With a track record of success in both startup and enterprise environments, he excels in leading teams to deliver complex IT-enabled change projects while effectively engaging stakeholders.

Christina Igasto

Chief Digital Officer at ServiceNSW

About

Christina Igasto is a Digital and ICT professional with over 25 years of experience in Digital Business Transformation. Throughout her career, Christina led significant leading-edge transformation journeys to meet consumer expectations and address complex business requirements. Her expertise includes transforming customer services, governance, culture, business processes, technology, and strategic and operational management. With a PhD in Computing Science, Dr. Christina has extensive experience in various digital and analytical technologies and AI. She is recognised as a strong, innovative, transformative executive leader and for delivering pivotal innovation projects, orchestrating the digital transformation of services, and advancing technology-enabled customer and business solutions.

Christina joined Service NSW in July 2024. Under her leadership, the teams collaborate with the public and private sectors to design and execute a digital and data vision that advances digital capabilities, enhances customer experience and insights and delivers innovative digital products for partner agencies, the people and businesses in NSW. As the Chief Digital Officer, Christina is responsible for the effective and agile development, implementation, and delivery of strategic digital programs, digital transformation and easy, accessible, trusted and integrated NSW digital government services.

Dr Christina is also an honorary affiliate Adjunct Associate Professor at the Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney.

Previous experience:

Christina has held numerous senior executive positions over the years before joining Service NSW as Chief Digital Officer. Christina’s experience includes serving as Chief Digital Health Officer & CIO for one of the larger districts in NSW Health, Western Sydney Local Health District and Executive Director of Program Delivery at eHealth NSW.

Christina brings international experience in innovation and technology solutions, with a strong senior background in digital and data strategic and operational leadership roles across the public, private, and academic sectors. In 2016 and 2017, she was also honoured in her native country, Sweden, as one of Medtech’s 100 ‘Most Powerful People in the Nation’.

10:45 - 11:15

Digital Excellence & Experience Insights

Peter Hind - Principal Research Analyst at ADAPT Jesse Arundell - Head of Emerging AI at Optus Tom Gao - Chief Tech & Digital Services Officer at City of Sydney Christina Igasto - Chief Digital Officer at ServiceNSW Read More

Debating responsibilities, possibilities, and tactics for Australian Digital, Product & Customer leaders to improve customer experiences and digital products.

This session will explore:

  • Tactics to lead a successful digital strategy
  • Aligning data governance and monetisation to measurable product and business results
  • Data driven enablement: predictive, algorithmic, revenue generating
  • The reality of Agentic AI in 2025?
  • Cross functional collaboration or dysfunction?

Stephen Hardy

Partner at Bain & Co

About

Stephen Hardy is a member of Bain & Co’s Advanced Analytics practice and has more than 20 years of experience building and deploying AI and machine learning across financial services, government, retail and consumer electronics. He works extensively to deliver practical solutions embodying responsible AI principles to clients across the Asia Pacific.

Stephen’s career has spanned the technology areas of customer experience optimisation, causal modelling of programmatic impacts, image and video recognition algorithms, and privacy-preserving data analytics.

He has published articles across a number of different fields and is a co-inventor on more than 15 US patents across multiple technology domains.

Prior to joining Bain, Stephen was formerly the CEO of Ambiata, a Sydney based data science services company and was also previously SGM of Canon Information Systems Research Australia Image and Video R&D Lab.

He holds a PhD in Astrophysics from the University of Sydney and a BSc (Hons) with a university medal from the Australian National University.

11:15 - 11:35

AI in Action: Personalisation and the Evolving Digital Experience

Stephen Hardy - Partner at Bain & Co Read More

Stephen Hardy, Partner at Bain & Company, will explore how artificial intelligence is changing the way organisations approach personalisation and digital engagement. Through recent use cases and practical case studies, he’ll share what leading companies are doing today to tailor experiences at scale, improve customer interactions, and deliver measurable results.

This keynote will provide a clear look at where AI is making a real difference — and what it means for teams working across digital strategy, customer experience, and product development.

Stephen is the former CEO of Ambiata and one of Bain’s most experienced AI experts in APAC.

Mike Kollo

Director of AI at ADAPT

About

Dr. Michael G. Kollo is recognised as an accomplished executive leader and educator within the realm of artificial intelligence’s significance in business strategy and product development across various sectors including financial services, technology, and public services. Holding a portfolio of leadership roles, Michael has contributed his expertise to renowned institutional investors such as Blackrock, Fidelity, Renaissance Asset Management, Axa Investment Managers, and HESTA. Additionally, he served as a non-executive director for Clime Investment Managers, an ASX-listed entity.

In the entrepreneurial sphere, Michael has been involved with AI and software companies, notably as a key figure at Faethm Pty, an Australian AI software company that was acquired by Pearsons in 2021, and at the Blockchain company Clanz. Beyond entrepreneurship, he actively participates in mentoring and supporting fintech and cybertech startup ecosystems in London and Australia.

