CIAN MCLOUGHLIN
Opening keynote speaker
Cian McLoughlin is a bestselling author, award-winning blogger, MC, leadership facilitator and sales and business expert. With a business career spanning 25 years, including senior management roles in a number of the world's largest software companies, Cian provides a unique perspective on what motivates (and demotivates) people when making a buying decision or influence attempt.
Author of Amazon #1 bestseller Rebirth of the Salesman' and co-author of the bestseller Secrets of Business Success”, Cian is a regular sales and marketing commentator in the mainstream media. His blog was voted one of the Top 50 Sales Blogs for the fourth year running, and his book was voted one of the Top 50 Sales Books for the third year running by Top Sales World. Cian also had a brief stint as a TV comedy writer. This comedy background, coupled with his Irish heritage means audiences are entertained, informed and inspired by Cian's workshops and keynotes.
Businesses such as SAP, Orange, Salesforce, Westpac, Qantas and DXC regularly request Cian to help facilitate workshops and deliver keynotes at their events. Above all else, Cian is a passionate proponent of an ethical, honest and authentic approach to business.
The Value Conversation
Influence, Storytelling and Decision-Making
As organisations navigate tighter budgets, increased scrutiny and growing complexity, value is no longer a fixed concept. It’s shaped by perspective, influence and the ability to communicate what matters, to the right people, at the right time.
Opening our 2026 Annual Conference, Cian McLoughlin will unpack how different stakeholders define value and why understanding those perspectives is now critical to getting decisions across the line.
Drawing on his work with global organisations, Cian will explore:
• what drives decision-making behind the scenes
• where hesitation creeps in
• how to better position and articulate value in multi-stakeholder conversations
This isn’t just theory. It’s about influence, storytelling and practical ways to move conversations forward in a world of longer decision cycles, rising costs and ongoing uncertainty around the future of work and AI.
Expect a highly engaging, interactive session with takeaways you can actually use the next day.
DR CLAIRE MASON
Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO's Data61
Dr Claire Mason is a leading Australian organizational psychology research and Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO, where she heads the Workforce and Productivity team. Claire’s work focuses on understanding how AI is reshaping job roles, skills demand, and workforce structures. Her research has informed national policy and industry strategies, with recent projects including the Indigenous Jobs Map, the Australian Digital Capability Framework, and the Data61 Skills Dashboard.
The Value of Human Intelligence in an AI-Augmented World
As AI rapidly reshapes the world of work, organisations are facing growing questions around productivity, workforce planning and the future role of human intelligence. But beyond the headlines and hype, what is actually happening inside organisations adopting AI today?
Claire will share findings from two lines of research. First, an analysis comparing trends in demand for workers (and skills) in AI adopting versus non-adopting firms. Second, providing an analysis of the complementary features of human and artificial intelligence, which provides a framework for understanding the latest research findings relating to the relationship between AU use, work performance, learning and well-being.
From shifting skill requirements to the evolving relationship between people, technology and workplace design, Claire will challenge common assumptions about automation and explore what it means to create value in an AI-augmented future.
Key takeaways
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AI augments (but does not replace) human intelligence
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AI is not inherently good or bad but it takes knowledge and skills to maximise its benefits and minimise its risks
ALEX O'MARA
Professor of Practice, Centre for Flourishing Cities, Sydney University
Professor Alex O'Mara is the IB Fell Professor of Practice in Urbanism in the Centre for Flourishing Cities at the University of Sydney. A highly experienced urban leader, she also serves as a Trustee of Sydney Harbour Federation Trust , Non-Executive Director of St George Community Housing.
Alex was formerly a Board Member of Placemaking NSW and Chair of the White Bay Power Station Adaptive Reuse Committee and a senior executive and lawyer in the NSW government. As Deputy Secretary of Place, Design and Public Space, Alex led significant city-shaping initiatives.
Alex is a Commissioner with the NSW Independent Planning Commission.
The Value of Flourishing Cities
How do our flourishing cites, precincts and public places contribute to the value of both our people and our workplaces?
As organisations place greater emphasis on wellbeing, connection and community, the conversation is expanding from workplaces to the precincts and cities that surround them. Drawing on the work of the Centre for Flourishing Cities at the University of Sydney, this session explores how research is helping shape healthier, more resilient and socially connected places.
Through practical examples and emerging research, Alexandra O'Mara will explore how new approaches and partnerships between industry, government and academia are enhancing value through a new lens. From public space and biodiversity to regenerative design and intelligent digital interventions, the Centre works to build evidence-based solutions through research partnerships that inform policy and practice, creating healthier places, improved population and planetary health, and urban transformation.
Key takeaways
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Urban transformation and healthier places can be enabled by evidence-based solutions that inform policy and practice
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Research partnerships between industry, government and academia can unlock new approaches to value creation
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Thinking differently about the role of commercial real estate in creating value can enable cities where people, businesses and communities don't just function, they flourish.
