Global Followership Conference: Asia-Pacific at Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia
April 1-2, 2026
AGENDA: EXPLORING FOLLOWERSHIP CONTEXTS
Although research and practice are beginning to identify some common behaviors of effective following, frequently the answer to the question of what it means to follow and how best to do it is: “It depends.” It depends on the cultural context – global, regional, national, local, organizational – in which leading and following occurs. It depends on the purpose that brings people together. It depends on implicit theories about leadership and followership held by organizational, social, or political members. It depends on the industry or sector. It might even depend on what is meant by the term leadership or followership, and even if such a word exists in a specific language or culture. This conference is a safe, respectful yet exciting space for knowledge sharing and discovery about followership, from the followership-curious to skill-building to research to bringing followership into your practice or organization. It also aims to highlight different cultural practices surrounding followership.
GUEST KEYNOTES
Ira Chaleff – Ira has spent decades asking this essential question: What is our responsibility when leadership goes wrong? He will share his most recent work on Followership at the Fault Lines of Democracy, Education, and AI.
Ree Jordan – Ree is a Senior Lecturer in Leadership and Management at the UQ Business School whose research reshapes how we understand leadership, followership, and change in complex organisations. Ree brings more than 20 years’ experience as a leadership and change consultant and is recognised internationally for her research on maverickism.
Alex Haslam– Alex is Professor of Psychology and Laureate Fellow at the University of Queensland. He has written 16 books and over 350 peer-reviewed articles exploring the contribution of group and identity processes to social and organizational functioning — with a particular emphasis on leadership and health.
Melissa Derby– Melissa is currently serving as the Race Relations Commissioner for Te Kāhui Tika Tangata | New Zealand Human Rights Commission. She brings a decade of experience in human rights advocacy. Her previous role was in the School of Education at the University of Waikato, where her teaching and research focused on children’s early learning and development, Māori education and success, and literacy as a human right.
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS: Alain de Sales, Lecturer, QUT Graduate School of Business and Otto Henfling, Managing Director, Trusted Leadership
2026 FOLLOWERSHIP AWARD OF DISTINCTION WINNER:
Basil Read
ABOUT OUR HOST
At QUT’s Graduate School of Business we are leaders in life-long learning, enabling our students to reach their full potential.
Our mission is to co-create accessible and impactful executive education experiences alongside industry, government, non-profit sectors and our community. These industry-collaborated programs aim to benefit organisations and society in our complex world.
We achieve this by working with our partners to design and deliver research-led programs that aim to develop high-performing, future-focused leaders who can respond with agility to changing operating environments.
Our belief that education and curiosity is ongoing is central to our life-long learning approach. As a result, our programs are designed to be accessible to a diverse range of leaders from all backgrounds and sectors. We also offer a range of scholarships and learning support for our programs.
Our range of course offerings cover short courses and graduate certificates through to our MBA programs. These programs are paired with our expert support to prepare you for your next career move.