OWNA Group Meetup 2026: Better Together

Headliner: Nicole Talarico – Talarico Consulting

Nicole Talarico's career spans thirty years in the education and care sector, with a masters in social work in child and family practice. Nicole is a key note speaker, safeguarding specialist and author (Asserting a Culture of Child Safety), appointed to Early Childhood Australia’s Rapid Response Taskforce and independently engaged for critical incident response (training and therapeutic support) to build capacity and improve safety and wellbeing for all stakeholders. Nicole's Extensive training includes The Safecare Method, Effective Sexual Assault Victim Interviewing, Ending Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, Family and Domestic Violence, Trauma Responsive Practice, Working with Men to End Family & Domestic Violence. Nicole expanded her skill set as safety and wellbeing practitioner at Child Protection, Family Preservation and Reunification Response (Uniting) and The Orange Door. Nicole’s insights are shared Australia wide and internationally through direct practice, presentations, sector publications and podcasts; empowering teams in safeguarding so children can thrive in community contexts.

• Headliner: Nicole Talarico – Talarico Consulting's linkedin
• Headliner: Nicole Talarico – Talarico Consulting's facebook

Kheang Ly – CEO, OWNA Group

Kheang is the co-founder and CEO of the OWNA Group and leads a product-focused organisation that consistently out-innovates competitors. His hands-on approach ensures OWNA's ecosystem remains flexible, efficient, and purpose-built to meet the evolving needs of ECE services, empowering centres to deliver exceptional education and care.

• Kheang Ly – CEO, OWNA Group's linkedin

Dr Neika Masroori – Director of Education, Tiny Souls Media

Dr Neika Masroori is an educational researcher, lecturer and social-emotional learning specialist with a PhD in Education from the University of California, Berkeley. She teaches and conducts research at The University of Queensland's Parenting and Family Support Centre, where her work focuses on child development, parenting and family wellbeing. As Director of Education at Tiny Souls, Dr Masroori supports early childhood services to embed evidence-informed approaches to social-emotional learning that strengthen children's wellbeing, relationships and lifelong learning. Bridging research and practice, she helps educators create environments where children can thrive, connect and contribute to a better world.

• Dr Neika Masroori – Director of Education, Tiny Souls Media's linkedin

Brent Stokes – Consultant, ACA Queensland

Brent Stokes brings more than 20 years’ experience in early childhood education and care. As an Approved Provider, he owned and operated up to four early learning services, building expertise in leadership, governance, compliance, funding and service delivery. Brent has also contributed over 17 years of voluntary service to the Australian Childcare Alliance Queensland, including four years as CEO. Today, he works as an ACA Qld consultant, partnering with the Queensland Department of Education to help services implement Free Kindy through practical guidance, case studies and operational solutions.

• Brent Stokes – Consultant, ACA Queensland's linkedin

Tawanda Maravanyika – Founder & Director, Trendsight

Tawanda Maravanyika is the founder and Director of Trendsight, a specialist childcare bookkeeping and outsourced payroll firm. A Chartered Accountant and registered BAS agent, he spent close to a decade in senior finance roles at organisations including Deloitte and McMillan Shakespeare before launching Trendsight in 2018. Since 2022 he has focused the firm on the childcare sector, building deep expertise in the Children's Services Award, benchmarking, and the financial insights owners and operators need to run a healthy service. As an OWNA Group partner, Tawanda works closely with the platform and its community to help operators get on top of their numbers.

• Tawanda Maravanyika – Founder & Director, Trendsight's linkedin

Giselle Rayward – Chief of Strategy & Integration, Bask Early Learning

Giselle drives the strategic direction and integration of Bask's growing footprint across South East Queensland. A recognised advocate for children's rights, she was selected as a 2025 Community Ambassador for Children's Rights Queensland. She is passionate about aligning organisational growth with the values that matter most: bravery, accountability, curiosity, and kindness.

• Giselle Rayward – Chief of Strategy & Integration, Bask Early Learning's linkedin

Priscilla Farry – Head of Quality Assurance, Bask Early Learning

With 19 years experience in Early Childhood Education and Care, Priscilla Farry has built her career from the ground up, progressing from trainee and educator to her current role as Head of Quality & Compliance. Her experience spans centre operations, quality and compliance, acquisitions, business growth and organisational development, giving her a unique perspective on leadership at every level. Priscilla is passionate about building strong teams, empowering people to lead with confidence, and sharing the real-world lessons and challenges that shape great leaders in early childhood.

• Priscilla Farry – Head of Quality Assurance, Bask Early Learning's linkedin

Boe Hasanovic – Head of Centre Operations, Bask Early Learning

Boe leads operational performance across Bask's centres, working closely with Centre Managers and leadership teams to strengthen systems, support daily operations, and ensure every service runs smoothly while delivering high-quality education and care. Boe's work ensures that Bask's services are built through clear systems, supportive leadership, and a shared commitment to high standards.

