The Conference Collective Podcast Series 5
Welcome to the ‘The Conference Collective’ Podcast, celebrating the best in innovation and leadership from those who are creating a positive change in the business events industry. A podcast brought to you by the Professional Conference Organisers Association Inc. and hosted by Libbie Ray from Connected Event Group. This podcast provides listeners with behind the scenes access to some of the key innovators in our industry as they share their honest and raw insights. It highlights how collaboration, innovation and resilience are at the core of the events industry and the reasons we have managed to survive through the most challenging time our industry has faced. Get ready to learn more about the brave new world of the business events industry.
This season of ‘The Conference Collective’ Podcast was primarily recorded live at the PCOA25 conference, in Connected Event Group’s portable recording studio. We will be back recording new episodes at PCOA26, so please reach out to The PCOA if you are interested in starring as a guest for next season!
Attendance at the conference was supported by:
Episode 1
Resilience, Loss and the Impact of Kindness with Kath Koschel
The conversation unpacks the difference between being nice and being kind, the science behind psychological safety, and why empathy, communication and positive intent drive stronger teams and better outcomes.
A practical and thought-provoking discussion on how small actions can create meaningful change - for individuals, organisations and the wider events community.
About Kath Koschel:
2024 Australian of the Year, Kath Koschel is a former professional cricketer and Ironman competitor whose world came crashing down when she broke her back twice in the span of five years and was told that she would never walk again. Instead, she faced the challenges head-on and defied all medical prognosis by teaching herself to walk again on three separate occasions.
Driven by a passion to spread gratitude and kindness in the world, she founded Kindness Factory™ with the goal of encouraging one million acts of kindness. To date, Kindness Factory has recorded over 7 million acts of kindness and is now a registered not-for-profit in three countries.
- Kath’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kath-koschel-74044436/
- Kindness Factory: https://kindnessfactory.com/
- Kath’s Website: https://kathkoschel.com/
Thank you to our webinar and podcast partner for 2026 – Connected Event Group