IEP SUMMIT AUSTRALIA | 2025 | Sydney

The IEP Summit Australia 2025 - Time for Change: People. Potential. Progress

sponsored by The BUSY Group

A Groundbreaking Event for the Employability Sector.

Please note that ticket prices stated include GST. If you are a self funding Fellow, we may be able to offer you a discounted rate. Please contact amy.lucas@iemployability.org for more details.

The IEP Summit Australia 2025 is set to be a landmark occasion — unlike any other conference Australia has hosted. With a strong focus on building connections and sharing best practice, the Summit will bring together leading minds in employability for transformative conversations and solution-focused sessions. Expect more than just traditional presentations. This is a dynamic experience packed with real-world insights, strategic discussion, and powerful networking opportunities that look firmly to the future of the profession. The theme for this years event is 'Time for Change: People. Potential. Progress'.

Why Attend the IEP Summit?

As the flagship event of the Institute of Employability Professionals (IEP), the Summit is a trusted space for IEP members and senior colleagues to come together, share knowledge, and shape what comes next.Designed to provoke thought and inspire progress, the IEP Summit presents cutting-edge content, covering policy, practice, innovation, and leadership. It’s a unique opportunity to engage with peers, challenge assumptions, and co-create solutions to the sector’s most pressing challenges.Whether you're a policy driver, delivery leader, or sector innovator, this is your platform to:

• Connect with industry leaders and peers
• Explore innovative ideas
• Advance your career with tangible takeaways
• Influence the direction of employability in Australia

Elevation Evening – A Premium Networking Experience 🕕 6:00pm onwards | 💳 Separately ticketed

After a day of insight and inspiration, join us for Elevation Evening – a post-summit networking dinner designed to take the conversation further. Held in the elegant Waterfront Room at 12-Micron, this exclusive dinner offers the perfect setting to:

• Reflect on the day’s key insights
• Engage with speakers and fellow attendees
• Enjoy exceptional cuisine in great company

Whether you're building new partnerships or strengthening existing ones, the IEP Summit Australia 2025 Elevation Evening is your chance to connect in a more intimate, relaxed setting.

Please note: Tickets for the Elevation Evening are sold separately. Early booking is recommended due to limited availability. 

IEP Summit Program:

Keynote Speaker
Nigel Palmer, Senior Policy Manager for Skills and Education
BusinessNSW

Seminar 1: The evolving nature of skills in society

The keynote will address how rapid technological, economic, and social changes are reshaping the skills landscape. It will explore the implications for education, workforce development, and employability, highlighting how employment services must remain adaptable and future-ready.

Panellists:
Andrew Hills FIEP, Managing Director, Australian Employment Services Collective
Bec Jackson FIEP, Principal Policy Advisor, APM

Keynote Speaker
Professor Leisa Sargent
Dean of the University of Sydney Business School

Seminar 2: The changing nature of organisational leadership

Professor Sargent is an internationally recognised scholar in organisational behaviour. She leads strategic initiatives to enhance the school's global impact in business education and research and has a deep commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion, which she integrates into the school's programs and partnerships. Under her leadership, the Business School has launched the Australian Centre for Gender Equality and Inclusion @ Work, a new tech focused MBA and has strengthened industry ties through the establishment of a new Board of Advice comprising leaders from various sectors. Prior to her current role, Professor Sargent held senior academic positions at UNSW Business School, including Senior Deputy Dean and Co-Deputy Vice-Chancellor Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Panellists:
Ashley Williams FIEP, National Manager, IEA
Matthew Levy OAM FIEP, Senior Consultant, Deloitte

Keynote Speaker
Patrick Kidd AO OAM
CEO, Future Skills Organisation

Seminar 3: The Impact of AI on Future Skills and Employability

Patrick brings a remarkable breadth of experience — from serving in both the British and Australian Defence Forces to leading the Invictus Games Sydney 2018, and now shaping Australia's workforce development through his leadership of the Future Skills Organisation. His session will delve into the opportunities and challenges AI presents for the training system, employers, and learners alike.

