Alistair Rendell joined Flinders University as Vice President and Executive Dean for the College of Science and Engineering at the start of 2019 following a 23-year career with the Australian National University, including over five years as Director of the Research School of Computer Science. He has significant experience in both academic leadership and high-performance computing research. With an undergraduate degree in chemistry and a PhD in theoretical chemistry he has made contributions to several widely used computational chemistry software packages.

Claire Lenehan is the Dean (Research) for the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders University. She is Professor in Forensic and Analytical Chemistry, and works closely with industry to develop novel analytical tools for the analysis of a range of complex forensic and environmental samples. 

Professor Giselle Rampersad is the Dean (Education) in the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders University. She was named STEMM Educator of the Year in 2021 in the SA Science Excellence and Innovation Awards. 

She is a Professor in Innovation and Co-Director of the Centre for Defence Engineering Research and Training at Flinders University. She is also the Director for the award winning Diploma of Digital Technologies. Under her leadership, it received national recognition, winning the Australian Defence Industry Award for the Training and Mentorship Program of the Year in 2020, by Defence Connect. It also won the Industry Collaboration award at the SA Training Awards in 2021. The program is undertaken by employees from BAE Systems Australia and other defence primes, SMEs, STEM teachers and Wine/AgTech. This program has achieved over 50% participation by women. 

She leads various major defence research projects including with Defence Science and Technology Group on digital twins. She has an interdisciplinary educational background including a PhD in Innovation and Technology Management (Adelaide University, Australia) and an MSc in Internet Systems and e-Business (Durham University, UK, Computer Science Department). Her research focuses on innovation and technology management, digital transformation and human factors in the adoption of disruptive technologies.

Rocco is Professor and Head of Engineering at the Flinders University of South Australia, a position that he took up on 1st July 2014. As a part of this leadership role, he manages numerous research projects and teaching programs at the undergraduate and postgraduate level. His research interests include the use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) for transportation applications. This research work has mainly involved the use of Intelligent Transport System technologies to improve the effectiveness of transport. He also has a background in the assessment and investigation of the environmental impacts of various transport policy initiatives, including the use of alternative fuels and vehicles. Rocco is currently also heavily involved in connected and autonomous vehicle research and trials.

Professor Lewis joined Flinders University in 2009 following a 21-year career in industrial Research at the IBM T.J. Watson Research Centre in New York, USA (10 years) and research management roles at SOLA Optical / Carl Zeiss in Australia (11 years). He was the founding Director of the Flinders Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, standing down from that position in 2020 and is currently Head of Science in the College of Science and Engineering.

David career has focused on translational research and product / technology development and is internationally recognized for his research in polymer science and nanotechnology.  He had key roles in the development of photochromic lenses, including Transitions Velocity and a range of high index ophthalmic lens materials and coatings.  Since joining Flinders University, David created NanoConenct, a mechanism to allow companies to explore the potential of nanotechnology on their business.  He also co-founded 3RT to commercialise technology to convert low value plantation timber into high quality furniture, flooring and other applications, which is now commercially available.

David is the inventor of 52 patent families, coauthored nearly 100 scientific papers and his achievements in applied and translational research have been recognised through the RACI Applied Research Medal, election as Fellow of the RACI and citations and awards for commercialisation and contributions to Polymer science in Australia.

Davids research interests are currently focused on the creation of functional particles and surfaces at the nano and micro scales to address challenges in 3D printing, the creation of self-assembled biomimetic surfaces and printable solar cells.

2013 having previously held the position of Chair of the Department of Geography and Anthropology and the RJ Russell Professorship at LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Greg Falzon is Head of Information & Computing Technology and Associate Professor of Precision Agriculture Systems in the College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University. He has made significant contributions in advancing the application of ICT, particularly data science and machine learning in agriculture. A/Prof Falzon has an excellent record of industry funding and impact, with his achievements being recognised across the media. He has presented his research to the Prime Minister and numerous industry groups including Apple, Bosch, Hitachi, and Yamaha. Selected awards from industry include the ICM Agrifood Award and the President’s Medal, Australian Society of Sugar Cane Technologists. A/Prof Falzon is passionate about inspiring and mentoring students and supporting their career development.

