Rod McGeoch has had and continues to enjoy a remarkable career at the forefront of business, sports administration and the legal profession. He unites exemplary senior level management experience with an unparalleled commitment to achievement. Perhaps best known as the leader of Sydney’s successful Olympics 2000 bid, he is Chairman or Director of a wide range of major corporations and past Chairman of Corrs Chambers Westgarth, one of Australia’s largest law firms.

He was described in an ABN AMRO report as one of Australasia’s most influential Directors. His appointments include Chairman of Chubb Insurance Australia Limited, and Vantage Private Equity Growth Limited. He is a Consultant of the Group Board of Corporation America and a Director of Corporacion America International S.a.r.l, and Corporacion America Airports S.A.

He is Chairman of Australasian Media Co, a member of the Board of Destination NSW. He Chairman of SureVision and APP Corporation Pty Ltd. He completed lengthy terms as a Director of Ramsay Health Care Limited, Chairman of Skycity Entertainment Group Ltd and Mediaworks Ltd two major New Zealand companies and continues that connection as Honorary Chairman of the Trans-Tasman Business Circle and immediate Past Chairman of the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum.

He is a Trustee and Deputy Chairman of the Sydney Cricket Ground & Sports Ground Trust. He is a past President of the Law Society of NSW and a Member of the Order of Australia, awarded in recognition of his invaluable services to the legal profession. On 26 January 2013 Mr McGeoch became an Officer of the Order of Australia in recognition of his “distinguished service to the community through contributions to a range of organisations and to sport.” In 2014 Mr McGeoch was appointed Honorary Consul of Luxembourg in Australia. He completed his term of office in April 2021.

Joseph Rizk AM is the CEO & Managing Director of Arab Bank Australia has been Managing Director since 22 December 2010. Prior to his appointment as Managing Director, Joseph held the position of Chief Banking Officer for over five years, overseeing the retail, commercial and trade banking operations as well as its branch network, and being responsible for all revenue generating arms of the Bank. Joseph has over 50 years of corporate, commercial and international banking and finance experience along with extensive experience across the banking spectrum with the ability to generate positive results in the face of tough market conditions and in an increasingly competitive business environment.

Prior to joining Arab Bank Australia, Joseph worked predominantly for the National Australia Bank in a senior executive capacity, leading and managing a series of large business units in Sydney and NSW and headed up the NAB’s NSW & ACT Property Finance Groups.

Joseph is a member of (MAICD) The Australian Institute of Company Directors. He is also a fellow of (AIM) The Australian Institute of Management. Joseph has been a Director of the Australian Lebanese Chamber of Commerce since 2007. In 2007 to 2014 was President of the (WMRF) Westmead Medical Research Foundation. In May 2015 Joseph was nominated the Chairman of the (IOFA) Italian Opera Foundation Association.

Joseph was also nominated in 2015 the Director for the (WMI) Westmead Millennium Institute for Medical Research. On Monday 8th June 2015 (Queens’ Birthday) – Joseph was awarded the ‘Order of Australia’ the Award has been given to Joseph in recognition of his extraordinary contribution to the banking sector and community.

In January 2016 Joseph became Board member of (AACCI) Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry. In October 2020 Joseph became Board Director of the Melkite Catholic Eparchy Corporation. In July 2021 Joseph became a member of the Powerhouse Capital Campaign Committee.

On Wednesday 26 January 2022 – Australia Day. Member of the Order of Australia Honours, AM announcement. Joseph was recognised for his significant service to the not- for- profit sector, and to banking and commerce.

In October 2022 Joseph became Director of the James Martin Institute (JMI) for Public Policy now known as Australian Public Policy Institute.

On Wednesday 14 December 2022 Joe was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Western Sydney University. In December 2022 Became a Council Member of The Australian Banking Association.

Sally Loane is a Chair, Non-Executive Director, business leader and former journalist and broadcaster.

Chair of Destination NSW and Ignition Advice, she is also sits on the board of Chubb Insurance Australia and the Garvan Medical Research Foundation. She is a member of the Advisory Board of consulting firm Orizontas and a mentor with McCarthy Mentoring.