• Boe Hasanovic – Head of Centre Operations, Bask Early Learning's linkedin

Guy Lance

Educational Leader & Pedagogy Expert

• Guy Lance's linkedin

Kiara Lo

Customer Success Manager

• Kiara Lo's linkedin

Mufaro Maringe

Customer Engagement & Community Manager

• Mufaro Maringe's linkedin

Candace Gibb

Operations Manager, Enrolment Hub

• Candace Gibb's linkedin

Jack Ritchie

Group Marketing Manager

• Jack Ritchie's linkedin

Bec Provost

Kidsoft Training & Implementation Manager

• Bec Provost's linkedin

Nick Watts

Head of Development, Kidsoft

• Nick Watts's linkedin

Chris Masterton

Product Manager

• Chris Masterton's linkedin

Interested in Exhibiting?

We have limited exhibitor spots remaining for the Meetup. Contact community@owna.com.au for a full more information, or download our full prospectus

• Interested in Exhibiting?'s website

KindiCare

KindiCare is a unique two-sided marketplace specifically developed for the early childhood education and care market to help parents and guardians and childcare providers to connect and engage throughout the early learning and care journey.

• KindiCare's website
• KindiCare's linkedin

Enrolment Hub

Enrolment Hub are leaders in enrolments, outsourcing, administration, debt recovery and marketing for your daycare or childcare centre. We work with Education providers of all sizes to maximise their occupancy year-round, nurture their waitlisted families and streamline their internal processes. This ensures that families move from interested to enrolled quickly and receive a personalised, positive experience on their Childcare journey.

• Enrolment Hub's website
• Enrolment Hub's linkedin

Trendsight

Trendsight is a specialist childcare bookkeeping and outsourced payroll firm, founded in 2018 to give small and medium businesses the kind of financial insight usually reserved for large corporates. Since 2022 the firm has focused squarely on the childcare sector, developing deep expertise in the Children's Services Award, benchmarking, and the financial insights owners and operators need to run a healthy service.

• Trendsight's website
• Trendsight's linkedin

Tiny Souls Media

Tiny Souls is a digital resource library supporting social and emotional learning, wellbeing and child safety across early learning communities. It provides educators and families with practical, ready-to-use tools for everyday moments. At the heart of the library is the award-winning animation series, Zip and the Tiny Sprouts, bringing emotional learning to life through engaging storytelling. The platform also includes activities, songs, mindful moments and family resources that build a shared language between home and service, supporting meaningful programming without adding to educator workload.

• Tiny Souls Media's website
• Tiny Souls Media's linkedin

Parking & Directions

Rydges South Bank Brisbane offers Valet Parking for $59 on-site. The hotel’s entry is located on Glenelg Street, best accessible from Merivale Street. Use your GPS or mapping app to navigate to 9 Glenelg Street, South Brisbane (corner of Glenelg Street and Grey Street). If approaching from the city centre, cross the Victoria Bridge, Captain Cook Bridge, or William Jolly Bridge and head toward South Bank / Cultural Precinct. From major roads such as the Pacific Motorway, follow the signs toward South Bank / South Brisbane. Alternatively, South Bank Parking at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre offers a variety of parking options close to the hotel. Please visit https://bcec.com.au/visit/car-parking/ for rates and to pre-book.

• Parking & Directions's website

Public Transport

The closest train station is South Brisbane Station. Upon exiting the station, you will see the Queensland Performing Arts Complex. Turn right onto Grey Street. Walk approximately 300 metres along Grey Street; the hotel is on the same side as the station. It’s about a 4-minute walk from South Brisbane Station to the hotel. The most convenient access to bus transport is the South Bank busway station or Cultural Centre station. The South Bank ferry wharf (CityCat / RiverCity services) is located in the South Bank Parklands precinct. From the wharf, it’s an easy walk through the South Bank Parklands toward Little Stanley Street and then across to the hotel.

• Public Transport's website

Accommodation - Rydges South Bank Brisbane

Are you travelling in to Brisbane for the Meetup? We've secured an exclusive 20% discount off the best daily rate at Rydges South Bank Brisbane for attendees. Located in the heart of South Bank, it's just steps from the venue. To book, simply visit the link below (or click the link icon), select your dates, and your discount will be applied automatically. https://www.rydges.com/private-page/residential-delegate-direct-booking-page/ What you need to know: ⭐️ Check-in from 3:00pm / Check-out by 11:00am ⭐️ Free cancellation up to 3 PM the day before arrival ⭐️ A credit card is required to guarantee your booking (not charged in advance) For any booking questions, contact the Rydges Reservations Team on 07 3364 0800.

• Accommodation - Rydges South Bank Brisbane's website

From Brisbane Airport

By car or taxi/ride share, travel time is roughly 20–25 minutes depending on traffic Alternatively, you can take public transport: - Airtrain or public transit from the airport into Brisbane’s central network - Transfer to a train heading to South Brisbane Station - Walk from South Brisbane Station to the hotel (300 m / ~4 minutes)