Brett de Hoedt regularly takes the stage as an emcee or keynote speaker at conferences and events across Australia.
He helms awards, launches, business breakfasts, public events and exhibitions across dozens of industries. He brings wit, savvy and energy to every gig, big or small.
Using the skills gained on live radio Brett introduces, entertains, chairs panel discussions and delivers keynotes. He breaks ice, grills guests and keeps the show on the road.
Russ is the CEO of Firewize, an innovative fire safety design, installation and maintenance consultancy located in Melbourne, Australia. With almost 30 years of broad industry experience, Russ is sought after for his technical abilities on subjects including safety, fire detection, emergency lighting, emergency warning and the built environment.
John has been working in the fire Industry for 26 years, with the last 23 years working at Wormald.
In his current role at Wormald his areas of responsibility cover, Australian Standards representation, TAC representation by Wormald team members, CEO of the Wormald Registered Training Organisation, Fleet, Marketing, Distribution Services and Procurement.
He is currently the Chair of TAC 1 which covers the maintenance area of fire protection systems and equipment (AS1851) and is the current FPA Australia representative on the Standards Australia FP 001 Committee. He has also been a member of TAC 3/7 (extinguishers, fire blankets, and fire hose reels) for the last 15 years.
He has previously been a co-opted Director of the Fire Protection Association of Australia, and also was a member of the Federal Department of Communications and the Arts – Fire alarm and lift phone migration committee (migration to the NBN), and also the Fire alarm migration (migration to the NBN) working group.
John also holds qualifications in Marketing, and Business Administration.
John was officially appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of FPA Australia in October, 2023.
John brings a wealth of knowledge and extensive leadership experience to the position, serving in senior executive roles for the past decade.
His most recent role was with Airmaster, where he was Group General Manager – Fire, where he helped to steer the organisation to be an industry leader in the HVAC maintenance and fire protection sectors.
Before that, he worked for 20 years in the materials sector, with 15 years performing various roles for CSR, with expertise in construction, building materials, civil infrastructure, contracting, and industrial services.
Those positions saw him actively involved with various associations and community non-profit organisations, such as the Australian Glass and Glazing Association, Australian Window Association, and Insulating Glass Manufacturers Alliance.
John holds a master’s degree in science from Northeastern University in Boston and a master’s degree in commerce from Swinburne University in Melbourne, and has been a guest lecturer at the latter, teaching undergraduate change managers and innovators.
John takes an holistic approach to innovation and efficiency and is a strong advocate for collaboration, community engagement, and the promotion and advancement of fire protection in Australia.
Glenn Talbot is the founder and Managing Director of Verified, Australia’s leading SaaS solution for managing risk and safety, building compliance, work permit, visitor management, and delivery verification. He has been General Manager of some of Australia’s leading service providers, has managed manufacturing facilities in Australia and New Zealand, and been responsible for national and international product distribution. He holds an Associate Diploma in Applied Science and remains as an Independent Chair for Australian Standards, Chairing committee FP-001, the committee responsible for the development of AS 1851 “Routine Service of fire protection systems and equipment”. He has been a volunteer Board member and President of a successful not-for-profit industry association.
