A consultant, educator, entrepreneur, lecturer and author, Maureen began her Industrial Design career by combining design with business development responsibilities for her first employer in 1980. In 1987 she founded ACCESS International, the first brokerage for product design and development in the United States.

Formerly an Adjunct Associate Professor in Design Management and Leadership at Art Center College of Design, Maureen created this dynamic curriculum and was recognised by her students in 2003 with the Art Center Great Teacher Award. In 2005 she led the first international educational exchange between California based Art Center College and INSEAD, a top-ranked business school with campuses in France and Singapore. Beyond consulting and education, Maureen has also designed, developed, patented, and commercialised a line of houseware products that sold through retail and catalogue channels.

Maureen serves on the Advisory Boards for the Design Management Institute and Suffolk University Sawyer School of Management: Innovation and Design Management EMBA. In 1992 she chaired the IDSA World Design Congress. She co-chaired the Hardware Track for PDMA's 2001 Creating the Future Conference and was invited to judge the International Housewares Show Design Competition in 2005 and 2006.

Maureen was honoured to be one of three judges for the 115th Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. In the early 90s, she co-chaired the National Design Council representing the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) in promoting the first federally designated US Design Council including lobbying Congress and the US Department of Commerce for legislative support.

Adam has a degree in Industrial Design and lived in England and New Zealand before moving to Australia. Between 1985 and 2000 Adam was a Director of a leading Industrial Design consultancy, Nielsen Design Associates. In 2000 he established Adam Laws Pty Ltd to pursue design projects on a more entrepreneurial basis both in Australia and internationally.

Adam has been the principal designer of numerous award winning products including Cafe Bar, Clark sink plug, Air Services Australia air traffic control consoles, Betachek blood glucose meter and the Telstra rental phone. Adam has sold one of his own product designs to Harley Davidson in America and has a range of successful designs in production for Danish company, Furnipart.

Adam is also a very experienced user of Alias modeling software, an accomplished model maker and regular quest lecturer of Industrial Design courses in Sydney.

Following a BA in Industrial Design, Hugo worked for four years in Europe and the UK. In 1992 Hugo founded Catalyst Design Group. Since then Catalyst has designed and delivered consumer, electronic, telecommunications and sporting products from feasibility through to concept, engineering through to manufacture, and supply.

Catalyst now has the reputation as one of Australia's leading Industrial Design and product engineering companies, working with a huge variety of local and international clientele.

In 2002, with partner Malcolm, Hugo established KNOG and launched their proprietary products onto the global market in over 32 countries worldwide. A cycling accessories brand, KNOG now manufactures over 100 products, sold through independent, online and dedicated retail stores.

Hugo has also been the recipient of over 28 Australian and international design awards including the 2007 Australian Design Award of the Year, four IF Awards, the ISPO Award and the Red Dot Design Award.

Owner and Chief Executive Officer of CMD Product Design and Innovation, Craig has 20 years' experience as an Industrial Designer. Arriving in Australia in 1992, he founded CMD Product Design and Innovation in Brisbane.

Craig's company has been the recipient of multiple Australian and international design awards, including the 2008 Australian International Design Award of the Year for the Flaik by Snowsports Interactive.

Recent activities include discussions with Queensland Government on smart state program structures and advising federal ministers on fostering innovation in emergent, energy efficient technologies.

Craig has lectured Industrial Design at the Queensland University of Technology. He has also been a guest speaker to several national associations and interest groups on the processes and benefits of strategic design. Craig also sits on the AI Group Industry Advisory Committee for Electronics and Innovation in Canberra four times a year.

Murray has a Master's Degree in Industrial Design from the Royal College of Art in the UK and over 35 years of international industry experience as a consultant Industrial Designer.

Murray is the Founder and Chief of Design + Industry (D+I), a product design and engineering consultancy with offices in Sydney and Melbourne.

D+I was founded in 1987 and is now the largest design and engineering consultancy in Australia, specialising in the development of high technology business, medical and consumer products. D+I is renowned for design and engineering technically sophisticated and highly complex products with extensive experience in electro-mechanical devices and design for manufacture.

D+I has a highly skilled international team consisting of 35 designers and engineers and has built significant international recognition by developing long term relationships with world leading organisations in Australia, USA and Europe.

