The iTnews Podcast

UniSQ | Associate Director for Hosting Infrastructure | Stephen Payne

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 03:00:00 +1000

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast.

Our guest this fortnight is Associate Director for Hosting Infrastructure at the University of Southern Queensland, Stephen Payne.

We’ve seen and written about a lot of customers affected by price hikes for their virtualisation software upon renewal. This one’s different, because the university kicked off a strategic review of its virtualisation environment in late 2024, well ahead of its renewal, and has now replaced its hypervisor software for around 800 VMs supporting 100 applications.

It is now looking ahead to a microsegmentation implementation, and outside of that, augmenting its hosting options with some Azure.

Finance One | CIO | Chris Doyle

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 01:00:00 +1000

iTnews is hosting our State of Security Breakfast Roadshow 2026 in Melbourne on September 10, proudly sponsored by CoreView, Delinea, and Huntress.

Join us, and executives from end user organisations as we explore the key trends, challenges and opportunities identified in our State of Security 2026 report that are shaping Australia's cybersecurity landscape and operations.

Attendance is complimentary for qualified end-user technology and security professionals. Follow the link in the description (https://pages.itnews.com.au/itnews-state-of-security-melbourne-breakfast) to register your interest, or visit itnews.com.au

Hello and welcome to the iTnews podcast.

Our guest this fortnight is Chris Doyle, the CIO for non-bank lender Finance One.

Finance One, part of the Investor Central Group, is implementing its first AI strategy outline and framework, with the aim of finding operational efficiencies, improving service and moving faster with new products.

Join us as Chris discusses the company’s approach to AI as well as its broader technology strategy and approach, where harmonisation, modernisation and automation are key themes.

ASD | First Assistant Director-General Cyber Security Resilience | Chris Horlyck

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 01:00:00 +1000

This episode is brought to you by the 2026 iTnews State of Security report and Brennan. Stay tuned to the end to hear from Peter soulsby, the director of cyber security and government at Brennan, as he discusses how AI is changing the threat landscape for organisations, but also how visibility can help cyber security practitioners move forward in enabling their organisations to embrace the technology and continue to redefine how work gets done.

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast. Our guest this fortnight is Chris Horlyck, head of cyber security resilience at the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) within ASD.

Chris sat down with iTnews recently to discuss the planned changes to the Essential Eight, including its planned replacement with a new Essentials series.

There’s been a lot of discussion out in the industry since we first published our story in late June.

Here, iTnews editor Ry Crozier and our security specialist Juha Saarinen talk to Chris to unpack the changes with Essentials, as well as recent changes to the Information Security Manual or ISM, and how these might also be reflected within the Essentials.

Kellanova/Mars A/NZ | CIO | Kate Collareda

Mon, 29 Jun 2026 01:00:00 +1000

This episode is brought you by Cisco. Stay tuned as later we'll be talking to Craig Neiberding, the CIO at Canberra Institute of Technology and Reg Johnson, Director of Education and Strategic Industries for Cisco Australia and New Zealand. We'll be exploring how CIT's new Woden campus is reshaping hybrid learning, and what the rest of the education sector can learn from it.

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast.

Our guest this fortnight is Kate Collareda, the current CIO of Mars and former IT director for A/NZ at Kellanova, which Mars completed its acquisition of at the end of last year. Kellanova - among other things - is home to Kellogg’s international cereal brands.

Kate spoke to the iTnews Podcast about a trade promotion system that Kellanova implemented to help it run promotions across the major supermarket chains.

We begin by discussing the changing behaviour of consumers, how this shaped the need for a newer and more data-driven approach to trade promotions, and how the outputs of the system can influence broader operational levers.

UQ Director of Cyber Security | AUSCERT Director | David Stockdale

Mon, 15 Jun 2026 01:00:00 +1000

This episode is brought to you by the 2026 iTnews State of Security report and CoreView, the leading SaaS platform for Microsoft 365 Tenant Resilience.

Stay tuned until the end to hear from Andrew McAllister, Vice President of APAC Sales at CoreView, as he discusses the security implications of Microsoft 365 becoming the operational heartbeat of today’s enterprises, including the shared responsibility model and best practices for privilege management.]

Our guest this fortnight is David Stockdale, the director of cyber security at the University of Queensland and also director of AUSCERT

David talks about building resilience in a university environment, including the contribution of the cyber domain to that effort and the lessons learned from cyber that could be applied in a broader university-wide context.

He also examines the trend towards platformization of capabilities - a key theme of the state of security report - and touches on the rise of Anthropic's Mythos and what it means for security teams.

ICYMI | Vocus CIO Rob Ison

Mon, 01 Jun 2026 05:00:00 +1000

Australia Post | EGM Enterprise Services | Michael McNamara

Mon, 18 May 2026 01:00:00 +1000

This episode is brought to you by the iTnews State of Security 2026 report. Featuring insights from CISOs and senior security leaders across Australia, the report explores the key trends and challenges shaping cyber security this year - from AI governance and identity security to Zero Trust, XDR and cyber resilience. Download your copy today to benchmark your organisation’s security strategy against the rest of the industry. Thanks to our 2026 State of Security partners - Sumo Logic, Saviynt, Virtual IT Group, CoreView, Brennan and Rubrik - for supporting this year’s report. Visit iTnews.com.au and search “State of Security 2026” to download the report now.

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast.

Our guest this fortnight is Australia Post’s Executive General Manager of Enterprise Services Michael McNamara.

Join us as we unpack Australia Post’s target state architecture and the progress of technology initiatives within the broader Post 26 strategy.

We also explore the structure of Enterprise Services - how teams are organised and what it looks for in the organisations it partners with.

Telstra | Group Executive Product & Technology | Kim Krogh Andersen

Mon, 04 May 2026 01:00:00 +1000

This episode is brought to you by the iTnews Cloud Covered Breakfast Summit powered by Microsoft and Dicker Data. Hosted at the Ivy Sunroom in Sydney on June 4th we are bringing together technology business decision makers to discuss building AI-ready data in the cloud. With panels on stage and audience discussion sessions, the summit will cover Australia's rapid shift to public cloud as a foundation for scalable AI. Register your interest in joining us now, on iTnews.com.au

Our guest this fortnight is Telstra’s Group Executive of Product & Technology Kim Krogh Andersen.

Telstra has reached a significant milestone in its multi-year IT estate transformation and simplification. The telco is exiting its 20-year-old Siebel CRM, alongside technology by Teradata, Veritas and Pivotal Cloud Foundry.

Join us as we unpack the retirement of systems and discuss the composable architecture that now underpins Telstra’s IT estate, which, among other things, is de-risking the telco from vendor lock-in and associated price hikes.

carsales | EGM of Technology & Data | Michelle Low

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 01:00:00 +1000

Our guest this fortnight is the executive general manager of technology and data at carsales, Michelle Low.

carsales has long been data driven. Increasingly they are seeking to connect with prospective car buyers from inside of AI chat apps and ecosystems, which are proving influential in the car buying experience.

They’re also putting more data into the hands of car dealers and manufacturers to help them understand what is selling and why.

Insignia Financial | CISO | James Ng

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +1000

This week’s episode is brought to you by Optus.

Modern work happens everywhere, and businesses need to deliver seamless digital experiences without compromising security. Smart organisations are building security into the device and the connection. Giving employees frictionless access, wherever they’re working, while the business gains visibility, control, and resilience. Talk to Optus today about our Managed Mobility Solutions.

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast

Our guest on the podcast this fortnight is James Ng, the Chief Information Security Officer for Insignia Financial.