In the realm of academia, Michael boasts a PhD in Finance from the London School of Economics, coupled with extensive lecturing experience at esteemed institutions such as the LSE and Imperial College. He has also been invited as a speaker at TedX events, focusing on the responsible utilisation of AI. With publications addressing machine learning’s application in investment management and contributions to the World Economic Forum’s AI/Fintech panel, Michael’s expertise is widely recognised. Moreover, he has cultivated a global audience through educational podcasts like “Curious Quant.”

As well as Director of AI at ADAPT, Michael is also the CEO of Evolved AI, a distinguished executive education and software development firm dedicated to empowering individuals through effective and responsible AI usage, thereby fostering resilient, transparent, and rapidly evolving enterprises.

11:35 - 11:55

ADAPT Insights: What 3 Things the Top Performers Do for Most Success in AI?

Mike Kollo - Director of AI at ADAPT Read More

Mike explores the key factors that contribute to AI success, drawing on ADAPT’s unique local research covering the latest on Agentic and GenAI – having surveyed 600 CIOs, Data and Digital leaders across Australia in 2025.

AI has rapidly evolved from a niche discussion to a strategic priority, with 70% of respondents planning to increase their investment in generative AI.

However, despite growing budgets, only 25% of organisations have automated workflows, highlighting a gap between AI readiness and actual implementation. Mike shares AI use case and adoption insights, revealing how and why strategic alignment — not just investment — drives real business impact.

  • What 3 things the top performers do for most success in AI?
  • AI Investment & ROI: ways to track long-term value and ROI
  • Which internal measures set the leaders apart?
12:00 - 13:00

ADAPT Executive Insight Roundtables

Attend your pre-selected roundtable to participate in a peer discussion with confidence under Chatham House Rules moderated by an ADAPT analyst with subject matter experts.

Roundtable 1

From Clicks to Conversations: Scaling Digital CX Through AI-Powered Engagement

with LivePerson Read More

Customer expectations are evolving rapidly. Traditional, static web journeys can no longer meet the demand for seamless, personalised, and efficient service. In this session, LivePerson will explore how leading enterprises are transforming digital engagement by leveraging Conversational AI and generative agents to drive higher conversion rates and revenue growth.

We’ll cover how to:

  • Evolve from basic chatbots to scalable, AI-powered messaging solutions
  • Reduce cost-to-serve while boosting digital self-service and conversion rates
  • Understand the role of conversational AI and messaging across the digital journey
  • Explore how GenAI is powering next-gen experiences with proven revenue impact
  • Connect human expertise with digital visitors to enhance the customer experience

Join us to share challenges, hear success stories, and explore the future of AI-driven customer engagement.

Roundtable 2

Scaling Growth with Customer and Product Data – Signal To Strategy

with Amplitude Read More

With digital driving every customer interaction, growth is no longer powered by gut instinct. It’s driven by how quickly and accurately you can act on customer behaviour. Yet for many enterprise leaders, especially in complex, regulated industries, those valuable digital signals remain trapped in slow, legacy systems and siloed teams.

At the same time, expectations are rising fast. You’re expected to deliver measurable growth, deeper loyalty, and faster innovation – without overhauling your entire tech stack or adding more complexity.

Join your fellow leaders to discuss how industry-leading enterprises are:

  • Activating product and customer data to power business-critical decisions and unlock new growth
  • Aligning digital, product, and CX teams to deliver seamless, profitable experiences at scale
  • Using experimentation and AI to accelerate insight-to-action loops
  • Evolving digital capabilities to cut through complexity, accelerate insights, and power sustained enterprise growth

Attendees will also receive exclusive access to Amplitude’s Digital Experience Maturity Assessment – Benchmark your organisation and uncover the next best actions to drive impact.

If you’re responsible for customer value, digital performance, or transformation in 2025, this is the session to join.

Roundtable 3

Reimagining CX: Unifying Data, Teams, and Technology to Elevate Customer Experience

with Sprinklr Read More

Customer expectations continue to evolve at pace—placing pressure on organisations to deliver more seamless, connected, and personalised experiences across every touchpoint. However, fragmented technology stacks, siloed data, and disconnected functions across marketing, service, and digital teams remain major barriers.

As Business and IT leaders look to drive greater enterprise value through customer-centric strategies, the ability to integrate CX efforts across departments, systems, and channels is becoming critical.

In this interactive discussion hosted by Sprinklr, we’ll explore how leading organisations are:

  • Unifying data to create a single view of the customer and deliver consistent, contextual experiences
  • Equipping customer-facing teams with real-time insights to drive faster, smarter decision-making
  • Breaking down silos across marketing, service, and digital to enable end-to-end customer journey orchestration
  • Embedding AI into CX workflows to improve speed, personalisation, and operational efficiency
  • Reducing software sprawl and technical debt by consolidating platforms and optimising CX investments

Join your peers to share challenges and best practices around modernising customer experience for greater business impact.

