Career Series - Executive Presence - Melbourne and Virtual

You're good at what you do. The question this session asks is whether the right people know it.

For many actuaries, the gap isn't technical ability. It isn't even communication skill. It's visibility, the quiet, intentional kind that comes from knowing where to contribute, who to invest in, and how to ensure your expertise is seen by the people who influence what comes next. Most of us were never taught this. We were taught to do the work well and trust that people would notice.

Session 3 of the 2026 Career Series is built around that misconception and what to do about it.

This isn't a personal branding workshop. There are no elevator pitches and no LinkedIn exercises. It's an honest, practical conversation about how actuaries build careers that reflect the full weight of what they bring, without self-promotion, without stepping outside who they are.

What to expect

Young actuary and Chair, Shea McNaughton will facilitate lightening talks from three actuaries who've navigated Executive Presence at different stages and from different vantage points. 

Justin McGee Odger, a data science innovator who built and sold a startup. Andrew Matthews, a health specialist straddling consulting and academia, and Andrew Boal, a senior industry voice who has spent decades watching what separates the actuaries who advance from those who don't. Each brings a candid perspective on what they learned, what they got wrong, and what they'd do differently.

Throughout the evening, you'll have the opportunity to contribute anonymously to a series of live digital questions, surfacing where you're stuck, what's getting in the way, and where you want to be. 

Those responses and the wisdom of our speakers don't disappear after the session. They feed directly into the Executive Presence Toolkit - a practical, personalised resource sent to every attendee after the event, designed to be useful across your career, not just for one night.

What you'll take away

• Clarity on where your contribution currently lands, and where the gap is
• Honest insight into what decision-makers actually notice, and what they wish more actuaries understood
• An understanding of how volunteering and professional contribution function as career investment strategies
• Your Executive Presence Toolkit - built from the room, sent within a week of the event and designed to help you create action. 

Who this is for

Any actuary who has ever wondered whether their work is reaching the people who matter and wants a practical framework for thinking about what to do next.

Join us at one of these venues: 

Melbourne : Monash Conference Centre, Level 7, 30 Collins Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000 
Sydney Watch Party : Bluefin Resources, Level 43, Australia Square, 264 George Street, Sydney, NSW, 2000
Brisbane Watch Party : Heritage Lane, 80 Ann St, Brisbane, QLD 4000 
Canberra Watch Party : ANU, Fred Gruen Seminar Room, Level 1, HW Arndt Building 25A, Acton, ACT 
Adelaide Watch Party : Brett & Watson, Level 1, 26 Flinders St, Adelaide, SA 5000 

Or Virtually

This is event is part of our  Career Support Series  and the Young Actuaries Program. Throughout the year we offer specialised workshops to assist early-career actuaries to help shape their career direction and strengthen key professional competencies. With women making up about 40% of our membership, many under 35, last year we also launched our  Women Actuaries Connect+  program, a welcoming space where women actuaries can build valuable professional connections, share experiences, and support each other's career journeys.