Book IWD Speaker: Poornima Peri

Progress builds progress. But only if the women driving it can sustain it.

I am a keynote speaker and author on self leadership, burnout and sustainable performance, with a career in governance and risk and a background in engineering. I was named Melbourne Business Person of the Year 2023-24, and I speak across Australia and India to corporate, university and community audiences.

My message for International Women’s Day 2027 and the Progress Parity theme: gender equality is advanced through collective action, shared knowledge and opportunity, and all three depend on women having the energy, clarity and space to lead. Overload, over giving and burnout are quiet barriers that rarely get named. AI is making them heavier. According to the Upwork Research Institute (2025), 77% of employees using AI say it has added to their workload, and Gartner (2026) reports that more than half of leaders experience daily exhaustion. When women lead from depleted reserves, progress stalls. When they lead with clarity and capacity, they open doors for others.

I speak from lived experience. For years I carried several demanding roles at once, putting everyone and everything ahead of myself, until my health made me stop. Rebuilding how I work and lead taught me that protecting your own capacity is not selfish. It is the foundation of lasting leadership, and of progress that others can build on. My keynotes combine that honest story with research and practical tools audiences can use the next day.

What audiences take away:

1. Why self-prioritisation is a leadership skill that keeps women’s progress going, not a luxury
2. How to recognise and challenge the hidden barriers of overload, over giving and burnout
3. Practical ways to protect energy and recover without losing momentum
4. How leaders and organisations can create the conditions for women to progress and bring others with them
5. How to stay human, clear and confident in an AI accelerated workplace

What makes me distinctive: I combine a risk professional’s rigour with a deeply personal story, so audiences get evidence and honesty, not a wellness lecture. My engineering and leadership background means I connect credibly with technical and senior leaders, and with women building careers in male dominated fields.

Experience: I have spoken at the Women Economic Forum in Melbourne and the Her Midlife Doctors conference, and delivered sessions for corporate and university audiences, including a session on AI anxiety for a technology company. I trained in keynote delivery and storytelling at the Speakers Institute in Melbourne, and I am represented by Speakers Solutions and SpeakIn.

Keynote topics:
1. Self Prioritisation as Self Leadership
2. Self-Leadership in the Age of AI
3. What AI Cannot Do: The Case for Leading Yourself First
4. From Code to Confidence

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