Insignia Financial is perhaps better known by its component parts, which include the old IOOF, as well as the ANZ Wealth and MLC Wealth divisions that it acquired from ANZ and NAB respectively.

It’s spent the past three years consolidating its security estate and removing duplicated effort and inefficiency from security operations processes. James starts by taking us through the current security strategy, as well as the next one under development.

Waratah-Wynyard Council and Circular Head Council | Sallie Moore-Wood

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 01:00:00 +1100

This episode is brought to you by the iTnews Cloud Covered Breakfast Summit, powered by Microsoft and Dicker Data. Join senior technology leaders from across Western Australia on 31 March at QT Perth for a practical discussion on modernising workflows into public cloud, reducing architectural risk, and understanding where edge fits into long-term cloud strategy, with insights grounded in real-world experience.

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast. Our guest this week is Sallie Moore-Wood, the director of governance and information systems at Waratah-Wynyard Council and Circular Head Council in Tasmania’s north-west.

The two councils share personnel and a digital transformation strategy and roadmap, which covers information systems, cybersecurity and other bodies of work.

We asked Sallie to drill into particularly the cybersecurity aspects of the transformation, into some of the challenges faced so far and how these have been addressed and overcome.

Aussie Broadband | Head of Cloud and SRE | Ben O’Shea

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 04:00:00 +1100

Hello and welcome to a new season of the iTnews Podcast. We begin this year by speaking to Aussie Broadband’s Head of Cloud and SRE Ben O’Shea.

Eagle-eyed iTnews readers and listeners might remember Ben’s appearance at Cisco Live in 2024, when he revealed work that was underway to build a new cloud platform for Aussie Broadband’s own internal use, and to retire older virtualisation and containerisation platforms.

In this episode, we hear where that cloud platform is at a year on, we discuss Ben’s role expansion to cover SRE, and we also hear about a recent change to the company’s backup tooling.

[SPONSORED] Identity at the Centre: Why AI Is Accelerating a New Security Imperative

Mon, 09 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +1100

In this episode, iTnews host Jennifer O’Brien is joined by Stephanie Barnett, Vice President of Presales and Interim GM for Asia Pacific & Japan at Okta. Together they unpack why identity has moved from an authentication project to a board-level business layer, and why “attackers don’t break in – they log in”.

You will hear how organisations across Australia, New Zealand and the wider APJ region are responding to Essential Eight-driven identity requirements, the rise of non-human identities and AI agents, and the growing challenge of fragmented identity estates. Stephanie also shares what CISOs should be telling their boards in 2026, including practical steps to reduce risk while enabling productivity and secure automation.

[SPONSORED] Private 5G powers data-driven mining

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +1100

Discover how private 5G is reshaping data-driven mining. Ian Ross, Head of Enterprise, Australia and New Zealand at Ericsson explains why fast, stable onsite connectivity is now essential for safer, more productive operations, from teleremote dozers to real-time digital-twins powered by smart sensors. Learn how 5G overcomes the limits of Wi-Fi and 4G and unlocks the next wave of mining innovation.

ICYMI | ANZ Banking Group | CISO

Mon, 24 Nov 2025 05:00:00 +1100

This episode, from late last year, sees ANZ's chief information security officer Dr Maria Milosavljevic talk all things security. We'll be back with a new episode soon.

Vocus | Chief Information Officer | Rob Ison

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 04:00:00 +1100

Our guest this fortnight is Rob Ison, the chief information officer of Vocus. Rob takes us through the telco’s IT strategy, as well as its agile ways of working program. He also discusses infrastructure modernisation and an ongoing simplification effort that aims to optimise how customers experience and interact with Vocus’ services.

SYMAL | Chief Information Officer | Trent Dawson

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 11:00:00 +1100

Our guest this week is Trent Dawson, the Chief information officer of Civil construction firm Symal.

Trent walks us through the past four years of IT transformation at Symal, which debuted on the ASX at the end of 2024.

He also discusses the company’s burgeoning DevOps practice and AI capabilities, which tap into services and tools from Microsoft Azure.

[SPONSORED] NetSuite MCP unlocks with power of Agentic AI

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +1100

NetSuite’s MCP connector enables organisations to harness Agentic AI to automate complex processes and improve decision-making. Operating within defined guardrails, Agentic AI manages tasks such as financial reporting while maintaining accountability. The MCP connector’s flexible API integrates with multiple AI platforms, supported by Fusion5’s tools for custom applications.

For more information on NetSuite's MCP Connector, delivered by Fusion5 please visit www.fusion5.com/netsuite or click the link(s) in the description below.

Talk to a NetSuite expert in Australia

Talk to a NetSuite expert in New Zealand

Hoyts Cinema Technology Group | CTO | Adam Wrightson

Mon, 13 Oct 2025 01:00:00 +1100

Insignia Financial | CTO | Damien O'Donnell

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 01:00:00 +1000

Insignia Financial is consolidating its technology systems following a series of mergers and acquisitions, while also setting itself up to become an AI-enabled organisation.

Damien O'Donnell, who stepped into the CTO role at Insignia Financial in January, told the iTnews Podcast that “data and technology” system consolidation is key to realising its ambitions.

This episode is brought to you by Digital Nation. Don’t miss the Digital As Usual: Cyber Security Breakfast on October 9 at the Sofitel Brisbane. The event will unpack three of the biggest cyber risks facing organisations today: human behaviour, financial risk, and supply chain vulnerabilities. Explore the findings in the full Digital As Usual: Cyber Security 2025 Report and find practical advice on how to stay secure. Head to the Special Reports section now at itnews.com.au and register for our Brisbane event today.

Beyond Bank | CIO | Stevie-Ann Dovico

Mon, 15 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +1000

In this episode iTnews speaks with Stevie-Ann Dovico, CIO and Group Executive of Technology at Beyond Bank, about her first year in the role and the technology strategy she’s building to support the organisation’s ambition of becoming Australia’s best relationship bank.

[SPONSORED] Genetec | Community Connect empowers communities to collaborate with local police

Mon, 08 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +1000

Anthony Caruana speaks with Stephan Kaiser, Genetec’s general manager for AutoVu, about Community Connect — a framework that empowers communities to collaborate with police by securely sharing video infrastructure. This initiative is helping neighbourhoods, councils, and businesses work together with law enforcement to improve safety and response times.

From reducing violent crime in Detroit to virtually eliminating car theft at a Canadian airport, Community Connect is already proving its impact. It’s not a product to buy, but a new way of connecting communities and police, fostering safer streets and stronger neighbourhoods.

DPV Health | Former CIO | Noel Toal

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 01:00:00 +1000

Melbourne-based not-for-profit DPV Health has replaced its annual penetration tests with bimonthly automated attack simulations, aiming to strengthen its vulnerability management through more frequent and proactive threat assessments.

Former chief information officer of DPV Health, Noel Toal, began exploring simulations after becoming disenchanted with traditional annual tests conducted by an external organisation.

Strandbags | Group Chief Technology Officer | John Khoury

Mon, 18 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +1000

[SPONSORED] Australian businesses leverage 5G to unlock their full potential

Mon, 11 Aug 2025 11:00:00 +1000

Sponsored by Ericsson — In this episode, we explore how 5G connectivity is transforming the way Australian businesses innovate, compete, and grow. Drawing on insights from Ericsson’s Australia’s Enterprise State of Connectivity 2025 survey, we uncover why over 87% of enterprises see 5G as key to positioning Australia as a global technology leader — yet misconceptions around cost, complexity, and integration still hold many back. From enabling AI, machine learning, and edge computing to reducing downtime and unlocking faster, more reliable operations, we break down how 5G Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWANs) are opening doors to boundless business potential.