DR LIBBY SANDER
Associate Professor, Bond University
Dr Libby Sander is an internationally recognised expert on the future of work whose research sits at the intersection of organisational behaviour, psychology, neuroscience and workplace design.
An Associate Professor at Bond University, Libby advises global organisations on how environments shape performance, wellbeing and culture. Her researched has been featured in the The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the BBC, and she is an Agenda Contributor at the World Economic Forum.
Libby has spoken at TEDx, SXSW and the World Business Forum and is known for translating rigorous research into practical insights that challenge how leaders think about work, workplaces and human performance.
Beyond Occupancy
Rethinking Workplace Value Through Human Performance
Dr Libby Sander explores how we measure value in the workplace and why traditional occupancy metrics no longer tell the full story.
Drawing on groundbreaking global research across 13 offices in eight countries, Libby will unpack how people actually use workplace environments and what that means for performance, wellbeing, collaboration and design. From the psychology of where people choose to sit, to the impact of noise, autonomy and environmental design on stress and productivity, this session challenges long-held assumptions about workplace experience and activity-based working.
As organisations rethink the role of the office, Libby will explore how corporate real estate leaders can move beyond utilisation metrics and toward a more human-centred understanding of value, one that considers not just efficiency, but the relationship between people, place and performance.
Key takeaways:
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Measuring workplace value beyond utilisation
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Understanding what drives workplace behaviour
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Designing workplaces that support performance and wellbeing
DR KIRSTEN BROWN
Design Innovation Manager, CSR
CNGAU Industry Innovation Executive
Kirsten leads with a rare combination of design thinking, research capability, and commercial acumen with a passion for customer-led innovation. Based on her PhD, she is a thought leader in building health and resilience in the workplace.
Curiosity has motivated Kirsten to complete degrees in design, real estate, commerce and research. This knowledge alongside practice results in highly considered outcomes underpinned by research.
Kirsten’s career has been focused on delivering innovative, functional solutions for a broad range of projects with a proven track record in product development through to launch, stakeholder alignment and commercial success.
Value Under Pressure
Who Wins, Who Loses, Who Decides?
Our recent CoreNet panel discussions have highlighted that stakeholders in corporate real estate talk about value but in finance, property, people, design and operations, it rarely means the same thing.
Cost is visible. Value is contested. Short-term savings win approval, strategic intent gets diluted, and governance can protect outcomes or prevent action.
This 30 min interactive session puts the identified industry’s toughest tensions on the table. Through sharp provocations and open debate, participants will challenge how value is defined, measured and protected across the property lifecycle and discuss solutions!
Who decides what matters? Why does what is easiest to measure carry the most weight? And when does cost control destroy long-term value?
Expect debate, disagreement and practical ideas for making better, faster and more transparent decisions which will be later analysed and published for wider industry benefit.
SARAH WALSH
Head of Womens Football, Football Australia
Sarah Walsh is a former Australian international athlete with 70 caps and 35 international goals for the Matildas. She has a decorated career including appearances in the 2004 Olympics and 2007 FIFA World Cup. She clinched victory at the 2010 Women’s Asian Cup.
Since then, Sarah has evolved into an accomplished sports executive, Logie-nominated commentator, and compelling public speaker. Her firsthand experience in high-performance sports has translated into advocating for pay equity and inclusion, spearheading innovation in governance and policy driving social change at all levels of football.
Notably, as Head of Women’s Football for Football Australia, she influenced the strategy that generated a staggering $357M for football's World Cup leveraging strategy through government and commercial investment, with an additional $200M earmarked to improve community infrastructure for women and girls across all sports. As hosts of the most commercial FIFA Women’s World Cup, the Matildas shattered attendance and viewership records, drawing over 11 million viewers during the semi-final against England, making it the single highest rating TV program of all time.
In 2026 as CEO of the Women’s Asian Cup she delivered a record breaking tournament on home soil, total attendace to matches of 355,000 and the grand final viewed by 3.2M Australians. The most watched event on Channel 10 since 2023.
Ranked 14th on News Corps' list of 100 most influential women, she continues to challenge Australian society on the double standards that exist for women, how to create change that has lasting impact and how to deliver high performance and an environment of global uncertainty.
The Value of Belief
Lessons from the rise of the Matildas
When the Matildas captured the nation's imagination, many saw an overnight success. The reality was years of challenging conventional thinking, redefining success and investing in value that traditional metrics couldn't measure.
In this inspiring closing keynote, Sarah Walsh shares the remarkable journey behind the rise of the Matildas and the leadership decisions that transformed not only a team but the future of Australian football. From securing equal pay and conditions to building a culture that unlocked extraordinary performance, Sarah explores how creating long-term value often requires the courage to look beyond short-term results.
Through powerful stories from one of Australia's greatest sporting success stories, this session challenges us to rethink how we measure value, lead through change and create environments where people and organisations can achieve far more than anyone thought possible.
Whether you're leading a team, shaping workplace culture or driving organisational change, you'll leave with a fresh perspective on what it really takes to create lasting impact.