Anthony Kittel is the owner, CEO and Managing Director of the REDARC Group.

Born in Port Augusta, Anthony graduated as a qualified Mechanical Engineer at the South Australian Institute of Technology (Now UniSA).  He also completed his MBA at the University of Adelaide.

In 2013, Anthony completed the three year Owners Presidents Management program at the prestigious Harvard Business School. 

Anthony is a National Vice President and Director of Australian Industry Group, Chair of the College of Science and Engineering Industry Advisory Board at Flinders University and a member of the Adelaide University Business School Industry Advisory Board.

Anthony is also a Director of privately owned technology businesses Coogee Metals Limited and DEWC Systems.

He is a Chartered Professional Engineer, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Dr Peter Appleford leads the Industry and Regional Development division and is responsible for the oversight of strategic policy and legislative reform, industry development, recovery and resilience, regional and customer services, forestry and pastoral, and emergency management.

Dr Appleford previously led the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI). In this role, he was responsible for the executive management and oversight of the Government of South Australia's principal primary industries research institute. Prior to this, he spent nearly two decades as a senior leader in key Victorian Government agencies including the Department of Primary Industries and the Department of Sustainability and Environment.

Dr Appleford has extensive experience in implementing change while driving integrated and improved performance.

He applies decisive action and sound judgement to deliver value to PIRSA's objectives, highly skilled people, stakeholders and the wider community. He brings an energetic leadership style to inspire, address barriers to growth and drive better business outcomes.

Jessica Balasso is the General Manager for Engineering and Non Process Infrastructure for BHP in South Australia. Her Engineering team own and govern the technical standards, processes and design engineering working with the operational sites and all project teams conducing upgrades to existing infrastructure, equipment and tools as well as any new installations. She also leads the integrated services teams that provide Transport, Aviation, Accommodation, Waste management, maintenance, and services for all non-process infrastructure in SA and the Training team who manage vacation students, graduates, trainees and apprentices.  Prior to this role she was the Head of Technology for BHP South Australia from 2019 till 2023. She joined BHP in 2011 and has worked in various management roles in both South Australia and Western Australia. In railways, ports and processing across different layers of management and across production, maintenance, reliability, engineering and improvement.

Prior to joining BHP, Jessica managed a labor hire business recruiting for the mining industry and shutdown work crews across Whyalla, Port Augusta, Olympic Dam (SA) and Port Hedland (WA) where she worked with industry on job ready programs.

Jessica has been a member of the BHP Investment Review Committee, and lead for the BHP Wellness Committee, a volunteer group who promote and run a number of events held in offices and the sites in BHP across the year to support physical and mental health.

She is a mentor and supporter of BHP Women in South Australia network and regular guest speaker on careers and leadership in the BHP leadership programs, she has previously mentored for METS Ignited and other industry programs supporting technology startups and women in resources.

In her spare time Jess is an artist painting floral and botanical studies in large scale formats, she enjoys gardening in in her home in the Adelaide hill and spending time on the River Murray.

Georgie Cassar has worked in Spatial Science throughout her career, applying this technology to a wide range of disciplines including infrastructure management, environmental projects, community services and cultural projects.

For more than 2 decades, Georgie has worked in the local government sector, enhancing the wide variety of functions councils provide by applying spatial/mapping technologies.

Georgie volunteers on the SA committee of the Surveying and Spatial Sciences Institute which is the main industry association spanning the sectors of Mapping, Surveying (Engineering, Mining and Land), Remote Sensing and Hydrography. This connects her to Spatial Scientists from a broad spectrum of disciplines.

Georgie was the recipient of the individual award for the Women in Spatial category at the 2017 Asia-Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards of South Australia. 

John holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Chemistry from the University of Manchester in the UK.

He is the recently appointed Director of Forensic Science SA, with over 30 years of forensic experience having commenced as a forensic chemist in the UK in 1990. He specialised in the examination and comparison of illicit drugs and plastic packaging materials and has worked on thousands of criminal cases and presented court testimony on many occasions. 

