AHRI WA
Conference 2026
Program | Speakers
| Optus Stadium, Perth |
#AHRI26WA
HR Leading Through Change: Focus. Foundation. Fusion.
Program at a glance
The AHRI WA Conference 2026 explores how HR leaders can confidently respond to rapid change while strengthening the fundamentals that enable sustainable performance.
Registrations close on Monday 11 May
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
9:05 AM
9:05 AM – 10:00 AM (55 min)
Session 1 - The C-Suite agenda: Driving strategy, performance and resilience
Read more
This high-impact panel brings together four senior executives to reveal what’s genuinely at the top of their agenda – from commercial performance and sustainability to governance, compliance and risk – and how people inevitably sit at the centre of it all.
Rather than a purely “people” discussion, this session explores how workforce decisions intersect with profitability, governance, operational resilience, and long-term sustainability – offering HR leaders a rare, unfiltered view into how the C-suite thinks.
10:00 AM
10:00 AM – 10:30 AM (30 min)
Morning tea, expo and networking
10:30 AM
10:30 AM – 11:15 AM (45 min)
Session 2 - Adaptive cultures: Bridging the feedback gap to thrive during rapid change
Read more
In a volatile market, the ability to respond to change is a competitive advantage. This session introduces Culture Amp’s Performance Culture Quadrant, a diagnostic framework that maps engagement against performance confidence to help you navigate shifting business needs.
Leveraging local benchmark trends, you’ll also learn how to take effective action by moving beyond rigid processes and building a resilient workforce capable of thriving through rapid transformation.
11:15 AM
11:15 AM – 12:00 AM (45 min)
Session 3 - Foundations for success in 2026: Governance, compliance, trust and keystone skills
Read more
An innovative and engaging session led by a lawyer-turned-people-nerd, delivering essential “aha” moments for HR professionals that will unlock the keys to organisational success in 2026 and beyond.
Governance is no longer just about avoiding fines, it’s about earning confidence. This session focuses on three critical foundations:
- Wage Trust and Pay Governance
- Enabling Compliance
- Legislative Readiness.
Equip your organisation with the strategies, insights, and practical tools to foster trust, strengthen governance, and confidently navigate the challenges and opportunities of 2026 and beyond.
12:00 PM
12:00 PM – 12:50 PM (50 min)
Lunch, expo and networking
12:50 PM
12:50 PM – 1:35 PM (45 min)
Session 4 - Navigating complexity: The evolving role of HR practitioners in a shifting governance landscape
Read more
Organisations are confronting unprecedented complexity that is making traditional governance models obsolete, and HR now sits squarely at the centre of the storm. In BANI conditions – where ethical risk, cultural fragility, regulatory pressure, and AI-driven disruption collide – HR cannot rely on legacy models or the safety of comfort‑zone practices.
This presentation challenges HR practitioners to step boldly into their governance power: shaping culture, strengthening ethical leadership, and building organisational resilience. The future belongs to HR professionals who can influence with courage, navigate ambiguity, and lead the systems that determine whether organisations merely cope or truly thrive.
1:35 PM
1:35 PM – 2:15 PM (40 min)
Session 5 - Five voices. Five insights. Five ideas to inspire.
Read more
This fast-paced, high-impact session features five expert presenters, each delivering a powerful five-minute insight on a topical issue shaping modern HR practice.
From emerging workforce trends to regulatory shifts, leadership challenges and innovative people strategies, each speaker brings a sharp, focused perspective designed to spark new thinking.
You’ll leave with fresh ideas, practical takeaways, and a broader perspective on the issues shaping your work – gaining clarity, confidence, and inspiration to navigate today’s HR challenges more effectively.
2:15 PM
2:15 PM – 3:00 PM (45 min)
Session 6 - How can we design AI-ready work that protects people, performance, and culture?
Read more
Most organisations are buying AI tools, but few are redesigning work around them.
This session is for HR leaders who want a practical path to AI-ready work that protects humans, lifts performance, and strengthens culture. We’ll move beyond hype to explore what human-AI collaboration really looks like, where AI adds genuine value, and how to reshape roles, workflows and HR operating models accordingly. We’ll also address risks such as skills atrophy and psychosocial pressure, reframing them as design constraints for healthier work.
Participants will leave with a clear model for shifting HR from managing headcount to intentionally designing AI-enabled work.
3:00 PM
3:00 PM – 3:30 PM (30 min)
Afternoon tea, expo, and networking
3:30 PM
Closing keynote - Redefining HR’s role: The future of HR doesn’t need a seat at the table
Read more
HR has spent decades fighting for a seat at the table. But what if the future isn’t about having a seat, it’s about being in every seat?
This session provides an overview on AI, leadership, and workforce readiness, reframing what comes next for the profession. By seeing people as humans first, employees second, HR moves from managing resources to enabling leaders to embed human-centred thinking in everything they do.
It’s not about overseeing the experience people bring to work, but shaping the experience they have and the sense of belonging they feel.
