Here is your toolkit with speaker presentations, new tourism resources, and additional presenter tools to help you take the ideas from the day and apply them in your business. CLICK EACH DOCUMENT TO DOWNLOAD IN A NEW WINDOW.
1:00pm – 1:30pm
Arrival and registration
1:30pm – 2:00pm
Welcome
Dianne Smith is the new Chair for Destination Central Victoria. An experienced non-executive director and former CEO, Dianne brings years of experience working in the visitor economy, water, public land, and local industry capability sectors.
Destination Central Victoria CEO update
Paul Matthews was made Interim CEO late in 2025. He has worked closely with the organisation since 2021 following his departure as Head of Regional Tourism and Strategy from Visit Victora. As an innovative thinker and connector, Paul brings a wealth of tourism experience and senior leadership to the role.
2:00pm – 3:00pm
KEYNOTE: The State of AI and Tourism
Caroline Kennedy’s session on the state of AI cuts through the noise to deliver real, implementable insights for tourism and hospitality leaders. If you’re looking for a practical, results-focused introduction to AI, this is your playbook: clear use cases, current tooling, and shifts that matter today. Designed to boost operations, enhance visitor experiences, and lift profitability. Attendees will leave with a concrete sense of what’s credible, what’s overhyped, and how to translate AI ideas into tangible improvements from day one.
3:00pm – 3:15pm
Tourism Australia – Going International
Rachael Glendinning acts as the primary link between domestic tourism products and regions, and the Australian Government agency responsible for promoting Australia globally. With over 10 years of industry experience, Rachael has a diverse tourism background specialising in the tech and online space for the Tours, Experiences and Attractions sector having worked at Rezdy – a global booking software and channel manager, and Expedia Group. She also has experience in back and front-of-house hotel operations for brands including Hyatt and Ovolo.
As well as providing an overview of the recovery of international visitation, Rachael will cover touch on practical ways that operators can be international ready.
3:15pm – 3:35pm
Visit Victoria – Marketing, ATDW and You
Peter Glynn and Karin Scherma head up regional marketing and the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) for Visit Victoria. Hear how you get work with DCV and Visit Victoria on marketing, public relations and ensuring your business is promoted digitally across every channel.
3:35pm – 3:55pm
Afternoon Tea
3:55pm – 4:45pm
KEYNOTE: Hearts, Minds and the Bottom Line
Despina Karatzias is a transformative educator, certified trainer, and business coach with over two decades of experience across tourism and small business. As founder of the Institute of Excellence, she has empowered thousands of operators through practical, future-focused programs in digital strategy, visitor experience design, leadership, and AI integration.
Despina’s HEARTS, MINDS & THE BOTTOM LINE keynote has been prepared specially for us. It’s a fast-paced session that shows how to win customers, create referrals, and package for profit with AI to help you work smarter, not harder. The session weaves together four pillars:
4:45pm – 4:50pm
Macedon Ranges welcome
Mayor Kate Kendall, of Macedon Ranges Shire council will talk about the importance of the visitor economy to the community as she welcomes attendees to the region. Her professional background includes working as a journalist, community builder, digital director and business advisor.
4:50pm – 5:00pm
Key take outs from the day – Paul Matthews
5:00pm – 7:00pm
Networking drinks and nibbles
Paul was made Interim CEO late in 2025 following the passing of the legendary Steve Wroe. He has worked closely with the organisation since 2021 following his departure from Visit Victora. As an innovative thinker and connector, Paul brings a wealth of tourism experience and senior leadership to the role.
AI-Powered Leadership Strategist, TEDx speaker and award-winning author.
Caroline is a self-made CEO who led a national franchise to $250 million and scaled a multinational travel organisation from $38 million to $55 million in just 18 months during the GFC, when the industry was being disrupted.
Experience The State of AI with Caroline, a practical keynote tailored for tourism and hospitality operators. Caroline cuts through the hype to show what’s real, what’s overhyped, and where AI can deliver immediate value without losing the human touch that sits at the heart of the visitor economy.
Designed for mixed levels of confidence, this session guides newcomers and seasoned practitioners alike from smarter operations and sharper marketing to better recruitment and decision making. Expect a grounded, commercially relevant keynote that speaks directly to Destination Central Victoria’s Hearts & Minds: Technology and Human Touch theme, with actionable takeaways you can start applying the moment you return to work.
Practical, ready-to-implement AI ideas across operations, marketing, visitor experience, recruitment, and revenue.
Clear guidance on where AI adds value vs. where it can create distraction.
Confidence to pilot small, useful AI experiments in their own business.
Understanding that AI supports, not replaces, human service and judgement.
Real-world examples of how tourism and hospitality are already using AI effectively.
Insight into AI-driven discovery and Answer Engine Optimisation and how it affects how visitors find and choose businesses.
Founder of the Institute of Excellence, a leading training and mentoring organisation dedicated to building capability across tourism and small business.
Despina’s HEARTS, MINDS & THE BOTTOM LINE keynote has been prepared specially for us. It’s a fast-paced 45-minute session that shows how to win customers, create referrals, and package for profit with AI to help you work smarter, not harder. The session weaves together four pillars:
Rachael acts as the primary link between domestic tourism products and regions, and the Australian Government agency responsible for promoting Australia globally. With over 10 years of industry experience, Rachael has a diverse tourism background specialising in the tech and online space for the Tours, Experiences and Attractions sector having worked at Rezdy – a global booking software and channel manager, and Expedia Group. She also has experience in back and front-of-house hotel operations for brands including Hyatt and Ovolo.
As well as providing an overview of the recovery of international visitation, Rachael will cover Tourism Australia’s strategic direction, current marketing campaigns and the practical ways that operators can engage across the organisation’s platforms.
Karin Scherma’s role is Digital Product Manager at Visit Victoria, where she leads the management of the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) – the platform that connects Victorian tourism operators with consumers around the world. Karin collaborates closely with tourism businesses and industry stakeholders to help them maximise the platform’s benefits and capabilities. She also leads the broader ATDW Support Team, working alongside Kaavya and Nibha to deliver ongoing ATDW training and support.
Peter Glynn is Manager, Marketing & Campaigns for Visit Victoria and is responsible for developing marketing strategies for the domestic and international markets and managing campaigns.
Peter leads the Golf Tourism Marketing for Visit Victoria in addition to major event marketing and managing Visit Victoria’s intrastate marketing which aims to get Melburnians out into regional Victoria.
Kate’s professional background includes working as a journalist, community builder, digital director and business advisor. She was the founder and CEO of three companies as well as a startup accelerator for women founders called Atto, that was backed by the Victorian Government. She has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Melbourne and a Masters of Business (Marketing) from RMIT University. She was the President of Business Kyneton – a local chamber of commerce. She is passionate about regional entrepreneurship, innovation in government, the future of work, rural tourism, supporting families and empowering local communities.