Reimagining Engagement in a Digital-First, Trust-Driven World
Early Invited Key Early Invited Speakers Includes
Speakers of The ENGAGE 2025 Future of Member Engagement, Communications & Experience 2025 Forum
Head Of Customer Insights, Strategy and Experience, Australian Retirement Trust
Adviser Proposition Lead at Aware Super
Executive Manager, Governance at First Super
Executive Manager Advice Services
Strategic Advisory, KPMG Australia
Managing Partner, Legal & Prudential
Director, Novagentic
Independent Consultant & Advisor
Executive Director, The Conexus Institute
Managing director and founder, Kyudo
Research Director, Conexus Institute and Associate Professor, ANU
Independent Consultant, Enablise
CEO at Super Consumers Australia
Deputy Director, ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research, President, International Pension Research Association (IPRA)
Head of Financial Advice, Team Super
Founder & CEO, Mayflower Consulting
Managing Director, Signal Advisory
Founder & Principal, Borromean Consulting
CX Evangelist at Operata
Managing Partner, The Shannon Company
Senior Ombudsman - Superannuation at AFCA
Chief Executive Officer at CHANDLER
Chief Growth Officer at Team Super
Executive Manager, Employer Experience at Team Super
Chief Distribution & Growth Officer, Mercer Super
Non Exec Chair, Otivo
CEO at InvestStream
Co-Founder and CEO at OpenInvest
Director at EY
Senior Manager | Business Transformation, EY
Kennedy, Senior Manager Growth & Engagement, HESTA
Certified Financial Planner at Bloom Advisory Group
Non-Executive Director, Zeal Future
Board member at Hume Conservatorium
Get Involved
Interested to be a sponsorer for this event?
Our Sponsors:
SUPPORTING ORGANISATION
SUPPORTING ORGANISATIONEvent Schedule
Learn schedule, program and topics of the Engage 2025
Delegate Registration & Coffee
Opening remarks from Chair
STEPHEN HUPPERT
Independent Consultant & Advisor
• What does “member engagement” actually mean in superannuation?
• Is more engagement is always better?
• Behavioural inertia vs informed decision-making: what are we really trying to shift?
STEPHEN HUPPERT
Independent Consultant & Advisor
• What’s driving change in member engagement—from technology to trust
• New tools, channels, and thinking: how leading funds are innovating
• Hyper-personalisation, AI, and behavioural nudges—what’s real and what’s hype?
• Future-focused engagement strategies for a diverse and disengaged member base
MODERATOR:
DIRK DOBBS
Senior Program Director, Cbus Super Fund
PANELLISTS:
JASON HOANG
CEO at InvestStream
ANDREW VARLAMOS
Co-Founder and CEO at OpenInvest
• Using data to segment meaningfully and engage members on their terms
• How AI is enabling dynamic content, smarter timing, and predictive engagement
• The role of automation in delivering consistent, relevant interactions at scale
• Balancing personalisation with privacy, transparency, and trust
ANTHONY CANEVA
Managing Director, Signal Advisory
10:50 MORNING COFFEE & NETWORKING
• Communicating with empathy, transparency, and relevance—what members actually respond to
• Building confidence by making the complex feel simple and the distant feel personal
• How tone, timing, and channel choice impact trust and engagement
• Moving from compliance messaging to meaningful conversations with members
DUNCAN MCPHERSON
Founder & Principal, Borromean Consulting
• Key behavioural influences on decision-making for retirement
• Potential implications for members: what mistakes might they make?
• How super funds can better engage to encourage sensible choices
• Importance of seeking evidence before any steps are taken
HAZEL BATEMAN
Professor, UNSW Sydney
GEOFF WARREN
Research Fellow, The Conexus Institute, Honorary A/Prof, ANU
12:40 LUNCH BREAK
• Decoding Generational Values: Understand the financial attitudes, expectations, and communication preferences across Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z.
• Personalisation vs Privacy: Balancing tailored messaging and digital engagement with generational sensitivities to data use and trust.
• Channel & Content Fit: Identifying the right mix of platforms and message formats—SMS, email, video, social—for each cohort.
• Life Stage & Lifestreaming: Aligning engagement strategies with generational life stages—from accumulation to decumulation—while acknowledging evolving lifestyle priorities.
MODERATOR:
STEPHEN HUPPERT
Independent Consultant & Advisor
PANEL MEMBER:
KARISHMA MENDIRATTA
Head Of Customer Insights, Strategy and Experience, Australian Retirement Trust
MARIO GARRIDO
Chief Growth Officer at Team Super
• Cutting Through the Hype: Demystifying AI to understand what genuinely enhances member experience versus what’s just buzzword-driven.
• Real-World Applications: How super funds and financial services are successfully embedding AI into CX, from chatbots to personalised nudges.
• Staying Ahead Without Burning Out: Strategies for keeping pace with rapid AI developments while aligning with member needs, privacy, and trust.
LUKE JAMIESON
CX Evangelist at Operata
14:50 AFTERNOON TEA
• How advice—both intra-fund and comprehensive—supports deeper member engagement
• Collaborating with advisers to personalise the member experience and build trust
• The evolving expectations of members: where do advisers fit in?