We also tackle the common roadblocks: perceived high costs, hardware complexity, and a lack of in-house skills. Discover how managed 5G solutions simplify deployment, integrate seamlessly with existing IT and OT systems, and work alongside satellite to deliver resilient, high-performance connectivity anywhere in the country. Whether you’re a business leader, IT decision-maker, or tech innovator, this conversation will help you separate the myths from the facts and see why the real risk is in not investing in 5G.

NT Police Force | Commander of Digital Transformation and Reform | John Atkin

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 01:00:00 +1000

The Northern Territory Police Force has adopted a top-down change management strategy to oversee the delivery of technology and transformation programs, following setbacks during the rollout of its new core policing system.

Commander of digital transformation and reform John Atkin led the effort to implement SerPro, the force’s long-overdue case management system, and modernise police operations across Australia’s most remote jurisdiction.

This episode is brought to you by Logicalis and the iTnews State of Security 2025 report.

Australian Bureau of Statistics | Rob Walter

Mon, 21 Jul 2025 01:00:00 +1000

This episode is brought to you by Brennan and the 2025 iTnews state of security report.

Our first guest this fortnight is Rob Walter, the Director of the Agriculture Statistics Program at the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The ABS is increasingly aggregating government and third party data sources to build out its understanding of agriculture.

This is important not just for Australia’s national accounts but increasingly as intelligence for farmers to tap into to optimise what they are doing based on what is working in other parts of the country.

Then, hear from Peter Soulsby, the head of cyber security at Brennan, on how to protect information and system assets by strengthening endpoint security.

SA Power Networks | Head of Cyber Security and IT Resilience | Nathan Morelli

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 03:00:00 +1000

Our guest this fortnight is SA Power Networks’ Head of Cyber Security and IT Resilience Nathan Morelli. Our conversation is broad ranging but is anchored in a five-year cyber security strategy prepared and published by the organisation a couple of months ago, with a roadmap that is set to be updated annually.

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iTnews is launching the 2025 State of Data and AI report this Thursday 10th of July at a breakfast event for senior IT leaders at the NEXTDC S3 data centre in Artarmon, Sydney. We have a strong speaker line up with panel discussions on scaling AI, model and service selection, and data & ai security and privacy. If you are interested in joining the event, register now via our events tab on iTnews. Thanks to NEXTDC, Brennan and Airia for sponsoring our 2025 State of Data & AI report and event.

[SPONSORED CONTENT] Mind the AI innovation gap

Mon, 30 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +1000

Australian Red Cross | Former CIO | Brett Wilson

Mon, 23 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +1000

The Australian Red Cross is in the final stages of developing a data mesh approach using Microsoft Fabric following an earlier attempt at a more traditional centralised data lake. Now former chief information officer Brett Wilson discusses the project.

ICYMI | Colonial First State | Jeroen Buwalda

Mon, 09 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +1000

ICYMI: NBN Co | Chief Security Officer | Darren Kane

Mon, 26 May 2025 01:00:00 +1000

The iTnews Podcast is having a break this fortnight and will return with a new episode shortly. We relive one of our top episodes from 2024 with NBN Co talking security.

CSIRO | CISO | Jamie Rossato

Mon, 12 May 2025 01:00:00 +1000

We speak with episode, Jamie Rossato, Chief Information Security Officer at CSIRO. Jamie discusses his initial steps at the agency, core cybersecurity pillars, handling technological transformations, AI's role, and strategic resourcing. He also offers career advice for aspiring cybersecurity professionals, emphasizing governance, operational experience, and the critical nature of cybersecurity leadership.

This episode is brought to you by Fusion5. Stay tuned to the end to hear from Fusion5's Technical Director for Modern Work and Security, Mark Montgomery, about how organisations can ensure continuous cybersecurity compliance without slowing down innovation or business agility.

For more information on how you can level-up your Cybersecurity protection, download Fusion5's cyber threats guide today.

MELBOURNE AIRPORT | Head of Cyber Security | Cheuk Wong

Mon, 28 Apr 2025 01:00:00 +1000

Melbourne Airport is building up its cyber detection and response capabilities in order to secure 30 million annual passenger journeys, which are enabled by multiple technology systems.

Speaking on the iTnews Podcast, head of cyber security Cheuk Wong said he is heavily focused on having visibility across the airport’s technology ecosystem, from its internal IT to baggage handling systems and even its wi-fi networks.

This episode is brought to you by Fusion5. Stay tuned at the end to hear from Jayden Liddelow, security consultant at Fusion 5, how organisations can mature their security posture from reactive vulnerability management towards proactive assurance.

For more information on how you can level-up your Cybersecurity protection, download Fusion5's cyber threats guide today.

PROSPA | Head of Data & Analytics | Jin Foo

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 01:00:00 +1000

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast.

This episode is brought to you by Salesforce. Stay tuned to the end to hear from Kevin Doyle, regional vice president of agentforce and data cloud at Salesforce, about the immense interest in agentic AI and use case opportunities for Australian organisations

Our first guest this fortnight is Prospa’s head of data and analytics Jin Foo. An online lender for small business, Prospa has used hackathons and graph database technology to map out complex relationships between directors and entities applying for loans.

It is also already experimenting with Agentic AI as a way to automatically assess and flag issues in large amounts of documentation that often accompany a loan application.

UNISUPER | Senior Manager of Emerging Technology and Efficiency | Matt Bright

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 01:00:00 +1100

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast.

Our guest this week is Matt Bright, the senior manager of emerging technology and efficiency at UniSuper.

UniSuper is moving into the next stage of its AI journey, exploring its first agentic AI use cases as a tool to assist financial advisors in the first instance.

It comes about six months after the superannuation fund gave all 1200 of its staff access to Microsoft 365 Copilot, with both initiatives part of a broader push to harness AI technology to improve member experience.

Optus | CIO | Mark Potter

Mon, 17 Mar 2025 01:00:00 +1100

Hello and welcome to the iTnews Podcast. Our guest this week is Mark Potter, the chief information officer at Optus.

Optus has stood up a unified data platform that brings data from across a number of repositories into an Azure-based ‘lakehouse’ environment. Mark walks us through this large program of work, which is continuing, but he starts where the iTnews Podcast often does - discussing key priorities of the telco’s IT strategy.

This episode is brought to you by techpartner.news. Our sister channel publication CRN Australia is rebranding to techpartner.news on the first of April. Make sure you book mark techpartner.news in your browser, subscribe to the newsletter and register for our line up of events including Pipeline, the Impact Awards, Channel Meets, the MSP Index program and FAST 50.

ENDEAVOUR ENERGY | Information Security Manager | Gijo Varghese

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 01:00:00 +1100

Hello and Welcome to a brand new season of the iTnews Podcast. This week's episode is brought to you by Arctic Wolf and the State of Security Report. Stick around until the end to catch insights from Arctic Wolf’s Director of Engineering Steve Hunter on how AI is transforming cyber security—helping analysts cut through the noise, detect threats faster, and strengthen defences against evolving attacks.

But first, we have Endeavour Energy’s Information Security Manager Gijo Varghese. At the end of last year, Endeavour achieved ISO 27001:2022 certification for its Information Security Management System (ISMS) - a milestone in its ongoing execution of a 2024-2029 cyber security strategy. We start the episode with Gijo describing his domain function and the strategic pillars that the organisation is working to.

Thales A/NZ CISO | RSAC CISO Boot Camp Co-Chair | Ben Doyle

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 01:00:00 +1100

A boot camp run ahead of CyberCon this week aims to build future CISOs’ peer networks and business communication - skills that could help them make the transition into a security executive role.

