Main Conference
Day one
2 April 2008
9.00 - 5.00
9.00 Introduction from the Chair and opening remarks
Speaker: Mark Orson, business director, The Right Group
9.05 Gold sponsor opening address
Speaker: Julie Carran, general manager, 2discover
9.10 Strategies for success in business and life
PLENARY KEYNOTE SESSION
Speaker: Karen Matthews, CEO, Ella Bache
Karen Matthews was recently awarded the PWC National Franchise Woman of the Year 2007. She was also awarded the Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Yr 2004 and PWC NSW Franchise Woman of the Yr 2005.
Karen is the proud mother of 2 children and heads up skincare company Ella Baché as CEO. Karen has successfully developed Ella Baché into a $20m company with revenue growth of 54% over the last 3 years. In 2007 Ella Baché was listed by BRW as the 16th fastest growing franchise in Australia.
Karen's achievements include launching Australia's first skincare franchise model in 2002, creating a profitable College of Beauty Therapy to underpin the franchise network with staff and future franchisees, developing Ella Baché as a benchmark organisation with a unique culture based on intuitive leadership, strong values and a commitment to ongoing evolution and innovation across the entire business.
In this session, Karen will share the secrets of achieving success in business and life.
10.00 Morning break
10.30 Innovative strategies to retain staff - CASE STUDY
Speaker: Robert Marriott, general manager, human resources (corporate), St.George Bank
- Hear about St George's successful retention strategy
- Hear proven and pioneering ways to use employee benefits to attract, retain and motivate high performers
- Learn how an effective employer value proposition can help you retain staff
11.20 Industrial relations update
Speaker: Tim Capelin, managing partner, Australian Business Lawyers
- What will change under the new workplace law regime and when will the changes be implemented?
- Determine your rights and responsibilities as an employer
- Identify risks and opportunities for your business under the new regime
12.20 Networking lunch brought to you by 2Discover
1.30 Gold sponsor opening address
Speaker: Lorraine Jennings, manager, consulting services, SIRVA Relocation
1.35 Wellness programs as a business strategy - CASE STUDY
Speaker: Adrian Dolling, general manager - HR, BMW Group Australia
- Learn about BMW's successful 'wellness' initiatives
- Identify why health at work should be a priority in every organisation and encourage lifestyle changes that can reduce employee health risks
- Hear about BMW's HR strategy to determine and respond to employee aspirations via its C.A.R.E. program
2.15 Aligning employees with brand values - CASE STUDIES - Hanson and Cement Australia
Speaker: Mark Orson, business director, The Right Group
- The link between brand and talent
- Attract and retain the best talent through the 'gravity effect' of a powerful brand
- An inside out approach to brand strategy
- Motivating employees to live and breathe brand
- Leadership - turning talk into action
3.00 Afternoon break
3.20 How to use corporate social responsibility (CSR) to attract and retain staff - PANEL DISCUSSION
Chair: Dexter Dunphy, distinguished Professor and head of the Corporate Sustainability Research Unit, UTS
Panel members include:
- Alison Ewings, advisor, corporate responsibility & sustainability, Westpac
- Sally Loane, director of media & public affairs, Coca-Cola Amatil
- Adrian Ditcher, general manager corporate social responsibility and quality, TNT Australia (winner of the 2007 HR Award for Corporate Citizenship)
- How to integrate CSR policies with your HR strategies
- Identify whether CSR will be a powerful talent attraction and retention tool for you
- Understand how CSR contributes to financial performance
4.15 Flip the switch - Learning to go slow and boosting your productivity
INTERACTIVE KEYNOTE SESSION
Speaker: Andrew May, performance expert, Switched on
- Proven strategies used by the world's leading athletes and coaches to inspire optimal performance
- The four different performance zones: chill, thrill, spill and kill
- The seven switches of performance: how to be on when you have to and off when you can
- How to avoid 'road runner syndrome' and set yourself up for a high performance day - every day
- The latest research on positive psychology and productivity
5.00 Cocktail function and speed networking brought to you by The Right Group
Day two
3 April 2008
9.00 - 4.00
9.00 Opening remarks from the Chair
Speaker: Mark Orson, business director, The Right Group
9.05 Keynote address
Speaker: Mark Orson, business director, The Right Group
9.10 Pre-employment screening and detecting deception KEYNOTE SESSION
Speaker: Steve Van Aperen, 'the human lie detector', expert in the field of interviewing and detecting deception
Seven parts of the brain's cortex are stimulated to lie, four to tell the truth. Your body doesn't lie. What are you really saying?
Steve van Aperen is known throughout Australia as an expert in the field of interviewing and detecting deception. Steve has received extensive training from the world's leading international investigative authorities in how and why people deceive.
He is often consulted by the media and has been affectionately named 'the human lie detector'. Throughout his career Steve has conducted hundreds of interviews, ranging from interviewing homicide suspects to pre-employment screening.
Don't miss the opportunity to learn practical interviewing techniques that can help you identify if your job applicants are lying.
10.10 Morning break brought to you by Tandberg
10.40 Linking your HR strategies to the company's big picture - CASE STUDY
Speaker: Patrick Sheehan, VP human resources, Rendezvous Hotels and Resorts International
- Hear about the three keys to Rendezvous Hotels and Resorts International's strategic HR initiatives: clear branding, culture development and talent management
- Find out how Rendezvous measures the outcomes of HR initiatives and proves their direct impact on the company's big picture
- Learn new ways to add value across the organisation and be seen as a true strategic business partner
11.25 Executive remuneration in Australia - managing in a changing environment
Speaker: Michael Hogan, partner, Human Capital, Ernst & Young Australia
- The current remuneration environment
- Accounting, regulatory and market developments in executive remuneration
- Australian public company practices
- The link between executive performance and reward
- Emerging trends in executive remuneration
12.10 Networking lunch brought to you by SIRVA Relocation
1.20 Succession planning and talent management - CASE STUDY
Speaker: Katrina Boulton, regional HR manager - HR operations, David Jones
- Hear how David Jones has created a succession planning strategy that draws on deep and well-prepared talent pools from within the company
- How to identify untapped talent within your organisation
- Find out how you can use your succession strategy to retain top talen
2.05 How to become an employer of choice - CASE STUDY
Speaker: Liz Yeo, HR manager, The Cancer Council NSW (winner of the 2007 AHRI Leadership Award)
The Cancer Council NSW employs over 300 staff and a volunteer workforce of 3,000 across NSW throughout the year. In spite of its limited resources, the charity's creative approach to HR initiatives has made it the first not-for-profit organisation awarded a Hewitt Best Employer.
- Hear how The Cancer Council has created an award-winning culture of engaged staff and volunteers
- Learn how to overcome challenges in sustaining a culture of engagement
- Find out how to be an employer of choice on a shoe-string budget
- Hear about The Cancer Council's award-winning strategy to identify leaders among its volunteer workforce
2.50 Afternoon break
3.10 Announcement of prizes and giveaways by sponsors
3.20 Fundamentals of a Great Place to Work®
CASE STUDIES - Google, Procter & Gamble, and FedEx Corporation
Speaker: Chris Taylor, director, Great Place to Work Institute, Australia
- Understand the essential ingredients to create a great place to work - credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie
- Learn to build the framework for a successful and happy workplace
- Find out how top international companies are creating fantastic workplaces (and how you can copy them)
- Identify opportunities for change in your organisation
4.00 Close


