Ian Kennedy

Ian Kennedy O.A.M. is a relationship marketing visionary and one of the pioneers of the direct marketing industry in Australia. His extraordinary insight into the business earned him the honour of every significant Australian Direct Marketing achievement award including, Australian Direct Marketer of the Year and induction into the Australian Direct Marketing Hall of Fame. His career in the direct marketing business spans over 35 years and during that time he has achieved "guru" status in marketing circles worldwide. Ian is often referred to as the 'Father of Direct Marketing in Australia'. For over 10 years he was a member of the International Advisory Board of the Direct Marketing Association of America and is one of the few Australians on the international marketing speaking circuit.

In 1972 he founded Bond International, a company that became the largest Australian independent direct marketing organisation of its kind. In the early days of Relationship Marketing in Australia, Ian drove such projects as the membership acquisition for Diners Club, building the first loyalty database for Qantas, launching the State Bank's first ATM card and developing the first direct response TV campaign for AMP. All highly successful projects.

Apart from his achievements in business, Ian is also the President of the Starlight Children's Foundation, a not for profit which brings hope and happiness to over 200,000 seriously ill Australian children, every year.. Ian has influenced the marketing and fund-raising since its inception in 1988.

In 1995, Ian as a consultant, formed the first integrated direct marketing resource of any major Australian agency. He built for George Pattersons one of the largest DM groups in Australia with over 80 direct marketing specialists in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. More recently Ian had responsibility for below the line ticket marketing for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. Ticket sales were the most successful in Olympic Games history. He was the architect of the Rugby World Cup ticketing in Sydney in 2003.

In 1990, Ian brought the brand Polo Ralph Lauren to Australia, and held the Master Licence for Australia and New Zealand. He is the co-author, with Bryce Courtenay, of the best selling book "The Power of One to One" which reached the Australian non-fiction top 10 list. The book is about Ian's lifetime of experiences in marketing. Ian's monthly column in Ad News "Direct Marketer's Diary" for over 10 years was widely read and quoted.

Ian Kennedy's passion and affinity for the industry are legendary and his knowledge has earned him a well-deserved place amongst the top direct marketers in the world today.

Ian was awarded an O.A.M. in the honours list for his work with The Starlight Foundation and his innovation with the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games ticketing.

Graham Watman

Graham was formerly Executive Chairman and Managing Partner of the Sydney office of Grant Thornton and the International Business Centre Director for Australia.

He has been involved in professional tax accounting and advisory work since 1976, having joined Charles J Berg & Partners as a Senior Accountant - specialising in the accounting and tax affairs of high net worth individuals and privately owned and managed businesses.

As a member of one of the country's most renowned taxation and corporate advisory practices of its era (both nationally and internationally), Graham’s experience varied from manufacturers, rag-traders, importers and distribution agents to cotton-farmers, large property developers and investors, to high net worth investors; including the management of the Australian interests of non-resident businesses and investors.

As an independent consultant with wide exposure to commercial and professional business issues, Graham is ideally positioned to advise clients and their owners/management.

In his spare time Graham maintains his rural roots through the ownership and development of stud and commercial beef cattle operations over three properties in northern NSW.

Key Expertise:

• Business and Financial Management
• Directorship and Corporate Governance
• Agricultural Management and Accounting
• Consulting
• Taxation and Investment advice

Professional Qualifications:

• Bachelor of Agricultural Economics (Farm Management)
• Diploma in Financial Management
• Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants
• Registered Company Auditor

John French

John has over 30 year experience in Management Consulting, HR Consulting, Strategic Planning and General Management. John’s latest role saw him as the General Manager of one of Australia’s leading providers of HR and Payroll Software. A qualified Industrial Psychologist, John is one of the most experience HR practitioners in Australia.

Alex Agafonov

Alex has a Bachelor of Science in IT degree from UTS and has over 11 years experience in building web applications including HR, Workflow, CRM and Real Estate Portals. Alex is the Subscribe-HR Enterprise Architect and is responsible for building the Subscribe-HR, On-Demand SaaS Platform.

Mathew French

Mathew has over 12 years experience in the Software Industry selling CRM, and HR applications as well as Microsoft Products and Licensing. Mathew was instrumental in taking the Snowdrop HR product to market and establishing it as one of Australia’s leading HR software applications and most recognised brands, prior to Snowdrop being purchased by Sage Plc in 2007.

View Mathew French's profile