OUTCOME 2026

Summary

OUTCOME 2026: Outpace Change was advertised as our national October 2026 roadshow: Melbourne on 8 October at the MCG, Sydney on 15 October at the Ivy Sunroom and Brisbane on 20 October at The Calile Hotel, each scheduled for 11:30am to 4:00pm. The programme advertised the national launch of “Managed Services. Re-engineered.” and introduction of IT Operations Excellence as a Service, with keynotes, a CXC Global customer story, seven short partner sessions and an executive panel. The events have now taken place. Highlights from the Sydney event are below; contact us for follow-up information.

Highlights from the day

The highlights below are drawn from the Sydney event on 15 October 2026.

Managed Services. Re-engineered. Michael Zuppa opened by arguing that mid-market innovation is constrained by capacity, not ideas. Traditional managed services built around uptime, monitoring and SLAs remain the foundation but are no longer enough. Managed Services. Re-engineered. provides a governed operational framework that continuously improves security, experience, automation and visibility, delivered on IT Operations Excellence as a Service. Customers can engage in three ways: a fully managed service outcome, platform as a service for internal IT teams, or procurement and professional services. Michael’s message on AI: organisations need to become operationally ready, with governance, security, observability and executive-led culture in place, before they become AI-ready. We tested, governed and operationalised each capability internally first.

Leadership after intelligence. Brad Twynham challenged attendees to focus on transformation rather than transactions. When everyone has access to the same intelligence, advantage comes from human judgment: deciding what to adopt and what to ignore, what to automate and what to protect, and where to place trust in AI agents.

Customer insight. In the fireside chat, CXC Global shared how it stabilised everyday support, then strengthened security, then moved into AI within a governed Microsoft environment. Its advice: start small, find one point of friction in a process, fix it, and build trust from there.

Partner sessions. NinjaOne, ControlUp, Zoom, HPE Networking, Huntress, Mimecast and Microsoft each showed how their technology fits the platform, from automated patching and digital employee experience to self-driving networks, managed detection and response, human risk management and AI governance.

Executive panel. Panellists agreed that the main barrier to moving from AI experimentation to operational change is organisational alignment, not technology. Projects stall when they focus only on cost reduction, or when departments pursue AI separately. The closing question was who orchestrates it all once every layer of IT becomes intelligent. The answer: a connected platform with visibility, security, financial observability and trust built in, guided by people making deliberate choices about where intelligence is applied.

Key facts

What the event is

The programme presented “Managed Services. Re-engineered.” and IT Operations Excellence as a Service around automation-led operations, security-first delivery, human risk management, AI readiness and operational accountability. It framed the event as a conversation about modern IT leadership.

The structure supports that framing. Roughly half the day is keynote and panel material about how IT operations are changing; the middle section is seven ten-minute partner sessions, each mapped to one operating capability rather than to a product; and the day opens and closes with an "Innovation Exchange", an exhibition format rather than a formal session.

Who should attend

The page addresses technology leaders and IT decision makers: those scaling operations without scaling headcount, deciding what AI-ready means for their organisation, treating security as an operating standard rather than a project, and comparing their operational maturity with peers. The six discussion topics we list are how leading organisations scale operations without scaling headcount, what being AI-ready really means beyond the hype, why security is becoming an operating standard rather than a standalone project, how Human Risk Management is reshaping cyber resilience, what separates organisations adapting to change from those falling behind, and how operational maturity is becoming a competitive advantage.

Speakers

Michael Zuppa, Chief Executive Officer, blueAPACHE. Delivers "Managed Services. Re-engineered. The Future of IT Operations Excellence", described as the centrepiece keynote and the official launch moment. The session covers why traditional managed service models are reaching their limits and our vision for what replaces them. The combined programme also lists Zuppa on the closing panel without establishing attendance in every city.

Brad Twynham. Presents "Leadership After Intelligence. Building Advantage in the Agentic Age", on how leadership must evolve as AI moves from productivity assistance to autonomous work, improved decision-making and business transformation. He also facilitates the executive panel.

Dominic Sargent, Director of Technology, CXC Global. The customer innovation story, giving a practitioner's perspective on governance, security, operational maturity and preparing an organisation for the next wave of AI. The programme identifies this as a customer innovation story.

Damian Vale, Channel Account Manager, NinjaOne. Automation-Led Operations: how automation supports more efficient, scalable IT operations, reducing operational complexity so IT teams spend less time on repetitive work.

Frank Skiffington, Head of Australia and New Zealand, Zoom. From Conversation to Completion - moving AI beyond productivity gains to economic value: how AI-powered collaboration tools are changing how people connect and work. Also listed on the executive panel across the combined programme; city-by-city attendance is not established here.

James Deane, Regional Sales Manager, HPE (Melbourne only) and Zohar Cohen, Sales Director, AI for Networking Asia Pacific and Japan, HPE (Sydney and Brisbane). From Self-Driving Cars to Self-Driving Networks: The Journey to Autonomous Operations. Deane covers the role of modern networking in connected, resilient IT operations; Cohen covers how AI is influencing the future of networking.