It’s the second year the RSA Conference CISO Boot Camp has been held in Australia, in conjunction with the Australian Information Security Association (AISA), the organiser of CyberCon.

This year the boot camp’s co-chairs are longtime Thales Australia and New Zealand CISO Ben Doyle and Cyber Resilience Group founding partner and former Endeavour Drinks CISO Grant McKechnie.

Speaking to the iTnews Podcast, Doyle said Australia was the first country outside of the United States that the boot camp had been run.

POWERLINK QUEENSLAND | General manager of Business IT | Mark Pozdena

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +1100

Defence | Chief Information Officer | Chris Crozier

Mon, 28 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +1100

This week we speak with Chris Crozier, CIO at Defence.

WA Police | CTO | Marc Smith

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +1100

Horizon Power | Senior Manager of Technology | Jeff Campbell

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +1000

This week we're revisiting a discussion from last season — we'll be back on schedule with on October 14!

Senior Manager of Technology, Jeff Campbell

Horizon Power has completed a large-scale migration of applications and workloads from its data centres to a private cloud run by Macquarie Cloud Services. The shift to private cloud was for several reasons. The WA government wants agencies and owned companies to have more of a cloud mindset. In parallel, the government has set ambitious targets to reduce whole-of-government carbon emissions, and exiting its data centre was seen as a key way for Horizon Power’s Technology team to do its part. The private cloud choice was also partially for security reasons - Horizon Power has obligations under the Security of Critical Infrastructure or SOCI Act to contend with. Horizon Power is now set up to achieve some future-facing and data-driven ambitions, leveraging other cloud-based services.

ANZ Banking Group | Chief Information Security Officer | Dr. Maria Milosavljevic

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +1000

Vote Now for the iTnews Podcast in the Listeners' Choice Award at the Australian Podcast Awards! VOTE HERE

The latest episode of the iTnews Podcast hear from ANZ Banking Group’s CISO, Dr. Maria Milosavljevic, as she discusses ANZ's security strategy, focusing on embedding security, building resilience, and driving business transformation.

The iTnews Podcast is brought to you by Fortinet and the 2024 State Of Security Report.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

NBN Co | Chief Security Officer | Darren Kane

Mon, 02 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +1000

Vote Now for the iTnews Podcast in the Listeners' Choice Award at the Australian Podcast Awards! VOTE HERE

This week's episode brought to you by Stellar Cyber and the 2024 State of Security report.

NBN Co has launched a new five-year security strategy to align with the Australian government's cyber security initiatives, while reinforcing the role of security as a business enabler. Chief Security Officer Darren Kane, in a recent iTnews Podcast interview, discussed how NBN Co’s strategy integrates physical and cyber security into a unified model. The strategy emphasises the quantification of security risks in financial terms to enhance communication with executives and the board.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

Flight Centre | Global Voice of Customer Lead | Ashley Taylor

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +1000

As part of the 2024 iTnews State of Data report, iTnews speaks with Ashley Taylor, Global Voice of Customer Lead at Flight Centre.

This week's episode brought to you by NRI

Checkout the inaugural State of Data report.

We explore the trends that are driving data analytics through to the latest strategies for how data is stored and secured, and focus on the rapidly maturing disciplines of data governance and AI governance.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

Northern Beaches Council | Chief Information Security Officer | David Griffiths

Mon, 05 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +1000

iTnews Associate Editor Eleanor Dickinson interviews David Griffiths, the Chief Information Security Officer of Northern Beaches Council. Griffiths shares insights on developing and implementing a cohesive security strategy for the council, emphasizing the importance of understanding information control, applying appropriate security measures, and building a roadmap for the future. He also discusses his transition from state to local government, highlighting the unique challenges of managing security across a diverse range of services and the importance of leveraging external partners and tools to enhance cybersecurity capabilities.

iTnews Podcast sponsored by Lacework and the 2024 State of Security Report

Stay tuned until the end to hear Anthony Rees, Field CTO at Lacework, discuss the importance of security hygiene, cloud posture, and code security, along with the need for visibility and prioritizing internet-facing assets to protect critical data and infrastructure.

Torrens University | Former Transformation Director | Eoghan Hogan |

Mon, 22 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +1000

In our latest iTnews podcast episode, we dive into the transformative
journey of Torrens University, a digital-first institution that has grown
from zero to nearly 20,000 students in just a decade.
Eoghan Hogan, former transformation director of Torrens University,
discusses the university’s commitment to online education, their innovative
digital learning model, and the significant transformation initiatives
undertaken to stay ahead in the competitive higher education sector.

Discover the Fusion5 approach to cloud migration with insights from Kris Jackson, General Manager for Cloud Infrastructure and Security, on achieving reduced costs, improved security, and stronger governance through strategic planning and effective management.
To learn more about maximising the value of your cloud migration. Please go to https://www.fusion5.com.au/

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

Colonial First State |Group Executive, Transformation, Technology & Operations| Jeroen Buwalda

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +1000

As part of the 2024 iTnews State of Security report, iTnews speaks with Jeroen Buwalda, Group Executive, Transformation, Technology & Operations at Colonial First State.

This episode of the iTnews podcast brought to you by Brennan.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

Gumtree Group | CTO | Paul Russell

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +1000

As part of the 2024 iTnews State of Security report, iTnews speaks with Paul Russell, CTO at Gumtree Group .

This episode of the iTnews podcast brought to you by Interactive.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

Lander & Rogers | Head of AI Engineering | Jared Woodruff

Mon, 10 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +1000

As part of the 2024 iTnews State of Data report, iTnews speaks with Jared Woodruff, Head of AI Engineering at Lander & Rogers.

iTnews is excited to announce the launch of the inaugural State of Data report on Thursday, June 20th, at a special Data Forum Breakfast at the NextDC Sydney Data Centre.

Readers are invited to register their interest here:

iTnews will host panel discussions with CIOs, CDOs, Data Analysts, and Data Scientists, covering topics from the report, such as Data Security, Data Analytics/AI, Data Storage, and Data Governance.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

AUTOMIC GROUP | Chief Information Officer | Marcelo Dantas

Mon, 27 May 2024 00:00:00 +1000

As part of the 2024 iTnews State of Security report, iTnews speaks with Marcelo Dantas, Chief Information Officer at Automic Group.

This episode of the iTnews podcast brought to you by Jamf.

We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, so please get in touch and let the friendly iTnews team help with your enquiry.

NAB | Group Chief Security Officer | Sandro Bucchianeri

Mon, 13 May 2024 00:00:00 +1000

As part of the 2024 iTnews State of Security report, iTnews speaks with Sandro Bucchianeri, Group Chief Security Officer at NAB.

This episode of the iTnews podcast brought to you by Mimecast.

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Norths Collective | Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer | Robert Lopez

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +1000

This week iTnews speaks with Robert Lopez, Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer at Norths Collective.

Transport for NSW | Executive Director | Sherrie Killiby

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +1000

iTnews speaks with Sherrie Killiby, Executive Director, Strategy & Engagement at Transport for NSW.

Gold Coast Health | Executive Director of Transformation | Sandip Kumar

Mon, 01 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +1100

This week we speak with Sandip Kumar, who’s the Executive Director of Transformation, about what digital transformation looks like in Australian healthcare, and his direct operations.

SBS | CTO | Darren Farnham

Mon, 18 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +1100

iTnews speaks with SBS CTO Darren Farnham about the media organisation's tech strategy, strategic pillars, and a recent CMS overhaul.