4:15 PM – 4:25 PM (10 min)
Closing comments
Read more
Networking function
Read more
Wrap up the day with a relaxed networking drink – share highlights from the conference, enjoy great conversation, and make meaningful connections with peers and changemakers shaping the future of HR.
Meet the speakers
Dr Glenn Murray
Senior Executive
Digital, Cybersecurity and Innovation
Read bio
Dr Glenn Murray is a board member and senior digital executive with over twenty years’ experience leading complex, high-risk programs across defence, mining, public sector and technology sectors. With a PhD in Cybersecurity and extensive C-suite experience, he advises boards and executive teams on strategy, governance, performance and resilience in digitally disrupted environments.
Billy Meston
Partner
PwC
Read bio
Billy Meston is a Partner at PwC specialising in Advisory and Audit. He works with business owners, Boards, CEOs and finance leaders to strengthen performance, governance and decision making. Drawing on deep audit experience, Billy helps organisations navigate financial transformation, risk and regulatory complexity, enabling finance teams to drive growth, resilience and long term value.
Nicole Copeland
Head of HSSE – APAC
Puma Energy
Read bio
Nicole Copeland is Head of HSSE for Puma Energy across Asia-Pacific, where she partners with executive and senior leaders to strengthen organisational resilience, governance, and performance. She focuses on building leadership capability, fostering accountable cultures, and aligning workforce engagement with strategic priorities to enable safe, reliable, and sustainable operations in complex, high-risk environments.
Dr Joanne Gladding
Senior People Scientist
Culture Amp
Read bio
Dr Joanne Gladding is a Senior People Scientist at Culture Amp, partnering with enterprise customers across APAC to optimise employee experience strategies. She brings deep expertise in behavioural psychology, behaviour change, and data storytelling, and holds a PhD in Behavioural Psychology from University of New South Wales. Joanne is passionate about making work an enriching and safe place for everyone.
Josephine Hart MAHRI
Workplace Relations Lawyer
IR Specialist
Read bio
Josephine Hart is a Workplace Relations Lawyer and self-confessed people-nerd, leading Industrial Relations and Compliance at Wesfarmers Chemicals, Energy and Fertilisers. With over a decade of in-house experience, she specialises in strategy, workforce mobilisation, growth and compliance. A strategic thinker and commercially savvy negotiator, Josephine is passionate about the future of work, blending legal expertise with leadership to build strong cultures and drive organisational performance.
Dee Roche
MBA Teaching Fellow
University of Western Australia
Business School
Read bio
Aden Date
Principal
Aden Date
Read bio
Aden Date is a teamwork trainer who helps technical and scientific teams build cross-functional collaboration skills. He draws on cognitive science and improvised theatre to create play-based experiential learning that helps teams take bigger risks. He also runs a theatre comedy company in Perth, Only the Human, and (freshly!) teaches in the MBA program at UWA.
Tania Waters
Founder and Workplace Mediator
Taite
Read bio
Tania Waters is a Perth-based workplace mediator and founder of Taite. She works with leaders and HR teams across corporate and government sectors to resolve complex conflict and rebuild professional relationships. Known for her calm, pragmatic approach, Tania helps organisations move beyond blame and use conflict as a catalyst for stronger leadership and healthier workplaces.
Peter James MAHRI
Managing Director
Career Life Transitions
Read bio
Peter James is a Certified Master Coach and leadership consultant with more than 25 years’ experience guiding executives, teams and organisations through change. He specialises in career transition, leadership development and workforce strategy, with particular insight into the opportunities and challenges of an ageing workforce. Peter works across private, public and not-for-profit sectors to build capable, future-ready leaders.
Michael Watts
Business Advisor, Speaker and MC
Managing Director of ToBe Advisory
Read bio
Michael Watts is a business consultant, professional speaker, and stand-up comedian. He works with business owners to build businesses better for people, planet and profit, guiding them on business growth, efficiency and sustainability. When not doing that, he loves performing comedy to fill people with the joy of laughter; because if we can’t have fun along the way, what’s the point?
Elena Lennox
CEO of DevelopMental Safety & Wellbeing
Founder of Courageous Women
Read bio
Elena Lennox is CEO of DevelopMental Safety & Wellbeing and Founder of Courageous Women. She works with boards and executive leaders to strengthen psychosocial safety, strategic resilience and sustainable performance. Her research explores how organisational systems can unintentionally cause harm — and how evidence-informed design can create mentally healthy, high-performing workplaces.
Kat Thompson CPHR
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Zest
Read bio
Alex Taylor
Co-Founder and Chief Impact Officer
Zest
Read bio
Dave Clare
Chief Evolution Officer and Founder
Circle Leadership Global
Read bio
Christine Thompson CAHRI
Experienced Chief People Officer
WA Department of Health
Read bio
Christine Thompson is an experienced public sector leader, skilled in workforce development and leadership, change and strategic human resource management, with a commitment to improving public service value. Currently at the WA Department of Health, Chris combines her experience and personal interests in diversity, mental wellbeing and women’s health across a workforce of almost 70,000 people.