If you’re on the lookout for ways to hone your HR skills, AHRI State Conferences are a must for professional development. Here’s a rundown of what you can look forward to.

AHRI State Conferences will be held in Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne this October, and the calibre of speakers is as high as ever. In addition to state-specific speakers, James Adonis and Dr Jason Fox will present at each of the conferences.

As one of Australia’s most well-known employee engagement and team leadership educators, Adonis’ status as a thought leader is firmly cemented. He will be closing each conference with leadership and professional development lessons from some of history’s greatest women leaders – Cleopatra to Joan of Arc, Indira Gandhi to Margaret Thatcher.

And Dr Jason Fox is headed back onstage for this year’s events. Dr Fox is an award-winning keynote speaker whose irreverent style is matched by deep insights into the nuances of HR, motivation and workplace culture. He will be opening each conference with an exclusive look at what organisations must do if they want to survive into the future.

That’s not all, though. Here are just some of the highlights you can look forward to in each featured state.

Sydney, NSW – 18 October 2016

• The Benefits of a Strongly Aligned HR/CEO Partnership: AHRI Award-winner Jan Pacas, managing director of Flare HR, makes the case for why you need a strong HRD and CEO relationship.
• The Conversation – Insights from HR Leaders: David Arkell, HR leader, GE AU/NZ/PNG, and Rhonda Brighton-Hall (FCPHR), director, AHRI, put their heads together to foster a conversation about the biggest issues facing organisations and how HR meets those challenges.
• Leading Teams in Changing Times: The generational balance in today’s workplaces is starting to tip, and businesses must adjust. Eliane Miles, social researcher, trends analyst and director of research at McCrindle, digs into how HR can meet the needs of different demographics and effectively manage a multi-generational workplace.

Canberra, ACT – 19 October 2016

• Megatrends for the Australian Labour Market: Although our current business environment is characterised by rapid growth, this pace of change is the slowest it will ever be. Dr Alexandra Bratanova, research scientist with the Data61 Insight Team at CSIRO, reveals the six megatrends you need to know about and how to prepare for them.
• Resilience and Mental Health in the Workplace: With change comes uncertainty, and the power to stay mentally strong has never been more important. Hear case studies and expert advice on how to identify perseverance and mental wellbeing from career and executive coach Katrina Howard, Colonel Nicole Sadler from the Department of Defence and Sue Read, psychologist and director, Life Unlimited.

Melbourne, VIC – 21 October 2016

• Nursery, Beach or Cafe? Challenges and Opportunities for Flexible Work: Advances in technology mean employees can work from anywhere. The questions are how do businesses manage a dispersed workforce? And what strategies do they need to attract and retain the best talent? Catherine Dunlop, partner – employment, safety and people at Maddocks, provides a guide on how workplaces can get the mix right.
• People Power – How Do You Create Experiences People Love in Your Organisation?: Can a ‘tell it like it is’ policy be a starting point for creating an organisation that listens and is engaged? James Law seems to think so. As the HR director for Envato, Law will discuss the HR policy changes that helped them improve their employee experience for the better.
• Workforce Planning and the Future of Work: With the ‘future of work’ on the tip of every practitioner’s tongue, there’s no better time to learn what it means for workforce planning. Experts Alex Hagan from Kienco and Sylvia Vorhauser-Smith from PageUp People tell you what you need to do in the present to have a chance of future success.

To see more event details and to register, visit the AHRI State Conferences home page here.