Adam Maloney, Huntress (Melbourne and Brisbane) and Sean Stitt, Huntress (Sydney). Security-First Operations.

Rohan Cook, General Manager, HPE (Melbourne panel only). Brings an industry and partner ecosystem perspective on what comes next as AI, automation and changing operational demands reshape managed services.

Vic Guerrero, Vice President, Channel APAC, NinjaOne. Listed on the combined executive-panel programme, with an Asia-Pacific view of the forces reshaping IT operations.

Agenda

What differs between the three cities

The published roadshow programme gives common session times and identifies these city-specific speakers:

• From Self-Driving Cars to Self-Driving Networks: The Journey to Autonomous Operations is presented by James Deane in Melbourne and by Zohar Cohen in Sydney and Brisbane. The two sessions have different emphases: Deane on modern networking as the foundation of resilient operations, Cohen on AI's influence on the future of networking.
• Security-First Operations is presented by Adam Maloney in Melbourne and Brisbane, and by Sean Stitt in Sydney.
• Mimecast is presented by Mark Arapovic in Melbourne and Brisbane, and Scott McKeller in Sydney.
• Microsoft is presented by Chris Olsen in Melbourne, Dean Corcoran in Sydney and Jo Killalea-Walford in Brisbane.
• The executive panel lists Michael Zuppa, Dominic Sargent, Kenny Singh, Rohan Cook, Chris Weber, Dean Corcoran, Vic Guerrero, Frank Skiffington and Reece Appleton across the roadshow. The speaker profile specifically places Rohan Cook on the Melbourne panel; the combined agenda does not assign every panellist to a city.

If a specific speaker is the reason for attending, the city matters.

How the agenda maps to our services

The partner sessions map to automation, employee experience, collaboration, networking, security, human risk and AI readiness. Huntress and ControlUp both appear; the 2026 announcements describe an expanded Huntress relationship and a newly announced ControlUp partnership. The agenda alone does not rank the recency or importance of every partnership.

Related

• OUTCOME 2026: Melbourne
• OUTCOME 2026: Sydney
• OUTCOME 2026: Brisbane
• Events
• Managed Service Bundles
• Human Risk Management
• Managed Detection and Response
• Collaboration
• Microsoft Practice
• Vendor partners
• Leadership team
• Contact

When and where is OUTCOME 2026?

Three dates in October 2026: Melbourne on Thursday 8 October at the MCG, Brunton Avenue, Richmond; Sydney on Thursday 15 October at the Ivy Sunroom, Level 3, 330 George Street; and Brisbane on Tuesday 20 October at The Calile Hotel, 48 James Street, Fortitude Valley. Each runs 11:30am to 4:00pm.

How much does it cost?

The published programme advertised complimentary attendance with limited places and required registration. The October 2026 dates have passed; contact us for follow-up information.

Who is it for?

Technology leaders and IT decision makers in mid-market and enterprise organisations who want to compare operating models, security posture and AI readiness with peers, and to see the launch of our re-engineered managed services. We describe it as a conversation about modern IT leadership rather than a technology conference.

Who is speaking?

Michael Zuppa, CEO at blueAPACHE, delivers the launch keynote, and Brad Twynham presents "Leadership After Intelligence" and facilitates the panel. Dominic Sargent, Director of Technology at CXC Global, gives the customer story. Partner sessions list Damian Vale (NinjaOne), Cameron Foale (ControlUp), Frank Skiffington (Zoom), James Deane or Zohar Cohen (HPE), Adam Maloney or Sean Stitt (Huntress), Mark Arapovic or Scott McKeller (Mimecast), and Chris Olsen, Dean Corcoran or Jo Killalea-Walford (Microsoft).

Is the programme identical in every city?

The published programme gives common session times. HPE, Huntress, Mimecast and Microsoft speakers vary by city, and the panel profile places Rohan Cook in Melbourne. The combined agenda lists a wider panel without assigning every panellist to a city.

What is being launched?

The national launch of "Managed Services. Re-engineered." and the formal introduction of IT Operations Excellence as a Service, our term for managed services built on automation, real-time visibility and one accountable operating model.

Is there a customer speaking?

Yes. Dominic Sargent, Director of Technology at CXC Global, is listed with Michael Zuppa for the Fireside Chat: Customer Insight at 1:20pm, sharing perspectives on governance, security, operational maturity and AI readiness.

Is it an in-person event?

Yes. All three sessions are in person, with an arrival lunch, an Innovation Exchange and networking drinks. No online stream is mentioned.

How long is each session?

The published start times allow 25 minutes for Michael Zuppa’s keynote, 30 minutes for Brad Twynham’s keynote, 15 minutes for the fireside chat, and ten minutes for each partner session. The panel is scheduled for 25 minutes, with networking drinks from 3:30pm. These durations are inferred from the agenda, not verified timings from the events.