Book Rita Excell for your next event

Smart decisions need smart data—and even smarter questions.

Profile

Rita Excell is an internationally recognised expert in transport innovation, governance reform, and organisational transformation. With over 30 years of experience spanning local government, national boards, and global technology firms, she is known for her practical leadership in translating complex challenges into future-ready solutions.

Rita has been at the forefront of some of Australia’s most significant developments in road safety, automated vehicle deployment, infrastructure strategy, and smart transport systems. As the former Head of Transport for Amazon Web Services (ANZ), she helped government agencies and private operators harness cloud technology and data to transform mobility and asset management.

A dynamic speaker and strategic advisor, Rita is passionate about connecting business and government to drive impactful change. She regularly works with boards, senior executives, and professional associations to improve performance, manage risk, and lead through disruption—including guiding federated organisations through restructures, transitioning to digital delivery models post-COVID, and addressing poor board culture and governance.

Expertise

Talking Points

Roads to the Future: What Driverless Tech Means for Road Safety & Australian Communities.

Explore the near-term and long-term applications of automated and driverless vehicles in Australia. Drawing on a decade of real-world experience, this keynote outlines the opportunities, risks, and roadblocks for deployment in the local context. Learn what’s worked, what hasn’t, and how smart planning can integrate Automated Vehicle Technology, while keeping community needs front and centre.

Here is what you will gain from having Rita speak at your event:

• A 10-year perspective on Australia’s driverless vehicle journey: trials, outcomes, and learnings

• Tangible use-cases for technologies that support safer roads and more efficient transport

• How local governments can proactively prepare for emerging transport deployments

• Balancing innovation with public safety and community priorities

• What AI could mean for road safety, transport planning, and asset management

•The future of infrastructure in smart cities: cloud, connectivity and automation

•How your business can prepare for AI deployment, regulation, privacy, and trust

Own Your Path: Career Growth, Personal Brand & Leading with Impact

Success isn’t linear—and neither is leadership. In this empowering talk, Rita reflects on the bold moves and tough decisions that shaped her career. From navigating career transitions and redundancy to building her personal brand as a thought leader, trusted advisor and board chair, she shares strategies to grow confidence, credibility, and connections that last.

Here is what you will gain from having Rita speak at your event:

• Practical tools for building a personal brand that aligns with your values

• Strategies for navigating uncertainty, reinvention, gender bias and career pivots

• The role of professional networks and mentorship in personal success

• Encouragement for women in male-dominated industries

• How to bounce back and reinvent after redundancy

• Building your influence inside and outside of your job

•Finding mentors—and being one

• Owning your narrative in technical disciplines

Stronger Together: Connecting Government & Business for Smarter Infrastructure

Cross-sector collaboration is key to delivering successful outcomes for communities. In this talk, Rita shares how governments and private enterprise can work together—despite differing priorities—to improve outcomes for the public. Expect stories from the trenches, tools for stakeholder alignment, and insights on navigating challenges with competing interests.

Here is what you will gain from having Rita speak at your event:

• Strategies for aligning government and commercial interests

• Frameworks for stakeholder engagement and compromise

• Tools for navigating infrastructure planning with limited budgets and political tension

• How to deliver innovation with the customer/community at the centre

• Stakeholder mapping and managing "opposing objectives"

• Transport planning that respects road safety and growth pressures

• Bringing data to the table to defuse emotion in planning

• Advocating for community-led outcomes

From Disruption to Delivery: Leading Business Transformation in Public Sector & Beyond

Technology and restructuring are disrupting traditional operating models—but transformation is more than a system upgrade. In this keynote, Rita unpacks the human, political and operational sides of change management from her experience leading transformation in government and industry. Whether it’s merging councils, adopting digital platforms, or shifting strategy after redundancies, transformation requires more than tech—it needs trust, clarity and adaptability.

Here is what you will gain from having Rita speak at your event:

• Practical lessons in change leadership from council amalgamations to cloud transformation.

• How to retain culture and cohesion through mergers and transitions

• Building buy-in across different personalities and professional identities

• The human side of transformation: empathy, communication, and resilience

• Managing redundancies and supporting teams post-shock

• Structuring leadership teams for transformation delivery

• Communicating change—before, during and after

• Aligning people, process, and tech

Boardroom Realities: Leading Through Crisis, Culture Shifts & Organisational Reform

From restructuring federated associations to addressing underperforming leadership, this keynote explores the complex dynamics of board governance and transformation in a post-COVID world. Drawing on firsthand experience in navigating high-stakes decisions, guiding cultural reform, and transitioning national organisations to new operating models, Rita shares practical insights into what it takes to lead through disruption at the highest levels.

Here is what you will gain from having Rita speak at your event:

• Strategies for addressing board dysfunction and renewing leadership

• Navigating federated models: balancing national direction with local autonomy

• Leading transformation from face-to-face to virtual service delivery

• Practical approaches to managing conflict, power dynamics, and bullying in professional environments

• Tools for modernising board governance, culture, and performance frameworks

• Facilitating leadership transitions with integrity and strategic intent

• Rebuilding trust and cohesion in fractured board environments

• Moving beyond reactive governance to purpose-driven leadership

• Cultural accountability: confronting unproductive behaviours and elevating standards

• Sustaining leadership through politically sensitive and emotionally charged situations

MC Services – Bridging Ideas, Voices & Energy

As a Master of Ceremonies, Rita brings clarity, warmth, and a powerful presence to any event. She ensures seamless transitions between sessions, keeps audiences engaged, and draws connections between technical content and big-picture themes. Her deep experience across infrastructure, government, and technology allows her to connect meaningfully with a range of stakeholders—from engineers to executives.

By Engaging Rita as your MC, you can expect:

• Confident, engaging delivery tailored to industry or mixed-audience events

• Smart facilitation that draws out themes and key learnings from speakers

• Consistent time management and smooth event flow

• Uplifting, professional tone that reflects the event’s values

• Able to moderate panels, facilitate Q&A, and open/close sessions

• Adept at translating technical content for general audiences

• Supports sponsor recognition and strategic messaging

• Warmth, humour, and relevance where appropriate