Directors Forum

1-2 April 2025, International Convention Centre, Sydney

  • Registration opens
  • Interactive Networking Activity: Human Bingo

    Kick off the Summit with an engaging icebreaker to help you network. Connect with attendees through a fun game of bingo and expand your professional relationships. The best networker will win a $500 Westfield voucher!

    (located in the Main Conference, Parkside 1) 

    Mitch Trevillion
    Mitch Trevillion

    Director of Operations
    Beyond the Boardroom

  • OPENING KEYNOTE: Winning Gold – The Journey to Becoming an Olympic Champion

    Olympic champion Jessica Fox will share the key lessons that have fuelled her success, including how to develop a performance mindset, stay resilient in the face of setbacks, and build high-performing teams. Drawing on her dual gold medals from the 2024 Paris Olympics, Jess will provide actionable insights on maintaining focus, fostering collaboration, and driving sustained excellence. Her journey offers powerful takeaways for leaders looking to inspire peak performance and resilience within their organisations.

    (located in the Main Conference, Parkside 1)

    Jessica Fox OAM
    Jessica Fox OAM

    3 x Olympic Gold Medallist and 10 x Canoe Slalom World Champion

  • Opening remarks from the Chairperson

    (located in the Directors Forum, Parkside 2) 

    Sharon Gray
    Sharon Gray

    Head of People and Culture
    OzHarvest

  • Welcome remarks from the Event Partner, Origin Energy
    Chau Le
    Chau Le

    General Manager, eMobility
    Origin Energy

  • HR 2030 – emerging HR tech trends transforming the workplace

    Beyond chatbots and automation, how will AI change the game to enhance ways of working? How will data enhance the personalisation of the employee experience? Hear the top trends that will change the way we manage our teams and understand how to stay ahead in this dynamic landscape.

    Anitta Krishan
    Anitta Krishan

    Chief Culture Officer
    Hoogly AI; Former TikTok

  • Morning tea and refreshments break
  • LEGAL UPDATE: Achieving HR compliance amid new workplace laws and fair work commission powers in 2025

    Explore the key compliance challenges employers will face with the new workplace and industrial relations laws in 2025. Learn actionable steps to ensure your HR practices align with these changes and understand the expanded powers of the Fair Work Commission that will impact your compliance responsibilities.

     

    *Including a 15-minute ‘Ask the Expert’ Q&A where you can get answers to your burning legal questions from a leading employment lawyer. 

    Luis Izzo
    Luis Izzo

    Managing Director
    Australian Business Lawyers & Advisors

  • HR Leaders Unplugged: Interactive Breakout Discussions

    Connect with fellow HR Directors in a small, interactive group setting and gain valuable insights into how they’re addressing current challenges and achieving success.

     

    Topic 1: Leadership development – How can we enable leaders to develop their skill sets to drive engagement, lead with agility and thrive in the changing world of work?

     

    * All four Interactive Breakout Sessions will run concurrently over the two days. The topics to be covered during each discussion will be Leadership Development; Employment Law; HR Strategy & Business Growth and Future-Proofing HR Capabilities.

     

    Leadership development topic moderators:

    James McIlvena
    James McIlvena

    Managing Director ANZ + SG
    LHH

    Vanessa Porter
    Vanessa Porter

    Executive Facilitator
    LHH

  • Networking lunch
  • PANEL: Building the business case for employee benefits that drive impact

    Learn how to create a compelling business case for employee benefits that support both employee wellbeing and business sustainability. This session will provide practical insights on integrating sustainability goals into benefits programs, measuring ROI, and effectively communicating the impact on employee satisfaction and retention. Gain the knowledge to enhance your benefits strategy, drive long-term success, and improve organisational outcomes.

    Moderator
    Chau Le
    Chau Le

    General Manager, eMobility
    Origin Energy

    Panellists
    Steve Cottrell
    Steve Cottrell

    Head of People Risk, Superannuation and Benefits
    Commonwealth Bank

    Caroline Henshaw
    Caroline Henshaw

    Chief People Officer
    Mantel Group

  • HR Leaders Unplugged: Interactive Breakout Discussions

    Connect with fellow HR Directors in a small, interactive group setting and gain valuable insights into how they’re addressing current challenges and achieving success.

     

    Topic 2: Employment law – How will recent updates affect employer obligations when it comes to mitigating risk and remaining compliant?

     

    * All four Interactive Breakout Sessions will run concurrently over the two days. The topics to be covered during each discussion will be Leadership Development; Employment Law; HR Strategy & Business Growth and Future-Proofing HR Capabilities.

     

    Employment Law topic moderators:

    Luis Izzo
    Luis Izzo

    Managing Director
    Australian Business Lawyers & Advisors

    Julian Arndt
    Julian Arndt

    Director
    Australian Business Lawyers & Advisors

  • Afternoon tea and refreshments break
  • PANEL: Deconstructing strategic workforce planning – how to achieve results

    How can your company gear up for future workforce needs? From identifying emerging skills to enhancing internal capabilities, explore innovative strategies for sustainable workforce planning that meets long-term talent demands.

    Moderator
    Natalie Macinnis
    Natalie Macinnis

    Head of Human Resources
    Travelex

    Panellists
    Bo Manamperi
    Bo Manamperi

    VP People Enablement ANZ
    SUEZ

    Rebecca Roberts
    Rebecca Roberts

    Chief People and Culture Officer
    St. Vincent’s Health

    Michael Sanese
    Michael Sanese

    Director – HR Performance, Workforce Planning and Insights
    The University of Sydney

  • CASE STUDY: Leadership development rewired – navigating tomorrow’s workplace

    How can companies enable employees to develop their skill sets and experience to create a pipeline of future leaders? In this session, a top company will discuss the steps they are taking to equip its leaders with the capability and skills to adapt to the changing world of work.   

