MC | Keynote Speaker | Panel Moderator | Podcast Guest
I've spent my career helping people cut through the noise, find common ground and take action. Whether I'm on stage, behind a microphone or at the head of a boardroom table, my job is the same: make it easier for good people to do good work together.
Jodie Willmer is a facilitator, MC, keynote speaker and business mentor who has spent more than 30 years helping purpose-led organisations plan, align and take action.
As the former CEO of Travellers Aid Australia, she led the modernisation of a century-old not-for-profit and has worked with hundreds of organisations across the social impact sector. Jodie has a rare talent for facilitation, often described as "disarming" in her ability to bring groups into alignment even when there are competing interests in the room.
She's also co-author, with her partner Rob Nagy, of Package Promote Scale, the playbook they built from a decade of consulting together.
Although Melbourne born and bred, Jodie's roots in East Gippsland run deep. Her mother's family migrated from the UK in the 1950s to Bairnsdale, and the Gippsland Lakes were a regular holiday spot growing up. In 2018, Jodie and Rob made the move to Eagle Point, swapping the city for the place that had always felt like a second home.
Former NFP CEO. Inaugural board chair. Cert IV in Governance. Jodie's spent 30+ years working every side of the boardroom table, including the awkward end of it.
Jodie speaks from lived experience, not theory. Her stories come from real boards, real strategy days and real recovery work, and her insights land because she's actually been in those rooms.
Jodie lives and works in East Gippsland, with family roots in the region going back generations. When she speaks about regional life, it's from the inside out, not from a Melbourne office.
Jodie returns calls, sends drafts early, and arrives early to walk the room. Whatever the day throws at her, your event runs to time.
Jodie is available for events, conferences, podcasts and panels across Australia.
01
Jodie's facilitation background makes her a natural MC. She reads the room, keeps energy high, transitions smoothly between segments and ensures your event flows with warmth and professionalism.
Ideal for: Conferences, awards nights, community forums, AGMs, sector gatherings
02
Jodie delivers keynotes that are grounded in real-world experience, not theory. She speaks with warmth, directness and humour, and leaves audiences with practical strategies they can act on immediately.
Ideal for: Conferences, leadership retreats, sector summits, community events
03
Jodie's facilitation expertise is tailor-made for panel moderation. She draws out the best from panellists, navigates tricky topics with grace and keeps the conversation focused and engaging.
Ideal for: Industry panels, governance forums, Q&A sessions, thought leadership events
04
Jodie is an engaging, articulate podcast guest who brings depth and practical insight to every conversation. Available solo or as a duo with Rob Nagy, with no fee for shows with an established and relevant audience.
Ideal for: Business podcasts, NFP sector podcasts, leadership and social impact shows
Jodie's keynote topics can be tailored to your audience and event objectives. All topics are available as keynotes (30 to 60 minutes) or extended workshop sessions. Custom topics are also welcome.
Governance & Strategy
Every organisation has a wish list of things they'd love to achieve. But too often, those ideas stay stuck in planning mode. Jodie shares her proven approach to helping boards, leadership teams and community groups turn their aspirations into a clear, actionable plan that everyone agrees on.
Your audience will walk away with: A clear understanding of why plans stall, practical tools for building alignment, and the confidence to take the first step.
Governance & Leadership
Many community members put their hand up to help on a board or committee during a crisis. But setting up and governing an organisation, advocating for your community whilst trying to secure and manage funding is hard. Especially when you are also dealing with the impacts yourself.
So what does high-functioning governance look like up close that is adaptive, community led and doesn't churn and burn out its committee and volunteers? Jodie does. After years of facilitating boards across the disaster recovery, NFP, social enterprise and council sectors, she's seen enough to know that the difference between boards that thrive and boards that merely survive isn't strategy, talent or budget. It's something quieter, more habitual, and much more reachable than most directors realise.
Your audience will walk away with: A clearer picture of what high-functioning boards actually do differently, the unglamorous habits that separate well-run organisations from struggling ones, and a practical lens for diagnosing whether your own board's frustration is a strategy problem, a people problem, or a workload problem.
Sector Networks & Collaboration
Regional and purpose-led organisations are usually trying to do big work with small teams, long distances and stretched budgets. The leaders who get the most done aren't the loudest, they're the best connected. Jodie shares how to build and nurture networks deliberately, so the relationships you have outside your organisation become a real engine for delivering your mission.
