DDD Perth 2025 Team
Josh Sewell - Chair
Josh serves as the Chair and Treasurer for DDD Perth, providing leadership and managing the financial aspects of the conference. Currently working as the Asia Pacific and Japan Partner Manager for Salesforce at AWS, Josh is growing the co-sell motion and solving customers' biggest problems across the region.
With over two decades of Australian and international consulting and channel experience, Josh has delivered outcomes for customers and partners across various industries. His expertise spans commercial management, digital transformation, information strategy and governance, solution architecture, and organizational change management.
Josh holds an MBA with Honours from the University of Western Australia (WAM 82.4) and was awarded the Tracey Horton Scholar award. As a Graduate and Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD), he brings strong business acumen and governance expertise to DDD Perth, ensuring the organization remains financially sustainable while delivering exceptional value to the Perth software community.
Rebecca Waters - Vice Chair
Rebecca serves as the Vice Chair of DDD Perth, bringing valuable leadership and vision to the organization. With extensive experience in the Perth technology community, she previously served as the Chair of DDD WA, where she helped grow DDD Perth into one of the largest developer conferences in Australia, attracting 1,400 tech professionals in 2023.
Known for her dedication to creating inclusive and accessible tech events, Rebecca has been instrumental in shaping DDD Perth's culture and community impact. She combines strong organizational skills with a passion for connecting people across the technology sector, ensuring that DDD Perth continues to be an approachable event that appeals to the whole community, especially those who don't normally get to attend or speak at conferences.
In her role, Rebecca provides strategic guidance for the organization while overseeing various operational aspects including ticketing and agenda coordination. Her leadership has been key to DDD Perth's continued success and growth as a premier technology conference in Western Australia.
Connect with Rebecca on LinkedIn
Aidan Morgan - Secretary
Aidan is a Principal Technical Program Manager at Atlassian and serves as the Secretary for DDD Perth. With over 20 years of experience as an accomplished CTO, Architect, and Engineer, he brings strong technical leadership and project delivery skills to the organization.
In his role as Secretary, Aidan manages the Microsoft 365 environment for DDD Perth, ensuring smooth operations and effective collaboration among team members. His extensive background in technology, including his previous experience as a Startup VP/CTO, provides valuable insights for the organization's technical infrastructure and documentation needs.
Aidan is an active member of the Perth tech community, participating in both the Azure Practitioners and Australian Software Developer Community groups. His combination of technical expertise and organizational skills helps maintain proper documentation and records for DDD Perth's activities and decisions, contributing to the conference's continued success.
Connect with Aidan on LinkedIn
Siobhan Avenell - Treasurer
Siobhan is the Chief Operating Officer at Switch Technologies and serves as Treasurer for DDD Perth. With a Master of Human Resource Management (MHRM) and as a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD), she brings strong financial oversight and governance expertise to the organization.
A global People and Culture executive with extensive experience in executive and board-level HR strategy, Siobhan possesses a comprehensive understanding of employment law across multiple countries and has a proven track record in securing multiple Best Place to Work Australia awards. She has been an active part of the DDD Perth community, including speaking at DDD Perth by Night events such as The Leadership Compass.
In her professional role, Siobhan leads a global team of over 20 recruitment and HR professionals, overseeing HR strategy implementation across five countries. She is also a University Lecturer at Murdoch University and contributes to Curtin University's MBA program, demonstrating her commitment to continuous learning and sharing knowledge within her field.
Connect with Siobhan on LinkedIn
Vicki Turner - Director Tech Logistics
Vicki is responsible for coordinating the technical logistics for DDD Perth, ensuring a seamless experience for speakers and attendees. With a background in data analytics and engineering, Vicki brings her technical expertise and organizational skills to the DDD Perth team. She has a passion for technology and community events, helping to create an inclusive and engaging environment for all participants.
Connect with Vicki on LinkedIn
Aaron Batten - Director Sponsorship
Aaron is the Founder of a&co Recruitment Partners and serves as Director of Sponsorship for DDD Perth. With over 15 years of local technology recruitment experience, Aaron brings a wealth of industry connections and expertise to the team. His background in web development gives him a unique understanding of the technology landscape, allowing him to build meaningful partnerships between DDD Perth and sponsor organizations.
Aaron's passion for delivering exceptional customer experiences at a local level drives his approach to sponsorships, ensuring mutually beneficial relationships that support the Perth software community. His extensive network and deep understanding of the local tech ecosystem help DDD Perth continue to offer affordable, high-quality events while providing sponsors with valuable engagement opportunities.
Outside of his professional life, Aaron is a father of three young boys, a Fremantle Dockers supporter, an active Masters Sports enthusiast, and enjoys cooking at home.
Connect with Aaron on LinkedIn
Jake Ginnivan - Director Technology
Jake is a Principal Consultant at Arkahna and serves as the Director of Technology for DDD Perth. He previously helped build Seven West Media's digital news platform including 7news.com.au. A seasoned software developer, teacher, international speaker, open source contributor and maintainer.
Jiaranai Keatnuxsuo - Media and Design
Jiaranai is an AI Architect, AI Safety Fundamentals specialist, Climate Educator, and self-described #TechOptimiser who leads the media and design efforts for DDD Perth, creating visual content and managing the conference's brand identity.
A thriving endurance athlete, TEDx Speaker, and multi-award winner including Women in Technology Western Australia 2019, NASA Space App Challenge, Energy Hack, Transport Hack WA, and UWA Innovation Challenge, Jiaranai works at Microsoft bringing together Cloud Computing, Data, Artificial Intelligence, and Environmental Sustainability to help public sector customers do more with what they have.
Jiaranai is actively involved in community events that increase technology accessibility and inclusiveness for underrepresented groups, encouraging women to enter tech and inspiring disadvantaged students to explore STEM fields. Her personal philosophy centers on continuous improvement, striving to be 1% better every day through persistence and effort.
Connect with Jiaranai on LinkedIn
Michelle (Mei-Ling) Sandford - Director Social Media and Communications
Michelle is a Developer Engagement Lead at Microsoft, TedX Speaker, Keynote Speaker, AI Developer, GAICD, and MCT. As the Director of Social Media and Communications for DDD Perth, she leverages her extensive experience in the tech community to promote the conference and engage with attendees.
Michelle lives at the heart of the coding community and helps drive awareness and engagement as a developer advocate and technology evangelist. She advocates for STEM, the Games industry and Developers, presenting at around 50 conferences and events worldwide on Technology, Learning to Code, Open Source and Building Apps with AI. A top LinkedIn Developer Influencer, Michelle mentors for Microsoft, ACS, SheCodes, Muses Code JS, Girls Programming Network, and other organizations, helping to upskill the next generation of data scientists and AI engineers.
She also serves as a Non-Executive Director (GAICD) and Advisory Board Member for many industry, university, and public-sector organizations, including the Australian Computer Society.
Connect with Michelle on LinkedIn
Nathan Bransby - Volunteers and Event Experience
Nathan is a Full-Stack Software Engineer who works with Diversity & Inclusion at the Python Software Foundation. As the Director of Volunteers and Event Experience for DDD Perth, he coordinates volunteers and oversees the event experience, ensuring a positive atmosphere for all participants.
A passionate software engineer merging technical expertise with community advocacy, Nathan is dedicated to creating more inclusive spaces in tech. As an active contributor to the Python Software Foundation's D&I Work Group, he shapes diversity initiatives within the global Python community to create a more inclusive environment for all.
Nathan's engineering work focuses on creating robust, scalable solutions, complemented by his dedication to fostering inclusive tech spaces. He actively participates in tech events and conferences, constantly expanding his knowledge while building meaningful connections across the diverse industry. Nathan believes that technical excellence and community engagement are key drivers of meaningful industry change.
Connect with Nathan on LinkedIn
Amy Kapernick - Director Conference Content
Amy is a business owner, senior developer, mentor and international conference speaker. She has a passion for sharing knowledge with the community with a focus on nurturing the next generation of developers. As Director of Conference Content for DDD Perth, Amy curates the conference program, working with speakers and managing the talk selection process. She's been recognized as a Microsoft MVP since 2019 for her contributions to the tech community and ongoing commitment to helping those around her.
Previous Team Members
2024 Team
Alex Colville - Past Director
Alex previously served as a director for DDD Perth, contributing valuable knowledge and experience to the organization.
Donna Edwards - Past Director
Donna previously served as a director for DDD Perth, sharing her expertise and helping shape the conference.
Connect with Donna on LinkedIn
Sasha Hilton - Director, Conference Content
Sasha previously managed conference content for DDD Perth, curating talks and working with speakers.
Connect with Sasha on LinkedIn
Alana Atkinson - Director, Sponsorship
Alana previously managed sponsorship relationships for DDD Perth, working with organizations to support the conference.