    Erika Takahashi
    Erika Takahashi

    People & Culture Regional Director
    The Iconic

  • Chairperson closing remarks
  • Networking drinks (located in the Gallery – Level 2)
  • Day one ends
  • Registration opens
  • Opening remarks from the Chairperson
    Sharon Gray
    Sharon Gray

    Head of People and Culture
    OzHarvest

  • CASE STUDY: Becoming an employer of choice – embracing new recruitment strategies

    In this session, hear how Hilton transformed the way they attract and recruit employees through progressive recruitment channels and tapping into new media, igniting a national conversation on the future of recruitment and successfully engaging their target demographic 

    Mary Hogg
    Mary Hogg

    Senior Director of Human Resources, Australasia
    Hilton

  • HR Leaders Unplugged: Interactive Breakout Discussions

    Connect with fellow HR Directors in a small, interactive group setting and gain valuable insights into how they’re addressing current challenges and achieving success.

     

    Topic 3: HR Leaders as Value Creators; Linking Strategy to Execution – Learn how HR can drive business growth by aligning initiatives with company goals, connecting employee performance to priorities, and using people analytics to improve results.

     

    * All four Interactive Breakout Sessions will run concurrently over the two days. The topics to be covered during each discussion will be Leadership Development; Employment Law; HR Strategy & Business Growth and Future-Proofing HR Capabilities.

     

    HR Strategy & Business Growth topic moderators:

    Holly Barnes
    Holly Barnes

    Chief People Officer
    Humanforce

    Megan Fox
    Megan Fox

    People & Culture Partner
    Humanforce

  • Morning tea and refreshments break
  • PANEL: Developing the next-gen HR business partner

    From managing employee engagement, culture to experience, there can be a lack of clarity in HR roles. How can HR business partners go beyond operational tasks and focus on strategic initiatives, such as workforce planning? In this session, hear how organisations are developing their HR teams to operate on a strategic-level through shifting responsibilities in HR and embracing the role as a change catalyst in the boardroom.

    Moderator
    Pritho Saxena
    Pritho Saxena

    Director HR – China, Australia & South East Asia
    Amazon

    Panelists
    Laura Durkan
    Laura Durkan

    Chief People and Culture Officer
    Harris Farm Markets

    Ida Pulic
    Ida Pulic

    VP, Human Resources, Toll Global Forwarding ANZ
    Toll Group

    Gaya Srikumar
    Gaya Srikumar

    Senior Director People Experience, EM & Developed Asia
    Pfizer

    Michael Trafford
    Michael Trafford

    Head of People & Culture
    Nine

  • HR Leaders Unplugged: Interactive Breakout Discussions

    Connect with fellow HR Directors in a small, interactive group setting and gain valuable insights into how they’re addressing current challenges and achieving success.

     

    Topic 4: Fast tracking HR capability in a VUCA world. What are the essential capabilities that future HR leaders need for a world that is increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous?

     

    * All four Interactive Breakout Sessions will run concurrently over the two days. The topics to be covered during each discussion will be Leadership Development; Employment Law; HR Strategy & Business Growth and Future-Proofing HR Capabilities.

     

    Future-Proofing HR Capabilities moderators:

    Kate Alexander
    Kate Alexander

    Lead Coach and Leadership Specialist
    PLUS UTS Business Futures, UTS Business School

    Natalia Nikolova
    Natalia Nikolova

    Director
    PLUS UTS Business Futures, UTS Business School

    Tracey Garavan
    Tracey Garavan

    Director
    Unyoke Executive Consulting

  • Networking lunch
  • Creating a positive employee experience (EX) to impact the customer experience (CX)

    Employee engagement can have a profound impact on customer satisfaction. How can companies align HR to business performance through developing a positive employee experience? How can we measure EX against CX? What can data tell us about the EX/CX relationship?

    Kerrie Challenor
    Kerrie Challenor

    Chief People and Service Officer
    NTI

  • Chairperson closing remarks
    Sharon Gray
    Sharon Gray

    Head of People and Culture
    OzHarvest

  • CLOSING KEYNOTE: Adventure thinking – navigating the unknown

    What does it take to embark on a 2200km unsupported kayak journey across the open ocean? What kind of mindset is needed to survive skiing for three months across Antarctica, enduring blizzards, navigating crevasses and coping with severe malnourishment? And why on earth would someone willingly commit to a 102-day walk across the Australian Outback with a one-year-old?

    In this inspirational keynote presentation, Justin ‘Jonesy’ Jones unpacks the lessons he’s learnt from the past 20 years of adventure and the ‘expedition mindset’ that allows the most “normal of us” to focus, adapt, overcome and achieve under extreme-stress situations.

     

    (located in the Main Conference, Parkside 1) 

     

    Justin ‘Jonesy’ Jones
    Justin ‘Jonesy’ Jones

    Australia’s pre-eminent Explorer,
    keynote speaker & adventure thinker

  • Prize draw announcements (Happening on the Workshop & Innovation Hub Stage, in the Gallery)

    Expo Passport Grand Prize  

    Collect all exhibitors’ stamps on the Expo Passport for the chance to win a $5,000 cash prize! 

     

    Workshops All Star Grand Prize  

    Attend all workshops for the chance to win a $5,000 cash prize! 

     

    Sponsor Prize Draws
    Visit the exhibitors to join prize giveaways! 

  • Event concludes