The Jam | Leadership Edition
16 October 2026
- Starting Out
- Scaling Up
- Adopt
- Ignite
Join us for an afternoon of unfiltered leadership stories and startup learnings. 6 jammers will take the stage and share their leadership journey: the doubt, the hard calls, the growth, what worked and what didn't. Come prepared for the Q&A, good questions get Jam!
The Jam | Leadership Edition 🎤
Hosted by Movac | Sponsored by Emerging Engines
​Part of Auckland Startup Week, closing it out in style as the flagship event on the final Friday.
​Leadership is the part of building a startup nobody really prepares you for. The late-night calls, the tough conversations, building a team from scratch, the moments you doubted yourself and kept going anyway.
​This Jam is all about bringing those stories to the founders and operators who are out there doing it, raw, honest, and unfiltered.
​We're bringing 6 Jammers to the stage, each with 10 minutes to share their most honest leadership story, followed by 10 minutes of live Q&A from the crowd. Good questions get Jam... that's how we roll!
​This one's strictly for founders and operators in the NZ tech startup ecosystem who want to learn from others who've been in the trenches.
​📍 Auckland Startup Week | Friday 16 October
đź•‘ 2pm sharp | doors close, Jams begin
🍻 5pm | networking drinks and nibbles
​MC'd by the one and only Serge van Dam.
Proudly sponsored by Emerging Engines.
​Speakers will be announced soon!
Hold on tight, this is shaping up to be another epic Leadership Jam.
​Spots are limited, so make sure to secure your ticket early.
Free
MC
Serge van Dam
Operating Partner at Movac
Serge spent 10 years in mobile banking and payments, principally as Chief Marketing Officer of M-Com, the world’s leading provider of mobile banking platforms to financial institutions (acquired by Nasdaq-listed Fiserv in 2011). In that period, he gained deep experience in international market entry (US, Europe, Asia, etc.), B2B marketing and thought leadership, and managing sales and channel teams at scale. In the last five years, Serge has been an active investor and director in early-stage, high-growth, going-global Kiwi B2B software companies, with particular attention to growth strategies.
Venue
Pipiri Lane
124 Halsey St, Wynyard Quarter, Auckland 1010
Pipiri Lane isn’t just a place to work or host — it’s a statement. Located in Wynyard Quarter, Auckland’s buzzing innovation hub, it’s New Zealand's first cross-laminated timber work and event space. With a 6 Star Green Star rating, Pipiri Lane is one of Auckland’s most sustainable buildings, representing a rare opportunity to align businesses with innovation, environmental responsibility and forward-thinking design.