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100+ Conferences to attend in 2019 on people analytics, the future of work and data-driven HR

David Green

HR has rapidly evolved into one of the most exciting places in the business to work as C-Level executives increasingly realise how people insights can help drive improvements in productivity and performance as well as gain competitive advantage.

The function is also facing unprecedented change with rising employee expectations, huge technological advances and the surge in adoption of people analytics. This entails HR professionals needing to grow and acquire skills in a number of new and emerging areas.

At myHRfuture, we ran a survey before Christmas that identified six core components of new/emerging knowledge areas required by HR professionals (see FIG 1). We will be releasing a report in the near future on the findings of the research and why these six categories were the ones that emerged. We are also building out online training through our Academy on these six knowledge areas (go here to check out currently available courses on the future skills of HR).

FIG 1: Six knowledge areas for HR to focus on to prepare for the future of work (Source: myHRfuture)

As well as training, another vehicle for acquiring new awareness of the future direction of HR is to go to a conference. This can be particularly helpful in understanding what peers are doing in other organisations, hearing from analysts on trends within the space as well as meeting technology vendors that can support your firm’s people strategies.

When I last collated a list almost exactly 12 months ago of conferences where the six knowledge areas in FIG 1 were either the core or central theme, I found 75 conferences. This time, I’ve found nearly double that amount. For me this really emphasises the massive shift taking place both in HR (and in our organisations) as the future of work becomes a reality.

The list by month follows with further information provided on the conferences where I am already scheduled to speak or chair in 2019. This list will be updated regularly throughout the course of the year. If you are a conference organiser and your event has not been included, please add a note and link in the comments section and we will add relevant events into the list.   

JANUARY

PEOPLE ANALYTICS & FUTURE OF WORK (PAFOW) | 31 JAN & 1 FEB | SAN FRANCISCO

Lovingly crafted by Al Adamsen, I’ve had the pleasure of co-chairing the PAFOW events with Al for two years. This year’s theme is ‘People Data for Good’ and the speakers represent a veritable who’s who of people analytics practitioners, consultants and vendors. Also for the first time this year, PAFOW will couple the leading practices and ideas shared by many of the world's foremost People Analytics leaders with the People Analytics Technology Expo, whilst day 2 will be joined by The People Analytics Career Expo. For more on what you can expect at a PAFOW conference, you can read ‘Analytics of the people, by the people, for the people’, which summarises PAFOW 2018 in San Francisco.

Confirmed speakers include: Dawn Klinghoffer (Microsoft), David White (LinkedIn), Heather Whiteman (GE), Piyush Mathur (Johnson & Johnson), RJ Milnor (McKesson), Richard Rosenow (Facebook), Amit Mohindra and many more (see image below).

FEBRUARY

HRD SUMMIT | 5-6 FEB | BIRMINGHAM

The HRD Summit welcomes over 1,000 attendees every year to Birmingham, and I will be speaking at the event for the first time with my keynote on day 1 ‘Accelerating business performance through people analytics’. I’ll also be running a CoLab Interactive Workshop with Jonathan Ferrar on day 2 on our Nine Dimensions for Excellence in People Analytics model.

Confirmed speakers include: Rita McGrath, Lucy Adams, Josh Bersin, Mervyn Dinnen, Volker Jacobs and 150 other speakers.

SHRM TECH EMEA | 24-25 FEB | DUBAI
I’m thrilled to be the emcee and one of the keynote speakers at the first ever SHRM event in the Middle East, as 500+ delegates gather in Dubai for SHRM Tech EMEA at the end of February. This will be the largest specialised event yet in the region on technology and its impact on the workforce. It will be the first time I’ve spoken in Dubai and I’m eager to learn of all the exciting innovations being driven by HR in the region.

Confirmed speakers include: Jason Averbook, Mark Levy, Johnny C. Taylor Jnr, Anna Tavis, Hessa Al Ghurair, Giovanni Everduin, Dena Ali Al Mansoori and Mahdi Shehimy

MARCH

UNLEASH | 19-20 MAR | LONDON

The best show on HR technology and the future of work on the planet. UNLEASH has long set the bar for others to follow in combining speakers that really challenge conventional thinking with fabulous production and the most innovative vendors around. If you want to learn and have fun, then UNLEASH is the show for you. The spring event in London is set to attract over 3,000 delegates and spotlights the most influential leaders on the Future of Work and HR Technology. I’ll be speaking about the latest trends in people analytics and data-driven HR as well as being emcee of a new concept at the show – watch this space for more news soon!

Confirmed speakers include: Cal Henderson (Slack), Leena Nair (Unilever), Cassie Kozyrkov (Google), Josh Bersin, Eden Britt (HSBC), Steffen Riesenbeck (Bosch), Michael Cox (Nestlé), Ian Bailie, Nick Holley, Lexy Martin (Visier), Soumyasanto Sen, Catalina Schveninger (Vodafone), Danielle Harmer (Metro Bank), Bill Boorman and 130+ more

HR CORE LAB | 26-27 MAR | BARCELONA

HR Core Lab combines three conferences under one roof: Leading with Talent Analytics, The Future of Recruitment and HR Agility for two days of learning and networking in Barcelona. I’ll be the co-chair for Leading with Talent Analytics and will also be delivering a speech on How to Create Business Impact with People Analytics.

Confirmed speakers include: Tom Haak, Anna-Lena Fritzsche (Merck), Gustavo Canton (Schneider Electric), Toby Culshaw (Philips), Yvonne Agyei (Booking.com) and 40+ others.

