ATC 2024 Agenda

14th & 15th October
Fed Square Melbourne

Day One
Day Two

Agenda

Day 1 - Monday 14 October

8:30 am - 9:15 am
Expo
Check-In & Grab a Coffee

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Collect your lanyard, catch up with industry friends and check out the exciting Tech Expo located in Fed Square’s Zinc building. Be ready to head to Main Stage by 9:15am.

9:30 am - 9:45 am
Main Stage
Welcome to ATC2024!

Jo Vohland – ATC Events & Media
Lauren & Craig – TaPod

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Welcome to the 18th annual Australasian Talent Conference! Main Stage at Fed Square’s “The Edge” building. Our hosts are excited to welcome you.

9:45 am - 10:15 am
Main Stage
Challenging the Business to Think Again

Tammy Ryder – Coles Group

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Recruiting more and hiring faster is not a strategy, yet organisations continue to put pressure on TA to deliver.

At Coles, the focus is:

  • What is the problem we are trying to solve?
  • How do we get to the root cause of the issue?

Tammy will share examples of recruitment, retention and people challenges that were solved through partnering with TA and the business, including:

  1. Use of Internal and External Data
  2. Understanding the business model and context of the organisation
  3. Focusing on both short-term and long-term talent planning
  4. TA having the business acumen and communication skills to guide the right conversations and decision.
10:20 am - 10:40 am
Main Stage
Mind the (Skills) Gap – Are you ready for Tomorrow’s Workforce?

Rachael Townsley – Indeed (Australia)

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

In today’s evolving work landscape, the importance of skills cannot be overstated. With skilled workers in high demand and skills gaps widening, talent leaders are bracing for tougher challenges ahead.

You might be asking… Is skills-based hiring the answer? How do we bridge the gap between the skills we have and the skills we need? How can we cater to the diverse expectations of six generations in the workforce? And how can we future-proof our upskilling strategies?

Let’s explore shall we? Join Indeed as they delve into the essential skills for the workforce of the future and tackle that question… Skills based-hiring, fad or future?

10:45 am - 11:30 am
Expo
Morning Tea

Day 1: 14 October, 2024
11:40 am - 12:10 pm
Breakout – Think Big
The Key Elements of a Successful Talent Strategy

Craig Brewer – Worley

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

How often have you started a role and found a 5-year-old Talent Strategy sitting in a file somewhere gathering metaphorical dust?

“Not bad” you nod, I could use 70% of this!  Yet only its creator remembers its existence.

Developing a robust Talent Strategy that deeply aligns to the Organisation’s Strategy, that is successfully embraced and embedded into the business, yet agile enough to rise to bend to the demand of the future – it’s no mean feat.

Craig will share how Worley’s Talent Strategy approach and the elements that have made it so successful.

11:40 am - 12:10 pm
Breakout – Think Practical
Mastering Candidate & Hiring Manager Feedback

Simon Hedt – August

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Feedback is a critical but difficult part of the Hiring Process, it honours the time commitment of the candidate, deepens Candidate Experience, builds trust and organisational reputation. It can also go wrong if you’re not prepared.  In this session Simon will cover:

  • Feedback Types: Corrective/Unconstructive and Positive;
  • Feedback Discovery: How to set expectation and work flows to easily obtain feedback from Hiring Manager;
  • Feedback Hygiene: Setting yourself up for success;
  • Feedback Techniques: Feedforward, What/Why, Situation, Behaviour and Impact;
  • Feedback Examples:  From poor communication skills, not a cultural fit, lacking technical depth to negative internal reference, we’ll dive into real examples and how to manage them.
11:40 am - 12:10 pm
Breakout – Think Again
Inclusive By Design, RMIT’s Hiring Advantage

Tania Dowling – RMIT
Mat Lewis – RMIT

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

RMIT’s Inclusive By Design approach to recruitment is changing systems and removing barriers, that empower candidates and employees to apply equitably for opportunities, without disclosing or requesting additional support.

