Driving Organisational Change

08.30 Registration, Morning Coffee & The Hot Take Wall

NEW FORMAT

Get ahead of the conversation before the day begins and put your most provocative change opinion on record.

Hot Take Wall: Write your most honest, provocative change management opinion on a card and add it to the Hot Take Wall at the entrance – the best ones will be read out at the opening.
The Change Challenge board is also live from 08.30 – post a real problem you are facing in your organisation and it may be selected for the afternoon Clinic session.
Use the registration period to connect with peers and compare notes on what is at the top of your agenda for 2027.

OPENING REMARKS

09.00 Morning Co-Chairs’ Opening Remarks

Gagan Boparai, GBS Transformation Director Change, Reckitt

Marc Whittingham, Head of Change Communications & Engagement, Holland & Barrett

Understand What The Room Is Really Grappling With Day-To-Day

The co-chairs read out the three most provocative or widely shared Hot Takes from the morning with a show of hands on the question “What is the single biggest barrier to change in your organisation right now?”

Brief overview of the programme structure, including how to submit challenges for the afternoon Clinic.

THEME ONE: HONEST REFLECTIONS

driving Effective Change Management

FRONTLINE INSIGHT

09.10 Leave With A Clear, Opinionated View Of The Macro Forces Shaping Your Work – And One Claim You Will Want To Act On Immediately

What does an effective change journey look like in 2027? Deep-dive into the key practicalities and winning strategies behind rigorous, impactful, long-term change
The latest tech developments; cut through AI hype to understand what is actually happening in organisations right now: adoption rates, resistance patterns and where the capability gaps really are
The geopolitical and economic forces that change leaders are systematically underestimating – and how they are compressing timelines and raising the stakes for people leaders
A bold, evidence-based perspective on what the pace of change actually demands of HR and change professionals in 2027

How Is AI Restructuring, Rewiring & Reshaping Organisational Change, The Future Of Work & The Reality Of Day-To-Day People Leadership?

FIRESIDE CHAT | NEW FORMAT

09.30 Understand How AI Is Already Rewiring Roles & Decisions, & What Change Leaders Must Own In That Story Before Someone Else Does

Hear from a practitioner who has genuinely deployed AI as part of a transformation – what changed, what surprised me and what I would do differently
Where is AI restructuring roles, rewriting job descriptions and reshaping how decisions get made? And what HR and change leadership must own in that story

Morgan Fleming, Digital People Director, Hilton Foods

Culture As A Performance Driver: Stop Declaring Culture & Start Engineering It As A Measurable Competitive Advantage

PANEL

09.50 Leave With Practical Frameworks For Connecting Culture To Commercial Outcomes Your Board Will Actually Notice

How culture decay quietly destroys performance, erodes retention and slows innovation before it becomes visible in the data – and how to catch it early
Real case studies from organisations that have directly connected culture change to commercial outcomes – not aspiration, but evidence

Chayanika Malik, VP – Organisation Design & Change Lead, Deutsche Bank

Isi Ojobo, Organisational Development Manager, NHS

Beverly King, Change Management, University of Birmingham

Erica Stewart-Jones, Head of Learning & Organisational Development, RSPB

10.20 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner

10.35 Informal Networking & Mini-Exhibition For Delegates, Speakers & Partners

THEME TWO: THE PRACTITIONERS TOOLKIT

11.05 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner

Creating The Conditions For Transformational Change

CASE STUDY

11.20

The part communications and engagement has played in navigating a large, complex and traditional financial services organisation through rapid and significant change
Honest reflections on the wins and learnings
Practical insights and takeaways on how to build alignment, energy and accountability – and sustain momentum over time

Kay Broadie, Head of Communications, Group Executive Functions, Group Corporate Affairs, Lloyds Banking Group

David Kelly, Senior Manager, Change Communications & Projects, Lloyds Banking Group

From People Professional To Strategic Change Leader: Earning Your Seat At The Top Table - & Staying There

PANEL

11.40 Leave With A Practical Roadmap For Building The Commercial Credibility & Cross-Functional Authority That Make You Indispensable In The Room