13:00 - 14:00

Peer Networking Seated Lunch

14:00 - 15:00

ADAPT Executive Insight Roundtables

Attend your pre-selected roundtable to participate in a peer discussion with confidence under Chatham House Rules moderated by an ADAPT analyst with subject matter experts.

Roundtable 4

Driving Growth and Efficiency: Leveraging Digital Transformation for Business Success

with SAP & SAP Signavio Read More

In today’s fast-changing landscape, businesses are constantly balancing two key priorities—driving growth and maximising efficiency. This roundtable will explore how digital transformation helps achieve both, unlocking new opportunities while streamlining operations. Through real-world examples, we’ll dive into how industry leaders have successfully navigated transformation to accelerate performance, improve agility, and stay ahead of the competition.

15:00 - 15:10

Afternoon Break

Refreshments, Snacks & Connections

Prof. Marek Kowalkiewicz

Professor and Chair in Digital Economy at Centre for Future Enterprise, QUT Business School

About

Marek Kowalkiewicz is a Professor and Chair in Digital Economy at QUT Business School. Listed among the Top 100 Global Thought Leaders in AI by thinkers360, Marek has led global innovation teams in Silicon Valley, was a Global Research Program Lead and Founding Research Manager of SAP’s Machine Learning lab in Singapore, and a Research Fellow at Microsoft Research Asia. His newest book, “The Economy of Algorithms: AI and the Rise of the Digital Minions”, is an international bestseller, recently released as an audiobook.

15:10 - 15:55

The Economy of Algorithms, AI and the Rise of the Digital Minions

Prof. Marek Kowalkiewicz - Professor and Chair in Digital Economy at Centre for Future Enterprise, QUT Business School Read More

AI is changing the way we work so we need to be able to adapt to this future. Join us as we delve into the intricacies of AI in the business landscape.

From managing the ascent of shadow AI to the evolving role of C-level executives, we explore the critical success factors for leveraging data and AI.

  • How do algorithms and AI impact your workplace and the experiences you offer?
  • How to equip organisations to design new work practices, policies and products to embrace new technologies?
  • Discover how fostering a culture of innovation intersects with ethical considerations
  • The importance of partnerships between industry giants and startups.

Invaluable insights on policy, regulation, and practical advice for navigating the complex terrain of AI in business.

Listed among the Top 100 Global Thought Leaders in AI by Thinkers360, Marek has led global innovation teams in Silicon Valley, was a Global Research Program Lead and Founding Research Manager of SAP’s Machine Learning lab in Singapore, and a Research Fellow at Microsoft Research Asia.
His newest book, “The Economy of Algorithms: AI and the Rise of the Digital Minions”, is an international bestseller.

15:55 - 16:00

Digital Edge 2025: Insights summary

with ADAPT's Research & Advisory Team Read More

Summarising the day’s core findings into actionable insights to take back to your job.

Velvet-Belle Templeman

Publishing Director at iTnews

About

Velvet-Belle Templeman is the Publishing Director of nextmedia’s B2B division for technology publications iTnews, Digital Nation and CRN.

She joined nextmedia in 2021 to launch Digital Nation Australia as its lead journalist, and later became group commercial editor for B2B. Velvet-Belle has also worked as a journalist at Which-50.com and as a content producer at Boardroom Media.

16:00 - 17:00

iTnews | Digital Nation | Digital Transformation Awards: “Digital Champions”

Velvet-Belle Templeman - Publishing Director at iTnews Read More

At Digital Edge 2025, ADAPT will proudly host the inaugural Digital Nation 2025 Digital Champion Awards. Hear from the finalists in short panels.

Hear direct from the nominee finalists for each category open for Australia’s Digital Champions:

  1. Customer Experience Transformation Champion (Chief Customer Officer, Head of CX / Marketing)
  2. Employee Experience Transformation Champion (HR, People & Culture)
  3. Finance Transformation Champion (CFO/Head of Finance)
  4. Data & AI transformation champion (Chief Data and AI)
  5. Governance champion (Chief Risk Officer)
  6. Digital Transformation Champion (Chief Transformation Officer, Chief Digital Officer)
17:00 - 18:00

ADAPT Digital Edge & Digital Nation “Digital Champions” Networking Drinks

Meet & network with the attendees of both ADAPT’s Digital Edge event and the arriving nominees for the Digital Nation “Digital Champion” awards

18:00 - 20:00

Digital Nation's “Digital Champions” Awards & Gala Dinner

Read More

The iTnews & Digital Nation team will announce the category winners and present the awards over dinner.

Who will be Australia’s Digital Champions for 2025?

  1. Customer Experience Transformation Champion (Chief Customer Officer, Head of CX / Marketing)
  2. Employee Experience Transformation Champion (HR, People & Culture)
  3. Finance Transformation Champion (CFO/Head of Finance)
  4. Data & AI transformation champion (Chief Data and AI)
  5. Governance champion (Chief Risk Officer)
  6. Digital Transformation Champion (Chief Transformation Officer, Chief Digital Officer)

Register your interest

Digital Edge