ICYMI: Coles Group | CTO | John Cox

Mon, 20 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +1100

This is a repeat of one of our most popular episodes — we'll have the rest of Season 3 for you soon!

Our guest this week is John Cox, the CTO of Coles Group. There’s a lot of interesting things happening at Coles, including an in-progress shift to an events-based architecture. This has wide-ranging use cases, from in-store replenishment and reducing out-of-stocks on ecommerce orders, to anticipating customer service and listing next-best actions for team members. We also discuss the Group’s IT strategy, and why adoption of cloud services is not a specific strategic pillar.

Douugh | Founder & CEO | Andy Taylor

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +1100

This week, iTnews speaks with Douugh Founder and CEO Andy Taylor about the fintech's future plans — and how it intends to help bring financial education into its user experience.

Avenue Bank | CDO | Dale Hurley

Mon, 06 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +1100

iTnews speaks with Dale Hurley, Founder and Chief Digital Officer at Avenue Bank, one of Australia's newest banks about its current operations under a Restricted Authorised Deposit-taking Institution licence — and what the future holds.

Westpac | CTO | David Walker

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +1100

iTnews spoke with Westpac's CTO David Walker to learn more about the bank's recent AI coding experiment.

NAB | Acting CIO of Personal Bank | Paul Norman

Mon, 23 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +1100

This week iTnews speaks with the leader of NAB's Technology & Enterprise Operations Leadership Team and acting CIO of Personal Bank Paul Norman.

Pet Circle | Chief Technology Officer | Denis Hoctor

Mon, 10 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +1000

As Australia's largest online pet supply store, Pet Circle is investing heavily in technology, including most recently to support a trial of fully-owned last-mile delivery services in Perth, as well as in digital systems that make it easier to interface with courier partners elsewhere in Australia, and specifically to have more visibility into its supply chain.

Some of this work has involved uplifting an existing Google Cloud Platform environment to track data on a “per customer order” basis.

Behind the scenes, the company is also embracing infrastructure-as-code (IaC) and automation to increase velocity and speed-to-value.

La Trobe University | Director of Data & Analytics | Anthony Perera

Mon, 03 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +1000

La Trobe University's Director of Data & Analytics Anthony Perera leads a data and analytics centre of excellence that brings together data, analytics and data science operations that previously existed as distributed “pockets” of capability within the university structure.It is driving a major three-phase program of work, the first phase of which - standing up an Azure-based enterprise data analytics platform, or EDAP - was completed last year. The focus through 2022 was on the second phase, around data governance. A third phase, planned for 2023, will see La Trobe University “turbocharge” the migration of clean, standardised datasets from across the institution into the EDAP.

Horizon Power | Senior Manager of Technology | Jeff Campbell

Mon, 26 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +1000

Horizon Power has completed a large-scale migration of applications and workloads from its data centres to a private cloud run by Macquarie Cloud Services. The shift to private cloud was for several reasons.

The WA government wants agencies and owned companies to have more of a cloud mindset. In parallel, the government has set ambitious targets to reduce whole-of-government carbon emissions, and exiting its data centre was seen as a key way for Horizon Power’s Technology team to do its part.

The private cloud choice was also partially for security reasons - Horizon Power has obligations under the Security of Critical Infrastructure or SOCI Act to contend with. Horizon Power is now set up to achieve some future-facing and data-driven ambitions, leveraging other cloud-based services.

Police Bank | CEO | Greg McKenna

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +1000

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, Police bank chief executive office Greg McKenna talks about the banks ongoing whole-of-bank transformation which has been on the path of renewal as customers increasingly seek digital channels.

Airwallex | Head of Information Security and IT | Elliot Colquhoun

Tue, 13 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +1000

Head of Information Security and IT, Elliot Colquhoun. Airwallex is an Australian finance unicorn ($1bn+ valuation), and Colquhoun runs its IT and information security operations. The company has spent the past two years overhauling its application landscape and upgrading computers - a 50/50 Windows/Mac end-user environment. One of the reasons to do this, however, is that Colquhoun believes the state of internal systems is a signal to developers and builders about the quality that should be built into customer-facing products. The idea is to set a high internal bar, which then gets reflected in the products. IT and infosec also makes itself available to product teams to provide input and guidance.

SA Police | Executive Director of Information Systems & Technology | Hamish Cameron

Mon, 05 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +1000

Executive Director of Information Systems & Technology, Hamish Cameron was a guest of the podcast back in mid-2021 when he outlined his ambitions for a mobile workforce transformation program, equipping 6000 sworn and non-sworn staff with a smartphone. Almost two years on, they are now in live pilot, and the podcast discusses device choice, applications developed and loaded, and UX efforts being run in parallel. Outside of the transformation, we also discuss IS&T’s efforts to transform its own operations so as to move from a service provider to a trusted advisor and influencer on technology matters to the broader SAPOL. This reflects the broader role that technology is playing in policing, and IS&T’s desire to have a front row seat strategically.

Alex.Bank | Chief Executive | Simon Beitz

Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 +1000

In this weeks episode we’re joined by Alex.Bank chief executive Simon Beitz. As Australia’s newest bank we’ll discuss future plans and how the bank ensures its technology foundations are capable of scale and instilling the right processes while keeping the customer at the forefront of its mission. We’ll also talk about the early days of sleeping on shed floors as team mapped out its digital banking journey.

Coles Group | CTO | John Cox

Mon, 22 May 2023 00:00:00 +1000

Our guest this week is John Cox, the CTO of Coles Group. There’s a lot of interesting things happening at Coles, including an in-progress shift to an events-based architecture. This has wide-ranging use cases, from in-store replenishment and reducing out-of-stocks on ecommerce orders, to anticipating customer service and listing next-best actions for team members. We also discuss the Group’s IT strategy, and why adoption of cloud services is not a specific strategic pillar.

Sydney Zoo | Senior IT Manager | Ronan Alonzo

Mon, 15 May 2023 00:00:00 +1000

What does it take to set up the IT infrastructure at a zoo from scratch? It’s not something many IT managers will do, but Alonzo got the chance to, and shares a very different kind of startup story. This talks to the evolution from a one-person IT shop to the gradual build-up of resources and systems, and particularly how the zoo leant on technology partners to create innovative systems, from point-of-sale, to telecommunications, to accepting a wide variety of electronic payments. A specific case study in the episode also speaks to the zoo’s data analytics and BI environment, which is based on Azure and Power BI.

NAB | Steve Day | CTO | Season 2 Top Episode

Mon, 19 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +1100

We begin this episode with a special message from editor-in-chief Ry Crozier.
We look forward to bringing you new episodes in 2023!

ACT Chief Digital Officer | Bettina Konti | Season 1 Flashback

Wed, 14 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +1100

SA Government | Dr Eva Balan-Vnuk | Season 1 Flashback

Sun, 04 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +1100

RBA | Chief Information Officer | Stephen Smith

Mon, 28 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +1100

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, RBA chief information officer Stephen Smith describes the wide-ranging technology agenda and infrastructure currently being pursued by Australia’s central bank.

PEXA | Chief Technology Officer | Eglantine Etiemble

Mon, 21 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +1100

PEXA runs core platforms for e-conveyancing and financial settlements of property transactions in Australia. It also has a growing insights business, and is expanding internationally. Chief Technology Officer Eglantine Etiemble talks about some of the projects underway, from a “big program of change” around customer and employee experience, to the rearchitecting of PEXA’s backend around a modular and API-first driven approach. She also walks us through the company culture and what she looks for in new hires.

