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Sports is a massive part of the fabric of Queensland and Australia. Professional sports clubs have avid fans, supported by big-name sponsors. Professional sporting clubs need to balance their communication across a huge range of stakeholders - athletes, fans, sponsors, partners, media, the general public, regulators … the list goes on!

Sponsors have a role to play in selecting a sports partnership that’s the right fit for their brand and the communities they operate in, and that fits within their risk profile.

The Clubs need to give their members the content and information they want and need, and support athletes in their own communication and marketing efforts.

Media need stories! And the sporting realm is a hive of stories - the heroic, the exciting, and the ugly.

In short, it’s a massive, complex communication ecosystem full of interesting nuances and diverse stakeholder interests.

In this event, we’re going to unpack that ecosystem with the help of our panel of incredible guest speakers representing all sides of communication - the sporting clubs, the media, and the sponsors.

What you’ll learn

How professional sports organisations manage their day-to-day communication when dealing with so many stakeholder groups
What the media is looking for in a story, and how they work with sports clubs and sponsors to get the scoop
What sponsors are looking for in a partnership, and how they could leverage the partnerships in their communication with their stakeholders

… and much more!

Have a question for the panel?

Submit it before the event here! We will get through as many questions as possible.

What to expect

Drink on arrival and canapes
Fun networking opportunity
Fantastic venue with unrivalled views of Brisbane city
Panel of four incredible guest speakers!

Our speakers

Steele Tallon, Head of Communications & Media, Brisbane Broncos

As Head of Communications & Media for the Brisbane Broncos, Queensland's biggest rugby league club, Steele Tallon is responsible for driving media relationships across all platforms - digital, social, print, radio and TV. His work ensures clear and consistent communication with members, corporate partners and staff, and maintaining high levels of engagement through quality content. Prior to joining the Broncos in 2017, Steele led the Communications team at the Brisbane Lions AFL club for almost four years. In a former life, he cut his teeth in media working various roles in journalism over a 20-year career including Deputy Editor and Head of News at The Courier-Mail and Editor of The Geelong Advertiser, Australia’s largest regional newspaper.

Chris Garry, Walkley Award-winning former sports journalist with Channel 7 and The Courier Mail

Chris Garry is a Walkley Award-winning former sports journalist, with a media career including five years as a senior sport reporter for five years, and previous roles for The Courier Mail and News Corp. He also featured on Fox Sports, ABC Radio, Radio NZ, and Triple J. He was awarded the Walkley Award for Best Sport Coverage in 2015, following a series of articles on the bullying culture in the NRL, and its relationship to mental health issues. He keeps busy now as a Media Advisor to the Federal Minister for Sport and Member for Lilley, the Hon Anika Wells MP.

Deb Woodford, Head of Marketing, Great Southern Bank

Great Southern Bank is the Principal Partner of both the Brisbane Heat men's and women's teams, and Co-Major Partners of the Carlton Blues AFL Club.

Deborah Woodford is a senior strategic marketer with a passion for customer centricity and insight-led, data-driven marketing and brand building. Deb has led teams of specialists in London, Sydney and Brisbane across all aspects of the marketing mix including brand and acquisition marketing, sponsorships, digital marketing, content, social, CRM and communications. Deb's career spreads both advertising agencies and client-side roles across a diverse range of industry sectors, including automotive, telco and financial services. Working with brands such as Toyota, Volkswagen, Optus, NRMA, British Airways, QSuper and Great Southern Bank. Originally from the UK, she only came here for a year in 2002, having backpacked around South East Asia and NZ, and has never left. Deb is now a passport-carrying Australian citizen, with three Australian children. The family moved to Brisbane 10 years ago, having seen the light. Career highlight – rebranding CUA to Great Southern Bank and our multi award-winning Brisbane Heat and Carlton sponsorships.

As Head of Marketing for Great Southern Bank, Deb oversees the Bank's strategic sponsorships, including the bank's partnerships with the Brisbane Heat cricket teams, and the Carlton Blues AFL Club.

Jenny Hutchison, Executive Manager Sponsorships & Community Response, Suncorp

Suncorp is the Principal Partner of Netball Australia, and Naming Rights Sponsor of Suncorp Stadium; AAMI is Major Sponsor of AFL and AFLW as well as Naming Rights Sponsor of AAMI Park (among other key partnerships).

Jenny Hutchison is a passionate and business-driven marketing leader with a proven record of developing effective brand, sponsorship and customer strategies to achieve great commercial outcomes. Jenny has more than 20 years’ experience in business, marketing and sponsorship roles across a diverse range of brands and industries. As Executive Manager Group Sponsorships & Community Response at Suncorp, Jenny is responsible for managing the Group’s portfolio brands’ sponsorship strategies, identifying and developing sponsorship programs from market scoping, leading negotiation process, budget management through to partner relationships, execution delivery and measurement