John moved to Australia in 2009, where he initially worked in the Northern Territory before moving to Victoria in 2010. John has held senior forensic roles since 2005 including Head of Operations (Drugs) at LGC Forensics (UK), Assistant Director, Director and Executive Director at the Victoria Police Forensic Services Department (2010 to 2019) and Executive Director at Queensland Health Forensic & Scientific Services (2019 to 2021). John also worked briefly for CSIRO as Research Operations Manager in the National Collections and Marine Infrastructure area (2022 to 2023).

John has a particular interest in strengthening science health within forensic science agencies through ensuring strong governance, championing research and development activities, investing in staff to ensure their scientific credentials remain contemporary and in change management and infrastructure projects.

John is a member of the Australia and New Zealand Forensic Executive Committee (ANZFEC) under the Australia and New Zealand Policing Advisory Authority, National Institute of Forensic Science (ANZPAA NIFS).

Mr Marty Gauvin is an entrepreneur who has established a range of high technology companies. He has founded seven businesses to date with the most recent being Virtual Ark, a cloud computing integrator, consultant and managed services provider focused on advancing capabilities ‘above the cloud’ through rolling out transformational solutions using its own and others IP. Marty also co-founded and runs a micro medical device company, Fertilis, that is automating and improving cell culture with diverse applications such as IVF, gene therapy and stem cell differentiation.

Previously Mr Gauvin was the Managing Director of Hostworks, a provider of critical application management services to a range of large media and online clients that became the largest Internet hosting provider in Australia. He has 30 years’ experience in IT services, system design and innovation across a wide range of sectors and has assisted clients in Australia, Europe and Asia with complex cloud and mobile based projects for the past six years.

Companies that Mr Gauvin has lead have successfully raised over $20M in early stage funding and the largest, Hostworks, sold in 2008 to a Macquarie Bank subsidiary for $69M.

Mr Gauvin has also had a significant career as an innovator. He invented a device to assist visually impaired people to use computers which lead to him being named Young Australian of the Year in 1987 to more recently when he has been listed as an inventor on three patents in the last three years.

Mr Gauvin has been involved in the assessment and structure of a range of Commonwealth Government innovation programs as well as serving on the Council of Flinders University and Chairing ReachOut, a charity focussed upon online tools to assist young people’s mental health. He is currently the Chair of the Innovation Investment Committee of Innovation Australia which governs the programs under which Venture Capital and Private Equity funds operate. He has been closely involved in the growth of the sector in Australia from 2008 during which time PE has grown tenfold and VC thirtyfold.

Professor Emily Hilder was previously the Director of the Future Industries Institute (FII) and Deputy Director of the ARC Research Hub for integrated devices for end-user analysis at low levels (IDEAL) at University of South Australia. As Director: FII she also led the Future Industries Accelerator (FIA). Established through a $7.5 million investment from the Government of SA, FIA supported SA businesses, in particular SMEs to access research equipment and infrastructure, funding for R&D projects and staff secondments, with a focus on growing R&D capacity in industry and establishing long term, productive collaboration between universities and businesses.

Emily is a graduate of the University of Tasmania where she completed her PhD in analytical chemistry in 2000. Following postdoctoral positions at Johannes Kepler University (Austria) and the E.O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA) she returned to Australia and University of Tasmania in 2004 where she held two ARC Fellowships (APD, Future Fellowship) as well as positions as Assistant Dean of Graduate Research and Head of Chemistry. She was inaugural Director of the ARC Training Centre for Portable Analytical Separation Technologies (ASTech) before relocating to the University of South Australia in 2016. Her research is the field of analytical chemistry and materials science and is focused on the design and application of new materials that can be used to improve analytical measurements. Her work has led to commercial and field adoption in separation science, bioanalysis, disease diagnosis, environment and food science, defence and national security. 

Emily is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE) and the Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI) and has been recognised by a number of awards including the Eureka Prize for Outstanding Science in Safeguarding Australia (2019), RACI Doreen Clarke Analytical Medal (2016), UTAS Foundation Graduate Award (2010) and has been included in the Analytical Scientist Power Lists from 2013-2017, 2019 & 2020 including the ‘Top 40 under 40’ and as one of the top 10 leaders in analytical science. She is an Associate Editor of Analytical Chemistry (ACS) and a member of the South Australian Premier’s Science and Innovation Council. 