Murray and his team have been internationally recognised for achieving design and engineering excellence by winning over 100 awards in competitions throughout the world, making D+I the most accomplished consultancy in Australia.

In 2008 D+I joined forces with Smart Design, a leading US based consultancy to form a global design network with expanded service offerings working across offices in Sydney, Melbourne, New York, San Francisco and Barcelona.

A production engineer by training, Ross most recently headed up Dyson's Sea East Asian operations. Ross and James Dyson launched Dyson Appliances in Australia fifteen years ago, making it Dyson's first export market. Ross, together with his team, then oversaw and supported the development of the Dyson business across South East Asia. During the latter part of 2002 at James Dyson's request, Ross assisted with the start-up of Dyson in USA.

Ross' previous positions include Manager, Global Equipment Product Development, Global Business Development – S.C. Johnson; General Manager – S.C. Johnson Commercial Division – ANZ, and General Manager – Rotobic Australian Manufacturing and Distribution Company.

Chances are Richard is responsible for at least one of the small appliances in your home. With 24 years experience Richard has overseen the design of over 270 household appliances sold in over 30 countries.

Richard is the Director of Design and Innovation for Breville Group globally. He was previously Director of Design and New Product Development at Sunbeam where he restructured the development team to adapt from manufacturing driven to consumer driven. Under Richard's guidance the Breville team has been recognised for design excellence with over 50 awards internationally.

Richard sits on the executive team at Breville Group and has been instrumental in refining the purpose and values that drive the Breville brand. He was involved in the positioning, strategy and launch of the Breville brand into North America in 2003.

He has been instrumental in the definition of Breville's design philosophy which has led to creation of a family of products which are sold internationally. He believes in delivering surprising performance, durability, ease of use and refinement to the consumer. He has built an integrated team of designers and engineers who are equally at home conceptualising as they are resolving issues on the production line.

In 2006 Richard established the Breville Innovation Group tasked with working beyond development deadlines on new trends and blue sky ideas.

Richard lives in Sydney with his wife, three children, two dogs and five chickens.

Madeline co-founded design firm Interni in 1988 and Madeline Lester + Associates (MLA) in 2005. She has more than 35 years' experience as an interior designer and a design management consultant working on residential, retail, hospitality and commercial projects.

Madeline is an Executive Board Member of the International Design Alliance (IDA) and the Immediate Past President of the International Federation of Interior Architects and Designers (IFI). She is also a Past National President of the Design Institute of Australia and the current Adjunct Associate Professor of Interior Architecture at the University of New South Wales.

Madeline is well known as a keynote speaker at international conferences as a design professional. She remains on the Course Advisory Panels of Raffles University of Design in Singapore, the Interior Architecture Program at the University of New South Wales in Sydney and The Designed Environments degree programs at Think Education, Billy Blue.

As the Director of Object, Steven has championed outstanding design in Australia for over 10 years and has continued to develop one of Sydney's most innovative arts organisations.

Through Object's creative exhibition and learning programs, digital publishing and touring to over 40 regional and metropolitan exhibition venues, Object is expanding audiences for design across the country. Object's diverse exhibition program showcases everything from fashion to furniture, architecture to jewellery and from glass to digital design.

Prior to moving from Canada in 1997, Steven was the director of several contemporary art spaces including The Power Plant, Toronto – Canada's leading contemporary art centre. The Power Plant became known for its significant exhibitions of art, design and architecture by leading figures from around the world.

Steven has also been a lecturer at Sydney's College of Fine Arts, a presenter on design for the Stvdio arts television channel and is a founding board member of the Australian Design Alliance.

Paul is a serial product and business developer with 40 years' experience in design, development and commercialisation of products for Australian and international markets.

After studying Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Design and Marketing in the 1970s, Paul progressed quickly into senior roles in both design and marketing within two large Australian public companies Caroma and Simpson (now Electrolux) before founding three design consultancies from 1989 to 2008 in South Australia and Malaysia.

Paul has now retired from consulting but remains active with a number of business interests, mentoring roles and personal projects. One of which is as Managing Director and Co-Founder of Eye-Catcher Innovations, an Australian Company and global leader in the design and manufacture of the Protect-it range of plastic impact protection products for columns, which is now exported to over 60 countries.

