Jeanette Cheah

Jeanette is CEO and Co-Founder of The Hacker Exchange, a global, tertiary-accredited program connecting curious entrepreneurs to opportunities in Silicon Valley, Tel Aviv, Singapore, Melbourne and beyond.
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii and raised in the US, Japan, and Australia, Jeanette is a true global citizen and is committed to bringing an international market mindset to the next generation of leaders. She is dedicated to helping leaders grow as global citizens, develop entrepreneurship mindsets and skillsets, and to embrace diversity — changing the face of business for the better.
A regular speaker and startup mentor, Jeanette has represented Australia at the G20 Young Entrepreneurs Alliance in Argentina. She also champions startup community building and diversity in business, having been listed as a woman of influence in Smart Company’s 2018 International Women’s Day Showcase and named a Finalist in the Telstra Business Women’s Awards, 2019 for ‘Public Sector & Academia’.

Before co-founding The Hacker Exchange, Jeanette’s career involved 15 years building digital products, innovation and marketing strategies in the financial services and energy industries, including ANZ, AXA and Origin Energy. She is also co-creator of the Gingerbread Demolition non-profit event for Save the Children Australia, a speaker at SXSW, General Assembly, Melbourne Knowledge Week and more.
With a background in economics, sociology and marketing, Jeanette loves blending the excitement of the startup world with the power of the business world, and believes the best results come from diversity of thinking and a ‘never stop learning’ mindset.