AHRI NSW
Conference 2026
Program | Speakers
| Dockside, Sydney |
#AHRI26NSW
HR+: Where technology scales and humans elevate
Program at a glance
The AHRI NSW Conference 2026 will explore how HR leaders can thrive in the fast-evolving workplace while keeping human skills and value at the heart of their organisational strategy.
8:15 AM
8:15 AM – 8:45 AM (30 min)
Arrival tea and coffee
8:45 AM
8:45 AM – 9:05 AM (20 min)
Opening comments
DLPA Principal Partner opening address
AHRI Update
9:05 AM
9:05 AM – 9:55 AM (50min)
Opening keynote - Rise of the humans: The future of work
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Every conversation about the future of work starts with AI. But here’s what most of those conversations miss – the more intelligent our machines become, the more valuable our humanity becomes.
Drawing on original research from ThinkerTank’s Future of Work Outlook, this keynote cuts through the noise to reveal the forces actually reshaping work right now – from generational fault lines and the burnout paradox to the collapse of traditional career pathways and the quiet redrawing of the employment contract.
Fast-paced and evidence-based, and genuinely surprising, this keynote helps HR leaders cut through the noise to focus on what matters most.
09:55 AM
9:55 AM – 10:25 AM (30min)
Session 2 - The current state of the economy for HR practitioners
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2026 has already been a unique year across global and local settings, with geopolitical tensions, conflicts and divides – holding wide-reaching economic ramifications. We are thrilled to have Diana Mousina join us to share up to the moment economic insights relevant at the time of our conference to inform HR practitioners of implications to their organisations.
10:25 AM – 10:40 AM (15min)
Facilitated networking - Conversation cards
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AHRI members consistently tell us that being part of a community is one of the most valued aspects of membership. This activity is designed to help you move beyond small talk and connect with other HR professionals in a purposeful way. Using guided prompts, you’ll engage in focused conversations that go beyond introductions.
Facilitated by Tegan Davies from Be Well Co, this short session sets the foundation for meaningful connections across the Conference.
10:40 AM
Morning tea, expo and networking
Session 3 - People first, then the prompt: HR's strategic role in the age of AI
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AI adoption is accelerating, and needs HR’s voice, or organisations risk prioritising efficiency at the expense of meaningful, sustainable work.
This session positions HR as essential strategists in shaping how AI is implemented to enhance, not erode, human capability. It explores how to identify where automation adds value, where it causes harm – such as burnout and cognitive overload – and what must be protected to preserve connection and collaboration. Attendees will leave with practical questions and frameworks to confidently lead conversations about AI through a people, wellbeing, and DEI lens.
Session 4 - Contemporary takes to impact employee experience
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This session will explore contemporary approaches to work in agile HR teams, focusing on strategies for doing more with less and adopting innovative methods to maximize positive impact on your people.
Hear from Renee Whiteside, Senior Manager, People & Culture at City of Wollongong and 2025 winner of AHRI’s Organisational Employee Experience Award, and Amanda Kerslake, Manager – People & Culture at Orange City Council, as they share practical insights and real-world examples from their councils.
Lunch, expo and networking
Session 5 - Panel - The algorithm in the room: AI, legal risk and the human reckoning
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AI is reshaping Australian workplaces faster than our laws can keep up. Employees are using it to lodge unfair dismissal and other claims; employers are using it to drive decisions.
This session will be joined by three senior employment lawyers – pulling no punches on the legal risks, the mitigations, and the cautionary tales from the coalface. We’ll ask the uncomfortable question: in the race to implement AI, have we forgotten the humans it was supposed to help?
Session 6 - Future fit by design: How skills intelligence is changing workforce decisions
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At NAB, workforce transformation is a deliberate shift to an enterprise‑wide way of designing and delivering work. In this session, Meg O’Sullivan shares how NAB is moving beyond traditional job‑based models to a skills‑based approach to redesigning work in an AI era. Rather than focusing on headcount, NAB is clarifying what work needs to be done, how it should be delivered, and where skills, technology and AI can drive productivity and resilience. This practical session shows how skills intelligence is being used today to connect work design, talent strategy and workforce planning—and support real workforce decisions as work continues to change.
