HR Conference: Why 2023 is the Year of Women in the Workplace

Programme

Testimonials

"Platform for virtual event was super, speakers great and loved the home, informal, element!"
Hazel Dunne, HR Business Partner, Dublin Port

"Loved the content and the format. Would have attended all sessions if possible. Good to have the legal presentations focused on Northern Ireland and Republic."
Jean Murray, Head of Human Resources, Property Registration Authority

"Exceptionally well organised, the platform that was used was very user friendly."
Angela Smiddy, Owner, Insightful Works

"The event was managed impeccably. The key speakers were engaging and had such valuable information and insight. The questions were all answered so felt very personal even with it being virtual and the opportunity to network was invaluable."
Joan Gover, HR Manager, Sinomine Specialty Fluids

"Excellent content and presenters, very engaging. Liked that plenty of comfort breaks were included which helps in full day online events."
Liz Bromley, Head of HR & Quality, Cheshire Ireland

Presenters

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  Ian McFarland Partner

  Eversheds Sutherland

  Ian is a Partner in Eversheds Sutherland's Belfast Employment Law team. He has over 10 years of knowledge and expertise in employment law, particularly in complex matters for high-profile clients. Ian's work since the onset the pandemic has been varied and often urgent, including significant collective redundancy exercises (affecting 500+ employees) and all associated issues, advice in relation to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and hybrid/home working arrangements.

   

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  Julie Galbraith Partner

  Eversheds Sutherland

  Julie Glbraith is Partner in the Employment Law department at Eversheds Sutherland. She advises clients on all aspects of the employment relationship from recruitment to termination. She works with public and private sector clients on contentious and non-contentious employment issues to deliver on the business needs of our clients. She advises HR, legal and business teams on the multitude of day to day and strategic issues such as disciplinary, grievance, performance management, equality, data protection, TUPE and termination of employment matters. 

  Julie is secretary and board member of the Employment Law Association of Ireland and lectures on the Law Society Employment Law Diploma course. She regularly speaks to the media on employment topics. 

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  Karen McShane Managing Director

  Kevin McShane Ltd.

  Karen McShane is a Trustee of The Rainbow Project – a health organisation that works to improve the physical, mental and emotional health and well-being of LGBTQIA+ people and their families in Northern Ireland. She starred in the 2019 Channel 4 documentary “The Making of Me”. 

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  Lauren Fabianski Head of Campaigns & Communications

  Pregnant Then Screwed

  Lauren is a women's rights campaigner currently Head of Campaigns and Communications at Pregnant Then Screwed. Lauren is featured in The Independent, The Guardian, The Daily Mail, iNews, C4 News, ITV News, BBC News, Glamour, Grazia and The New Statesman.

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  Loretta Dignam CEO & Founder

  The Menopause Hub

  Loretta Dignam is an award-winning Marketer of the Year, who opened the doors to The Menopause Hub, Ireland's first and only dedicated multidisciplinary menopause clinic in December 2018. Loretta is the founder and CEO.

  The Menopause Hub is Ireland’s first dedicated, multidisciplinary clinic, which includes a team of doctors - GPs and Gynaecologists, - a psychologist, a dietitian and nutritionist, a women’s health physiotherapist and an acupuncturist

  Loretta is an advocate for menopausal women and has developed a programme to support organisations with menopause in the workplace awareness and education training, and policy development.

  She has had a lengthy and highly successful career working for many multinational, global businesses including; Mars Inc, Diageo plc, Kerry Group plc Ardagh Group and Jacob Fruitfield, as a senior marketing and communications leader. She was awarded Marketer of the Year in 2011. She is a graduate of UCD and DCU and has lectured in the UCD Smurfit Business School on their executive MBA and MSc Programmes.

  Loretta was on the Board of the Abbey Theatre, for 6 years, where she was a ministerial appointment. She also chaired their Gender Equality Committee, driving change in gender equality policy across Irish theatre, chaired the Development Committee, & was a member of the Audit and Risk Committee. 

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  Prof Mark Keane Full Professor Of Computer Science

  UCD

  Since 1998, Prof. Mark Keane has been Chair of Computer Science at University College Dublin. From 2004-2007 he was Director of ICT (2004-2006) and Director General (2006-2007) at Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) where he oversaw a 700M+ euro research investment. He was an advisor to the Irish Government on its €3.7B Strategy for Science, Technology & Innovation (SSTI). From 2007-2009, he was VP of Innovation & Partnerships at UCD.  He has a BA (UCD) and PhD (TCD) in Cognitive Psychology and previously worked at the University of London, Open University, Cardiff University and Trinity College Dublin (FTCD, 1994).  Prof. Keane has published 200+ articles, including 20+ books. He is a PI in the Insight SFI Centre for Data Analytics and VistaMilk SFI Centre.   His work in Cognitive Science is concerned with how people generate new ideas from old knowledge (using analogy, concept combination, metaphor) and how they deal with things they don't know or expect (surprise, unexpectedness).   In Artificial Intelligence, he works on case-based reasoning, machine learning and explainable AI. 

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  Odessa Hamilton Behavioural Scientist

  London School of Economics

  Odessa S. Hamilton is a Research Officer in Behavioural Science within The Inclusive Initiative (TII) at the LSE, and has guest lectured on the LSE Executive MBA programme within the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science. At TII she contributes to the Inclusive Leaders Hub. Odessa leverages behavioural science insights and engages in advanced statistical analyses to advance the understanding of factors that impede inclusion in occupational environments. TII has an exciting agenda to integrate the research developed by its members to advance inclusive strategies that increase diversity in traditionally homogenous industries. Thus, with the ultimate aim of informing practice, Odessa and her team together seek to develop economically viable interventions with the use of nuanced proxy measures of inclusion. 

  Odessa is a Doctoral Researcher in Biobehavioural Epidemiology and Precision Medicine at UCL, where she teaches postgraduate Biostatistics by appointment. Her research centers on the interplay between psychosocial and applied sciences in the aetiology of disease. She explores latent mechanisms underlaying these complex processes to identify potentially mitigating behavioural factors. This research closely aligns with Odessa’s work in TII, as it feeds into disease pathogenesis following poor organisational practices, and highlights the need for healthier, more progressive occupational environments. 

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  Robert Baker CEO

  Potentia Talent Consulting

  Robert left Mercer in January 2020, after 42 years with the firm, to start his "Next Stage" portfolio career. He set up my own consulting business: Potentia Talent Consulting Limited and advises a number of companies on their approach to the D&I market. Robert is also focussing on how to help individuals and organisations realise the full potential of their talent, through leadership development, coaching and team building.  Robert is also a Board Member of European Women on Boards.
  
  
  

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  Sinead Sharpe HR Director

  Staffline

  Group HR Director for Staffline Ireland, part of the wider Staffline Recruitment Plc Group. During her 20+ year career, Sinead has led development of DEIB strategies; complex change initiatives such as acquisitions and organisational development across a wide range of industries, from manufacturing and construction to public sector and professional services.  She has completed research into the relationships between nationality, culture and employee trust, and is an active business mentor through the CIPD Northern Ireland; Women in Business and QUB Women in Law mentoring programmes. In her spare time, she is a lifeboat crew volunteer with the RNLI and became the first female to hold the operational leadership role of Helm in her station in 2022.