From 2014-2021 Sally was the CEO of the Financial Services Council, the peak industry organisation for financial services, members of which included global and domestic fund managers, retail superannuation funds, advice licensees and life insurers.

Sally was the first female Director of Waratahs Rugby in its 135-year history (2010-2017), and is a former Director of Venues NSW, SCEGGS Darlinghurst, and PanKind.

Sally’s passion is women’s financial independence and economic security, and to this end has utilised her experience in financial services policy development, mentoring (Minerva Network; Super Stars of STEM) and has advised government via corporate advisory boards.

She has had a long history of service to the community and charity sectors, currently as a Trustee of the ANZAC Memorial Building in NSW, Governor of the Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation, Ambassador for Business Events Sydney, a member of Chief Executive Women, patron of Lou’s Place and member of the Nominations Committee for Sydney University Sport and Fitness Ltd. Sally chaired the Salvation Army’s Sydney East Doorknock Appeal (2008-2011) and was Deputy Chair of the Committee for Sydney (2015-2018).

Owen has more than 50 years experience in the global mining industry: including 25 years with the Rio Tinto group where he worked in most of their commodities, companies, and countries, and ultimately was Managing Director of Rio Tinto Asia and the Australian copper and gold business from 1989 to 1994.

Owen was the founder and Managing Director of Oxiana Limited, where he led the growth of Oxiana from a junior explorer to a major Asia Pacific base and precious metals producer. Oxiana became OZ Minerals which remains one of the top performing resources stocks over the past 25 years. Owen was Chairman of the Tigers Realm Minerals Group and until end of 2016 was Vice Chairman of Fortescue Metals Group; and he was also the Executive Vice- Chairman of Hong Kong-listed G-Resources and CST Mining.

Owen is a co-founder and Executive Chairman of EMR Capital, a specialist mining private equity group. EMR has multiple mining projects and operations worldwide.

Owen holds a Bachelor of Economics (Hons) from Monash University, is a Honorary Fellow of and former Director of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AUSIMM), and a fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).

Owen has served and continues to serve as a member of a number of Government and industry mining advisory bodies; and is the recipient of a number of awards and citations for his achievements and leadership in the mining industry. He was also awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) in the June 2021 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for service to the mining and minerals sector.

Antony Shaw was Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Australia and New Zealand from 2022 - 2026. He also served HSBC Australia's Board as an Executive Director during that period. Whilst CEO he was a standing member on the Council of the Australian Banking Association and currently remains the Chair of the Business Council of Australia's Global Engagement Committee since 2024. He has been a board member of the Asia Society since 2025.

Antony joined HSBC in Hong Kong in early 2003 where he worked across multiple global roles within its investment bank division. This included leading HSBC's institutional coverage for Asia Pacific and the Middle East, being globally responsible for the Markets' service proposition for retail, wealth and private banking clients and leading the division's Global Emerging Markets teams. He also was Global Head of Digital Markets for the division.

Prior to HSBC, Antony worked within investment banks including Macquarie Bank and Deutsche Bank in Sydney and London before relocating to Asia.

Beyond HSBC, Antony holds advisory positions across several institutions and not for profit organisations including the Business Council of Australia's economic committee.

Joseph is a Co-Founder and CEO of Malu Health Group, a purpose-led integrated mental health practice. Malu’s purpose is to improve access to exceptional mental health care and enhance the quality of the client/patient and clinician’s experience.

Before launching Malu in 2025, Joseph held senior executive positions at Judo Bank, NAB, ANZ, Citibank, CIBC World Markets, and Lloyds Bank. In 2016, he co-founded Judo Bank, a bank specialising in the SME economy. Having raised $1.5bn of equity in private markets – including the most significant pre-revenue capital raise in Australian corporate history - the bank grew from a PowerPoint to profitability and a publicly listed company within four years. It is the fastest start-up bank globally to achieve profitability and was named LinkedIn’s #1 place to work in Australia in 2023. It was also ranked in the Top 5 of the Financial Times' Fastest Growing Businesses in Asia-Pacific in 2023. Joseph was the CEO of Judo Bank from 2016 to 2024.