Afternoon tea, expo and networking
Closing keynote - Leading through ambiguity: What neuroscience teaches us about leading when certainty is not an option
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This session reframes trust as a neurobiological condition shaped by everyday leadership signals: transparency, fair process, recognition, and consistent follow-through. It also shows how uncertainty raises the neurological cost of thinking, and why team performance depends on relational safety and synchrony when formal certainty disappears.
Closing comments
Networking function
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As we close out the day, continue the conversations over networking drinks. Building on the connections made earlier, this is an opportunity to reconnect, deepen discussions and strengthen relationships across the AHRI community. Share your key takeaways, exchange ideas with peers and changemakers shaping the future of HR.
Because while technology may scale our impact, it’s human connection that sustains it.
Meet the speakers
Sarah McCann-Bartlett MAHRI
CEO
Australian HR Institute
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Sarah McCann-Bartlett commenced at AHRI as its Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director in 2020. She has global experience in membership and trade bodies and has held senior roles across a variety of sectors in Australia, the UK and the USA.
Previously, Sarah held the roles of Director General of the British Constructional Steelwork Association, Deputy Commissioner of the Victorian Building and Plumbing Commissions, and President and Group Manager, Americas at the Woolmark Company.
Sarah holds Commerce and Arts degrees from the University of Melbourne, an MBA from Monash University, and postgraduate qualifications in marketing. She is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Athena Chintis CPHR
NSW State President
Australian HR Institute
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Athena Chintis is a Sydney-based Human Resources leader with 20 years of experience across fast-paced industries and businesses of all sizes — from startups and high growth to acquisition and turnaround.
She is currently Group Head of People & Culture at Cliftons Venues, which operates across four countries with a highly flexible workforce. Athena has worked with iconic brands including the NRL, Kellogg’s, Citigroup, and the Property Council of Australia, gaining deep expertise across the full HR spectrum. Known for her collaborative style and innovative approach, she excels at helping businesses align people with purpose, vision, and values.
Her passion for advocacy was sparked during her time at the Property Council, where she was exposed to leading member engagement strategies. This inspired her to become a strong advocate for the HR profession. Athena has served on the AHRI New South Wales State Council since 2015 and became State President in 2020. A voice for progressive change, she brings a unique perspective to her volunteer work, focused on championing the profession and its members.
Dr Ben Hamer FCPHR
Founder and Director
Thinker Tank
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Dr Ben Hamer is an accredited and globally awarded futurist, ranked in the Top 20 Global Futurists and the #1 thought leader for the Future of Work in the Asia-Pacific.
Formerly Head of Future of Work at PwC Australia, he has led global research and delivered critical projects with the World Economic Forum, and was a Visiting Scholar at Yale University.
As Founder of ThinkerTank, Ben helps organisations think big, see around corners and stay ahead of the game.
Diana Mousina
Deputy Chief Economist
AMP
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Diana Mousina joined AMP in 2016 within the AMP Investments team. Diana’s responsibilities include providing global economic and macro investment analysis to retail, institutional and internal customers through her regular reports and presentations.
Diana is a believer that economics should and can be understood by everyone, because it improves your financial literacy. And being more financially literate helps you to build your wealth. Diana is helping to build Australian financial literacy through her Econosights videos alongside her team, which explain economic concepts in short, digestible forms that are humorous and easy to understand.
Dr John Chan
Managing Director
Infinite Potential
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Dr John Chan is the Managing Director of Infinite Potential, a think tank advancing practical, evidence-based solutions for healthier, high-performing, sustainable workplaces.
A globally experienced Industrial/Organisational psychologist, John has spent over two decades shaping people strategies across 4 continents. A recognised thought leader in burnout and workplace sustainability, John is a regular speaker at national and international conferences.