Paul has authored/co-authored multiple international patents in a diverse range of product categories. His credits include multiple national and international Business Awards, Innovation Awards, Export Awards and Design Awards, including the Australian Design Awards, Powerhouse Museum Selection and Chicago Athenaeum Museum Selection.

Vesna is a Professor in Industrial Design at the Queensland University of Technology and she is founder of the Industrial Design infrastructure in Brisbane, Queensland. She has worked as a corporate and practicing Industrial Designer and ergonomics/ human factors consultant and was involved in international studies conducted by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid), UNDRO (United Nation Disaster Relief Organisation) and The League of Red Cross Societies.

Vesna's current interest is in research focusing on product design, interactivity, human–centered design, experience and expertise. She has been the founder of the People and Systems Laboratory (PAS Lab) research group at QUT. Most of the research conducted has been published in refereed publications and conference proceedings.

She has a number of realised designs and some of them received significant awards. She is recipient of Australian Research Council (ARC) grants (Discovery and two ARC Linkage grants) and is an ARC Grant Reviewer.

Vesna is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia and Fellow of the Design Research Society (UK). She was the Executive Board Member of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid), Education Chair 1997 – 2001 and South Pacific – South East Asia Icsid Region Portfolio Leader (1997-2001). Since 2001 she has been an Icsid adviser. She has been the Council Member of the Design Research Society since 2011 and is a Fulbright Scholar.

As Co-Founder and Director of Research and Strategy, Rod blends an extensive background in Sociology, Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction to help organizations evaluate business objectives and opportunities, and recommend appropriate mobile strategies and design solutions that achieve outstanding mobile experiences.

With a career focus on Mobile and User Experience, Rod has consulted to many of Australia's best known brands and organizations, such as 3 Mobile, ANZ, Westpac, Jetstar, Optus, Telstra, FetchTV, FoxSports, and NBNCo. 



He has researched, designed and delivered hundreds of services across all major platforms and collaborated on several of Australia's most successful products across mobile, tablet, desktop and Multi-platform TV.

Rod is a judge, author, and international speaker on mobile user experience. He previously co-chaired the Australian Research Council committee on Interactive Interfaces and the Australian Human-Computer Integration group. Rod specializes in product innovation, mobile and experience strategy, user research and product design, service design, multi-screen/multi-device design and has a passion for making things simple, usable and valuable.

Andrew has over 25 years' experience as an Industrial Design consultant. Formerly in partnership with one of Australian product design's founding fathers Paul Schremmer, now retired, Andrew has had a prolific career in helping many leading manufacturers in Australia and oversees bring their products to commercial reality.

Andrew's designs of ovens and cooktops for St George Appliances, barbecues for Beefeater Barbecues, coffee machines for Sunbeam Corporation and metering devices for Ampy Metering have become common place in the typical Australian household.

Also, found on worksites and streetscapes throughout the world are his designs of hard hats and other safety equipment for Scott Health and Safety, and light poles for Goldspar.

This eclectic background in design for high volume manufacturing gives Andrew a unique insight into all elements of product development.

Libby has been a Director of Standards Australia since 2008 and is Executive Director of Arts Funding at the Australia Council for the Arts, which is responsible for supporting and promoting the practice and enjoyment of Australian arts.

A graduate in Arts and Adult Education from Sydney University and the Canberra College of Advanced Education (now University of Canberra), Libby started her career in the further education and tertiary education sector where she worked both as an adult educator and as a policy and program manager in the ACT. After moving into the IT&T sector in the 1980s she has held senior management roles in the technology and telecommunications industry.

From 2000 to 2002 Libby was President for the Asia Pacific region for Monster.com, the leading global online recruitment business. In this role, she was responsible for the expansion of the business across Asia Pacific including Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and India.

Before joining Monster, Libby held senior positions in sales, marketing and business development in the telecommunications industry in Australia in both Optus Communications and Telstra. Libby was Managing Director of the Sydney Symphony from 2003 to earlier this year when she joined the Australia Council.

As Executive Director of Arts Funding, Libby leads a team of artform directors and boards responsible for the fields of visual arts, music, literature, theatre, dance and community partnerships. One of her current projects is the recently announced evaluation of the Visual Arts and Crafts Strategy which will include consideration of issues in the design sector.