How to shift from being the function that receives change to the function that drives it – and the specific commercial capabilities that make the difference
Building cross-functional relationships, strategic influence and the credibility that earns genuine authority
Fixing the disconnect between strategy and delivery and demonstrating impact quickly

Kirti Rudra, Chief Strategy & Transformation Officer, ENGIE UK

Kayleigh Hesse, Head of People, Post Office Ltd

Jennifer St Quintin, Head, UK Operations, Oncology Research, Astellas Pharma

Alice Pearce, VP of People, Allica Bank

Elizabeth Dunn, Director of Change, Wagamama

Zaccariah Olufunmilayo, Organisational Change Manager, Siemens Energy

Adapting To Continuous Change

FRONTLINE INSIGHT

12.10 Instil An Adaptable & Agile Mindset That Embraces Ongoing Change As A Vital Business Driver

Shape the right narrative around your organisation’s change journey to keep change readiness front of mind, without overwhelming or exhausting your people
How can you identify change fatigue among staff, and what are the best ways to avoid and counteract this disengagement?
With increasing demands on workers’ time and attention spans, how can you shape staff behaviours and mindsets to maintain change agility?
Equip and upskill your teams with the necessary resources to deliver continuous change transformation at increased pace, and with impactful results

Romana Pugh, Head of Change, Product Transformation, BBC

AI As A Change Programme: Practical Adoption Frameworks That Work In Practice, Overcome Resistance & Combat False Narratives For Sustained Change

FRONTLINE INSIGHT | NEW

12.30 Leave With Repeatable Frameworks For Running AI Adoption As A Proper Change Programme – Not A Technology Rollout

The resistance patterns unique to AI change – why they differ from standard transformation resistance and how to anticipate them before they derail adoption
A practical human approach to AI change management: who needs what message, when and in what format? And how to sequence adoption for sustained behaviour change rather than surface compliance

Reality Check Benchmarking Vote No. 1: Five AI & Change Claims - Real or Hype? You Vote.

REALITY CHECK DEBATE FORMAT | NEW FORMAT

12.50 Cut Through AI Claims In Real Time & Leave With A Sharper Instinct For Separating Substance From Theatre. You Raise Your Hand For “Real” Or “Hype”…

AI-generated change communications are already indistinguishable from human ones, and employees don’t care either way
The biggest barrier to AI adoption in people leadership isn’t technology, fear or ethics; it’s the people function’s own lack of data literacy
Organisations which don’t mandate AI use for people leaders within 12 months will lose the talent war
AI will make most middle managers redundant within five years, and that’s a good thing
Kotter, Prosci and every other change framework we’ve relied on for 30 years is now obsolete; AI requires us to start from scratch

13.00 Lunch, Informal Networking & Mini-Exhibition For Delegates, Speakers & Partners

Lunchtime Peer Roundtable Discussions – Facilitated, Chatham House Rules Apply

13.00 Continue The Morning Conversations In A Structured Peer Setting & Leave Lunch With At Least One Idea You Will Take Back To Your Organisation

A. AI & Leadership – Where Are We & How Are We Augmenting Our Leadership Practices

Berenice Levenez, Director of Strategy, Transformation & Technology, GirlGuiding

B. Change Fatigue – What Is Actually Working?

Jennifer St Quintin, Head, UK Operations, Oncology Research, Astellas Pharma

C. Metrics, Measurement & Demonstrating Impact

D. Culture Decay – Catching It Before The Damage Shows

Carl Lewin, Organisational Development Leader & Consultant, NHS

E. Doing More With Less

14.00 Afternoon Co-Chairs’ Opening Remarks

Dilly Lidder, Vice President Internal Communications, Rolls-Royce

Berenice Levenez, Director of Strategy, Transformation & Technology, GirlGuiding

Five Things I Wish I Had Known: The Change Leaders Lightning Round

LIGHTNING ROUND | NEW FORMAT

14.10 Five Practitioners Share Quickfire Conclusions – The Kind Of Insight That Only Comes From Having Learnt The Hard Lessons. Re-energise After Lunch With Golden Nugget Insights From Thought Leaders