Through RMIT’s commitment to inclusion and diversity, they’re not only creating best practice recruitment processes, they’re also attracting top talent in places others aren’t looking. Tania and Mat will share how it started, lessons learnt and where the program is heading next.

12:20 pm - 12:50 pm
Breakout – Think Big
How AI is Reshaping Talent Acquisition

Jesse Stratford – SEEK

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

AI across the recruitment lifecycle is evolving. This is impacting the way TA teams approach and adopt AI to drive better outcomes across productivity, efficiency, quality, and user experience.

Jesse will offer his perspective on AI’s influence in Talent Acquisition and how it’s causing us to re-examine our ways of working. He will also share how SEEK is embedding AI practices today to personalise the experience and enhance the talent acquisition strategy.

12:20 pm - 12:50 pm
Breakout – Think Practical
Roundtable Discussion Groups

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Choose a topic and share your questions and knowledge on the topic in these small roundtable sessions. Hear a range of perspectives and how talent teams are approaching it.

Topic 1 – Demand Planning: Ways in which you are working with the broader business to better demand plan.

Topic 2 – Showcasing your EVP on a Budget: Some of the best performing elements in your Talent Attraction strategy don’t cost a lot.

Topic 3 – Referral Programs: Share the process of how referrals are made, what the parameters and rules are, how much you offer, how you engage the business to get involved and outcomes.

Topic 4 – TA’s role in Internal Mobility: With internal hires on the rise, let’s share what TA’s role in Internal Mobility is in each Organisation and how you’re collaborating with Business Leaders and HR to achieve it.

Topic 5 – TA’s role in the Gender Pay Gap: How are TA, HR and Rem & Benefits working together on salary offers and the Gender Pay Gap?

Topic 6 – Disability Confident Hiring: Ways to build Disability confidence across your Hiring Team.

Topic 7 – Internal Brand & Reputation: How do you actively manage the brand and reputation of the Internal TA team with internal stakeholders?

12:20 pm - 12:50 pm
Breakout – Think Again
From Theory to Practice: How McDonald’s Leads a “Human-First” Approach to AI and Automation in Recruitment

Robert Hunter – McDonald's

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Following the success in the US, UK and Canada, McDonald’s has recently rolled out recruitment automation across ANZ. Join Robert Hunter, Manager of Local Employee Experience at McDonald’s as he shares how the company strategically balances automation with the human touch to enhance efficiency while maintaining a personal, values-driven hiring experience. Through practical examples, you’ll gain insights into solution design, implementation strategies, and the critical skills and mindset shifts needed for talent acquisition professionals to excel in an AI-enhanced recruitment landscape.

12:50 pm - 2:00 pm
Expo
Lunch in the Expo

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Enjoy lunch in the Expo Hall while catching up with the Talent Community overlooking the banks of Birrarung (Yarra River).

2:10 pm - 2:50 pm
Breakout – Think Big
Unified Hiring: How we redefined AFCA’s needs and aligned Hiring Leaders

Matthew Lant – Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA)

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

In FY24, AFCA made 490 hiring decisions for their organisation of 1100. At just under 50% of the workforce, the volume and quality of these hiring decisions would make a huge impact to the Culture and DNA of the organisation, enough to change it fundamentally. Hiring Managers all had strong expertise in interviewing and hiring but all from different past employers with different hiring ideologies. This is when the penny dropped, our Hiring Managers were not as aligned as we needed them to be.

We delivered a program of work on:

  • The key dimensions of Culture, Diversity, Leadership, Fairness and a Future-Ready workforce.
  • Clarity around the Durable Skills our workforce needs.
  • A selection process roadmap that supports the organisation’s strategic priorities and enhances our culture.
  • Training Leaders to hire the AFCA way, making decisions that align to organisational goals, not just divisional needs.
2:10 pm - 2:50 pm
Breakout – Think Practical
From Search Master to Talent Architect: The Evolution of Sourcing

Cal Curtain – Harrison.ai

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Sourcing has changed a lot from when it first burst onto the TA scene over 20 years ago. Boolean Search changed to AI Search and when that became easier, the focus moved to creative outreach comms. Cal will lay out his view on the career paths and unique value propositions that current Talent Sourcers have in front of them in an ever-changing talent landscape.