Renee Whiteside FCPHR
Senior Manager People & Culture
Wollongong City Council
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Renee Whiteside is an accomplished People & Culture leader, formerly with Mercer Wollongong and now at Wollongong City Council. She has held senior HR roles across the finance, manufacturing, and call centre sectors internationally.
Renee serves as a Non-Executive Director for WEA Illawarra and is the Illawarra Convenor for the Australian Human Resources Institute, where she has been awarded Fellowship. She also lectures in MBA programs at the University of Wollongong and actively supports community initiatives.
Amanda Kerslake CAHRI
Manager People & Culture
Orange City Council
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Amanda Kerslake is Manager People and Culture at Orange City Council, where she leads HR, payroll and WHS. With over 18 years’ experience across local government and the private sector, she specialises in building strong organisations through the way people are hired, supported and valued.
Amanda’s role spans the full employee lifecycle, including workforce planning, recruitment, organisational design, culture and systems. She is particularly focused on practical, people-centred approaches that improve capability, performance and employee experience.
Erin Lynch
Partner
Gadens
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Erin Lynch is a Partner and CoGroup Leader in Gadens’ Workplace Advisory and Disputes Group, with more than 17 years’ experience advising on complex and strategically significant employment and workplace relations matters.
Erin advises across the full spectrum of workplace law, including workforce strategy, compliance, sensitive disputes and largescale change management.
Nicola McMahon
Special Counsel
McCullough Robertson
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Nicola McMahon is a Special Counsel at McCullough Robertson Lawyers in Sydney, specialising in employment and industrial relations law. With over 12 years’ experience across Australia and the UK, she advises both public and private sector clients on workplace matters, including disputes, compliance, restructuring, and litigation.
Known for her strategic and commercially focused approach, Nicola delivers practical, tailored advice to help clients manage risk and achieve effective workplace outcomes.
Ben Motro
Partner
Piper Alderman
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Ben Motro is a highly experienced employment and industrial relations lawyer who advises national and international employers across a broad range of workplace law issues.
Ben works across the IT, retail, manufacturing, transport & logistics, food & beverage, and pharmaceutical sectors, providing commercially focused advice on all aspects of employment law, industrial relations, workplace health & safety and complex employee management matters.
Desleigh White CPHR
Founder
People Matter Coaching and HR
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Desleigh is an HR Consultant, coach and workshop facilitator with over 20 years experience. She has worked in multinationals, Australian corporations, for purpose and now runs her own business People Matter Coaching and HR. Desleigh volunteers as an AHRI NSW State Councillor and CoConvenor of the Employment Relations, Industrial Relations and Workplace Health and Safety Network Group.
Meghan O’Sullivan
Head of Workforce of the Future
NAB
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Meghan O’Sullivan is Head of Workforce of the Future at NAB, leading enterprise‑wide skills transformation and strategic workforce planning. She focuses on practical, skills‑based approaches that help organisations understand how work is changing and build future‑fit workforces, bringing a pragmatic, human‑centred lens to large‑scale transformation grounded in real business outcomes.
Ross Leonardi CPHR
HR Director, Tax & Legal
Deloitte Australia
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Ross Leonardi is HR Director, Tax and Legal at Deloitte Australia. He partners with leaders to build bold people strategies, unlock talent, strengthen culture and create the conditions for people and business to thrive.
Dr David Paul
Director
Advisor to the Wise, In Search of Excellence
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Dr David Paul brings 30 years at the intersection of neuroscience, leadership, and organisational change. A trusted advisor to CEOs and governments, he has taught over 27,000 leaders globally. His keynotes give HR leaders practical tools to lead through ambiguity, strengthen trust, and sustain performance in complex, high-pressure environments.
Tegan Davies
Head of Programs
Be Well Co
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Tegan Davies is a wellbeing designer, facilitator and coach who helps organisations create cultures where people can thrive. Drawing on positive psychology and years of experience across corporate, government and purpose-led clients, she brings a practical, human-centred approach to wellbeing that resonates strongly with HR leaders focused on engagement, performance and sustainable people outcomes.
