Call for presenters

Submit your presentation idea before December 31, 2025.

2026: Firebrand

firebrand • \FYRE-brand\ • noun. 

1 : a spark that ignites momentum and fuels change
2 : a person who doesn’t wait to be told what to do, choosing instead to shape the agenda
3 : one who drives with purpose, agitating for clarity, craft, and outcomes

Firebrand is a spark. It is the choice to lead with intent rather than follow the noise. In an era of hype cycles and accelerating tools, we see the chance to shape how AI and technology creates value, how craft endures, and how leadership builds resilience. Firebrand begins where we stop waiting and start defining what matters.

Firebrand is purposeful. It is clarity over clutter, outcomes over output. It calls for judgement at scale, for a renaissance of craft, for customer truth embedded in every decision. Firebrand means stepping into the work with discipline and imagination, building systems, products, and experiences that endure.

Firebrand is agency. It is the agency to own the agenda, to direct the energy of our time toward impact, and to lead with courage. Together, these themes are provocations and invitations: to push back where others stay silent, to ignite conversations that create change, and to build a future shaped by design, product, and leadership at their best.

Own the agenda

Abstract fluid artwork with swirling green, blue, and white gradients, featuring organic black void shapes creating a surreal, melting texture.

Tech and AI continues to move faster than any hype cycle before. This is our chance to lead. Product and design can define where AI creates real value, shaping pricing, workflows, and strategy, and make it a force for customer outcomes rather than a distraction.. Opportunities:

  • Outcome-driven AI: shifting focus from tools to measurable business and customer impact.
  • AI by design: embedding AI thoughtfully into product and design workflows.
  • Agency in adoption: practitioners shaping how AI changes their craft, not being told after the fact.

Judgement at scale

An attendee sketching an organisational chart during a session at Design Leadership 2025 in Melbourne, using a black marker on a worksheet.

The differentiator now isn’t just speed, it’s clarity. Product, design, and leadership can build systems of judgement at scale: frameworks that guide when to accelerate, when to prune, and how to align fast-moving teams through confident choices. Opportunities:

  • Decision discipline: frameworks for pruning, prioritising, and saying no.
  • AI discernment: knowing when to trust, tweak, or discard machine outputs.
  • Scaling clarity: aligning fast-moving teams through shared context and choices.

A renaissance of craft

DO24 panelists seated on stage, one smiling with notes in hand, while the other raises his arms expressively, creating an engaging and dynamic moment.

Craft is the antidote to fatigue and mediocrity. Standards, critique, and apprenticeship-like pathways are how we elevate quality at scale. By nurturing mastery and rebuilding pathways for talent, we create work that compounds in value and inspires pride. Opportunities

  • The craft mandate: embedding rigour and critique in accelerated workflows.
  • The craft dividend: showing how mastery multiplies trust and outcomes.
  • Pathways & progression: rebuilding apprenticeships and career ladders.

Back to the customer

A person holding a smartphone, viewing a message on the screen. In the background, a laptop is open on a desk with scattered stationery, creating a workspace scene

A decade of hype cycles has distracted us from the basics. Customer truth, not technology, is the compass for growth. This is about moving from slogans to practice: tying growth to real outcomes, creating experiences that resonate, and sharpening our focus on what matters most. Opportunities:

  • Sustainable growth, not feature bloat: tying metrics and product success to customer outcomes.
  • Experiences that matter: building trust, durability, and resonance beyond usability.
  • Customer clarity: cutting distractions to focus on what creates value for people.

Leadership roundtables

An attendee in an orange shirt listening intently during a session at Design Leadership 2025 in Melbourne, surrounded by a full room of participants.

It’s time for a new playbook. Leaders who create clarity, trust, and culture unlock teams that are not just high-performing, but also resilient. The opportunity is to build environments where people thrive, talent grows, and outcomes multiply. Opportunities:

  • High-trust, high and hybrid performance: clarity and safety as burnout antidotes creating resilient, high-performing teams.
  • From roadmap to run-loops: rhythms that balance speed with safeguards.
  • Apprenticeships that last: building deliberate pathways to grow talent, close gaps, and end the cycle of burnout at the top.

