9 SEP 2021 · Derek Russo is the co-founder and CEO of Chit Chat, a platform for meaningful connections and conversations - where people can seek specific knowledge and be rewarded for providing it. Derek started his career as a finance and technology management consultant at PwC; helping startups and Fortune 500 companies develop growth strategies, implement new technologies, and design processes to support post-merger integrations. He graduated from the University of Georgia (Go Dawgs!). Schedule a chit chat with Derek: chitchatme.co/chatwith/derek

21 MAY 2020 · Who is Greg Mclardie?  Driving me has been the strong desire to build something with such a strong foundation that it will last for generations. The “something” that is built will be a noble company. I want to make a difference. I want to put a dent in the universe. 10 years ago I had the guts to pursue this vision in the food industry. I can connect the dots from disparate information to form a vision many others do not see. It is natural for me to challenge the status quo and to think of a better way. At the same time, I build strong relationships where 1+1 can equal 5. Some would say 'perseverance' is my middle name. While it may seem counter-intuitive, I have the agility to learn, change and morph when facing obstacles. Obstacles and mistakes always provide a learning opportunity. I have had 22 years consumer products and 17 years food industry experience in USA, Japan, Australia & China. Also CEO experience in FMCG, food and agriculture industries in large and small companies for the last 24 years. Although in recent years I have been on a strong entrepreneurial track, I spent 8 years with Procter & Gamble in their Cincinnati global headquarters. P&G, which invented brand management, gave me a strong grounding in branding, the importance of continuous innovation and the rigours of research and being fact-based in decision making. I also spent 2 years as President of Japan & South Korea, living in Japan, for Australia’s largest food company, Pacific Dunlop’s food operations. I have an 8 year relationship with lobster and abalone fishermen leaders and 6 years and over 30 visits building relationships in China. Get in touch with Greg here

19 DEC 2019 · Sarah Sharif is a Pakistani-born, British-American who has dedicated her career to social innovation, civic technology, and human impact projects. Sarah is the Founder of Experimental Civics, Founder of Capsule, and Co-Founder of Life Sci Hack. Before becoming an entrepreneur, Sharif quickly gained recognition as the Director of ATX Hack for Change driving the generation of 157 social innovation and emerging technology projects in her role. Through Experimental Civics, she has launched over 10 unique design thinking workshops and has supported over 45 hackathons to increase awareness in open science, social innovation, and design thinking. As a millennial CEO, we've only seen the beginning of her global work as Sarah empowers communities through engagement with technology. Many millennials talk about change with no real outlet for action. Sarah is truly unique in that she's creating a space for changemakers to make a difference with hands-on experiences, workshops, and hackathons. Learn more here https://www.sarah0sharif.io/

27 AUG 2019 · Chris's Story:  As a passionate retailer I will never forget that first chapter of my career those many years ago when my manager and one of my life mentors said to me "young Chris, you have one of the most important jobs in the business collecting shopping trolleys". "Really?" I replied. He then explained that trolleys are what help customers shop and makes the registers ring. It was then that I learned that every person contributes to the success of a business and it's this lesson that still guides my leadership today. With more than 20 years of executive retail experience, I have steered commercial growth, strengthened customer advocacy, elevated team engagement and provided strategic foresight to some of Australia's largest retail brands. Today as a CEO I pride myself on creating environments for teams to drive transformational growth strategies that consistently deliver unprecedented improvements in revenue, profitability and organisational value. Helping people be the best they can is what makes me tick, and it's because of this that I have a reputation for connecting high-performing teams to deliver strategic and commercial outcomes - consistently. My personal and professional philosophy is best summed up in my treks to Everest: reaching the summit takes drive, passion, learning and both giving and receiving support from those around you. Just like the lesson I learned pushing trolleys, it takes a whole team to reach the top. Specialties: ► Over 20 years of executive retail business acumen and experience. ► National retail experience, leading teams of thousands to win multiple retail awards. ► Defining corporate visions and strategies that deliver significant and sustainable growth.

31 JUL 2019 ·  GROWTH FOR SCALE UPS & ENTERPRISE WITH A FOCUS ON BRAND, PARTNERSHIPS, AND COMMUNITY BUILDING. Global Startup Director for Startup Grind (in partnership with Google for Startups) inspiring, educating, and connecting 2,000,000+ entrepreneurs, in 500 cities in 125 countries around the world. Local partners include: ASX, Deloitte Private, Salesforce, IBM, MYOB, Zendesk, and NAB. Entrepreneur in Residence at Collective Campus -  Melbourne's Leading Enterprise Innovation Hub. Collective Campus has run corporate accelerator programs for Mills Oakley (LawTech), Village Roadshow (VR/ AR), and Charter Hall (Proptech). CEO of Startup Melbourne Startup Melbourne is based on the idea that we all must continue to learn, to share, and collaborate in order to promote Australia's innovative digital solutions to the world. 

