VIC Public Sector Women in Leadership Summit 2026

Understanding Your Communication Style

- Explore and identify personal communication styles

- Importance of self-awareness in communication

- Understand the impact of communication styles on relationships and collaboration

- Learn strategies to enhance and leverage individual communication strengths

Recognising Diverse Communication Styles

- Increase awareness of diverse communication styles

- Understand the importance of reading verbal and nonverbal communication

- Develop skills to navigate and bridge communication gaps

- Analysing real-world examples of diverse communication styles

Adapting Communication Approaches

- Develop skills to adapt communication styles based on the situation

- Enhance flexibility in communication approaches

- Master the art of powerful questioning

- Apply techniques to emphasise positive language and tone

Inclusive Communication Practice

- Explore best practices for inclusive leadership through communication

- Recognising and mitigating bias in communication

- Encouraging diverse perspectives and contributions

- Developing personalised action plans

Join Liquid Learning for this kick-off session as we prepare for two days of incredible speakers, senior leaders, expert deep-dives and unmissable panel discussions!

Making decisions in the public sector often involves balancing competing priorities and high-stakes. Join Jacqueline as she shares her insights from leading strategic communications across nine teams, supporting multiple Ministers and driving high-profile projects. Jacqueline explores how to embed integrity in every decision, navigate ethical dilemmas, and leverage strategic communications to build trust, credibility and impact. She highlights how confidence in yourself, your decisions, and your teams is critical to navigating complex environments and achieving positive outcomes.

- Building trust and influence across teams

- Strengthening self-awareness and navigating blind spots 

- Navigate complex decision-making

Leading in human services and child protection requires a balance of operational knowledge and expertise with courage, resilience, empathy and unwavering ethical judgment. Join Kirstie as she shares her leadership insights and lessons. Drawing on her experience Kirstie explores what it takes what it takes to model and promote thoughtful, engaging and critically reflective practice in high pressured environments where immediate interventions and decisions that have real world human consequences are necessary.

- Making difficult decisions in situations with real human consequences

- Balancing immediate interventions with long-term outcomes

- Strengthening team decision-making and resilience under pressure

Mix and mingle with your fellow leaders over a cup of coffee and light refreshments.

In leadership, setting boundaries is like crafting a leadership playbook. It's about defining clear expectations and standards for yourself and your team. Just like a coach ensures players stay within the game plan, effective leaders establish limits that foster productivity, respect, and a healthy work environment.

- Learn to say no when you're at capacity

- Communicate clear boundaries with stakeholders for you and your team

- Prioritise your workload to avoid burnout

Driving meaningful reform requires more than top-down decisions; it takes influence, empathy and the ability to bring people along for the journey. In this compelling session, Rebecca explores how leaders can create the conditions for lasting change by empowering others to lead with purpose. With a leadership style grounded in calmness and collaboration, Rebecca shares how she has used influence to shape outcomes, shift mindsets and guide teams through complex change. 

- Learn how to empower teams to become confident agents of reform

- Explore how influence not authority creates lasting change

- Discover how to lead through engagement, not enforcement

Enjoy a midday lunch break. A time to refresh, refuel, and prepare for a full afternoon of immersive learning and inspiration.

In a time of rapid transformation, the Victorian Public Service is being reshaped by technology and shifting workforce expectations. Leadership today is no longer just about managing change it’s about anticipating it and adapting quickly. This forward-looking panel brings together leaders who are at the forefront of leading transformation across the VPS. Through their experiences, you’ll gain practical insights into what it takes to not only lead through change, but to lead what’s next.

- Explore how to adapt leadership approaches to times of rapid change

- Gain strategies for harnessing technology and innovation

- Learn how to prepare for the challenges and opportunities of the future VPS

Great infrastructure isn’t built by plans alone, it’s built through leadership that inspires teams, unites stakeholders and navigates complexity with purpose. In this session, Melissa shares the leadership lessons she’s learned along the way. Melissa will explore how leaders can guide large-scale projects through political shifts, economic pressures, and competing priorities, while keeping their teams engaged and their vision clear. She’ll reveal how to balance technical excellence with long-term impact and how to lead with conviction when the path forward is anything but straightforward.

- Navigating uncertainty without losing sight of the end goal

- Strategies for navigating bureaucracy without losing momentum

- Inspiring and aligning diverse teams to work toward a shared vision

A quick break to refresh and continue building your network with fellow leaders. Enjoy a light refreshment before finishing your conference experience.

In this session, Tracey reflects on a career built on curiosity, listening and learning. From stepping into roles where she had not been an expert to navigating complex systems, Tracey has developed a framework for turning uncertainty into opportunity. She shares insights on how all professionals can leverage their natural problem-solving and people skills to make meaningful impact regardless of technical qualifications. Through stories from her own journey, Tracey demonstrates how embracing the unknown can accelerate growth, create influence and foster environments where diverse ideas thrive.

- How to step confidently into roles without having all the answers.

- Curiosity as a growth engine

- The Importance of u sing your skills and networks to thrive in uncharted territory.

Join us for our end of day one networking. Enjoy canapés and drinks whilst getting to know your peers further, build ongoing relationships, and share your highlights of the day.

Welcome back for Day Two - there's a lot to digest from our amazing speakers and action modules so far!

Recap the key learnings and takeaways from Day One, and prep an action plan to maximise your event experience over our jam-packed second day!

