XChange Australia: Meet our 2026 Advisory Board
See who will be on our inaugural Advisory Board for XChange Australia 2026.
Next month, CRN Australia will be hosting its inaugural XChange Australia event where attendees will participate in insightful keynotes, network with colleagues and be a part of the famous boardroom sessions.
Our XChange Australia event has nine advisory board members (ABs) that guide, lead and help support the event.
These ABs are partners, MSPs, and solution providers that live and breathe the channel.
They were carefully selected due to their deep knowledge of the Australian IT channel.
During XChange Australia, each AB will be leading a boardroom session. A moment where vendors present to partners their latest technologies and innovations in a Chatham house rules space.
Before XChange, we spoke to each AB about what excites them about the event, and what attendees can learn during the day.
Here are the 2026 XChange Australia Advisory Board members.
Sunny Bhatia, chief information and digital officer, Digital61
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
I'm looking forward to hearing how partners are evolving their businesses in response to AI, cyber security and the changing customer landscape. It's always valuable to see how successful organisations are adapting their strategies, building new services and creating real business outcomes for customers.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
For me, it's about strengthening relationships across the channel, learning from industry leaders and taking away practical ideas that can help Digital61 continue to innovate and grow. I also enjoy the candid conversations that happen outside the formal sessions—they're often where the best insights are shared.
Why should partners come to XChange?
XChange brings together some of the best minds in the Australian IT channel. It's a unique opportunity to learn from peers, understand emerging market trends, build meaningful partnerships and challenge your own thinking. Whether you're focused on growth, innovation or customer success, there's something valuable for every partner.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
The willingness to collaborate. While we all compete in the market, the Australian IT channel has a strong culture of sharing ideas, supporting innovation and helping each other succeed. That sense of community is one of its greatest strengths and something that makes our industry genuinely enjoyable to be part of.
Brad Clarke, founder, Channel Guru
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
XChange has built an outstanding reputation globally, so I’m genuinely excited to see it continue to establish itself here in Australia.
What makes the event special is the combination of strong content, practical breakout discussions and real conversations between partners, vendors and industry leaders. It creates an environment where people can step out of the day-to-day whirlwind, share what is working, challenge their thinking and learn from others who are facing many of the same opportunities and pressures.
I believe XChange has the potential to become a genuine cornerstone of the Australian channel calendar.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
For me, it is about connection, reflection and action.
Our industry moves incredibly quickly, and we do not always give ourselves enough time to pause, look beyond our own businesses and learn from each other. I’m looking forward to the breakout groups, the honest discussions and hearing different perspectives from across the channel.
The best events do more than provide information. They give you new ideas, introduce you to people you can learn from and send you back into your business with greater clarity about what to do next.
Why should partners come to XChange?
Because it is not another event where you simply sit through presentations and collect a few business cards.
XChange gives partners an opportunity to actively participate, compare experiences and engage in practical conversations that can help move their businesses forward.
For partners entering the new year with ambitions to grow, improve or do things differently, it provides a valuable platform to build knowledge, strengthen relationships and turn new ideas into action. No fluff—just useful conversations, fresh thinking and people who understand the realities of building a technology business.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
The diversity of it.
Australia has an incredibly broad and capable partner ecosystem—from emerging specialists and regional providers through to established national businesses. Every partner brings a different story, perspective and area of expertise.
At the same time, we often see the same relatively small group of partners attending industry events. That means there is a huge opportunity for more businesses and more voices to become involved.
So, for anyone who has not attended an industry event for a while—or is looking for one event that will genuinely stand out—I would strongly recommend checking out XChange. The channel is at its best when more people contribute, share what they have learned and help move the whole industry forward.
Alex Coates, CEO, Interactive
What are you excited about seeing at Xchange Australia 2026?
A new format and fresh thinking including the Boardroom construct which will bring a level of real two-way engagement and dialogue.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
Connection, collaboration and curious content.
Why should partners come to Xchange?
I am 100 percent sure that every partner will leave with something; an insight, different perspective, new connection or a tangible idea to take back and put into practice. In a world where learning and curiosity will be required to keep up with the pace of change it feels like a no-regrets industry day.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
The collaboration. Despite being a highly competitive market we can get together, share experiences, war stories and future opportunities with a genuine desire to see the industry as a whole succeed. The notion of all boats rising is definitely the vibe.
Lisa Fortey, general manager, Logicalis Australia
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
I'm excited to hear how partners are using AI to genuinely transform their businesses, not just their technology. The channel is moving incredibly quickly, and it's always inspiring to see organisations finding new ways to improve customer outcomes, increase productivity and rethink traditional business models. Those conversations often spark ideas you can take straight back into your own organisation.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
For me, it's about learning from peers and strengthening relationships across the channel. Every business is facing similar challenges around AI, cybersecurity, skills and growth, but everyone is tackling them a little differently. If I leave with a handful of new ideas and a few stronger partnerships, it's been a successful event.