Joseph holds an MSc in Psychology & Neuroscience of Mental Health, an MSc (Finance), an MBA, an MSc in International Management (China), an MA in Contemporary Chinese Studies, and an MBA (Banking), degrees from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London; London Business School; Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Kings College, London. He was a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers (Scotland) and a Senior Fellow of FINSIA. He has authored five books: Corporate Governance & Shareholder Value (2003); ‘Breaking the Banks: What Went Wrong with Australian Banking?’ (2019); ‘Chinese Firms Going Global – Can They Succeed?’ (2018); ‘Black Belt – a Masterclass for Start-ups and Entrepreneurs’ (2023); and ‘What Would Adam Smith Think of Modern Australia?’ (2025).

Joseph was a Director of the Football Federation Australia (FFA) from 2009-18 and the Australian Finance Industry Association from 2019-24. He was also an adjunct professor at the University of Queensland from 2015 to 2019. He holds five youth-level international football caps for Scotland.

Interests: the role of banks in allocating credit; the history of China (1850-); the neuroscience of addictions; the epigenetics and psychological causes of depression; the role of psychological stress in cancer; start-up entrepreneurship and the life and works of Adam Smith.

Jen started as CEO of the Committee for Brisbane in June 2024, leading the organisation’s advocacy, thought leadership and commercial operations.

Prior to joining the Committee, Jen led the Queensland Division of the Property Council of Australia. Over her 12-year tenure at the Property Council, she progressed from Senior Policy Advisor, to Deputy Executive Director, and was appointed as Executive Director in 2021.

Jen is a well-known face in Brisbane business, not-for-profit and political circles, having formed many partnerships in the pursuit of policy reform, including through public campaigns to address the housing crisis and to increase post-pandemic visitation of the city centre.

Alongside her significant experience in policy, events and engagement, Jen also has a background in secondary school education, development and political advice. She holds a Master of Management (International Business), Bachelor of Social Science and Bachelor of Education.

Dr. Christian Baylis is the Founder and CIO at Fortlake Asset Management, responsible for overseeing the investment process and investment team. Fortlake is one of the fastest growing asset managers in Australia and has been recognized as the top performing asset manager within the fixed income peer group since the firm’s inception (Source: Morningstar).

Fortlake was also recognized by the acclaimed Hedge Fund Journal as one of the top 50 up and coming asset managers, globally. More recently, Fortlake entered into an economic partnership with Colonial First State (CFS) under the ownership of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), the first asset manager to do so under the KKR lead business.

The AFR recently named Fortlake as the “Bond fund with equity like returns” a notable acknowledgement in one of the toughest interest rate environments in history. Having worked at UBS Asset Management and the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Christian managed over $8 billion in assets, and was a member of the Global Multi Strategy Committee. Christian holds a PhD in Econometrics and received the Exceed First Class Honours award with a perfect GPA.

He won the Australian Postgraduate Scholar Award at both UNSW and USYD and was a visiting scholar at Monash University in the Econometrics faculty. He was also a recipient of the Capital Markets CRC PhD Scholarship, focusing on inflation modeling, probability density functions, and option implied distributions.

With 23 years of experience in financial data, news, and analytics, Giovanni sits on the executive committee of ION Analytics and is responsible for engaging with Influencers in the capital market globally and across asset classes. He organizes fireside chats and exclusive closed-door events to facilitate connectivity and knowledge among the influencers. Giovanni joined the company in 2001 where it held various roles in Italy, Germany, London including managing a global team of journalists and data analysts. Giovanni is now based in Sydney.

Sarah Fairhurst holds multiple Board roles as a Non-Executive Director across four energy sector companies and has recently served on the Advisory Board of an ESG services firm. With a career spanning the UK, Asia, and Australia, she brings deep expertise in electricity and gas markets, as well as a nuanced understanding of regional cultural and regulatory complexities.

A key highlight of Sarah’s executive journey is co-founding The Lantau Group (TLG) in 2010 — a boutique energy economics and strategy advisory firm. She is known for her strategic insight, commercial acumen, and analytical rigor, paired with practical, cross-border experience. Sarah excels in addressing complex energy challenges with a blend of pragmatism and innovation.

