Dr Grace Kite has more than 20 years’ experience using statistics to model commercial outcomes to see what drives growth. Throughout, she has prioritised coaching people to use results successfully. She now focuses on big picture patterns in business growth and in how people and organisations absorb data and analytics. She shares these themes and stories - complete with data that proves they are real - for the benefit of clients, students, and audiences at events worldwide. 

Dr Kite founded Magic Numbers in 2010. It's a company specialising in analysis to evaluate marketing that provides insights in a human and approachable way while also ensuring results are reliable. Magic Numbers clients include Money Supermarket, Yorkshire Tea, Fever Tree, and Wagamama. Via her training company, Magic Works, Dr Kite offers practical, no-nonsense courses that teach marketing professionals how to use data effectively and get the right balance between different types of marketing investments.

Stuff Group's Owner and Publisher, former journalist Sinead Boucher, bought the business from its Australian owners in 2020 and has since transformed the organisation from the bottom up, restructuring, replatforming and reshaping its large group of media brands including New Zealand's largest digital news website stuff.co.nz, daily and community mastheads, premium magazines, a burgeoning events business and social media network Neighbourly.

Stuff's Follow No One ethos is led by Sinead, a visionary and fearless leader who is deeply committed to journalism. She is on the board of the International News Media Association and chair of the New Zealand Publishers Association.

Juliet was appointed VP, Head of Networks Australia and NZ in May 2024. She has a passion for building and leading strong teams and is always striving to engage and delight audiences with expertly curated, user-led content experiences.

Juliet’s core focus is to evolve WBD’s portfolio in the Trans-Tasman market on both sides of the ditch as well as grow our digital capabilities even further, while continuing to provide top-performing channels and platforms for the benefit of our partners and audiences in both markets.

Juliet is a seasoned media executive with a career that began over 20 years ago at TV3. She’s also held multiple roles at TVNZ where she developed and launched numerous channels including TVNZ 7, TVNZ U and TVNZ Duke managed the programming for TVNZ 1 and led the Digital Content team primarily focused on the TVNZ OnDemand product.

James is a New Zealand-based marketing and innovation strategy expert. He is the founding partner of Previously Unavailable, a professional services company that works with innovative organisations from early stage start-ups to mature corporates.

Previously Unavailable provides innovation strategy, new product development, marketing strategy, brand strategy, brand creation and brand design services, and is focused on supporting companies that are inventing or reinventing. James is also a co-founder of several high-profile New Zealand start-up companies including Tracksuit (brand health tracking SAAS) and AF Drinks (non-alcoholic RTD cocktails), both of whom are market leaders in New Zealand and growing in the US.

In partnership with New Zealand’s largest venture capital company Icehouse Ventures, James created and chairs Brand Fund 1, a VC fund that invests in and advises brand-led start-up companies. James is one of the world’s better-known experts on marketing and advertising effectiveness.

With over 20 years of marketing experience, Annemarie has developed a reputation for her innovative strategies and creative approach. Her career includes significant roles at TVNZ, TV3, Seek NZ, Orion Health, Lotto NZ and currently, as Marketing Director at Lion NZ. Throughout these positions, she has driven strong business growth, leveraging her expertise in digital marketing, brand management, and consumer insights to build long term consumer engagement with some of New Zealand’s most loved and iconic brands.

She is also enjoys mentoring young marketers, fostering innovation, and promoting diversity and inclusion within the advertising community.

Gina has over 20 years’ experience in communication, content, sport marketing and PR. She is a passionate advocate for the integration of content across all paid, owned and earned channels and has guided some of the world’s biggest brands with their communication and content strategies. She has worked in communications and content agencies, in-house, across corporate, consumer and Government.

Gina champions social media and emerging social platforms and chaired the PREScom Committee at the Communications Council along with numerous Social Media conferences over the years. She has won over 150 awards internationally and nationally, including the Grand Prix at the Global Festival of media – twice. She was also selected to judge at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity in France in 2018 and again in 2021. In 2022 she won the Campaign Asia Women Leading Change Award for APAC followed by the Most Inspiring Individual Award at the New Zealand Media Awards.

Emily has extensive experience in communications planning and media strategy, as well as leadership of key clients and teams. She has spent a significant portion of her career in London, during which she was Head of Planning at Mindshare UK.

She is currently Chief Strategy Officer at GroupM NZ, setting strategic leadership and direction across the portfolio of agencies including;EssenceMediacom, Wavemaker and Mindshare. Her work (spanning many categories and sectors) has been awarded both locally and internationally at various advertising festivals including;IPA Effectiveness, APG Planning, Cannes Lions, Spikes Asia, Campaign Media Week, Masters of Marketing and NZ Media Awards.

She is a huge advocate of creative and media collaboration, and embodies this in her style of working and relationships. She has even delivered a whole thesis on the importance of this as part of a body of work for the IPA Excellence Diploma in London, of which she was a 2020 Graduate.

Tony Bradbourne is the founder of Special. From a three person startup in Kingsland to creating New Zealand’s first global creative advertising network with offices in Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Los Angeles, Wellington, London & New York – Special flies the flag globally for New Zealand creativity.

Special’s foundation office has been named both ‘Global Creative Agency of the Year’ by Campaign UK in both 2021 & 2023, and the ‘Most Effective Independent Agency in the World’ by Effies Global Index 2024. Bradbourne is a passionate believer in ‘media creativity’ winning ‘Best in Show’ last year at both the Beacons and AXIS Awards with an idea that embraces the power of both.