2:10 pm - 2:50 pm
Breakout – Think Again
Think Again 5+5

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Get ready to re-examine the established recruiting norms. Some sessions will delve deep into one topic with a specific case study or analysis, and in others you’ll experience our 5+5 format, where several people will take turns challenging a hiring norm in 5 minutes using 5 slides. It’s going to be thought-provoking and fun.

We can’t tell you the topics in advance, that would be cheating.

3:00 pm - 3:30 pm
Main Stage
Talent Attraction and the Visual Generation (Gen Z)

Milimo Banji – TapIn

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Gen Z (circa 19–28yo) have been dubbed ‘the visual generation’. They are not only digital natives but where other generations may lean towards Google or Google Maps to find a service or recommendation, Gen Z prefers social media. The content here is short, highly visual and very engaging. Spending a whopping 7.3 hours on their phone and online per day, Gen Z are highly influenced by social media personalities and trends. To attract this cohort, you must embrace and adapt to the forms of communications that cater to their preferences of this group that now make up one firth of Australia’s population and workforce.

Mils will share:

  • How to create compelling campaigns tailored to resonate with Gen Z candidates;
  • The role of influencers in amplifying your brand message and reaching a wider audience;
  • Examples of successful content and why it hits the right mark;
  • Mastering advanced search and filtering techniques to reach Gen Z talent on social media;
  • The use data insights to optimize your strategies and enhance outcomes;
  • Staying informed about the latest trends and tech that Gen Z engages with.

Join us as we unlock the doors to a world of endless possibilities in talent attraction and sourcing specifically targeted at Gen Z.

3:30 pm - 3:40 pm
Main Stage
Excellence in Candidate Experience

Steve Gard – BenchmarCX

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

We have a great candidate experience! Really, compared to who?

When we measure the candidate experience we provide, it is a foot race with no competitors (or at least, no competitor data). Otherwise, it is a collective number that does not consider the experience of women versus the experience of men.

This year, we will be announcing the BenchmarCX 2024 Excellence in Candidate Experience Award finalists and winner – live on stage – and share how it has been measured and who it has been measured against.

3:40 pm - 4:30 pm
Main Stage
2024 Innovation Lab: Talent Tech Pitch Off

Jo Vohland – ATC Events & Media
Richard Barnett – Hays

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

ATC’s annual Talent Tech Pitch Off is one of the most exciting elements of the event. The audience all become judges and investors.  We’ll arm you with $100,000 (fake) dollars to invest and give you a chance to question the finalists pitching on stage so you can help decide who wins and is crowned the ATC2024 Innovation Lab Winner!

The Hays team will also select the Hays Choice Award Winner.  They’re looking for a standout entrant whose innovative solutions has the potential to significantly elevate the RPO and MSP customers.

4:45 pm - 6:45 pm
Expo
Social Drinks

Day 1: 14 October, 2024

Enjoy social drinks, eats and catching up with the Talent Community overlooking the banks of Birrarung (Yarra River).

Agenda

Day 2 - Tuesday 15 October

8:30 am - 9:15 am
Expo
Grab a Coffee at the Expo Hall

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Grab yourself a coffee and explore the Tech Expo located in Fed Square’s Zinc building. Be ready to head to Main Stage by 9:15am.

9:30 am - 9:45 am
Main Stage
Day 2 Kicks-off

Lauren & Craig – TaPod

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Welcome back to Day 2 of ATC2024!

