Keynotes on AI strategy and leadership, from someone who's actually been accountable for it.
For conferences, boards, and industry events that want a speaker who's delivered the work she talks about — not just talked about it. Emma is typically booked 3–6 months in advance.
From the stage
Real keynotes, real rooms, real conversations about AI strategy and what it actually takes to make it land.
What this isn't
Not motivational fluff. Not a product demo.
Every keynote is built from real delivery experience, not a slide template. Audiences leave with a working framework they can take back to their own teams, not a feeling that fades by lunch.
Keynote topics
Built around what your audience actually needs to walk away with
The BRAIN Method
A working framework for building AI into a business, not bolting it on
The five-part framework Emma built from 15+ years inside enterprise digital transformation, now used by boards and small business owners alike to make AI adoption defensible, not accidental.
Best for: leadership conferences, founder events, industry associations
Governance Before Growth
Why most organisations are adopting AI faster than they can govern it
A direct look at the gap between informal AI use and a defensible AI strategy, with a practical model boards can apply within a quarter.
Best for: board briefings, executive offsites, regulated industries
The Accountability Gap
What it actually takes to deliver AI at scale, not just talk about it
A grounded account of delivering $500M+ in digital and automation programs, and what separates organisations that actually ship AI from those still running pilots three years in.
Best for: tech and operations conferences, transformation summits
Built By One, Not a Team
What AI strategy looks like when you don't have a project team
A practical, honest session for founders and small business audiences on applying enterprise-grade thinking without enterprise-sized resources.
Best for: small business conferences, regional and rural business networks, women-in-business events
"Emma doesn't do for the sake of doing. She leads purposefully. Her approach focuses on people where others stop short at tools. If lasting impact is what you're after, I cannot recommend Emma enough."
Ways to book Emma
Formats
Available Australia-wide in-person, and virtually for international audiences. Interstate and international travel by arrangement.
Emma is typically booked 3–6 months ahead of an event.
That lead time isn't a formality. It's what lets her properly research your audience, your industry, and the specific outcome you want, so the keynote lands for your room, not a generic version of it.
Start with an availability check. Tell us your event date, audience, and objective.
Approved Speaker Bio
Emma Spartalis
AI Strategy, Governance & Implementation | Founder, Spartalis Consulting
Emma Spartalis is a leading voice on practical AI strategy in Australia. The woman organisations call when they need AI done properly, not just talked about. With more than 15 years of senior digital leadership at WesTrac and Caterpillar, Emma has been accountable for delivering $500M+ in digital and automation programs across some of Australia's largest industrial enterprises, including $83M in RPA throughput across a single organisation.
She is the founder of Spartalis Consulting and the AI Acceleration Hub, and creator of the BRAIN Method — a five-part AI implementation framework now used by boards, executive teams, and small business owners to make AI adoption defensible, not accidental.
Emma's keynotes are not about AI theory. They are built from real delivery experience — the budget pressures, team dynamics, governance gaps, and accountability that come from leading transformation at scale. Every audience leaves with a working framework, not a feeling that fades by lunch.
Emma is a 2025 APAC Women in Tech Award winner, a 2026 AgriFutures NSW/ACT Rural Women's Award finalist, a Woman Changing The World Award winner, and a Dungog Citizen of the Year finalist. She is based in the Hunter Valley, NSW.
Quick facts for event listings
Name
Emma Spartalis
Title
Founder & Director, Spartalis Consulting
Topic area
AI Strategy, Governance & Implementation
Based in
Hunter Valley, NSW (available nationally)
Website
spartalisconsulting.com.au
Booking lead time
3–6 months recommended
"Working with Emma Spartalis is like having a secret weapon — one that's equal parts strategist, cheerleader, and digital powerhouse. She blends empathy with expertise, and her high-performing teams are her legacy."
On stage across Australia
Recent and upcoming
Where Emma's speaking this year
Dungog Future of Farming Forum
2026 AgriFutures Horizon Summit
The Ultimate Farm Wife Podcast
Hunter Business Women's Network, Newcastle
Agsolutely Fabulous Podcast
Women In Technology Hunter — Panelist, 24 September
Real reactions, not pull-quotes from a press kit
"Working with Emma Spartalis is like having a secret weapon — one that's equal parts strategist, cheerleader, and digital powerhouse. She blends empathy with expertise, and her high-performing teams are her legacy — as I've seen many thrive under her leadership."
"Six weeks ago I called myself the least tech-savvy person in any room. Last week my VA went MIA and my honest reaction was.. Meh. I've got this. My content is posting automatically and a vet I hadn't spoken with before booked a call from my posts this week."
"As someone building a small Australian family business from the ground up, it's easy to think these things are only for larger businesses. Emma's guidance has shown me that's simply not true."
"I learnt more in a week working with Emma than I ever could from 10,000 management books. She has a rare talent for seeing the big picture and making the complex feel simple."
"Emma doesn't do for the sake of doing. She leads purposefully. Her approach focuses on people where others stop short at tools. If lasting impact is what you're after, I cannot recommend Emma enough."
"Working with Emma was genuinely life-changing. She challenged me to aim higher, believed in my potential even when I doubted it, and always had my back."
Have an event in mind?
Send the date, audience, and what you want people to leave knowing how to do. We'll come back with availability and a recommended topic within 2 business days.
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