Jim’s career began as a teacher and Deputy Principal of a Catholic High School. Subsequently, he entered the financial services industry, providing financial adviser soft-skill training and education and regularly speaking at conferences and seminars, in Australia and internationally.

Jim, for some 25 years, built a very successful business in financial planning and ultimately sold it to a publicly listed ASX company. In 2012 and 2013 respectively, Jim was appointed Adjunct Professor with Notre Dame University, Australia, and Western Sydney University.

He is actively involved in community activities, including the Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal and Local Chambers of Commerce.

Jim was the Chairman of Mentor Education and Chairman of APIC, a leading international educational organization. He was Deputy Chairman of Regional Development Australia for Sydney and sat on three separate council bodies in Western Sydney, specifically dealing with audit and risk, asset management, and other financial related matters, pertaining to each of the councils that Jim has served.

Stephen Walters is Principal and Chief Economist of Optimal Economics, based in Sydney.

He previously was Chief economist for the Business Council of Australia (BCA) and Chief Economist of NSW. Before joining NSW Treasury, Stephen was Chief Economist with the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and, for 14 years, was Chief Economist for investment bank J.P.Morgan.

Stephen previously was Senior Economist with Access Economics in Melbourne and International Economist with Norwich Union and Alliance Capital in the United Kingdom. He also spent seven years as an Economist with the Treasury in Perth.

Stephen holds a Bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Western Australia and a Master's degree in applied finance from the University of Melbourne. He also has qualifications in journalism and graduated from the AICD's Company Directors Course in 2017. Stephen has published three books, with a fourth to be published soon.

Stephen is a member of the Australian Statistics Advisory Council (ASAC) and is an associate director of the Australian Centre for International Trade and Investment (ACITI). He is a former chair of the Executive Committee of the Australian Business Economists (ABE) and is on the National Executive of the Australian Republic Movement (ARM).

Lyall Gorman is currently the Group CEO of Evolve Housing, one of Australia’s largest Community Housing Providers. He is also the President of Business NSW, having served as a Board Director for the past eight years and Deputy President for two years. Lyall also holds the position of Deputy President at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI).

He has over 35 years of experience in senior management, project management and administration, in both the Public and Private sectors. He holds a Master’s Degree in Administration (UNSW) with majors in Finance, Organizational Culture and Change, Organisational Behaviour, Statistics and Marketing. Lyall was born in Griffith, NSW and has a passion for small business, mentoring emerging business leaders and aspirational youth while also figuring on the public speaking circuit in areas including Leadership, Building a Winning Culture, High Performance, Brand, Development, Consumer Engagement.

Sarah is a dynamic entrepreneur and CEO of #CapTech2024, specializing in guiding SME organizations through strategic business development and leadership enhancement. With accreditations in psychometrics, emotional quotient, and motivational techniques, Sarah brings a unique blend of expertise to the table. She is a certified Board Facilitator, Neurolinguistics Practitioner, and Time-Line Therapist, reflecting her commitment to holistic business growth.

As the Founder of Influential Leader Academy and Co-founder of Deep Neuro Analytics, Sarah is deeply entrenched in the world of entrepreneurship and business advancement. She understands that scaling a venture requires more than just a vision—it demands a comprehensive strategy, access to funding, invaluable advice, and a strong network.

Drawing from over a decade of entrepreneurial experience, Sarah has navigated the complexities of scaling ventures firsthand. She has guided numerous entrepreneurs through this process, leveraging her extensive network and expertise to secure funding opportunities and foster collaborations.

Sarah recognises that scaling ventures necessitates not only business acumen but also access to capital and strategic advice. She is dedicated to sharing her knowledge and expertise, providing entrepreneurs with the guidance and support needed to navigate the challenges of growth.

Driven by a genuine passion for helping others succeed, Sarah approaches each client interaction with enthusiasm and dedication. Whether advising on scaling strategies, securing funding, or facilitating valuable connections, she is committed to ensuring the long-term success of her clients’ businesses.

Sarah believes that strategic scaling is not just about expansion; it’s about safeguarding the future success of a business and its stakeholders. By combining the right plan, funding, advice, and network, she helps entrepreneurs propel their ventures to new heights and ensure their enduring relevance in the market.