9:45 am - 10:30 am
Main Stage
The Fearless Forecast: Talent Twists, Turns and Trajectories

Kevin Wheeler – Future of Talent Institute
Sue Howse – The Human Collaborative

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

The Fearless Forecast is an annual ATC keynote led by renowned Talent Futurist, Kevin Wheeler. Kevin will delve into the many twists and turns the next few years will bring to our profession. As usual, he will lay out the five-years trajectory for Recruiting and AI. Then during a live Q&A with Talent Strategist Sue Howse, they will delve into key themes and translate these insights into actionable approaches for Talent Leaders, helping them prepare for what’s ahead.

10:35 am - 10:55 am
Main Stage
Revolutionising the way of work: Arcadis’ journey towards a Skills Powered Organisation

Amy Baxendale – Arcadis

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Explore the transformative shift at Arcadis as they adopt a groundbreaking talent-centered design philosophy, challenging conventional job-centric approaches. This session, featuring insights from Amy Baxendale, Global Capability & Workforce Readiness Director, Arcadis, delves into the pivotal role of cutting-edge AI technology in fostering scalability and agility, all while placing talent at the heart of the organisation. Gain valuable perspectives on initiating a skills-based paradigm shift, key starting points for your journey, and how this can support strategic priorities such as enhancing retention and internal mobility. Join us in unraveling the dynamic landscape of organisational evolution.

11:00 am - 11:45 am
Expo
Morning Tea

Day 2: 15 October, 2024
11:55 am - 12:30 pm
Breakout – Think Big
Developing a Talent Board: Uniting People and Business Functions for Strategic Input and Collaboration

Maisie Farmer – Downer Group

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

For many organisations, the line between Talent Acquisition, Workforce Planning, Mobility and Talent Management are increasingly blurring, meaning that we must shift from siloed cooperation to harmonised collaboration. To accomplish this, Downer Group have developed an internal ‘Talent Board’ made up of people from across the organisation all focused and pointing the same direction. Maisie will share how it was developed, their remit, cadence, challenges, and outcomes.

11:55 am - 12:30 pm
Breakout – Think Practical
Reviving TA’s brand when trust is gone

Aurelio Tedesco – C&K

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

To achieve TA outcomes, there must be trust in the Talent Team but how do you achieve this from a starting point where trust is not only low, but gone entirely? Before Aurelio developed his Talent Strategy, he set off on a path of business discovery, relationship building and an epic internal rebranding of what the Talent function is and could be in the organisation. Aurelio will share his ‘We are Team Talent and we Care’ turnaround program, it’s success and how the team have been able to move from strength to strength.

11:55 am - 12:30 pm
Breakout – Think Again
Shifting TA to an Advisory Mindset and Service

Andy Martin – Only About Children

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

When given the chance in a role to rebuild a TA team, Andy immediately opted for Talent Advisory over a standard Acquisition model.

This is not the first time Andy build out a Talent Advisory team and he believes this is now the standard of what TA will eventually become in many organisations.

He’ll share how he:

  • Reshaped TA’s service offering and mindset;
  • Created behavioural change and capability uplift;
  • Implemented new measures to motivate and reward the right behaviours;
  • Resized recruitment portfolios to enable full ownership and strong partnerships.
12:40 pm - 1:00 pm
Breakout – Think Big
Where in the World is the Talent?

Laura White – Mantel Group

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Employers are increasingly hiring professionals from locations around the world to access the right experience and address skill shortages in key areas like technology, marketing and finance. Laura and Charles will cover:

  • Top talent hubs worldwide
  • The latest research on building an agile global workforce
  • The four unexpected reasons that led PaperCut to employ people globally
  • How to access and understand local market employment regulations
  • How to leverage technology and in-market experts to optimise decision making
  • How to handle location-specific remote work requests

 

12:40 pm - 1:00 pm
Breakout – Think Practical
Building a Culture-First Recruitment Strategy: The Forgotten Piece in TA

Kruthi Pranesh – Zoho Recruit

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

‌By bringing back the focus on purpose, culture and nurturing talent, a culture-first recruitment strategy has proven to be an antidote to workforce shortage. Encouraging employees to think long-term, focus on personal growth as well as contributing to the growth of the company, enabling a strong culture of ownership, craftmanship and learning – This is the Zoho story, that gets translated into its TA product, Zoho Recruit. From breaking geographical boundaries via product localisation, making upskilling accessible to all employees, ensuring neurodiversity is an actionable item and fostering a harmonious climate for work – why we do what we do.