In a time of shifting priorities and expectations, strategic leadership is more important than ever. With a career spanning across the public sector Catherine shares how leaders can rise to the challenge not by doing more of the same, but by redesigning how we think, plan and lead. This session explores how courageous and purpose-driven leadership can shape a more responsive and resilient public sector. Catherine will discuss the leadership mindset needed to turn complexity into opportunity.

- Develop the strategic thinking skills needed to lead in evolving environment 

- Understand how to balance long-term vision with short-term pressures

- Gain insight into decision-making under uncertainty

Lisa has navigated a career that spans the full spectrum of public service leadership. With each new level came new lessons about influence, resilience and the evolving responsibilities of leadership. In this session, Lisa reflects on the defining moments that shaped her journey, sharing candid insights on how to lead effectively at every stage whether you're in the engine room or at the executive table. With a focus on growth and staying values-led through change, this keynote offers an empowering roadmap for women seeking to lead with clarity and impact across government.

- Explore how leadership mindsets shift as you move through levels of responsibility

- Learn how to lead with influence

- Gain practical strategies for staying grounded, adaptable and values-driven through change

Mix and mingle with your fellow leaders over a cup of coffee and light refreshments.

Having a bold, long-term vision is only valuable if it translates into meaningful action on the ground. In this session, join Natalie to explore how leaders can bridge the gap between strategy and execution by connecting organisational goals to everyday projects, budgets, and team plans. Discover the keys to aligning people and processes to deliver impactful outcomes while keeping teams motivated and engaged along the way.

- Connect strategic goals with day-to-day operations

- Build alignment across diverse teams and priorities

- Take away practical tools for delivering long-term outcomes

Real transformation in public services doesn’t start with policy, it starts with people. In this compelling keynote, Louise will explore how placing people at the heart of decision-making drives meaningful, sustainable change. Drawing on her experience leading initiatives and creating change, Louise will demonstrate how listening, collaborating and acting on lived experience can create tangible improvements that truly transform lives and shape a more inclusive future.

- Leadership insights on creating inclusive systems that deliver lasting change

- Learn how to lead with empathy to create inclusive outcomes

- Discover how to drive sustainable change in complex systems

Enjoy a midday lunch break. A time to refresh, refuel, and prepare for a full afternoon of immersive learning and inspiration.

In the Victorian Public Service, leadership isn’t always defined by formal structures; it often emerges in the pivotal moments when choices, courage, and conviction matter most. This reflective panel brings together women and one male who have navigated the unspoken expectations, career-defining decisions and challenges that shape a leadership journey. Together, they will explore the moments where stepping up made all the difference, how speaking out built trust and influence and what it takes to move forward with conviction in complex environments. Through their stories, you’ll gain insight into the practical and often unwritten rules that guide success in the VPS.

- Explore how to recognise the right moments to step up with confidence

- Learn strategies for speaking out with impact and authenticity

- Understand how to move forward and lead with conviction through uncertainty

Creating a culture of wellbeing and psychological safety is no longer a “nice to have” it’s a necessity for high-performing teams and sustainable workplaces. Leaders play a critical role in embedding wellbeing into the way people work, helping staff feel supported, safe, and able to thrive. In this session, join Catherine as she share practical strategies for strengthening psychosocial safety, building resilience, and leveraging a strengths-based leadership approach to unlock individual and team potential.

- Understand the essentials of practical psychosocial safety in the workplace

- Explore how to embed wellbeing culture into everyday leadership practices

- Learn strategies for enhancing staff wellbeing and performance through strengths-based leadership

A quick break to refresh and continue building your network with fellow leaders. Enjoy a light refreshment before finishing your conference experience.

Leadership is most effective when it connects people, communities and systems. Silvia Renda brings decades of experience in multicultural advocacy and community leadership. From grassroots initiatives to advising on policy and regulatory reform, Silvia demonstrates how cultural understanding and strategic collaboration can drive meaningful change. This interview will explore how leaders can leverage lived experience to influence policy, strengthen communities, and create systemic impact.

- Hear lessons from decades of leadership in multicultural governance

- Gain insights into fostering systemic change

- Develop inclusive leadership practices that empower and amplify diverse voices

We wrap up our inspirational and jam packed two days with this interactive action planning session. This is your chance to table any topic or trend for a final group discussion. Reflecting on the inspiring stories that have been shared, discussing your key learnings with your peers, and creating your action plan for moving forward.

- Reflect on your key learnings from the Summit

- Identify opportunities for career progression and growth

- Create an action plan for your leadership journey

Lead Through Complex Change

- Understand your role in leading teams through change

- Use change models to guide and manage transitions

- Identify and address impacts on team dynamics

Build Personal and Team Resilience

- Develop strategies for focus and engagement

- Stay goal-oriented when facing obstacles

- Identify and address resistance to change

Communicate Effectively to Inspire Change

- Clearly communicate the rationale behind changes

- Keep team members informed and involved

- Learn to listen and respond to team challenges

Create a Culture of Change and Resilience

- Develop practices that foster team resilience

- Balance both the human and operational aspects of change

- Build and sustain a positive team attitude

Inspire and Motivate your Team to Embrace Change

- View change as an opportunity for growth

- Overcome resistance and build excitement

- Guide your team through challenge and uncertainty

Develop a Plan for Leading Change

- Identify next steps for you and your team

- Set measurable goals to manage ongoing change

- Build strategies to monitor and adjust as change progresses