Reimagining HR strategies to create new paradigms of people and work

The HR Tech Festival Asia is set to return from 10-11 May 2023 at the Suntec Singapore Convention and & Exhibition Centre and promises to be an exciting event for all HR professionals and HR technology enthusiasts in the region. The two-day in-person event is centred around the theme of Engaged.Sustain.Thrive. Navigating the New Paradigms of People and Work and will host several thought-provoking conference sessions in a number of content hubs, including the Reimagine Theatre.

Kicking off the Reimagine Theatre on May 10 is an exclusive keynote speech titled Human Potential in an Age of AI by Diana Wu David, Work Futurist and CEO of Future Proof Lab. During her address, she will delve into the challenges posed by a technological age where individuals across various professions face the threat of losing their jobs to technologies like ChatGPT. Against this backdrop, she will explore the role that work plays today in an age of AI and the significance of human capabilities such as empathy, collaboration, and ingenuity in shaping the future of work.

In the next session, Goki Muthusamy, SVP, Head of People, Asia-Pacific, Visa, will highlight the critical role of talent mobility in any organisation’s approach to nurturing their employees in her presentation titled Why Talent Mobility Must Be at The Heart of Your 2023 People Strategies. She will focus on the importance of creating pathways for employees to sharpen, broaden, or deepen their knowledge and experience, which is fundamental to any successful talent mobility strategy.

Following this will be presentations by Scott Harrison, Chief People and Culture Officer, coto; and Philippa “Pip” Penfold, Managing Director, Integrating Intelligence. The latter will present a thought-provoking session on What Does an HR Job of the Future Look Like?, exploring how global megatrends and technological advancements are shaping the future of the HR function. Penfold will also examine the potential evolution of the HR professional’s skillset and highlight what the HR landscape may look like 10 years from now.

Harrison will share his experiences of building a successful remote team across 14 countries while fully embracing the remote work model in his presentation, Don’t Believe the Hype: Remote Work Is Still of Central Importance. He will highlight the advantages of remote work, such as hiring the best talent regardless of location, attracting them through flexible working arrangements, and reducing the overall costs of talent acquisition.

Day 1 of the Reimagine Theatre will close with a keynote presentation by R “Ray” Wang, Founder, Chairman, and Principal Analyst of Constellation Research. In his closing keynote titled The Great Refactoring, Wang will explore the disruptive nature of the current business environment. Attendees will also learn about the macro trends that are shaping the future of work and what steps can be taken to build resiliency, attract and retain talent, improve engagement, and plan for the next era in the future of work.

READ: The paradigm shift to human development in ASEAN

On Day 2 of the Reimagine Theatre, attendees will have the opportunity to hear from Rachele Focardi, Founder of XYZ@Work, as she presents on the topic of Next Generation Mobility – Building the Workforce of The Future. Focardi will emphasise the importance of understanding the needs and priorities of different generations to build an agile and adaptable workforce. She will also discuss the need for non-traditional career paths and how employers can facilitate the movement of employees into new roles without hindering their career advancement.

Following this, Amer Iqbal, Founder and CEO of 5 Ways to Innovate, will present Step into the Metaverse: Why the Impact on the Workplace Won’t Be Virtual (And What You Can Do About It). Iqbal, a former Head of Digital Transformation at Meta, will provide insights into why the metaverse is more than just hype and why organisations need to take notice today. He will also share Meta’s readiness model and assessment toolkit to help attendees plan pragmatic steps into the metaverse.

Dr CJ Meadows, Director – i2e, The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre at the S P Jain School of Global Management, will then present a session on Design Thinking to Engage, Retain and Attract Great Talent in the New Era of Work. This session will explore how design thinking (DT) can help organisations avoid high costs on employee churn and thrive in the new era of work.

Jean Lua, Chief HR Officer, FinAccel, will present on Organisational Design and Change Management – Preventing Change Fatigue and the Phenomenon of Quiet Quitting. In this informative session, attendees will gain insights into the causes of change fatigue and how to combat its adverse effects on employee resilience.

The Reimagine Theatre will conclude with a closing keynote delivered by Tim Sackett, President of HRU Technical Resources. His keynote, entitled The Future of Employees – If Robots Do All the Work, What Will Humans Do?, will explore the evolving role of human beings in the workplace in the face of increasing automation. Sackett will help attendees understand how AI will automate many of the functions that employees do today, and what this means for the future of work.

Join the HR Tech Festival Asia 2023’s Reimagine Theatre for insights and best practices on exploring new paradigms of work, navigating technology challenges, and moving the HR sphere forward. To register, click here.