12:40 pm - 1:00 pm
Breakout – Think Again
Become a Talent Magnet

Ben Roberts – David Jones
Tara Bodycote – Page Up

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Top talent always has options, no matter the market conditions. Learn how to become a talent magnet by aligning your talent attraction, sourcing and engagement approach. We’ll share examples and strategies for building a dynamic talent pipeline, so you’ll never have to start from zero again.  Join this session to arm your team with the essential skills to stay competitive.

1:00 pm - 2:10 pm
Expo
Lunch in the Expo

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Enjoy lunch in the Expo Hall while catching up with the Talent Community overlooking the banks of Birrarung (Yarra River).

2:15 pm - 3:05 pm
Breakout – Think Big
How to use Talent Intelligence for Talent Advisory

Allen Russell – Adobe

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Allen believed that Talent had a greater role to play in the Organisation beyond hiring great people. By introducing Talent Intelligence in four key areas – Reskill, Redesign, Recruit and Retain, he’s been able to provide Talent Advisory services. It lit a spark across the Organisation and Talent now sits with great credibility, at the heart of better business decisions.

The deeper the intelligence, the deeper the partnership. Allen will share:

  • Where and how his Talent Intelligence is gained;
  • Practical examples across the four areas of Reskill, Redesign, Recruit and Retain;
  • How this is helping to shape the function and careers of the Talent Team.
2:15 pm - 3:05 pm
Breakout – Think Practical
The Art of AI Prompting

Marrin-Boyd Andrews – Fonterra

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Step into the world of AI with a walk-through guide on ‘prompting’ tailored specifically for Sourcers and Recruiters. The results you gain from Generative AI are vastly different depending on the strength of your Prompts.  We’ll explore the fundamentals, showing you how to communicate with AI and then dive into practical examples, seeing the real-world impact of well-crafted prompts.  Marrin will share how far he and the team at Fonterra have taken it, shifting from a Sourcing Team for Talent to a Prompt Team for the entire business. You’ll walk out with insights and tools to transform your sourcing strategies and fully integrate AI into your recruitment efforts.

2:15 pm - 3:05 pm
Breakout – Think Again
REA Group’s Talent Neighbourhood

Lee Jones – REA Group
Angelica Terezakis – REA Group

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

REA’s innovative approach to recruiting is less complicated, more inclusive and provides value and insight to potential future talent.  Their omni-channel activation has already delivered over one million impressions and 250k video views!  You’ll learn about the behind-the-scenes creation and delivery of:

  • In the Neighbourhood podcast: The careers podcast unlocking what it’s like to work at REA.
  • Welcome to the Neighbourhood advocacy program: Trackable Hiring Manager posts driving social engagement and employee advocacy.
  • Talent Neighbourhood Hero Video: REA’s recruitment team talking about why the neighbourhood is a great place to be – viewed over 10k times since launch.
  • Neighbourhood News: We share recruitment tips, event invites and updates on new opportunities.
3:15 pm - 4:00 pm
Main Stage
The Pathway to Becoming a Talent Director

Nina Pollard – Coles Group, NAB, BP, Telstra
David Bell – Toll Group, GE, Origin Energy

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

In this panel discussion, we will speak with two senior Talent Leaders about their career journeys, the leaps they took and the skills beyond recruiting that they needed to develop to get there. We’ll learn how they spend their time, the most important skills to master and how to make the leap into senior leadership.

4:00 pm - 4:15 pm
Main Stage
Closing Remarks

Jo Vohland – ATC Events & Media
Trevor Vas – Aligned to Achieve

Day 2: 15 October, 2024

Thank you and see you next year at ATC2025!