CIPD in Ireland Annual conference in Ireland 2026

About this event

Get ready for a day of inspiration, learning, and networking at the CIPD in Ireland Annual Conference 2026.

People, purpose, performance.

Headline sponsor: Zurich Life

As the world of work continues to evolve rapidly, so must organisations and the people profession. Come together with top leaders and strategic thinkers to explore how we can align people, purpose and performance for sustainable success.

Welcome and opening address

📌MC: Matt Cooper

📌Speaker Alison Hodgson, Market Director, CIPD Ireland

Headline sponsor address: How Is Ireland Really Performing?

📌Speaker: Richard Temperley, Head of Investment Development, Zurich Life
Get an investor‑level view of Ireland’s economic performance. Richard will cut through the noise to explore what it means for organisations navigating uncertainty, investment trends, and strategic decision‑making.

HR in the C-suite

Discover how HR aligns strategy with business goals, influences organisational outcomes and navigates the tough trade-offs that come with real-world leadership. Expect an honest conversation about how HR leaders can act as trusted advisors to CEOs and MDs, while driving commercial success.

📌Panel:

• Martha Ryan, People and ESG Director, Boots Ireland (CIPD Most impactful and inspirational leader 2026)
• Stephen Watkins, Managing Director, Boots UK and Ireland

• Shane O’Brien, Global Head of HR, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Ireland

• Ray McGann, Managing Director, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Ireland

• More to be announced

Chaired by Peter Cheese, CEO, CIPD.

Keynote address: Humans have the edge - 4IR

📌Speaker: Dr. Anne-Marie Imafidon, MBE
Technology is transforming the workplace at unprecedented speed, and HR has a pivotal role in ensuring humans not machines drive performance, innovation, and impact. Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE will bring real examples, emerging trends, and discuss how organisations can harness tech to amplify human potential.

Followed by fireside chat contextualising the human-technology intersection for HR leaders.

Parallel sessions - Expert-led roundtable conversations and insights area

Choose two 50-minute conversations from a series of expert-led roundtables and interactive insights areas. Take a dive deep into the issues shaping the future of work, exchange ideas with peers, and leave with practical takeaways for your organisation that you can use immediately.

Themes:

• Future of work: strategy, agility and talent Development – Organisational design, workforce planning, and capability building for tomorrow.

• People priority: wellbeing, resilience and high performance – Driving engagement, inclusion, and productivity without compromise.

• The Human-tech frontier: where HR meets digital – AI governance, digital adoption, and building data-driven HR capability.

• Future-ready workplaces: leaving a legacy for the next generation – Skills architecture, succession planning, and HR capability development to prepare for 2030.

Topics will be published soon.

Expectations are changing. Are we really keeping up?

📌Speaker: Kevin Empey, Workmatters
The way employees engage in work is evolving faster than most organisations can respond. In this interactive session, Future of Work Strategist Kevin Empey is joined by leading practitioners to explore how organisations can rethink the employee proposition, align purpose with performance, and make careers matter - all while delivering real business outcomes.

Rethinking inclusive leadership today

📌Speaker: Dr. Jay Chopra

Join our interactive conference-wide workshop and discover how your natural thinking style influences inclusion. Expect to be challenged, engaged and energised.

CPOs charting change

Most transformations don’t fail in the planning. They fail in the execution. This panel will share how they navigate complexity, embed culture, and translate people strategy into measurable organisational outcomes. Learn what works and what doesn’t when leading change.

📌Panel:

• Alan Murphy, Senior HR Director, Docusign
• Margaret O'Shea, Head of Ireland and Bank of America Europe HR

• More to be announced

Panel discussion chaired by Berna Oztinaz, Chair of the European Association for People Management.

Closing keynote: Life is improv

📌Speaker: Neil Mullarkey (Whose Line is it anyway?, Austin Powers, co-founder of the Comedy Store Players)

In a world of short attention spans, work is digital, and conversations move fast, authentic listening, adaptability, and collaboration are more important than ever. Neil Mullarkey (comedian, author and co-founder of the Comedy Store Players) closes the day with an energising, interactive keynote that will leave you refreshed and ready to take on the world.

Networking reception

Don’t let the day end with the keynote. Join your peers for drinks, continue the conversations that matter, and make connections that could spark your next big idea

Please Note:

Cancellations MUST be notified in writing.

No refund can be made for cancellations received after 1 April 2026. A substitution may be made at any time.

CIPD reserves the right to cancel or reschedule the event or change its associated programme or substitute a speaker. In the event of cancellation, liability is limited to the amount of registration only.

For your security and peace of mind, CIPD and its subsidiaries will not supply your details to any organisation for marketing purposes. By submitting this request you confirm that you agree to the use of your information as set out in CIPD’s privacy policy. We reserve the right to include your name in a list of delegates at the event.

Non-members may click here to sign up to receive our e-newsletters which will keep you up-to-date with HR news in Ireland as well as CIPD Ireland events and survey research.

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.