Strandbags | CTO Stuart Freer & Head of Digital & Data Delivery Paul Erskine | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 14 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +1100

New episodes coming soon!

Register for the State of IT 2022 report: itnews.com.au/state-of-it-2022

Strandbags has re-platformed its Australian and New Zealand websites with Shopify Plus and a mix of plug-ins under what it is calling ‘Project Future’.

In this week’s iTnews podcast, CTO Stuart Freer and head of digital & data delivery Paul Erskine discuss the origin, status and next steps for Project Future, as well as a new set of transformations beyond it.

St Vincent’s Health Australia | Edel Murray | Manager of Clinical Governance Informatics

Mon, 07 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +1100

St Vincent’s Health Australia (SVHA) has set up a new enterprise-wide system to record, manage, and analyse data about incidents involving patients, clients, and residents. This includes falls, along with any safety hazards, across their hospitals, aged care facilities, and services nationwide.

Manager of Clinical Governance Informatics, Edel Murray, told the iTnews Podcast Team that the application called SVHA Riskman replaced five previous instances of a system formerly known as just ‘Riskman’.

Hansen Yuncken | Rexine Jones | CFO & CIO

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +1100

Hansen Yuncken is using 3D modelling software to ‘walk’ customers through the sequencing of their construction projects, improving transparency and explainability of risks such as time delays.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, Rexine Jones - who is both CFO and CIO of Hansen Yuncken - discusses the company’s use of Autodesk’s BIM 360 software.

She also details the lived experience and advantages of having finance and IT led by a single executive.

Suncorp | Charles Pizzato | Executive General Manager, IT Infrastructure

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +1100

NEW EPISODE

Suncorp Group has set a target to exit owned or leased data centres by early 2024, with 90 percent of workloads destined for public cloud and 10 percent for a hybrid cloud environment hosted “in close proximity” to its chosen public cloud infrastructure.

That ambition is to run largely in the cloud, with applications either virtualised or containerised, with few exceptions.

Humanitix | CTO Ryan O’Connell | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 17 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +1100

New episodes coming soon!

Australian start-up Humanitix re-invests 100 percent of the profits from event ticket fees into education projects for disadvantaged kids.

The start-up had to transition its operations online when the pandemic hit, and has since expanded from its ticketing core into helping hard-hit event organisers run virtual events and - when borders reopen - safer in-person events.

Interrogating Cyber Security Risks | a view from the board | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 10 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +1100

New epissodes coming soon!

Cyber security has rocketed to the top of corporate risk registries in recent years. But few board members attain their place due to any deep subject matter expertise.

In this week's CXO Challenge, we speak to Roger Sharp the founder of North Ridge Partners, and the chair of several large listed companies in the finance and travel sector in Australia. Sharp talks about the need to take an holistic approach to the subject.

We also discuss the challenge generally for directors to stay on top of the topic of technology driven transformation in an age of rapid digital acceleration.

Cover-More | Nicki Doble | Former Group CIO | Season 1 Flashback

Tue, 04 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +1100

We'll be back with new episodes soon!

Original Description:

Travel insurer Cover-More Group cut 15 percent of its enterprise application portfolio as part of a global consolation of its IT operations at the height of the pandemic.

The ASX-listed company – which operates in 22 countries – juggled the project, which is ongoing, while putting out spot fires during one of the most tumultuous periods in the history of the travel industry.

Speaking as part of the CXO Challenge services on The iTnews Podcast, global chief information officer Nicki Doble said the standardisation aimed to consolidate systems across the global brand.

Deakin University | Director of Software Engineering | Aaron Whitehand | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 26 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll be back with a new episode soon!

Original description:

Deakin University has spent the past 18 months modernising its approach to software delivery, adopting standard CI/CD tooling and removing manual effort in order to get code into production faster.

In this week’s CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, director of software engineering Aaron Whitehand shares the university’s modernisation story so far, covering its adoption of DevOps practices, automation and standard tooling.

Auswide Bank | Rebecca Stephens, CTO | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 19 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll return with new episodes soon!

Auswide Bank’s chief transformation officer Rebecca Stephens describes the multi-faceted transformation she was brought in to lead and run at the start of this year.

Zip Co | Peter Robinson | Director of Security & IT | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 12 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll be back with new episodes soon. For now we flash back to our discussion with Zip Co's former director of security and IT, Peter Robinson.

Original Description:

When Zip’s director of security and IT Peter Robinson joined the company two-and-a-half years ago, he was its only security staffer.

The company - ASX-listed and a major player in the ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) boom - has scaled up rapidly in that time, growing from 100 people overall to over 1000.

The story of that scale-up, and the technology challenges it brought, is told in this week’s CXO Challenge interview on the iTnews podcast.

Angela Donohoe | BPAY Chief Information Officer | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 05 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll be back with more interviews from Australia's technology leaders soon!

BPAY Group is making headway with its goal to bring innovation to Australia’s payment system through its developer portal, and by expanding its global reach and cloud-based approach.

In this week’s CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, BPAY Group chief information officer Angela Donohoe shares how the e-payment company is building new foundations and enhancing its current systems.

Andrew Cresp | Bendigo and Adelaide Bank | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 29 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll be back with more interviews from Australia's technology leaders soon!

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank will put more than 700 staff through a new cloud workforce training program before the end of this year as its public cloud migration starts to heat up.

In this week’s iTnews podcast, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank chief information officer Andrew Cresp discusses the bank's new cloud guild with Amazon Web Services, dubbed Unleash.

Cancer Council NSW | Frances Waterford | CIO | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 22 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll be back with new episodes soon!

Cancer Council NSW has established a 'single view of customer' across all of the systems it uses to raise funds as part of an ongoing effort to become fully digital and cloud first.

In this week's podcast, chief information officer Frances Waterford discusses the council’s IT structure, as well as the ‘single view of customer’ project and ongoing project works.

Bunnings | CIO | Leah Balter

Mon, 15 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +1000

Bunnings has assembled an internal team of 700 people across five technology-oriented domains in less than four years, shifting from an almost completely outsourced operating model in the process.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, the architect of that shift, Chief Information Officer Leah Balter, discusses the progression and maturation of the digital, technology, data, architecture and innovation functions at one of Australia’s most iconic retailers.

Heritage Bank | CEO | Peter Lock

Mon, 08 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +1000

AMP Bank | Group Executive | Sean O’Malley

Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +1000

AMP Bank hollowed out its core banking system and refactored up to 40 percent of the remaining code to prepare the system for a new life hosted in AWS.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, Group Executive Sean O’Malley details the bank’s path to core transformation, as well as progress in meeting other pillars of its technology strategy.

PwC | CDIO Jacqui Visch | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 25 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +1000

New episodes coming soon!

Flybuys | Head of Digital | Katie James

Mon, 18 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +1000

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, Flybuys (Loyalty Pacific) Head of Digital Katie James provides a status update on Flybuys’ digital transformation, including its cloud migration and future application modernisation efforts.

She also outlines how Flybuys intends to digitally evolve its services, by forging closer data ties with its retail partners, and by increasingly surfacing loyalty and rewards data directly in the apps of retailers, in addition to Flybuys own properties.

CreditorWatch | CTO Joseph Vartuli | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 11 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll be back very soon with new episodes!

For now, enjoy our 2021 discussion with Jospeh Vartuli, CTO at CreditorWatch.

NSW CIO | Greg Wells | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 04 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll return with new episodes very soon!

If you missed out on the State of IT report in 2021, see how we graded the states and territories here.

