HR Tech Festival Asia Online 2021: What’s happening on Day 3

HR Tech Festival Asia Online 2021 concludes with the ASEAN Future of Work conference track, which puts the spotlight on South-East Asia's workforce.
By: | September 23, 2021
Topics: Asia-Pacific | DE&I | Digital Transformation | Employee Experience | Health and Wellness | HR Technology | Leadership | Learning and Development | News | Professional Development | Restructuring | Talent Management

As HR Tech Festival Asia Online 2021 draws to a successful conclusion, Day 3 will feature the ASEAN Future of Work conference track.

Presented in collaboration with Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower and the Regional Centre for the Future of Work, the conference track brings together regional senior government, union, and employer representatives in South-East Asia to share lessons learnt from COVID-19 on promoting inclusivity in the future world of work.

Flagging off the ASEAN Future of Work track is Dato Lim Jock Hoi, who will be giving his opening remarks. Then, hear from distinguished speakers such as Sunil Setlur, Chief People Officer, Go-Jek; Hajah Mahuran Saro Dato’ Haji Sariki, Head, Group Research Development & Policy and Head Malaysian Professional Talent, Talent Corporation Malaysia; Najati Ghosheh, Legal Specialist, Inclusive Labour Markets, Labour Relations and Working Conditions Branch, International Labour Organisation; Michelle Baxter, CEO, Safe Work Australia; Bicky Bhangu, President, South-East Asia, Pacific & South Korea, Rolls Royce Singapore; and more as they address issues such as how organisations in ASEAN can harness the potential of hybrid work for a more inclusive future of work.

With mental well-being and work-life harmony gaining importance because of the pandemic, the ASEAN Future of Work conference track will also discuss the role tripartite partners in the region can play to build a conducive and inclusive workplace to support mental well-being and work-life harmony.

Discussion will also continue on how tripartite leaders can support businesses and workers to reskill and upskill during the pandemic, particularly for SMEs, displaced workers and lower-wage workers. To conclude the ASEAN Future of Work conference track, the focus will turn to the key HR trends that will impact jobs and workers in the region over the next five years, and how employers and workers can build a resilient mindset and culture to rapidly adapt to business disruptions.

Away from the ASEAN Future of Work conference, Susan Cheong, Managing Director & Head, Talent Acquisition Group, Group Human Resources, DBS Bank, will highlight why hiring can still take a more human approach despite the rise of artificial intelligence (AI). She will highlight the importance of staying ahead of the game by learning, experimenting, and adapting to emerging technologies.

Drew Fernandez, Global Chief People Officer, Coca-Cola Bottling Investments Group, The Coca-Cola Company, will emphasise why learning and development (L&D) should a key focus of employee experience (EX) strategies, by detailing the impact that effective L&D programmes have on employees and their experiences.

In a panel discussion moderated by Fleur Tonies, Aberkyn Senior Leader, McKinsey & Company, Vandna Dawar Ramchandani, Regional Head of Corporate Philanthropy Asia Pacific, Bloomberg; and Jacely Voon, Chief of People Officer, People, Culture & CSR, Fujifilm Business Innovation Singapore, will discuss the next evolution in employee health for 2022.

They will explain why corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the missing piece of holistic employee wellness, what the prevailing trends in employee health are, and how companies can further invest in their employees.

Matthew Ward, CEO and Founder of Workmate, and Bhavani Shankar Mishra, Regional Director, Logistics (APAC), foodpanda, will engage in a fireside chat to discuss the key challenges of hiring quality workers at scale, and propose strategies to hire and retain workers when managing a large shift-based workforce.

Stacey Harris, Chief Research Officer, Sapient Insights Group, will share key insights into emerging trends on HR and workplace planning technology based on the Sapient Insights Annual HR Systems Survey, which includes a global view of HR technology adoption, usage, and proven practices for achieving outcomes.

What are the challenges and opportunities facing employers in Asia-Pacific? To answer this question and more are Adrian Seligman, Chief Commercial Officer, Top Employers Institute, and Ammara Naeem, Head of Client Success, Top Employers Institute. In a joint presentation, they will give practical examples of how leading organisations worldwide are becoming bolder in their experiments to drive and support a more holistic approach to well-being.

Lisa Christy, Director, HR Service Delivery, Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting (APAC), will provide a glimpse across some countries within the APAC region on the latest labour and employment laws and rules to take into consideration, as well as policies that will be or could be implemented in 2022.