Explore how HR can navigate disruption, embrace AI and changing work trends, and help shape the future of work.

What does it mean to reimagine HR in times of disruption, and how can the profession help shape the future of work?

The world of work is changing rapidly. Artificial intelligence, automation, digitalisation, new forms of work, evolving employment legislation, changing employee expectations, and wider economic and societal disruption are reshaping how organisations operate – and how HR professionals support them.

Hosted by Cork University Business School, University College Cork, Reimagining HR in times of disruption will bring together academics, leading HR practitioners and expert professionals working at the forefront of employment relations and HR to explore how the HR function is changing in response to a rapidly evolving world of work.

The evening will begin with a brief research overview of some of the key forces disrupting the HR function, presented by Dr Shane Hayden-Smyth and drawing on research taking place across Cork University Business School. This will be followed by an expert panel discussion, chaired by Dr Bríd Bourke and bringing together three complementary perspectives:

Audrey Cahill (Director General, Workplace Relations Commission)

Marian Crowley-Henry (Professor of Human Resource Management, Maynooth University)

Damien McCarthy (Founder and CEO, HR Buddy)

The discussion will consider what these changes mean for HR professionals, organisations and employees, and how the HR profession can respond to – and potentially shape – the future of work.

Whether you are an experienced HR leader, an emerging professional or a student of HR, with a passion for people and performance, join us to hear fresh perspectives, connect with others and explore what the next evolution of HR could look like.

The event is open to all and is free to attend. Registration is required.

Hosted by Cork University Business School, University College Cork, in partnership with CIPD Ireland (Southern Region).

Speaker bios:

Dr Shane Hayden-Smyth is a Lecturer in Human Resource Management and the Future of Work at Cork University Business School, University College Cork. His work focuses on contemporary challenges facing organisations and HR professionals, including employee wellbeing, career development, workplace health, and how people and organisations navigate uncertainty and disruption. Shane has extensive experience teaching HRM, organisational psychology and workplace wellbeing across a number of Irish universities, and is particularly interested in translating evidence from management and organisational psychology into practical approaches that support people and organisations in a changing world of work.

Dr Bríd Bourke is a Lecturer in Consumer Behaviour, Management and Leadership at Cork University Business School, University College Cork, and a psychologist and behavioural scientist concerned with emotion and belief transformation. Prior to commencing her doctoral research into the determinants of sustainable belief and behaviour change, she was VP of Client Solutions in a US Consulting firm, and a founder of BBA Training Ltd. She continues to consult with CEOs and senior executives in c-suite team performance and the psychometric assessment of c-suite candidates to determine likely fit with the CEO, the company culture and the role-demands. Her passion is transformative sustainable coaching and development: when the leader understands how to deepen relationships, how to attract opportunities, how to manage their stressors, and determine their sustainable goals, they improve how they lead others, and multiple communities benefit.

Audrey Cahill is the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission, appointed by the Minister in February 2024. Audrey was previously a member of the Board of the Workplace Relations Commission from 2015 – 2021. She has over 25 years’ experience working at C-Suite level leading on Human Resources and Industrial Relations, particularly in the areas of leadership, strategic change, and transformation. She joined the WRC from the healthcare sector having spent many years previously in the FMCG and retail sectors, where she held a variety of senior Human Resources positions. Audrey holds a BA in Human Resource Management and a MSc in Human Resource Strategies from DCU and is a Fellow of CIPD.

Prof. Marian Crowley-Henry is Professor of Human Resource Management and Organisational Behaviour at Maynooth University School of Business. Her work focuses on how careers and workplaces are changing, with particular expertise in sustainable careers, international HRM, workplace diversity and inclusion, talent management, and employee health and wellbeing. Marian has a particular interest in how factors such as gender, identity, migration and inequality shape people’s experiences of work and career development. Her work offers important insights into how organisations and HR profe

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