Your audience will walk away with: A practical approach to mapping their sector, building genuine relationships across organisational lines, and influencing and advocating so that everyone benefits.
Leadership & Decisions
In radio, you don't fix a bad signal by shouting louder. You fix it by reducing the noise. Most leaders of purpose-led organisations are stuck doing the opposite, adding more strategy, more comms, more meetings, hoping clarity will eventually break through. Drawing on sixteen years as a community radio announcer alongside her years as an NFP CEO and board chair, Jodie shares what radio engineers have always known: the loudest voice in the room is rarely the most important one, and sometimes the noise is coming from inside the studio. Honest, practical, and grounded in her own experience of getting it wrong as well as right.
Your audience will walk away with: A simple but counterintuitive frame for leadership decisions, the most common sources of noise in purpose-led organisations (including from boards, sector trends, and the leader's own life), and the small adjustments that help teams hear what actually matters.
Resilience & Recovery
Having supported hundreds of business owners and community organisations through bushfires, COVID lockdowns and economic disruption, Jodie brings first-hand insight into what it takes to lead through crisis.
Your audience will walk away with: A framework for community-led resilience, practical leadership strategies for uncertain times, and inspiration from real recovery and transition stories.
Revenue & Sustainability
Funding shifts, governments change, and the grant that built your program last year may not exist next year. Jodie unpacks what revenue diversification actually looks like for purpose-led organisations, including which ideas are worth chasing, which are distractions, and how to test something new without betting the organisation on it.
Your audience will walk away with: A clearer way to assess revenue opportunities, the warning signs of a bad bet, and a starting point for building income that's not at the mercy of the next funding round.
Custom topics are available. Jodie is happy to work with you to develop a keynote or workshop tailored to your audience and objectives.
"They didn't just give feedback, they helped me rethink how I package and promote my services so they really speak to what my clients need. Jodie and Rob were super generous with their time and advice."
Tammy Ven Dange Independent Advisor to NFP Leaders
"Jodie and Rob have been a delight to work with as mentors and facilitators with Monarch. They are approachable, authentic and so knowledgeable about their areas of expertise. We know we're in good hands when working with this team!"
Louise Hudson Monarch Institute
"Jodie is the consummate professional. Her vast experience and competence are evident in all interactions and inspire confidence. She delivered well beyond the scope of our agreement."
Karen Trapani Research Translation & Public Health
While Jodie is the primary speaker and MC, several of her offerings are available as a duo with her business and life partner, Rob Nagy.
Rob brings complementary expertise in business strategy, sales and marketing, technology (including AI) and training. Together, they've built Happy Changemakers, co-authored Package Promote Scale and mentored hundreds of businesses across Australia.
Joint offerings: Joint keynotes, podcast appearances, and Jodie as moderator with Rob as panellist.
Grow Your Business Revenue and Impact Without the Stress and Overwhelm
Published in 2025, Package Promote Scale is a practical guide for independent consultants who want to build a business that serves them, not the other way around. Based on the framework Jodie and Rob co-designed from their own experience as consultants for over 10 years.
Volunteering Victoria, East Gippsland Shire Council, Business Victoria, Monarch Institute, Women's Health Victoria, Airbnb Open, Emergency Relief Victoria, and 100+ NFP sector organisations.
Long before podcasting was everywhere, Jodie was already on the air.
For more than 16 years, including throughout her time as an NFP CEO, Jodie has been a community radio announcer. Sixteen years of live broadcasts, interviews, segment timing, and reading the room without being able to see it. The instincts that come from that don't switch off when the mic does.
In 2017, she also created and hosted her own podcast, The Insightful Director, ten episodes of candid interviews with directors and senior leaders who report to boards. The show is no longer online, but a sample episode is available on request.
More recent appearances as a guest include:
Want to bring Jodie to your next event? Tell us a bit about what you're planning and we'll get back to you.
Jodie's speaking, MC and panel fees start in the mid-thousands and scale with the scope and audience. You'll get a clear quote after a short discovery call. Travel costs are itemised separately when relevant.
You can reach Jodie via one of the following, or using the form: