There was an HR Festival Asia element to each of the top stories on HRM Asia.com in May this year. DBS Bank led the winner’s pack at the inaugral HR Fest Awards highlighting the ongoing transformation at what is now one of the world’s most recognised global banks. Meanwhile,  Spotify’s progressive parental benefits were also among the top five-read stories.

How transformation is infinitely ongoing at DBS Bank

Paul Cobban, DBS Bank’s Chief Data and Transformation Officer, who took the plenary stage at HR Festival Asia, was also interviewed prior to the big Singapore show. In this exclusive preview to his presentation, he highlighted how his team was fundamentally changing mindsets and designing an enterprise start-up culture within the bank.

Happy employees make better employees

At Spotify, doing  what’s best for the company translates into doing what’s best for its people. So says Head of HR for Asia-Pacific Michael Kim. It’s a belief that has resonated with the wider talent pool. Today, Spotify receives over 25,000 unique job applications per month, from candidates all across the globe.

DBS Bank, Teledirect CEO lead winner’s pack at HR Fest Awards

The first-ever HR Fest Awards took place on Day One at HR Festival Asia, recognising two individuals, and three organisations for their achievements in the area of human capital and people management. Sheela Parakkal of Prudential Assurance Company Singapore beat out 16 other finalists to be named the Microsoft Best HR Leader, while Laurent Junique, CEO of the Teledirect Group, emerged from a pool of five finalists to bag the Corner

Gallery: All the best pictures from HR Festival Asia

The region’s biggest HR and Technology show took place in Singapore on May 8 and 9, and HRM Asia’s photographers were on hand to capture every presentation, special event, and insight.

Transformation through automation, the Agoda way

The Agoda of today has changed significantly from five years ago when Jeff Lee joined the company as Chief HR Offcier. The US-born Lee worked with his team to quickly reduce its disproportionate reliance on antiquated systems and software. A key tenet of that team’s solution was automation, and that has become the crux of Agoda’s HR metamorphosis.