John commenced as Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning in August 2010, bringing a wealth of experience in university management and academic leadership
Up until his appointment to Sydney, John was the Foundation Dean of the Faculty of Art and Design at Monash University where he established and built the Faculty into one of the leaders in its field, along the way overseeing the development of the award winning Art & Design building by Denton Corker Marshall. He also Chaired the Monash University Museum of Art and has overseen the development of its new galleries at the heart of a new arts precinct at the Caulfield Campus.

John also oversaw the introduction of the Faculty's studio-based PhD program and directed the development and introduction of Monash's Architecture program, the first new Architecture program in Australia for 30 years, and already the course with the highest ENTER score in Victoria.

Prior to moving to Monash in 1994, John was the Foundation Head of Industrial Design at the University of New South Wales. His own work has been particularly focussed on Industrial Design but has also covered communications design and the design of environments. Much of his work has been in industry-based research and practice. Other work has ranged from design of equipment, to work on the nature of design research, the theory of form, the aesthetics of products, and the visual and design aspects of the protection of intellectual property.

John was a member of the Design Committee for the Sydney Olympic Games and was one of a select few designers appointed as a delegate to the Federal Government's 2020 Summit. John is a graduate of the Royal College of Art in London and is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia.

Elivio is one of Australia's leading Industrial Design educators and researchers. In 2008 he was conferred with the Honour of Cavaliere by the President of the Republic of Italy in recognition of his collaborative work in design and education. He is Emeritus Professor of Industrial Design at the University of Canberra (UC) and recently visiting professor in the School of Design and Environment (2004 - 2007) and the Department of Mechanical Engineering (2007) at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

He is also ongoing visiting professor in the Faculty of Applied Art and Design at Ubon Ratchathani University, Thailand. He was foundation professor of Industrial Design at UC (1997-2002) and a Pro Vice-Chancellor (1999-2001). Earlier he was Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Design (1997-98).

Elivio was professor and director of the Centre for Industrial Design at Monash University (1989-96) and before this senior lecturer in charge of Industrial Design in the Faculty of Art at RMIT (1979-89). He is the founder of the Industrial Design discipline at Monash University and the principal author of the original Industrial Design degrees at RMIT (1982) and Monash University (1989).

After a cadetship at General Motors Holden in Melbourne, he began his teaching career at RMIT as a lecturer in the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering before moving on to the Department of Design in 1979. He has taught and consulted in a number of universities including appointments as external examiner in design at NUS, Ngee Ann and Temasek Polytechnics in Singapore. He is a member of LENS, the International Learning Network on Sustainability (Politecnico di Milano). He is a PhD supervisor and currently a member of the Space, Place and Object Research Cluster in the Faculty of Arts and Design. His recent book is entitled: Bonollo, Elivio, 2010, Product Design: A course in first principles.

Roy is Dean of the Faculty of Business at the University of Technology Sydney. He is a graduate of the University of Adelaide with a PhD in economics from the University of Cambridge, and has worked with universities, business and government in Australia and overseas, including the OECD’s National Innovation System Programme, EU’s FP7 and Ireland’s Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI).

Roy is Chair of the Federal Government’s Innovative Regions Centre, CSIRO Manufacturing Sector Advisory Council and NSW Manufacturing Council. He is also a member of the ABS Innovation Technical Reference Group, IBSA National Project Reference Group, SA Training and Skills Commission, Public Sector Performance Commission and board of the Society for Knowledge Economics, and he recently completed a Review of the Textiles, Clothing and Footwear industries for the Federal Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research.

Roy is a member of the board of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation and the UTS Steering Group for the Federal Government’s Creative Industries Innovation Centre.

Mike has over 30 years commercial experience of business practices in Europe, USA and the Far East and enjoys a significant international reputation in the fields of business strategy, entrepreneurship, strategic branding, market positioning, research design, corporate and product structures, communication issues as well as company doctoring.

In partnership with Dr Tony Grundy PhD, Mike also majors in senior management strategic options valuation and analysis processes. Equally at home working in Europe, Asia, Middle East, North America and now Australia, Mike's present fascination is with various aspects of Adaptive Organisation Planning in relation to strategic brand issues. He is also well-known as an advisor to international investor and VC groups and as a company start-up specialist.

