IDSS speakers
Browse the bios for all speakers presenting at the Injury and Disability Schemes Seminar in November 2025.
Keynote speaker
Marek Kowalkiewicz, Professor & Chair in Digital Economy at QUT Business School and Thinkers360 Top 100 Global AI Thought Leader
Marek Kowalkiewicz is the author of The Economy of Algorithms: AI and the Rise of the Digital Minions, winner of the 2024 Australian Business Book Award (Technology). Marek has led global innovation teams in Silicon Valley, founded SAP’s Machine Learning Lab in Singapore, and held research roles at Microsoft Research Asia. His work focuses on helping leaders understand and navigate the business implications of AI and algorithmic systems.
Plenary facilitator
Adam Spencer: broadcaster, author and Australia’s favourite maths nerd!
One of Australia’s most loved broadcasters, science communicators and maths geeks Adam Spencer excels at vibrant and incisive conversations. Prepare to laugh while you learn as Adam brings our seminar to life. Plucked from would be academia while reading for a PhD in Pure Mathematics at the University of Sydney, Adam won Triple J’s inaugural Raw Comedy competition and soon commenced a 6 year stint on the highly successful breakfast show with Wil Anderson. He followed this up by hosting ABC Sydney Breakfast and The Summer Drum on ABC TV. He is an author of 7 best selling books on popular mathematics and the highly respected NerdNews weekly blog.
Plenary three: Participant Experiences — Navigating the Complex Injury and Disability Ecosystem
Matthew Ames
Matthew was 39 years old when what started as a sore throat resulted in sepsis and the loss of all four of his limbs. With an amazing team around him, including family, friends, the community and many in the healthcare sector, Matthew has made a remarkable recovery and is determined to make a difference in the lives of others facing similar challenges. Matthew has a unique mix of professional and personal experience. After almost 20 years in the energy and resources industry, he is now involved in a variety of endeavours. His board roles include the chair of Hear and Say, in addition to serving on several other boards, including the Metro South Hospital and Health Board and Centacare. His advocacy work focuses on the prevention and treatment of sepsis with Sepsis Australia and Queensland Health.
Plenary one: 20th Anniversary Retrospective (37 Years of IDSS)
Geoff Atkins
The modern era of accident compensation schemes in Australia started in about 1985, 40 years ago. What have we learned since? Geoff Atkins is a shy and retiring actuary (well, if not shy, he is at least retiring at the end of 2025), who has worked on and observed the many changes over this period. In this session, Geoff will share the highlights and lowlights of the period, with a focus on the lessons that he has learned and the topics that can only be described still as a lesson in progress.
Plenary two: The Great Debate - Reimagining Injury and Disability Schemes
David Bacon, General Manager People Risk Claims (CTP&WC), QBE Australia
David’s background is in community healthcare delivery where he worked in private practice for the first years of his career. After completing his post grad, he moved into insurance over 20 years ago. Over his time in insurance he has managed risk, actuarial, research, claims, and healthcare functions. For the last 9 years, David has been the General Manager of People Risk Claims (CTP & WC) claims at QBE. David and his team approach this work focusing on really helping people bring their life back together after an injury. They do this in collaboration with a range of progressive and healthcare, analytics, and academic partners. Much of his recent work has focused on healthcare delivery in the context of compensation schemes.
Plenary one: 20th Anniversary Retrospective (37 Years of IDSS)
Kim Birch, Advisory services
Kim’s career spans Federal and State jurisdictions in both public and private sectors. Her senior executive roles included delivering front-line services, designing and delivering systems for people with injury and disability and regulating CTP insurers. As the inaugural CTP Regulator for South Australia, Kim established the Regulator’s Office and Regulatory model and led the development of the competitive privately underwritten CTP Scheme. Kim recently stepped down from this role to pursue new interests.
Plenary four: The Future - AI and Technology
Dr Kate Conroy, AI Safety and Assurance Advisor, Data and AI, Department of Customer Service, Open Data, Small and Family Business, Queensland Government
Dr S. Kate Conroy (née Devitt) is a leading global expert in responsible AI and trusted autonomous systems in military and civilian domains and national expert in AI assurance in government. She is currently AI Safety and Assurance Advisor for the Queensland Government and Responsible AI Lead for the Royal Australian Air Force (Specialist Capability Officer Reservist). Dr Conroy has a PhD in philosophy (epistemology, applied ethics) and graduate certificate in cognitive science, Rutgers University NJ USA and a BA (Hons), Melbourne University. She is Adjunct Professor QUT Centre for Robotics, Queensland University of Technology and Adjunct Associate Professor Human-Centred Computing, University of Queensland. She is one of '100 Brilliant Women AI Ethics 2023' and '50 Women in Robotics You Need to Know About 2021'.