Jan is an association management specialist, with expert level understanding of member driven organisations. Through numerous management roles, Jan is accustomed to interfacing with government at all levels, regularly interacting and liaising with industry groups, education providers, board-level and C-suite executives. Jan’s success as a connector and communicator who thrives on building and maintaining strong relationships with high level stakeholder groups, decision makers and individuals alike has provided many successful outcomes for those she represents.

Jan has a solid appreciation and understanding of the practice of engineering, the challenges, and the opportunities facing the profession having worked with businesses specialising in engineering, advisory and design for well over a decade.

Ben is the General Manager of City Services at the City of Marion, responsible for the delivery of Council’s service programs, including Engineering, Assets and Environment, Community Connections which encompasses the Libraries, Neighbourhood Centres and Projects and Partnerships, and Operations. He has the full end to end primary accountability for the leadership, operations, and management of Council’s external service delivery.

Prior to joining the City of Marion, he served seven and a half years with Babcock International in both the UK and Australia, most recently leading a multi-disciplinary team in the delivery of the maintenance of the Weapons System for the Collins Class Submarine program, implementing substantial improvements across program performance, customer relationship and organisational culture. He also has a breadth of experience in various roles operating in highly regulated environments in the disciplines of Project, Program and Portfolio Management, Capability Management, Business Improvement and Chief of Staff to the Babcock Nuclear Chief Executive during the early stages of the global pandemic. Ben has also successfully managed his own companies in residential construction, the Superyacht industry and most recently in the extreme sports industry.

Ben has a broad range of experience across Construction, Civil Engineering, Marine, Nuclear, Defence and Local Government industries, paired with a passion for sustainability and the built environment, stemming back to his Masters in Civil Engineering at the University of Bristol in the UK.

Ben is a family man. Having emigrated from the UK in the middle of a pandemic with his wife and 2 young children, they are enjoying their new life in South Australia and can usually be found out on the water!

Mr Suneel S. Randhawa is Chief of Information Sciences Division in the Defence Science and Technology Group within the Australian Department of Defence in Adelaide, Australia. He was previously Research Leader for Cyberwarfare Operations within Defence Science and Technology Group.

Mr Randhawa’s expertise and research interests lie in Cyber Security and Cyber Warfare, with an emphasis in the intersection with Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Autonomy. Mr Randhawa began his career with Defence Science and Technology Group in 1995, commencing in the Advanced Computer Capabilities group. He successfully received the prestigious Defence Science Fellowship in 2002 facilitating a secondment to SRI International in the USA.

Mr Randhawa has received several commendations including for his work on the Situation Awareness Common Operating Picture (SA-COP) for Headquarters Joint Operations Command in 2012 and in 2017 for his steerage of the Mission Assurance Research Collaboration (MARC) between the United States and Australia. Both awards highlighting Mr Randhawa’s longstanding productive relationships with international partners in Cyber Research.

Mr Randhawa holds: an Honours degree in Electrical and Electronics and a Masters in Engineering (Biomedical Engineering) with a research focus in Automatic Speech Recognition.

As a mechanical engineer, Anthony has over 23 years’ experience leading advanced technology product development and commercialisation of products in a wide range of sectors, including telecoms, IT, UHV, food, consumer durables, security and medical sectors. At Micro-X, he established the technology and commercialisation strategy for the start up, assisted with private capital raising and the public listing and has grown the team of over 85 staff. He currently leads all research and engineering operations as well as running the innovative CT business unit.

Anthony believes strongly in customer focused design and has delivered a number of award winning products including the MDS Sciex Cellkey™ Coca-Cola FreestyleTM, Philips VisaPure™ and the Caresteam DRX Revolution Nano™.

Dr Paul Smith is Senior R&D Program Manager at Wine Australia, with responsibility for co-investment of Industry and Commonwealth funding to benefit the grape and wine community in Australia. Paul received his PhD in Organic Chemistry from Flinders University (2000), followed by post-doctoral research at CSIRO Molecular Science and then the Department of Clinical Pharmacology at Flinders University (2001-2003) before managing teams of scientists (2003-2017) in grape & wine science at The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) then joining the Wine Australia team. He has secured and managed $15 million of research grants which mainly focused on understanding structure-function relationships, analytical chemistry and translation of this knowledge into practical solutions that make an impact for Industry. His contributions have been achieved by the combination of collaboration, transparency, positivity and a continual focus on world class research that leads to practical solutions. He has diverse networks and a breadth of experience across research management, and communication of both scientific and industry-focused knowledge.

