Meet our 2026 Great Debate Opposing Team

Women of Influence’s The Annual Great Debate 2026 will get you thinking, laughing and learning…

This year’s topic: That Confidence is More Important than Competence in the Workplace

Meet our Opposing Team – Professor Caitlin Byrne AM, Kylie Ane Neal and Cathy U’Ren who will oppose the notion that confidence is what you need. This team’s argument is all about competence being more important!

Professor Caitlin Byrne AM

Pro Vice Chancellor (Business), Griffith University

Professor Caitlin Byrne AM FAIIA is Pro Vice Chancellor (Business) at Griffith University, where she is a member of the University executive and leads the strategic direction of the Griffith Business School.

A former Australian Government diplomat, she brings deep expertise in international policy and diplomatic practice. Her research on Australian public diplomacy and soft power is published in leading international journals.

Prior to joining academia, Caitlin held senior roles in the Queensland Government, leading social and legal policy strategy and reform, including within the Office for Women. She currently serves on a range of global policy and research advisory boards and is active in community initiatives focused on addressing homelessness.

Caitlin is a Fellow of the Australian Institute for International Affairs and Faculty Fellow for the University of Southern California’s Centre for Public Diplomacy. In 2026 Caitlin was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to business education and to international relations.

Kylie Anne Neal

Founder, Kan Kulture

Kylie Anne Neal is the founder of Kan Kulture and a Fractional Chief People Officer with over 25 years of experience spanning HR leadership, organisational culture, executive coaching, and people strategy. Holding a Masters in Coaching Psychology from the University of Sydney, she brings both academic rigour and hard-won practical experience to the organisations she works with.

Kylie built Kan Kulture to ensure that small businesses could have remarkable company cultures, without the cost of large HR teams. The team at Kan Kulture work with their clients to ensure that employees have an excellent experience across the entire employee lifecycle, that the business has the governance and compliance required for their industry, and that every workplace is physically and psychologically safe.

In addition to Kan Kulture, Kylie’s work is evolving at the intersection of leadership and somatic neuroscience – exploring how the body, nervous system, and human connection shape the way people lead and perform. This emerging focus on psychosomatic leadership and human resonance in the workplace positions her as a thought leader in this area, bringing a deeper and more human lens to culture transformation. Kylie does keynote speaking and workshops on Psychosomatic Leadership.

She is the host of Kan Talk Kulture, a podcast exploring the conversations shaping modern workplaces, and sits on the Board of the Southern Gold Coast Chamber of Commerce.

Kylie believes that showing up as your best self – with kindness, self-awareness, and an unwavering ownership of your strengths – is what makes people truly remarkable.

Cathy U’Ren

Founder and Chief Wellness Officer, Pet Wellness Centres

Cathy is the founder and Chief Wellness Officer of Pet Wellness Centres on the Gold Coast. Cathy, although not a veterinarian, was driven to create a veterinary clinic with a vision to transform the way health care is provided to our beloved pets. The spark for Pet Wellness Centres came from Cathy’s experiences during her career as a business executive in the dental and animal health industries along with her own very personal experience with her best friend Brain the Boston Terrier.

Cathy has drawn upon her decades of leadership and business management experience, spanning national, multi-national and now local business, to build a passionate Team and a customer focused brand with a true values-based approach to pet care. Cathy holds an Executive Master of Business Administration (with High Distinction) from Bond University (2014) and was awarded the Gold Coast Women in Business Awards – Business Achiever Award in 2025.

Cathy believes her most important role is helping others discover they are capable of far more than they imagine. An animal lover, adventurer and avid world traveller with an insatiable appetite for new knowledge and interesting experiences, Cathy is certain that people are the most interesting adventure of all.

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