Australian Leadership Development Summit 2027 

Leadership Victoria, in partnership with RMIT University, is proud to host the Australian Leadership Development Summit - coming to the Melbourne CBD from 8-10 February 2027.

Now in its third iteration, the Summit has become a keystone event for Australia's leadership development ecosystem: a rare space where evidence and practice converge, relationships form, and the field moves forward together.

The theme, Insight to Impact: Celebrating and Advancing Leadership Development in Australia and Beyond, asks the field to close the loop: between what we know and what we do; between the research being conducted and the programs being designed; between individual development and systemic change. At a moment when leadership challenges are acute and the evidence base is deepening, the Summit is where that convergence happens.

Three connected but distinct days

The Summit will run across three connected but distinct days. Each day can be attended separately, though practitioners and researchers are strongly encouraged to attend all three to experience the full arc of the program.

The Summit will open with a full day Leadership Forum, designed for leaders and those who support their development (especially Learning & Development and People and Culture teams), as well as researchers, practitioners, funders and organisational leaders working in the field of leadership development across the academic, public, private, and community sectors.

Days 2 and 3 of the Summit are designed for those working in leadership development. It will be a high-trust working environment that offers meaningful collaboration, access to partners, and a genuine opportunity to shape the field. Aligned with leading national and international leadership organisations, it will attract high-quality, in-demand voices from across Australia and beyond.

Day 1 – Leadership Forum (Monday 8 February)-  Open registration - A curated day of keynotes, provocations and showcases from Australian thought leaders, researchers and practitioners, exploring the challenges and opportunities that characterises leadership in Australia now, and what our context demands next.

Day 2 – In the Work (Tuesday 9 February) - A smaller, more intimate day for people in the work of leadership development: researchers and practitioners in meaningful dialogue through facilitated activities, focused on purpose, impact, evaluation, leader emergence, access, equity and collaboration.

Day 3 – Research and Practice Streams (Wednesday 10 February) - Parallel research and practice streams offering a focused pathway into the issues most relevant to your work — through presentations, clinics, pitches and working sessions that progress ideas, not just present them.

Register your interest now to be among the first to receive program updates, speaker announcements and registration details.

Calls for proposals to contribute to the summit are also open, click on the button below for more details.