Panellists:

Alex Stephany, Founder & CEO, Beam
Brian Walsh, Head Asia Pacific, Everway

Keynote Speaker
Damien Woods
Learning Transformation Lead at Woolworths

Seminar 4: The Organisational Realities of a Changing Workplace

Like every industry, the nature of food and grocery retailing is changing rapidly. In this keynote, Damien will explore the key forces driving that change, from evolving customer behaviours and post-COVID expectations, to the growing role of data and technology, increased competition, and the demand for flexibility and personalisation in how people shop. With more choice than ever before, what made a great food and grocery retailer in the past no longer guarantees future success.

Drawing on his extensive leadership experience across learning and development, agile workforce strategies, talent management, and organisational design, Damien will unpack how Woolworths is responding to these shifts — and what it means for the modern worker, workforce strategy, and the skills required to thrive in a constantly evolving environment.

Panellists:

Rhys Morris FIEP, Managing Director (UK & Europe), The BUSY Group
Brian Walsh, Head Asia Pacific, Everway

Programme Timings: 

9:30-10:10
Registration and Arrival
Morning Refreshments

10:10
Welcome & Introductions:
Scott Parkin FIEP, Group CEO, IEP
Zac Ashkanasy FIEP, Principal, Nous Group
Paul Miles, Global Managing Director, The BUSY Group (Headline Sponsors)
Welcome to Country – Uncle Allan Murray

10:30-11:25
Seminar 1: The Evolving Nature of Skills in Society

11:25-11:45
Networking Break & Refreshments

11:45-12:40
Seminar 2: The Changing Nature of Organisational Leadership

12:40-13:40
Networking Lunch (sponsored by Everway)

13:40-2:35
Seminar 3:
The Impact of AI on Future Skills and Employability

14:35-14:55
Networking Break & Refreshments

14:55-15:45
Seminar 4: The Organisational Challenges of a Changing Workplace

15:45-16:00
End of Summit

16:15-17:00
Masterclass: AI for Employment Services - Now and the Future (sponsored by BEAM)
(Capped at 20 participants)

Join us for an exclusive AI Masterclass exploring what’s happening right now in artificial intelligence — and what’s possible for the future of employment services.

This interactive session will bring together insights from the day and invite discussion on practical, ethical, and future-focused applications of AI across the sector. Designed to inspire new thinking and spark conversation about technology’s role in shaping employability.

16:15-18:00
IEP Summit Networking Drinks (sponsored by Vinti Tech)

18:00-22:00
Elevation Dinner (Sponsored by Enterprise Monkey)

We’re excited to announce Enterprise Monkey/Dumb Monkey AI Academy as the official Dinner Sponsor for the IEP Summit Australia, taking place at Sydney’s 12-Micron on Tuesday 14 October.

The Academy’s founder, Aamir Qutub, is a renowned entrepreneur, AI strategist, and author of the best-selling book The CEO Who Mocked AI (Until It Made Him Millions). Through his work with Enterprise Monkey, Aamir helps businesses embrace digital transformation, unlock growth, and apply AI with confidence.

From humble beginnings as an international student working as a cleaner, Aamir has become an award-winning business leader and co-founder of Angel Next Door, a platform that supported over a million people during the COVID-19 pandemic. His journey is one of resilience, innovation, and social impact — and we’re proud to have his support for this year’s Summit.

Introducing our Dinner Guest

Former South Australian police officer Derrick McManus — who survived being shot 14 times — will be the keynote speaker at the IEP Summit Australia Elevation Dinner.

Now with the Australian Centre for Human Durability, Derrick will share his extraordinary story of leadership, endurance, and resilience, inspiring attendees with powerful lessons drawn from his lived experience.

Derrick is going to tell us about those 14 bullets, the three hours lying on the ground, and what it took him to not just survive the unimaginable but to thrive personally, professionally and mentally afterward. He will also have you laughing at the crazy things you think and that happen during a real-life nightmare.

However, Summit attendees will also take away clear strategies and tools to use so you can go beyond resilience to, what Derrick terms as, Sustained Optimal Performance – the very best you can do in the face of the challenges and changes in your life.

Cybersecurity experts Vinti Tech are becoming part of the IEP Australia family – joining as a Capability Partner and sponsoring the IEP Summit Australia's Networking Drinks Reception.

Led by Managing Director Sarah McIntosh, Vinti Tech is based in Queensland but operates nationally.