Plenary two: The Great Debate - Reimagining Injury and Disability Schemes
Paul Driessen, Principal, Taylor Fry
Paul leads the Injury Schemes practice at Taylor Fry, bringing more than 25 years of commercial and public sector actuarial experience to the role. Acknowledging the importance of injury schemes in the lives of people impacted by trauma and sometimes tragedy, his guidance is clear and straightforward. Joining Taylor Fry in 2009, Paul advises large insurers, self-insurers and scheme regulators, across workers compensation, CTP and catastrophic injury insurance. He fosters strong relationships with his clients, deepened by a genuine interest in listening to and helping them solve their problems. Paul says: “When I think of actuaries using data for good, I think of our work in injury and disability schemes – working behind the scenes to support these schemes makes an important contribution to society.” He has also developed and conducted training programs for analysts and supervisors at the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, and is a regular speaker to industry and actuarial professionals. Previously, Paul was direct insurance head actuary at IAG and a consultant at Tillinghast-Towers Perrin in Australia and the United States.
Plenary four: The Future - AI and Technology
Brian Hartzer, CEO, Quantium Health
Brian leads Quantium's global health and financial services analytics practice, driving innovation in healthcare delivery through advanced data science and AI solutions. As the former CEO of Westpac, one of Australia's largest banks, Brian led complex technology and analytics transformations that revolutionised customer experience and operational efficiency at scale. Prior to Westpac, he held senior executive roles at RBS and ANZ Bank, where he consistently pioneered data and technology transformation initiatives in highly regulated environments with sensitive customer data. Earlier in his career, Brian spent a decade as a management consultant with First Manhattan Consulting Group, advising major corporations on technology transformation, analytics capabilities, and risk management strategies
Plenary one: 20th Anniversary Retrospective (37 Years of IDSS)
Dr Graeme Innes AM, Chancellor of Central Queensland University & NDIS board member
Dr Graeme Innes AM was Australia's Disability Discrimination Commissioner for almost ten years. He is a lawyer, company director and author, and a long-term committed BCA member. He loves cricket and sailing and relaxes with fine Australian white wine.
Plenary four: The Future - AI and Technology
Tim Johnson, Head of Intelligent Solutions Delivery, Suncorp Group
Tim Johnson has been with Suncorp for over 19 years and led operational teams and large technology programs for most of that time including a short stint as the Insurance CFO. For the past 5 years has lead the Group Intelligent Solutions Delivery Team supporting business teams across the enterprise to automate and augment processes and decisions. Prior to Suncorp and a few years consulting Tim spent 14 years in the Australian Army as a Combat Engineering Officer. Tim graduated from the Australian Defence Force Academy with a Bachelor of Science and later in his career completed his MBA through Deakin.
Plenary two: The Great Debate - Reimagining Injury and Disability Schemes
Jason Lardelli, Executive Director, Return to Work Victoria
Jason joined Worksafe Victoria in July 2023, responsible for leading Worksafe’s new Scheme Reform as the Executive Director for Return to Work Victoria. He has over 20 years’ experience in the Personal Injury Insurance industry, across public and private organisations in both New Zealand and Australia. He has served in executive leadership roles at the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) in New Zealand, Comcare in Canberra, Employers Mutual Ltd (EML) under the iCare nominal insurer scheme in NSW, The Transport Accident Commission (TAC) in Victoria and now with Worksafe Victoria. Jason is currently a sitting board member of the industry’s Personal Injury Education Foundation (PIEF).
Plenary two: The Great Debate - Reimagining Injury and Disability Schemes
Estelle Pearson, Director and Principal, Finity Consulting
Estelle Pearson is a Director of Finity Consulting and has worked with CTP schemes over the last 30+ years advising insurers and regulators on scheme design and reform.
Plenary three: Participant Experiences — Navigating the Complex Injury and Disability Ecosystem
Michele Sterling
Michele is Professor in the RECOVER Injury Centre and Director of the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence: Better Health Outcomes for Compensable Injury, The University of Queensland, Australia. She is a NHMRC Leadership (L2) Fellow and a Fellow of the Australian College of Physiotherapists. Michele’s research focusses on the mechanisms underlying the development of chronic pain injury, predictive algorithms for outcomes and developing effective interventions for musculoskeletal injury and pain. She has over 300 peer-reviewed publications in this area and received >$40M in funding from the NHMRC, MRFF and industry partners. Michele is a Section Editor of Pain, was chair of the Scientific Program Committee for the World Congress on Pain in Amsterdam, 2024 and sits on the Executive Committee as Secretary of the International Association for the Study of Pain.
Plenary two: The Great Debate - Reimagining Injury and Disability Schemes
Sharon Stratford, It Pays to Care
Sharon has over 30 years of experience in workers’ compensation insurance and injury management. During most of this time, she held various senior management roles at WorkCover Queensland including General Manager in business and customer areas as well as being involved in stakeholder engagement/partnerships and injury risk reduction. Her tertiary qualifications include physiotherapy, business systems, policy and management. She has had careers in all of these disciplines during her working life as well as time away from WorkCover Queensland where she had a portfolio career managing several businesses and was involved in personal injury education, speaking and consulting activity. In acknowledgement of Sharon's long standing involvement with personal injury, she was proudly awarded the national PIEF award for outstanding contribution to the industry in 2021. Sharon also now semi-retired but is still actively involved in the industry (in between travelling the world) doing national advocacy work for It Pays to Care as well as being a director of the collaborative industry initiative Steering Healthy Minds which started in Queensland, plus other things that she can add value to along the way.
