What's in store for April's HRD: A Virtual Experience

On 28th April, join us for HRD: A Virtual Experience, an immersive learning experience combining incisive keynotes, thought-provoking panels, and expert-led collaborative workshops. Based on the topic ‘redesigning work, reimagining potential’, senior HR leaders will have a unique space to connect and co-create strategies to tackle their most pressing challenges.

Get ready to learn and share, and leave with fresh ideas, inspiration, and blueprints curated by yourself and your peers, enabling you to proactively lead through change and prepare for the new reality of work. Register for your free place now.

Curious to learn more about the event? Read on to discover some of the key themes we’ll be covering, including employee experience, DE&I strategy, ways of working, and the future of work. Joining us on the day are key figures from the HR space, including Neelima Rao (AstraZeneca), Joan McGrail (New Balance Athletics, Inc.), Minh Hua (Stanley Black and Decker) and Dr. Stefanie K. Johnson (author and speaker).

Our top sessions include:

Workshop: Inspiring and Energising Through the Employee Experience

Employee engagement was severely hampered by recent disruption and continues to be a top priority for leaders; nowadays, they face additional challenges in a remote setting, where it’s harder to identify the risks and opportunities.

A sustained approach to flexibility is needed, coupled with new work habits that move away from never-ending video calls, and introduce an element of balance. Employers must contend with competing preferences and demands when making decisions about ways of working – how can you cater to everyone’s needs, while maintaining effective collaboration and being inclusive, regardless of physical presence?

Speaker: Neelima Rao is the VP of HR for Global Oncology R&D and North America Country Lead at AstraZeneca. In this role, Neelima is responsible for defining and implementing HR strategy across several sites worldwide.

Workshop: Leading the Transition to the Next Phase of Work

Leaders might not have made decisions about what the future of organisations looks like, but it’s vital to be prepared to manage that next phase. Whether it’s returning to the workplace, remaining remote or a blended model, how is it possible to derive conclusions about the best ways of working? What are the critical skills needed for the organisation to thrive and how to build them into the workforce?

Redesigning talent practices, from global job hierarchies to performance management, for a more fluid and adaptive workforce will enable leaders to truly unlock the potential of people.

Speaker: Joan McGrail is a proven HR executive with extensive experience in all facets of the department. She assumed her current role, Chief Human Resource Officer for New Balance Athletics, Inc., in May of 2020 and currently oversees all global HR operations for the company’s 8,200 worldwide employees.

Workshop: Promoting Wellbeing, Belonging and Peer-to-Peer Support

The pandemic has brought to the fore the strain on the mental health and wellbeing of employees. Pressures from an increased workload, job instability and the blurring of work and home lives have only served to heighten such issues.

The way we interact with work has changed forever and leaders need to work on what can be done to support employee wellbeing now, and in the future, whether that’s remote, in the workplace or a blended model.

During this two-part session we will explore ways to support wellbeing: from encouraging time off and finding ways to show you care to providing additional mental health benefits. Wellbeing isn’t just a ‘nice to do’ – it requires real strategy and will ultimately have a big impact on the contribution of employees.

Expect to come away from this session with a framework on developing long-term wellbeing plans that go beyond basic perks.

Speaker: Minh Hua is the Chief Talent Officer for Stanley Black and Decker (SBD). In this role, Minh leads the full talent lifecycle including recruiting, employee experience, lifelong learning, people analytics, executive development, succession planning, and board engagement.

Keynote: Achieving a Holistic Approach to DE&I

One of the many trends highlighted by the pandemic is the need for differences in thought, differences that can only come with diversity. Although the conversation around DE&I has progressed over recent months, it’s crucial to not be complacent.

Becoming more diverse and inclusive is a conscious decision that companies need to make, starting with their leadership. Diverse representation at top levels ripples down into the rest of the organisation.

This keynote will explore the intersection of leadership and diversity, and address how leaders can create a holistic model of DE&I, where each and every employee feels empowered to bring their whole self to work.

Speaker: Dr. Stefanie K. Johnson is a researcher focused on the intersection of leadership and diversity. She works with top companies to implement evidence-based practices to reduce unconscious bias and increase inclusion.

Sign up here to attend. This unique virtual event experience includes inspirational keynotes, panel discussions, design-led workshops and a number of interactive sessions, all curated to help you shape the future direction of work, the workforce and the workplace.

What’s included in your free ticket?

• Access to all workshops delivered by expert speakers
• Access to interactive sessions, including unique design-led workshops
• Opportunity to network with all of the delegates
• Access to on-demand content following the event

HRD Connect Curators of the New Business Landscape. HRD Connect produces industry-recognized content for senior HR leaders. Through articles, case studies, Q&As, podcasts, events, and more, we offer truly progressive and cutting-edge insights designed to help people leaders address core HR challenges and add greater value to their business.

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