APRIL

WHARTON PEOPLE ANALYTICS CONFERENCE | 4-5 APR | PHILADELPHIA

The immensely popular Wharton People Analytics Conference is convened by students, fronted by Adam Grant and Cade Massey and uniquely features a host of ‘outside-in’ inspirational speakers. I’ve attended both the 2017 and 2018 events and learnt a whole heap of new things.

Confirmed speakers: Adam Grant, Richard Thaler, Lindsey Vonn, Cathy Engelbert, Marcus Buckingham, Angela Duckworth, Daniel Pink amongst a number of others.

PEOPLE ANALYTICS & FUTURE OF WORK | 24-25 APR | LONDON

I'm delighted that two of my favourite people analytics conferences are joining forces for People Analytics & Future of Work in London this April. Having been chair of Tucana's People Analytics World in London since 2015, and co-chair of Al Adamsen's People Analytics & Future of Work events in San Francisco and Philadelphia for the past two years, I'm particularly thrilled that Al and Barry Swales have decided to come together. Expect to see the biggest conference on people analytics yet staged in Europe.

Confirmed speakers: Amit Mohindra, Ian Bailie, Nicky Thomas, Blair Hopkins, Stacia Garr, Vanessa Lammers, Jordan Pettman, Oliver Kasper, Steve Scott and more to be announced

MAY

UNLEASH AMERICA | 14-15 MAY | LAS VEGAS

UNLEASH took its unique blend of thought-provoking speakers, fabulous production, learning and fun to the US two years ago with the inaugural UNLEASH in San Francisco and then last year’s barnstorming event in Las Vegas (see The Revolution will be Televised). This year UNLEASH returns to the Aria, where I’ll be moderating the Smart Data track and speaking about the latest trends in the people analytics space. For evidence that UNLEASH is different to any other show about the future of work, look no further than the fact that Edward Snowden (yes, THAT Edward Snowden) is one of this year’s keynote speakers.

Confirmed speakers: Full list of speakers to follow but already confirmed are Edward Snowden, Peter Hinssen, John Bunch (Zappos) and Amy Cappellanti-Wolf (Symantec)

HRTECHX | 21 MAY | COPENHAGEN

The inaugural HRTechX is set to be the largest HR Technology Conference in the Nordics in 2019 with over 900 attendees, 60+ speakers and three tracks: Recruitment & Onboarding, Management & Retention and Strategic HR & Leadership. I’ll have the honour of delivering the opening conference keynote on ‘Driving Business and Employee Value with People Analytics’.

Confirmed speakers: Lexy Martin, Volker Jacobs, Morten Kamp Andersen, Jacob Jeppesen, Sanne Mosegaard Fibiger, Peter Hartmann, Bettina Mølgaard, Elise Hauge Larsen and many more.

JUNE

JULY

AUGUST

PEOPLE MATTERS TECH HR | 1-2 AUGUST | GURUGRAM, INDIA

Asia’s largest and fastest-growing HR and Work Tech Conference. In 2019, People Matters TechHR will bring together Thought Leaders, HR Practitioners, HR Technology Product Leaders, Start-ups and Investors to build a vibrant community that will redefine the future of work and raises the bar for productivity, innovation and growth.

SEPTEMBER

PEOPLE ANALYTICS & FUTURE OF WORK | 5-6 SEPT | PHILADELPHIA

Al Adamsen takes the PAFOW show to the East Coast for the annual fall conference in Philadelphia, where I’ll once again be co-chair with Al. Look out for announcements later this year about the program and speakers.

OCTOBER

UNLEASH WORLD | 22-23 OCT | PARIS

The big one. UNLEASH takes the world’s largest and greatest show on the future of work and workforce technology back to Paris in the brand new Paris Convention Centre. One of the highlights of my professional career was being the emcee of the main stage at last year’s show in Amsterdam. Look out for announcements on speakers and the program later in 2019.

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER

No events to date.

MEET-UPS, FORUMS AND NETWORKING GROUPS

Outside the traditional conference format, you may also want to check out the burgeoning number of informal meet-ups and forums, as well as paid for peer networking groups like Insight222. As such, look out for the popular DisruptHR and Hacking HR events taking place in a city near you. There are also several People Analytics meet-up groups such as those organised in London (by Nigel Dias), Frankfurt (by Soumyasanto Sen and Julia Altenberg), New York (by Stela Lupushor, Philip Arkcoll and Jeremy Shapiro), Washington DC (by Travis Walker), San Francisco (by Richard Rosenow), São Paulo (by Anderson Kenji) and Singapore (organised by Hunter Morgan Davis). If you are a People Analytics Leader based in Europe or North America and are interested in joining a thriving network of peers as part of Insight222’s People Analytics Program, please get in touch.

WANT TO FIND OUT ABOUT MORE CONFERENCES?

Check out the irrepressible Hung Lee’s Recruiting Brainfood Big List of Events for more conferences taking place across the world in 2019 especially those under the recruiting and/or sourcing themes.

WANT YOUR CONFERENCE OR MEET-UP INCLUDED?

If you are organising a conference with a theme dedicated to one (or more) of the six knowledge areas illustrated at the start of this article, please leave a comment and link in the comments section and we’ll add it to the list.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

David is a globally respected writer, speaker, conference chair, and executive consultant on people analytics, data-driven HR and the future of work. He helps HR practitioners and organisations leverage data and analytical thinking to drive positive business outcomes, improved performance, and enhance employee experience. Prior to launching his own consultancy business, becoming an Executive Director at Insight222 and board advisor at TrustSphere, David was the Global Director of People Analytics Solutions at IBM Watson Talent. As such, David has extensive experience in helping organisations embark upon and accelerate their people analytics journeys.