18 JUL 2019 · Adam delivers innovative and proven 'fan-first' engagement solutions which capture leads, increase revenue, deliver fan insights to publishers, teams and their sponsors. Brands and sponsors he has worked with include: NRL, NBL, Rugby League World Cup, A-League, Western Bulldogs, Adelaide Crows, NAB, TAB and many more... He has a multi-disciplinary background in Digital Marketing, having worked in Social Media, Customer Acquisition, Product Management, and Project Delivery at Startup, Agency and Enterprise level. Adam also is an avid educator - teaching classes at General Assembly and Academy Xi in Product Management, Startup Strategy, Digital Marketing and UX.   Learn more about bench vote here  https://www.benchvote.com/ 

4 MAY 2019 · Nima is an experienced Chief Executive Officer with over twenty years experience working in digital marketing and advertising across the globe, holding prominent roles with multinational agencies including JWT London, BMC media and Glass Onion. His areas of specialisation include, conversion rate optimisation (CRO), eCommerce, experimentation, digital transformation, digital strategy and user experience design. He is currently the CEO and Founder of New Republique, an award winning experience optimisation consultancy specialising in CRO, UX and brand strategy, to dramatically improve the performance of websites, mobile and apps for brands like Kogan, Chemist Warehouse, Catch, BMW Australia, Fantastic Furniture, HSBC, Employsure, Bendigo Bank and OFX and many more. He started New Republique in 2010 to pursue my passion for working with brands to unlock the psychology behind consumer buying behavior and using that to influence marketing strategy. His clients consistently see a conversion rate lift of anywhere between 5% and 1500%, with results usually being a lift in sales, a lift in qualified leads and sign ups, or more frequent bookings or donations. Nima is an advocate for the constant testing and experimentation that comes with CRO and believe UX and UI design are flawed without the use of real time data. He also believes that many companies make the mistake of spending big on driving traffic to their websites without then investing in data-led, experience optimisation strategies. For media and speaking engagements, please contact Samantha Dybac - The PR Hub: email: samantha@theprhub.com.au 

4 MAY 2019 ·  KX Pilates is Australia’s first high performance, boutique fitness company, with 54 locations across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Gold Coast, Adelaide, Hobart and Jakarta, Indonesia. KX offer High Performance Pilates and International Fitness Retreats. Aaron started the business in 2010 and his vision is to personalise and expand the quality of the Australian fitness industry with new styles of functional fitness offerings that achieve incredible results. His goal for the next five years is to have 120-150 KX locations across Australia and for KX to expand further internationally. He entered into franchising because he is passionate about people achieving their dreams of owning their own business and reaching financial freedom. Since being established KX Pilates has earned multiple awards, from Service Business of the Year at the 2014 Australian Startup Awards, SmartCompany Smart50 and finalist for Best Small Business of the Year at the My Business Awards. He has previously been recognised as a Man of Influence by Men’s Style magazine and shortlisted as a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year at the Australian Startup Awards. In 2017 Kx also won the Australian Next Generation of Franchising Competition. KX Pilates offers franchising opportunities nationally. For franchise enquiries please visit www.kxfranchising.com.au  

28 APR 2019 · Robert Tadros is the Founder and Managing Director of Impress!ve Digital one of Australia’s fastest growing digital marketing agencies specialising in Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Facebook Advertising and Search Engine Marketing (SEM). He founded the digital marketing agency in March 2016. in two and a half years he has built a team of people and has grown the business 500 per cent from $600K to $4 million in annual revenue. Impress!ve has worked with over 100 clients including Misha Collection, digiDIRECT, Andchill, Schiavello, XBlades and Roll’d. In 2017 Robert received his first request from a client to pay for services using cryptocurrency. Despite negative press about Bitcoin, Robert now has two clients who pay using this currency and he believes that businesses must embrace this technology as part of the future of business. Robert has a Bachelor of Marketing and an Advanced Diploma in Digital Marketing, as well as over 10 years’ experience in sales and marketing with a particular focus on implementing complex multi-channel digital marketing strategies. With his high energy results-oriented approach, he helps clients to maximise online conversion through effective customer journeys and sales processes. His expertise extends to planning and executing SEO, paid search advertising, social media and mobility. 

28 APR 2019 · Sam Bashiry is a man with incredible drive and the aspiration to make a positive difference in the lives of others. He utilises his innovative vision to challenge the conventional business model, and pave the way for a promising future across a range of industries. His journey from turning $1000 in to the now $25 million internet and telephony business; Broadband Solutions, has propelled him in to the spotlight as a thought leader in his industry and a well-known Australian entrepreneur. Sam's success and experience allows him to use his extensive knowledge to help others achieve their business and personal goals. Working with people in business, education, health and hospitality, Sam motivates and mentors people of all ages and from all backgrounds. Continue reading: http://www.sambashiry.com.au/about