Nick graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Engineering with Honours (Chemical) and a Masters of Engineering Science, earned in the G.K.Williams Centre for Extractive Metallurgy.  His early career was spent working in pyrometallurgy at Pasminco Research Centre in Cockle Creek NSW in the development of new zinc extraction processes and at Pasminco Metals BHAS in Pt Pirie SA on leadsmelter optimisation.  For the last 28 years he has been worked in the technology, consulting and utility sectors of the water industry. 

He has taken on diverse roles covering research and development, planning, design, project management, operations, safety, quality systems and data management. He has experience in water, wastewater, stormwater and recycled water treatment, water quality management, optimisation of operations, environmental and heritage management, asset management and WATSAN. With this background Nick takes a broad perspective on the social, technical, economic, environmental and political elements of the water industry, one that is fundamental to the health and prosperity of our communities and our planet.

He is currently Manager Research and Development at SA Water, a Chartered Professional Engineer and Member of the Institution of Engineers Australia, an associate editor for the Australian Water Association Water e-Journal, and a member of the SA Advisory Group for the Australian Water Industry Operations Association.

From technical foundations in Engineering, Andrew has a passion for understanding the big picture strategy of how things fit together.  Andrew is also motivated by small tangible steps delivering short term value and how that contributes towards coordinated long term impact.

Operating from within BAE Systems Australia’s Maritime Innovation Program, Andrew is the custodian of our Technology Roadmaps.  The strategy of our Innovation program also seeks to capture the best from our collaborators and participants.

Andrew has strong recognition that deliverable value comes from the convergence of technology and industry.  As an author of a number of our strategies, Andrew seeks to bring this to life within our key Innovation focus areas.  Our focus on our Digital Strategy and Digital Reference Architectures gives the landscape of the technology, skills, workforce and supply chain that we require to deliver on our ambitions.

These enablers will ultimately deliver for the outcomes of our Maritime business unit: headlined by the Hunter Class Frigate, Anzac Class Frigate and Hobart Class Destroyer programs.  These long term Defence capabilities require harnessing the workforce, industrial base and infrastructure of our nation, spanning multiple generations of continuous excellence, adaptability and innovation.

Andrew seeks to coordinate the brightest minds of our teams, our academic and research collaborators and our supply chain partners to best mobilise value for our national endeavours.

Murray has a coastal engineering background with a Bachelor of Engineering, Maritime (Hons), Australian Maritime College; a Master of Engineering Science (Civil), University of Melbourne; and a Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering), Monash University.  He is a member of Engineers Australia, a Fellow of the Royal Society of SA, and became a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors in 2009 and a Fellow of the Governor's Leadership Foundation in 2010. 

Murray previously managed the Coast Protection Branch within the SA Department for Environment and Water until late 2023.  He and his team provided leadership, advice and guidance on coastal policy, engineering and management and climate change adaptation, manage Adelaide's beaches and provide support to the Coast Protection Board's governance, engagement, policy development and application and its works and grants programs.  The branch is a specialist group of coastal engineers and scientists, urban and regional planners, surveyors, policy officers and administrative staff.  He is currently Assistant Director, Climate Adaptation Policy in the Australian Government's Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, engaged in developing a National Adaptation Plan.

Research interests include the reintroduction of tidal flows to restore coastal ecosystems, the interaction between sea level rise impacts, demographics and value-adding opportunities in climate change adaptation, and impacts of rising sea levels on coastal processes and hazard management.  Murray has co-supervised postgraduate research students and publishes and presents on coastal policy and management and climate change adaptation.

He was the South Australia representative on Engineers Australia's National Committee on Coastal and Ocean Engineering (NCCOE) from 2002 to 2017 and served two terms as Chair.   NCCOE released guidelines on climate change and sustainability on the coast in the 1990s, and a new guideline on adaptation in 2012.  These guidelines are periodically reviewed and contemporised.