Alison Hodgson, Director, CIPD in Ireland:
So Yvonne, the time has arrived. The excitement in the build up, the EU presidency is in Ireland. The CIPD have been approved as an accredited body for the EU presidency and we are just so proud to be playing our part to support the EU presidency here in Ireland.
So first of all, thank you.Thank you for coming along today.
But I'd love for you to share with us just how important is the EU presidency for Ireland?
Yvonne White, Assistant Secretary General, Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment:
The EU presidency is a very big moment for Ireland because it puts us at the centre of decision making really. And you want to be an honest broker and you want to be objective, but you also want to demonstrate your values and put your best foot forward because it's impacting on the lives of 450 million people. And the EU has to be relevant to all of those people and to all the professions and organisations working in it.
So we're delighted to have events like this where, it's not just government-led events, but it's really credible and trusted partners who have something to say and a real part to play in relation to the presidency.
Alison:
And today we are here in version one, world-class office.
We are having an immersive experience in a workshop around AI and building human capability in this new era of AI.
We've heard some from some bots and some avatars.
What are your reflections so far today?
Yvonne:
Well, it's the first time I've been in a meeting where robots have been answering back, so that's a new experience for me.
Alison: and they have a lot to say!
Yvonne: and they have a lot to say.
And to see how the potential and how far all this is going to go is really important, but also making sure that we get it right for organisations, for individuals, for everybody that's involved in this, because it does change the way we work. It changes the quality of work potentially.
It needs to be done in an inclusive way. And we all have skills development based on this. But it's a very exciting future if we get this piece right.
Alison: And I think there are two adjectives you've just used there that are at the core of what we at the CIPD are all about.
One is relevance.
So we absolutely aim to be relevant to our members, to the HR profession and to the world of work at large.
And second then is inclusion.
Inclusion, because we can't leave anybody behind.
AI is one of the greatest opportunities of our time.
It's really exciting to be living through this period.
But it's important that people are not demarginalised or marginalised and left behind.
You talked about that this morning in your overview of the EU presidency and one of the purposes.
Yvonne: Absolutely, and the EU is at an important point of time, I suppose, in looking at the world of work and quality jobs and making sure that growth and competitiveness and all of those things are done at the same time as supporting organisations and supporting workers. And they're not mutually exclusive things, but we need to be thoughtful about how we do all of that.
We've had really good conversations today too about how all of that technological change interacts with all those other things we're trying to do, whether that's remote work, whether it's young people in the workplace, whether it's getting the most out of keeping older people and using their good judgment, and all of those HR aspects that interact.
So none of these things can be looked at in a vacuum, I think.
Alison: And one thing is for sure, the target operating model for all of the world of work is changing and will continue to change. And we at the CIPD want to walk alongside organisations their members, our members, the HR profession and line managers who all are critical in helping everybody navigate this new world of work.
Yvonne: And to be in a room with thought leaders from pharma, from tech, from social, from all of the various sectors that are concerned, there's a real energy and excitement about where we can go. But there's also genuine attention to the risk and trying to make sure that we do this in a way where everybody comes along with us and everybody benefits from this change because there are huge benefits possible.
Alison: And you're right to reference who's in the room because we've kind of got all of the sectors. So we do, we've got pharma, we've got fintech, we've got banking, we've got aviation in there, we've got manufacturing in there, as well as several government departments in the room as well.
And so it's really the mosaic of perspectives that are coming through, telco were in there, as well as tech at large. So it's just property real estate are in there, healthcare are in there. It's just fascinating to hear the synergies and the alignment as well as the divergences in perspective. And I think that's what's been most rewarding for me today.
Yvonne: Absolutely.
