CIPD Northern Area Partnership Student Conference

Join us at the CIPD Northern Area Partnership Student Conference for a thought-provoking and inspirational day packed with practical learning and networking. Whether you are studying a CIPD qualification at Foundation, Intermediate or Advanced level, the conference programme has been designed with a choice of sessions to give you excellent opportunities for exploring relevant case studies and career advice.

Five reasons why you should join your local CIPD student event of the year:

1. gain skills and knowledge to help you develop your career in HR or L&D
2. learn from practical case studies on current themes in HR, and discover what future trends might look like
3. get career advice from successful HR leaders who made it to the top, across different business sectors
4. network with local CIPD students and professionals
5. meet CIPD branch reps from your area and learn how you can get involved.

Tickets start from only £30 + VAT and include a full day of practical learning, lunch and refreshments. Both full-time and part-time students will benefit equally, and it’s a great opportunity for distanc e-learning students to meet your virtual classmates.

Book your place early as spaces are limited. Speakers and conference sessions will be confirmed 6 weeks prior to event.

Conference Programme

08:30 - Registration and Morning Coffee

Pick up your badge, a good coffee and get ready for the day ahead!

09:30 - Chair's Opening Remarks

A welcome from the conference chair, and a few tips on how to make the most of the event throughout the day.

Chair: Nicky Ingham, FCIPD, Executive Director of Workforce and Organisational Development, Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

09:45 - The Future of Work: Skills, automation and people

The world of work is changing rapidly and the role of HR is too. This session will look at how digitalisation and automation may fundamentally change the HR profession over coming years and where the opportunity will remain for HR to make an integral difference to business performance and people’s lives. A lightning fast tour of a potential future, we’ll finish with a focus on the big questions facing HR and employers over the coming years.

Speaker: David D’Souza, Head of London & Branch Engagement, CIPD

10:20 - Future-proofing yourself as an HR and L&D Professional

Being agile in the workplace is relevant now more than ever. The pace of business change is rising exponentially, and as workplace pressures increase, so does the need to be dynamic and responsive for business success. Through a fast-paced ignite session, Perry explains the key skills and capabilities needed to remain agile in the workplace.

Speaker: Perry Timms, Founder & Chief Energy Officer, PTHR (People and Transformational HR Ltd)

10:50 - Networking Coffee Break

11:10 - Breakout Session 1

Session 1A - Employment Law Update

Get an essential update on the latest developments in employment law.

Speaker: Andrew Uttley, Associate, Employment, Capsticks Solicitors LLP

Session 1B - Trends in Performance Management

The way organisations do performance management is changing, with many questioning the effectiveness of annual appraisals and moving towards continuous feedback conversations. But what can we replace appraisals with? In this session will look at what organisations are doing and how they are driving engagement and performance.

Speaker: Ryan Cheyne, People Director, Rentalcars.com

11:50 - Room Change

12:00 - Breakout Session 2

Session 2A - Progressing your Career in HR and L&D - case study

Developing your career requires time and effort – while some skills and knowledge come with experience, others need to be built. This session will give you an overview on what skills and capabilities are required for senior HR and L&D roles, and some good tips on how to build them.

Speaker: Alan Price, CEO, Croner Group Limited, FCIPD

Session 2B - Social media and employee engagement

Social media continues to rise, and presents those of us who work in HR with opportunities and challenges. It has the potential to impact much of HR work, from recruitment to internal communication to how we lead engage with the people that work for us. Join Gemma for an overview of why it is crucial that HR professionals are social.

Speaker: Gemma Dale, Independent HR Practitioner and former HR Director

12:40 - Networking Lunch

Featuring CPD Hub in the exhibition area – where you can find out more about CIPD and your continuous professional development.

13:30 - Breakout Sessions 3

Session 3A - Ethical decision making and its implications for HR

How does HR shift from helping managers to do things right, to helping them do the right things? As our profession evolves from one built on policies, procedures and compliance, what should our role be in challenging and enabling complex ethical decision making in organisations? In this workshop we will explore current thinking in this area, discuss some case studies and examples, and finish by talking through what we can do in our own practice to make a difference.

Speaker: David Jackson, Assistant Director, HR Strategic Planning, Manchester Metropolitan University

Session 3B - People Analytics – Data and People Insights

Data can really help HR to get reliable people insights and better strategic decisions. But how does it work in practice, and how do we become good at it? This session will give you an overview of the process, from data collection to predictions, and good tips for you to build your data skills and capabilities.

Speakers:
Edward Houghton, Research Advisor, Human Capital and Metrics, CIPD
Luke Fisher, Founder and CEO, ThanksBox

14:20 - Room Change

14:30 - Wellbeing

This interactive session will draw on CIPD’s latest research on employee well-being to examine what a healthy workplace looks like. After considering the current and future challenges for workplace well-being, you will be invited to consider the CIPD’s well-being framework and the vital role of HR professionals within this. Hear also from Lindt how they developed their healthy agenda.

Speakers:
Louisa Baczor, Research Associate, CIPD
Jenny Lawrence, HR Director, Lindt

15:10 - Networking coffee break

15:30 - Getting to the Top – Interactive Panel Discussion

How did People Directors and Heads of People get to the top? If you could ask for their advice on how to succeed in your career, what would you ask them? This is your chance to ask our senior panel all the questions you never dared asked!

Panellists:
1. Jenny Lawrence, HR Director, Lindt
2. Gemma Dale, Independent HR Practitioner and former HR Director
3. Ryan Cheyne, People Directors, Rentalcars.com
4. Nicky Ingham, Executive Director, Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Chair: Perry Timms, Founder & Chief Energy Officer, PTHR (People and Transformational HR Ltd)

16:10 - Chair’s Closing Remarks and Insights from the Audience

16:30 - Networking Drinks - sponsered by Croner and Health Assured.

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Cancellations and Refunds Policy

If you are unable to attend an event please give at least 1 working day notice and we will be happy to refund 100% of your booking fee or book you on to a subsequent event to the same value. Cancellations received after this time will be non transferable and non refundable.

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Professional photography and video production may be taking place at the event, and these images may be used on future promotional materials for CIPD. Please note that by attending the event, you are giving your consent for your image to be used on any CIPD promotional materials.