Agenda

Unlce Allen Madden, Respected Gadigal Elder, Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council

Lehi Cerna, Talent Program Lead People, Culture and Safety, Baptcare

• How is the Government supporting providers and workers through the new Aged Care Act and its workforce reforms?

• Gain insight into national initiatives designed to build workforce capacity, strengthen leadership accountability, and ensure sustainable care delivery across both residential and home care sectors.

Stephanie Kaiser, Assistant Secretary - Aged Care Workforce Branch, Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

• You can have the most efficient recruitment funnel in the sector and still lose good candidates before they ever start. The gap between offer acceptance and the first shift is a bottleneck most workforce strategies completely miss.

• Gain insight into how Uniting NSW identified critical gaps in their onboarding process and, in partnership with Zipline, transformed the candidate onboarding experience to improve their workforce outcomes.

Nonny Evans, Chief Revenue Officer, Zipline

Tanmay Bhola, Chief Product Officer, Zipline

Paul Hayton, Head of People Services, Uniting NSW & ACT

• What training and practical skills will aged care workers need to deliver safe, confident, person-centred care in a rapidly evolving sector?

• Discover the balance between the requirement of workforce to be equipped with academic rigor along with practical, on-the-job learning, as well as use targeted micro-learning in dementia, medicines safety, wound care, falls prevention, and nutrition to expand workers knowledge and proficiency

Moderator: Cher Lopresti, Executive Manager People & Culture, ACH Group

Susan Wray, Chief Executive Officer, Edgarley Assisted Living

Somi Khani, Learning & Organisation Development Manager, Southern Cross Care

Philippa Ayre, Chief People Officer, Cape Care

Dan Sandiford, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Groworx Global

• How can organisations turn the Act’s new governance, care-minute, and accountability requirements into practical workforce models that actually work on the ground?

• Gain insight into how to align structures, roles, capability frameworks, technology and reporting systems to build a workforce that delivers rights-based, person-centred care while meeting legislative expectations.

Susan Wray, Chief Executive Officer, Edgarley Assisted Living

Join us for 4 small-group roundtables looking deep into the latest challenges and solutions. These small group sessions allow for more dynamic, engaging and discussion-based conversations and are always a highlight of the forum.

Roundtable A – presented by Visual Care & PayCat

The Real Cost of Getting SCHADS Wrong (and How to Stop)
Workforce costs are the biggest line on most aged care P&Ls, and SCHADS sits at the heart of them. We'll share how one provider reduced overtime spend from $8,000 to $1,500 per pay period, and what it takes to make award interpretation a daily discipline rather than a payroll-time problem.

Shiam Ahmed, Head of Product and Design, Visualcare

Garth Belic, Founder & CEO, Pay Cat

Roundtable B – presented by Zipline

Are you ready? Workforce Compliance Benchmarks from the top aged care providers  
We've completed Workforce Readiness assessments with some of Australia's largest aged care providers and the results are revealing. In this session we'll share benchmarking data across five core pillars. You'll see where the sector is performing and where it's falling short. Then we'll open it up to the room, share what's working and tackle the hardest compliance challenges in aged care together.

Nonny Evans, Chief Revenue Officer, Zipline

Tanmay Bhola, Chief Product Officer, Zipline

Roundtable C – presented by Lenexa

What Are We Measuring Too Late? Moving from Reactive Reporting to Proactive Risk Prevention

Will Yang, Co-Founder & Chief Scientific Officer, Lenexa

Ajit Ravindran, Cofounder & Chief Executive Officer, Lenexa

• Every developed economy ran out of local aged care workers before Australia did, and every one of them has spent the past decade rebuilding through structured migration pathways as part of a portfolio of solutions, from countries like the Philippines. By 2036, half of Australia's new aged care workforce will need to come from abroad

• Gain insights on the global view - the demographic math, the bilateral agreements already moving the supply, and why the providers planning now have a multi-year head-start

Dan Sandiford, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Groworx Global

• As workforce compliance obligations continue to grow, how can providers keep pace with increasing expectations around workforce visibility, accountability, and risk management while operating under ongoing pressure?

• Explore the real regulatory, operational, financial, and human risks providers are navigating, and gain practical insights into how organisations are responding to growing workforce compliance challenges in aged care.

Moderator: Natasha Dunn, Head of Partnerships, Oho

Sarah Marciano, Specialist Consultant, Anchor Excellence

Silvia Alberti, Chief Innovation and Quality Officer, BaptistCare

• How can aged care organisations translate the Aged Care Act’s commitments to equity and cultural safety into real, practical change, especially for First Nations Elders, LGBTQIA+ seniors, people from culturally diverse backgrounds, and those living in regional and remote communities?

• Gain insight into practical strategies, tools, and partnerships (i.e. First Nations Stakeholder Communications Toolkit) that supports culturally safe practice, improves access and ensures no older person is left behind

Moderator: Kim Whiteley, Chief Executive Officer, NATSIAAC

Anne Burgess, Chair, Aged Care Council of Elders

Maggie Balodis, Quality and Risk Advisor, Aboriginal Community Services

• How can aged care organisations embed culturally safe practice that upholds the rights, dignity and cultural identity of First Nations Elders?

• Gain insight into First Nations leadership perspectives on cultural safety, community partnership, communication, and supporting Elders to age on Country with connection and belonging.

Kim Whiteley, Chief Executive Officer, NATSIAAC

• While international recruitment helps fill urgent workforce gaps, how can we make it a sustainable solution that doesn’t simply shift shortages from one country to another

• Gain insight into creating ethical, long-term strategies that balance skilled migration with strong domestic workforce development — ensuring global fairness while building stable, committed teams within Australia’s aged care sector

Sara Allotta, Group International Sourcing Manager, Bolton Clarke

• How can aged care providers rebuild genuine emotional connection between staff and residents in a high-compliance environment?

• Gain insight into how continuous learning, emotional intelligence, mentorship, and recognition can transform workplace culture, reduce burnout, and create teams people genuinely want to be part of

Gavin Young, Executive General Manager Residential Operations, Mercy Health

Lehi Cerna, Talent Program Lead People, Culture and Safety, Baptcare