From 2001-2010, Mike worked in an absorbing 10-year Senior Consultant Partnership with Wolff Olins, the multi-national strategic business/brand consultancy (London & New York, www.wolffolins.com, part of Omnicom, USA) and the world's largest marketing organisation. Wolff Olins (WO) is considered by many to be one of the world's most influential business consultancies, employing around 24 nationalities speaking 17 languages.

For such WO clients as Heathrow Express, Holden, Honda, GM, HTC, Sony Ericsson, General Electric, Mercedes-Benz, Orange, Oi!, Vivo, Unilever, Apple, Microsoft, McDonalds, Abbey, Adidas, Barclaycard, Booz, British Telecom, Lloyds Bank, Littlewoods, Sunglass Hut, Starbucks, Staples, Target, Tate, Tesco, London Tourist Board, Amnesty, (RED), PWC, London 2012 Olympic Committee, Sun Microsystems, and New York City, Mike's role was to strategically reconsider and reassess organisations, and their markets, in order to achieve new ways of making money and sustained growth.

Mike is a longtime Associate Professor, Faculty Member and lecturer in Entrepreneurial and Business Studies for Israel's most prestigious business university, Interdisciplinary Center (IDC). Mike's focus has been in the creation of unique, fast-track strategy programs for graduate and postgraduate would-be entrepreneurs and the development of tomorrow's business leaders. Mike's Faculty at IDC is a frequent host to leading entrepreneurs and technologists including: Shai Agassi (Better Place) and Yossi Vardi (ICQ/AOL), as well as providing Thought Leadership for many new, world-class companies via its distinguished Alumni who are developing the next generation technologies and businesses of the future.

Michelle is co-founder of Echoviz a consultancy focusing on interaction design, business development and emerging technologies. She has a Bachelor's in Industrial Design and a Master's Degree in Interaction Design from Georgia Tech.

Since 1991, Michelle Berryman has worked professionally in both the corporate and consulting worlds designing consumer products, exhibits, interiors, and user interfaces for consumer, medical and industrial products and she has an extensive background in corporate identity as well. Throughout her award-winning design career, Michelle has worked with clients like Coca-Cola, Electrolux, Nike, Siemens, Philips, HP and Cooper Lighting, to extend their brand and build meaningful customer experiences. She has also taught at the college level.

Michelle is a Fellow in the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) and named as one of the 'Top 10 Innovators You Should Know' by Deep magazine in the March/April 2005. She was a nominee for Women in Technology (WIT) Atlanta chapter "Woman of the Year in Technology" award in the Small/Medium Enterprise category in 2006 and has sat on numerous international design award judging panels.

Julia is the Executive Director of the Japan Industrial Design Promotion Organization (JIDPO) and a Professor in the Department of Visual Communication Design at Musashino Art University. She has spent most of her adult life working to help designers and students of design promote their work across national and cultural barriers. Born in Taiwan (Chinese Taipei), raised and educated in the United States and later in Japan, she has acquired a diverse cultural and academic foundation.

Prior to her current appointments, Julia was Director of the International Design Center NAGOYA (IdcN). She has worked with major Japanese corporations, as well as with governments and academic institutions in over 39 countries across Europe, North America and the Pan Pacific Rim. She is an Executive Board Member for the Advisory Council of METI (the Japanese Ministry of Economics & Industry) to implement national design policy in Japan, as well as the Mayor's Advisory Council on implementing the 10 year strategic plan (2010-2020) for the future of the City of Nagoya and strategic visions for the economic development of Central Japan Region.

She has lectured at design conferences and academic institutions in over 31 countries. From 1997 to 2001, Julia served as an Icograda Vice President and Executive Board Member of the International Council Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid) from 2007-2009. A recipient of the Mainichi Design Award (jointly with the 2003 Icograda Congress 'VISUALOUGUE' Planning team) and Icograda President's Award, she has served on numerous competition juries including Red Dot Design Concept Award, Brno Biennial, Design for Asia Award, World Design Leadership Award, BIO, Adobe Design Achievement Awards and the Good Design Award.