BT/WESTPAC | Richard Holmes, CIO of Westpac’s specialist business division

Mon, 27 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +1000

Westpac’s BT is modernising its Panorama financial planning platform by migrating it to run in the cloud, which should also make the platform easier to separate from the group if it is divested as planned.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews podcast, Richard Holmes, CIO of Westpac’s specialist business division - the division set up to divest non-core banking assets - discusses the challenges of ring-fencing large IT assets and unwinding tight system integrations to prepare those assets for life outside of the Westpac Group.

Essential Energy | Substation Design Manager Jason Streatfeild

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +1000

Essential Energy is using drone-captured imagery and software to create “intelligent” three-dimensional models of its substations that engineers can interact with and plan upgrade works remotely.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews podcast, Substation Design Manager Jason Streatfeild discusses the work of his team of engineers and drawing officers that manage all aspects of design for nearly 400 substations across the state, and the growing influence of technology on this function.

Origin Energy | Chief Digital & Growth Officer Rod van Onselen

Tue, 14 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +1000

Origin Energy is training its digital focus on the delivery of new features and ‘hero’ experiences for customers, having laid considerable foundations over the past few years. In this week’s episode of the iTnews podcast, Chief Digital & Growth Officer Rod van Onselen discusses his dual remit, Origin’s digital strategy, and where the company is focusing its current efforts.

CBA | Dan Jermyn | Chief Decision Scientist

Mon, 06 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +1000

CBA is treating its investment in no-code machine learning platform maker H2O.ai as a turning point that will enable anyone in the group to stand up an “incredibly predictive model literally at the touch of a button”.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, CBA’s Chief Decision Scientist, Dan Jermyn, discusses the bank’s AI “democratisation” efforts and mindset, as well as some of the key customer-facing wins that his specific area - decision science - has had to date.

ANZ | Gerard Florian | Group Executive Technology

Mon, 30 May 2022 00:00:00 +1000

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, Group Executive Technology Gerard Florian reflects on over five years helming the bank’s technology function, and specifically the role and importance of strategic alignment to its present status within the bank. He also provides an update on ANZ's cloud journey, and discussed the halo effect of ANZ Plus.

Australia Post | Shane Hazim | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 16 May 2022 00:00:00 +1000

We'll return with new episodes very soon!

Australia Post is nearing the finish line for what was once billed as the ‘largest telecommunications transformation in the country’, and is now setting its sights on smart operations powered by connected devices.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews podcast, Australia Post’s head of technology for network and infrastructure engineering Shane Hazim provides an in-depth view of the four streams of work in the telecommunications transformation, and where the enterprise intends to go next.

MyState | Paul Moss | General Manager, Technology, Operations and Product

Mon, 09 May 2022 00:00:00 +1000

MyState Limited is forging ahead with a “significant program” of digital and technology works that is attached to a broader growth strategy the ASX-listed financial group is pursuing through to the end of FY25.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, MyState’s general manager of Technology, Operations and Product, Paul Moss, discusses the evolution of technology strategy and architecture in MyState’s banking and wealth management operations.

UNICEF Australia | Sarah Grattan | COO

Mon, 02 May 2022 00:00:00 +1000

UNICEF Australia used digital transformation as the catalyst to change the way it raises funds to improve the lives of children, moving from four big appeals a year to an “always-on” fundraising approach.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, chief operating officer Sarah Grattan unpacks UNICEF Australia’s IT and digital structure and strategy, as well as a continuing transformation effort that began not long after she joined the not-for-profit in May 2018.

NAB | Steve Day | CTO

Tue, 26 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +1000

In this week’s episode of the iTnews Podcast, NAB Chief Technology Officer Steve Day details shifts in strategic thinking around the bank’s highly-publicised cloud journey, which has been running at scale since 2017. He also reveals NAB is undertaking the first major revision of its technology strategy since 2018.

CBA | Fredrik Lindström & Brendan Hopper | Season 1 Flashback

Tue, 19 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +1000

Season 2 coming soon!

In this week's episode of the iTnews Podcast, we have CBA’s chief digital officer Fredrik Lindström and CIO for technology for the bank’s retail division and distinguished engineer Brendan Hopper.

You’ll hear about CBA’s transformation of its software engineering practices, team and culture.

We also talk about what digital looks like beyond apps and online services, and where CBA’s thinking is around future experiences and personalisation.

Woolworths | CDTO Nick Eshkenazi | Season 1 Flashback

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +1000

Season 2 is coming soon!

Woolworths anticipates a greater degree of cross-collaboration, partnership and embedding of skills between its WooliesX and Group IT functions in coming years, as digital technology is worked even deeper into the company’s core operations.

In this week's CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, Woolworths’ chief digital technology officer (CDTO) Nick Eshkenazi provides a detailed look inside the company’s technology operations and strategy, its customer-first approach to innovation, and some key projects that are creating value.

He also provides insight into his own - and WooliesX’s - approach to recruiting and retaining talent and his encouragement of a culture of experimentation.

Auswide Bank | Rebecca Stephens, CTO

Mon, 06 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +1100

Rinnai Australia | Samir Shah

Mon, 29 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +1100

On the show this week, we have Samir Shah, he is the ICT Business Services Manager from Rinnai Australia.

You might know Rinnai because of its hot water, heating, and cooling systems.

What you may not know is they also have manufacturing operations in Australia, and they’ve been undergoing a multi-year transformation of their ERP and reporting systems, which Samir will now walk us through.

Transurban | Mick Spence

Mon, 22 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +1100

Transurban has a growing range of successful examples of data analytics, particularly around road safety or optimising traffic flow. It also has a growing number of digital twins that it is using on road tunnel projects to manage ventilation and understand the causes of congestion. Together, these underscore a multi-year effort to build internal capability and systems around analytics and data use. Our guest is Mick Spence, Transurban's Data and Insights Lead – Victorian Business.

This is followed by a conversation with Nathan McGregor, Senior Vice President Sales in the Asia Pacific region at Cradlepoint, the sponsor of this episode, about why IT decision makers should incorporate wireless WAN and 5G in their plans.

ACT Chief Digital Officer | Bettina Konti

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +1100

Strandbags | CTO Stuart Freer & Head of Digital & Data Delivery Paul Erskine

Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +1100

Ewan Perrin | Northern Territory Executive Director, Digital Government

Mon, 01 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +1100

Greg Italiano | WA Chief Information Officer

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +1100

Westpac Group CTO David Walker

Mon, 18 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +1100

On the show this week, we have Westpac Group Chief Technology Officer David Walker talking about the bank’s ongoing transformation agenda, its transformation roadmaps and guiding principles.

David also talks us through Westpac’s efforts to adopt an evolutionary architecture and evergreen technologies as a way to transform the backend and set foundations for faster changes on the frontend.

CBA | Fredrik Lindström & Brendan Hopper

Mon, 11 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +1100

In this week's episode of the iTnews Podcast, we have CBA’s chief digital officer Fredrik Lindström and CIO for technology for the bank’s retail division and distinguished engineer Brendan Hopper.

You’ll hear about CBA’s transformation of its software engineering practices, team and culture.

We also talk about what digital looks like beyond apps and online services, and where CBA’s thinking is around future experiences and personalisation.

NSW CIO | Greg Wells

Mon, 04 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +1100

SA Government | Dr Eva Balan-Vnuk

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Westpac | Paul McKenna

Mon, 20 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Australia Post | Shane Hazim

Mon, 13 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Australia Post is nearing the finish line for what was once billed as the ‘largest telecommunications transformation in the country’, and is now setting its sights on smart operations powered by connected devices.