Why should partners come to XChange?
The value isn't just in the presentations. It's in the conversations. XChange brings together vendors, distributors and partners who are all passionate about the future of our industry. Whether you're looking for new opportunities, fresh thinking or simply a chance to benchmark where your business is heading, you'll leave with ideas that can make a real impact.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
The willingness to collaborate. While we compete every day, the Australian IT channel has a unique culture of sharing ideas, supporting one another and genuinely wanting to see the industry succeed. It's a relatively small community filled with passionate people who care deeply about customers, innovation and helping each other raise the bar.
Kelly Griffin, CEO, Blackbird IT
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
What I'm most excited about is the boardroom sessions, they're genuinely different to anything else on the channel calendar. Small room, specific conversations, real access. Instead of watching a vendor pitch from a stage, you're actually in the room, having the conversation. That's what makes XChange different, it's built by the channel, for the channel, and it's designed to bring the intelligence we need today into shaping where the channel goes tomorrow.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
What I want out of XChange this year is relationships, but the deeper kind. Power of 3, three partners aligned around solving a real customer problem together, not working in silos and pointing at each other when something goes wrong. That's the better together story I want more of in this channel, and XChange feels like the right room to build it in.
Why should partners come to XChange?
Because of the calibre of the room. This isn't a stage full of pitches, it's an open format where you can actually unpack your own strategy and thinking with people who get it. We're all running the same race, and there's real value in being curious, comparing notes, and testing your thinking against other CEOs doing the same job. The insights need to be valid, meaningful, and something you can walk away and use tomorrow, not just another day out of the business.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
My favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel is the privilege and the obligation we carry. Clients trust us as the experts to propel them into the future, and that's not something to take lightly. Technology never stops changing, which means there's always a new problem worth solving tomorrow. They say find the thing you'd do even if you weren't paid for it, and honestly, this is mine. I can't imagine doing anything else.
Ben King, founder, Aviato Consulting
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
AI and the impact of AI on Cyber are the biggest things I am talking about continuously right now. The boardroom sessions are also a new format so want to see how that works.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
I want real chat, not the filtered AI slop filling my LinkedIn feed.
Why should partners come to XChange?
C-level access to peers and vendors under one roof. It's hard not to see the efficiencies gained; it would take weeks to set up meetings with people you will bump into at XChange.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
How friendly our competitors are, I am always surprised by how open, and collaborative we are with each other, and hope that we can keep that, as the tech industry grows.
Vito Rinaldi, managing director, Blue Crystal Solutions
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
I'm looking forward to hearing how the channel is responding to the rapid evolution of AI and seeing practical examples of how partners are turning innovation into real business outcomes, especially how its being monetised. It's also a great opportunity to understand where the AI market is heading and how we can continue delivering value to our customers. What’s new, what’s next, how can we do things better.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
Personally, XChange is about learning, challenging assumptions, and strengthening relationships and business contacts. I hope to gain insights into emerging technologies, exchange ideas with industry peers, and identify new opportunities that help Blue Crystal Solutions continue to grow and innovate. Always looking for new delivery items as a business opportunities for my company. I hope for it to make my ICT world smaller.
Why should partners come to XChange?
XChange brings together some of the best minds in the industry. Evaluate potential partnership opportunities. It's an opportunity to build meaningful relationships, learn from vendors and peers, discover new business opportunities, and return with ideas that can make a real difference to your customers and your business. You never stop learning.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
The Australian IT channel is very collaborative. Even though we compete, there's a genuine willingness to share knowledge, support one another, and help drive the industry forward. It's that combination of innovation, resilience, and community that makes our channel so unique.
Matt Salmanzadeh, director and co-founder, nexwave
What are you excited about seeing at Xchange Australia 2026?
Seeing where the channel has evolved it's thinking to.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
Meeting new and existing colleagues and discussing the latest in how everyone is approaching GTM.
Why should partners come to Xchange?
Chance for continued collaboration.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
Collaboration and willingness to always pitch in and help each other.
Xara Tran, founder, Champions of Change
What are you excited about seeing at XChange Australia 2026?
Networking. Meeting our peers gives us a valuable opportunity to benchmark the region as a whole, exchange ideas and build greater business resilience.
What do you hope to get out of XChange this year?
Perspective. Australia’s leading providers will come together to compare vendor and distributor relationships, strengthen their operations and sharpen their focus on delivering better outcomes for clients.
Why should partners come to XChange?
It is important to embrace the industry’s culture and learn from your peers. These conversations can reveal areas of your organisation that could be strengthened, creating new efficiencies, opportunities and revenue.
What is your favourite thing about the Aussie IT channel?
The people. While the industry is large, it is also surprisingly close-knit. It is important to show up, build genuine relationships and remain open to opportunities that may emerge from rooms you had not previously considered.
XChange Australia will be held on September 16 at the Intercontinental Sydney. Learn more here.