Be a part of something meaningful

The Outlook isn’t just another event. It’s a stage where ideas ignite, connections spark, and futures are shaped. Our past presenters tell us their experience was unforgettable — a moment of growth, recognition, and contribution that stayed with them long after the spotlight.

Presenting at The Outlook is more than delivering a talk. It’s professional development at its best: building visibility, connecting with peers, collaborating across disciplines, and expanding your own perspective as you shape and share your story.

And we make sure you’re supported every step of the way.

As a presenter, you’ll receive:

  • $750 honorarium to value your time
  • Flights and accommodation covered
  • Reasonable expenses for materials or supplies
  • A dedicated presentation coach to make your session engaging and memorable
  • A presentation manager to guide you through prep and rehearsal
  • Networking dinners and dry-run events
  • Hair and makeup on the day
  • Professional photography and video of your talk (published on YouTube)
  • A gift bag of things we love
  • For Product Outlook and Design Outlook: two complimentary tickets in addition to your own

What we're looking for

Chi Ryan presenting at DO23, wearing a transparent bubble wrap coat over dark clothing, with blue and purple-streaked hair and clear-rimmed glasses. Chi stands on stage with a colorful, abstract background, smiling and gesturing with one hand raised, engaging the audience.

Shaping a conference like The Outlook means making thoughtful choices. We receive many outstanding proposals, but we focus on the ideas that best serve our community and spark the conversations our audience needs most.

When we select presenters, we consider what aligns with our values, what challenges and inspires our audience, and what contributes to the bigger story of each event.

That means we can’t say yes to everything, but when we do, it’s because your talk has the potential to make a lasting impact.

Presentation requirements

At a minimum, all presentations must be:

Jeanette Cheah presenting at a Design Outlook event, exuding confidence and enthusiasm. She is wearing a vibrant pink blazer over a colorful patterned top, holding a clicker in one hand while gesturing with the other. The background features abstract shapes and a modern architectural design, enhancing the lively and engaging atmosphere of the event.

Broad, diverse, different

Key to our value proposition, we want ideas that speak to our audience as a broad community in a way that everyone can take something away.

Trudi (left) and Mark (right) addressing the audience on stage at a Design Outlook event. Trudi is wearing a bright blue blazer and black outfit, while Mark, dressed in black, is actively signing as an Auslan interpreter. The stage features a modern setup with a purple sofa and decorative flowers, framed by large glass windows revealing greenery outside.

Optimistic, playful, pragmatic

We want presentations that not only highlight a challenge or opportunity, but that provide suggestions on what to do about it and how great things can be in easy-to-consume ways. It is a long day and your presentation will be received incredibly well if it nails these three things.

Xile Wang, wearing a checkered shirt and a headset microphone, smiling warmly during a panel discussion at a Design Outlook event. He is seated alongside other panelists, with the foreground slightly blurred, creating a focus on his engaging expression. The background features soft tones and abstract shapes, complementing the professional atmosphere.

Bring new perspectives

We want presentations that are insightful and in some ways like comedy routines; they shine a light on something we might already know or believe in, and challenge us in a way that changes our perspective. (Don’t worry, you don’t need to be funny, you can be serious).

The selection process

Mathan Ratnam, a presenter at Design Outlook 2022, smiling while seated in the audience during a session. He’s wearing a navy sweater and appears engaged and relaxed.

Our panellists will be looking for alignment with our themes, the spark in your idea, and how engagingly you frame it. Your proposal doesn’t need to be perfect or finished — it just needs enough shape to show us its potential.

If you’re selected, we’ll work with you to refine your talk, build confidence, and get it stage-ready.

Selection timeline

  • 22 Sep – Call for presentations opens
  • 31 Dec at 11:59 pm – Call for presentations closes
  • Mid-Jan – Finalist interviews
  • 26 Jan – Initial program announced
  • 10–12 Feb – Feedback shared with unsuccessful submissions (with love and encouragement)
  • 13 Feb – Unsuccessful submissions deleted
How to apply

If you’re ready to submit your presentation, simply complete this form.