In this week’s episode of the iTnews podcast, Australia Post’s head of technology for network and infrastructure engineering Shane Hazim provides an in-depth view of the four streams of work in the telecommunications transformation, and where the enterprise intends to go next.

Andrew Cresp | Bendigo and Adelaide Bank

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank will put more than 700 staff through a new cloud workforce training program before the end of this year as its public cloud migration starts to heat up.

In this week’s iTnews podcast, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank chief information officer Andrew Cresp discusses the bank's new cloud guild with Amazon Web Services, dubbed Unleash.

Navitas | Charlsey Pearce & Richard Eason

Mon, 30 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +1000

On the show this week we have two guests from global education provider Navitas: Charlsey Pearce, who is Head of Marketing Services for Navitas’ Australasian and University Partnerships Division, and Richard Eason, Head of Technology and Systems in Global Sales & Marketing.

Navitas is building on some technology foundations to - in their words - redefine the educational journey for domestic and international students in Australia with increased tailoring and personalisation.

Open Banking | Rob Hale, CDO, Regional Australia Bank

Mon, 23 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +1000

A deep dive with CDO Rob Hale on the state of open banking in Australia.

Interrogating Cyber Security Risks - a view from the board with Roger Sharp

Mon, 16 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Cyber security has rocketed to the top of corporate risk registries in recent years. But few board members attain their place due to any deep subject matter expertise.

In this week's CXO Challenge, we speak to Roger Sharp the founder of North Ridge Partners, and the chair of several large listed companies in the finance and travel sector in Australia. Sharp talks about the need to take an holistic approach to the subject.

We also discuss the challenge generally for directors to stay on top of the topic of technology driven transformation in an age of rapid digital acceleration.

CreditorWatch Chief Technology Officer Joseph Vartuli

Mon, 09 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +1000

This week on the iTnews podcast we speak with CreditorWatch CTO Joseph Vartuli as part of our ongoing CXO Challenge series.

Rugby Australia's Head of Analytics Cathal Garvey

Mon, 02 Aug 2021 00:00:00 +1000

This week on iTnews CXO Challenge Rugby Australia's Head of Analytics, Cathal Garvey, discusses strategy, data architecture along with new and emerging use cases for data analytics.

Humanitix CTO Ryan O’Connell

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Australian start-up Humanitix re-invests 100 percent of the profits from event ticket fees into education projects for disadvantaged kids.

The start-up had to transition its operations online when the pandemic hit, and has since expanded from its ticketing core into helping hard-hit event organisers run virtual events and - when borders reopen - safer in-person events.

PwC Australia's CDIO Jacqui Visch

Mon, 19 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +1000

PwC Australia is looking to reach the “next horizon” of its ongoing digital and data transformation under the gaze and drive of a new-look technology leadership team.

In this week’s CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, CDIO Jacqui Visch discusses her new role and remit at the firm, what the next transformation “horizon” looks like, and opportunities to leverage the global PwC ‘network’ to drive change in the local operations.

She also tackles technology leadership approaches, from care for tech teams to fostering an environment that allows people to constructively challenge ideas and canvas alternate approaches.

TPG Group Chief Digital & Information Officer

Mon, 12 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +1000

TPG Telecom is taking a five-to-10 year view of its technology landscape and investments as it digitally transforms after forming from the combination of TPG and Vodafone last year.

In this week's CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, group chief digital and information officer Rob James discusses TPG Telecom’s merger and transformation into a digital telco, and provides his own take on approaching transformational strategy and initiatives.

BPAY Chief Information Officer Angela Donohoe

Mon, 05 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Deakin University director of software engineering Aaron Whitehand

Mon, 28 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Deakin University has spent the past 18 months modernising its approach to software delivery, adopting standard CI/CD tooling and removing manual effort in order to get code into production faster.

In this week’s CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, director of software engineering Aaron Whitehand shares the university’s modernisation story so far, covering its adoption of DevOps practices, automation and standard tooling.

Woolworths | Nick Eshkenazi | CDTO

Mon, 21 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Woolworths anticipates a greater degree of cross-collaboration, partnership and embedding of skills between its WooliesX and Group IT functions in coming years, as digital technology is worked even deeper into the company’s core operations.

In this week's CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, Woolworths’ chief digital technology officer (CDTO) Nick Eshkenazi provides a detailed look inside the company’s technology operations and strategy, its customer-first approach to innovation, and some key projects that are creating value.

He also provides insight into his own - and WooliesX’s - approach to recruiting and retaining talent and his encouragement of a culture of experimentation.

Cover-More | Nicki Doble | Group CIO

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Travel insurer Cover-More Group cut 15 percent of its enterprise application portfolio as part of a global consolation of its IT operations at the height of the pandemic.

Speaking as part of the CXO Challenge services on The iTnews Podcast, global chief information officer Nicki Doble said the standardisation aimed to consolidate systems across the global brand.

SA Police | Hamish Cameron | CIO

Mon, 07 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +1000

South Australia Police is preparing to embark on its most ambitious mobility program to date, with plans to equip all 6500 front and back office staff with a smartphone for the first time.

Australia’s fourth largest police force revealed plans for the four-year program in February give its officers the tools need to access information from critical systems on the fly.

Speaking as part of the CXO Challenge series on The iTnews Podcast, chief information officer Hamish Cameron unpacked the project and reasons for pursuing it.

Zip Co | Peter Robinson | Director of Security & IT

Mon, 31 May 2021 00:00:00 +1000

When Zip’s director of security and IT Peter Robinson joined the company two-and-a-half years ago, he was its only security staffer.

The company - ASX-listed and a major player in the ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) boom - has scaled up rapidly in that time, growing from 100 people overall to over 1000.

The story of that scale-up, and the technology challenges it brought, is told in this week’s CXO Challenge interview on the iTnews podcast.

IAG | Suzanne Nottage & Sheryn Crummy

Mon, 24 May 2021 00:00:00 +1000

IAG is a year into a major program of work aimed at uplifting the skills and capabilities of both its technology and operations organisation, and now people from across the group.

IAG - Insurance Australia Group - is the largest general insurance company in Australia and New Zealand, and is home to brands such as NRMA, CGU, NZI and Lumley.

In this week's CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, IAG’s executive manager for ‘technology enablement’ Suzanne Nottage, and technology capability development manager Sheryn Crummy, share the origins, strategies and successes of the ‘technology enablement’ function and team.

Cancer Council NSW | Frances Waterford | CIO

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +1000

Cancer Council NSW has established a 'single view of customer' across all of the systems it uses to raise funds as part of an ongoing effort to become fully digital and cloud first.

In this week’s CXO Challenge on the iTnews podcast, chief information officer Frances Waterford discusses the council’s IT structure, as well as the ‘single view of customer’ project and ongoing project works.

Optus | Theresa Eyssens | VP Customer Solutions & Cloud

Mon, 10 May 2021 06:00:00 +1000

Optus has restructured its enterprise business into a series of “digital practices”, areas of “deep specialisation” that are set up to work collaboratively on both internally-facing and external customer projects.

In this week’s iTnews podcast, Optus Enterprise vice president of customer solutions and cloud Theresa Eyssens talks about her arrival at the telco, the new structure of its enterprise business, and ongoing efforts to train thousands of staff in the cloud.

John Holland | Roger Wahl | Chief Digital & Information Officer

Mon, 19 Apr 2021 10:00:00 +1000

Major Australian rail, infrastructure and building company John Holland is embarking on a comprehensive three-year digital transformation journey. For this, the inaugural episode of the iTnews CXO Challenge podcast, we explore the key pillars and systems up for transformation, and how emerging technologies will reshape both the company's operations and the broader industry.