THEME THREE: THE LONG-TERM VIEW

Upskilling Organisations & Safeguarding Workforce Wellbeing In An Uncertain World To Unlock Productivity, Retention & Internal Mobility

PANEL

14.30 Leave With A Clear View Of How To Future-Proof Your Workforce When You Cannot Predict The Future, & The First Steps To Building Internal Mobility That Keeps Your Best People

The shift from static job titles to dynamic skills-based workforce architecture – what it takes to get right in practice and the common mistakes that stall it
How AI-powered talent intelligence is changing attrition modelling, skills gap forecasting and workforce redesign, and which applications are delivering real results right now
Build internal mobility pipelines that give your best people a reason to stay and grow

Kirsty Bowen, Head of Communications & Resourcing, Centrica

Divya Thareja, Vice President Organization Design, HR & EX Product Management, JPMorganChase

Nicola Johnson Hodgson, Director People & Culture CoE, Bentley Motors

Fiona Islam, Director Business Change & Transformation, Royal Bank of Canada

Empowering Senior Leadership

FRONTLINE INSIGHT

15.00 Straight From The Top! Position Senior Leaders As Change Champions To Cascade Winning Strategies & Lead By Example

Prepare leaders for continuous change by being on the front foot and positioning change as a positive and enabling force
Elevate buy-in and harness leadership comms to manage expectations, set clear goals and focus on the how and the why
Encourage and enable senior leadership to take a holistic view of the whole organisation, including middle management, to ensure a smooth flow of change deployment and ensure everyone is brought on the change journey
Promote transparency, openness and honesty in leadership comms, and avoid performative or inauthentic messaging that risks spreading disengagement

15.20 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner

15.35 Informal Networking & Mini-Exhibition For Delegates, Speakers & Partners

16.10 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner

The Change Challenge Clinic: Real Problems, Real Practitioners, Real Time

CLINIC | NEW FORMAT

16.25 See Genuine Organisational Change Problems Solved In Real Time, & Leave With Approaches You Can Apply Directly To Your Own

Three real delegate challenges – collected via the Change Challenge board at registration and break, or submitted in advance – tackled live by a panel of three experienced practitioners. The co-chairs introduce each challenge and the panel has five minutes to respond, and the floor can add.

Connecting With Remote & Multi-Generational Workforces

FRONTLINE INSIGHT

16.55 Boost Engagement & Prioritise Connection Among All Demographics, Generations & Work Patterns To Ensure No-One Is Left Behind

One size no longer fits all; how can you adapt to cater for multiple generations within a single workforce, while maintaining a congruent business identity?
Keeping pace with the modern world of work; deep-dive into effective and impactful strategies for connecting with remote and hybrid workers, alongside office-based staff
Leverage data and feedback to uncover the key priorities, wants and expectations for different working demographics, and tailor your change approach to bring everyone into the fold
In an increasingly AI-driven world, how can you strike the right balance between tech innovation and genuine human connection to foster a unified and harmonious company culture?

Erica Stewart-Jones, Head of Learning & Organisational Development, RSPB

The Final Word Closing Panel: What Does A Change-Ready Organisation Actually Look Like? Cut Through The Theory & Leave With Something To Implement On Monday

CLOSING PANEL

17.15 Leave With One Or Two Concrete Things You Will Actually Do Differently, Not A List Of Everything That Needs To Change!

A senior panel of change leaders reflect on the day: which ideas and challenges have resonated most, and what is genuinely going to change when they get back to their desk?
An honest assessment of how far most organisations are from being truly change-ready in 2027, and what the gap between aspiration and reality actually looks like
The Final Word closes the panel and the programme: each panellist’s single most important message for people leaders heading into the rest of 2027

Carl Lewin, Organisational Development Leader & Consultant, NHS

Tarun Ahluwalia, Head People & Organization, Northern Cluster Europe & Europe Talent Projects Head, Sandoz

Paul McGavin, Vice President – Strategic Change Lead, Morgan Stanley

17.45 Afternoon Co-Chair’s Closing Remarks

Dilly Lidder, Vice President Internal Communications, Rolls-Royce

Berenice Levenez, Director of Strategy, Transformation & Technology, GirlGuiding

17.50 Official Close Of Conference