• Opportunities and challenges in integrating advice into the broader engagement strategy
MODERATOR:
ADRIAN GERVASONI
Executive Manager Advice Services
PANELLISTS:
EMMA JONCESKI
Adviser Proposition Lead at Aware Super
DAVID BIGNALL
Head of Financial Advice, Team Super
JASON HOANG
CEO at InvestStream
JENNIFER PORTER
Certified Financial Planner at Bloom Advisory Group
• How to reframe mandated disclosures and reforms as trust-building opportunities
• Lessons from recent regulatory changes—what worked, what didn’t, and why
• Strategies for making complex or compulsory messages clear, relevant, and engaging
• Balancing legal obligations with a member-first communication approach
MODERATOR:
JOHN BURKE
Managing Director and Founder at Kyudo
PANELLISTS:
HAYLEY POPE
Chief Risk Officer at First Super
JONATHAN STEFFANONI
Managing Partner, Legal & Prudential
SARAH PENN
Founder & CEO, Mayflower Consulting
Closing Remarks from the chair
17:00- 18:00 1 Hour Networking Drinks
Delegate Registration & Coffee
Opening remarks from Chair
STEPHEN HUPPERT
Independent Consultant & Advisor
DALE JACKSON
Director at EY
JENNIFER CHANG
Senior Manager | Business Transformation, EY
• Conversations with real members
MODERATOR:
SARAH PENN
Founder & CEO, Mayflower Consulting
PANELLISTS:
HELEN LIOSSIS
Non-Executive Director, Zeal Future
ED SUTTLE
Board member at Hume Conservatorium
• Understanding Employer Needs
• Driving Engagement Through Education and Support
• Leveraging Technology and Data
• Creating Partnerships, Not Just Compliance
PANEL MEMBERS:
RAPHAELLE KENNEDY
Senior Manager Growth & Engagement, HESTA
TONY CUDA
Executive Manager, Employer Experience at Team Super
BRAD TALLENTS
Chief Distribution & Growth Officer, Mercer Super
10:40 MORNING COFFEE & NETWORKING
• Moving from passive feedback to active advocacy: what does real consumer focus look like?
• How funds are embedding member voices in boardrooms, product design, and communications
• Bridging the gap between regulatory obligations and lived member experience
• The role of leadership, culture, and systems in driving a member-first mindset
MODERATOR:
STEPHEN HUPPERT
Independent Consultant & Advisor
PANEL MEMBERS:
BEN NORMAN
Senior Ombudsman - Superannuation at AFCA
XAVIER O'HALLORAN
CEO at Super Consumers Australia
• Why the push for soft defaults for retirement
• What is meant by a ‘retirement default’
• How soft defaults might operate alongside other engagement pathways
• Barriers to implementing defaults in retirement
DAVID BELL
Executive Director, The Conexus Institute
12:30 LUNCH BREAK
• The Changing Australian Consumer Landscape
• Defining Vulnerability in 2025 and Beyond
• Key Segments and Their Needs
MIA LANDER
Strategic Advisory, KPMG Australia
Superannuation funds provide dozens of PDF forms for members to initiate requests such as nominations, early access claims, third-party authorities, or notices of intent to claim a tax deduction. The administration cost to handle these forms is around $2 billion per year across the superannuation sector. In
this session, you'll learn how we could use digital forms and AI agents to provide a 10x better member experience for 1/10th the cost to serve.
NEIL BENSON
Director, Novagentic
Speakers:
• Creating a Seamless Member Journey Across Channels
• Personalisation at Scale: Using Data to Drive Relevant Engagement
• From Compliance to Connection: Rethinking Member Communications
MODERATOR:
DIRK DOBBS
Senior Program Director, Cbus Super Fund
PANEL MEMBERS:
NEIL BENSON
Director, Novagentic
IAN KNOX
Non Exec Chair, Otivo
DANIEL MCKEAN
CEO and co-founder of Chandler
• Leverage behavioural insights to design default options and prompts that guide members toward better retirement and investment outcomes.
• Explore real-world applications of nudging—what works (and doesn’t) in superannuation communications, forms, and digital channels.
• Understand cognitive biases that influence member decision-making and how to ethically design interventions that support long-term financial wellbeing.
MICHAEL DADDO
Managing Partner, The Shannon Company
Closing remarks from the chair
Latest Posts
You can find the latest posts in this section.
Asset owners integrating artificial intelligence (AI) models into their workplaces and processes need to carefully consider the issue of potential harm – to employees, fund members and society generally – and the guardrails that are necessary to minimise unforeseen consequences...
Authored by Franz Gilbert, Matthew Shannon, and Erin Spencer Deloitte’s Human Capital Forward team predicts how five of today’s HR technology trends could innovate across disparate systems, work processes, and workforce experiences in 2024. Technology never fails to innovate. Across...
With so many superannuation funds to choose from, working out which one is the best fit for your retirement savings can be confusing. TelstraSuper CEO Chris Davies offers some suggestions for how to get the most from your super fund....
