HR Summit and Expo Day One - 14 October 2026Wednesday, 14 October 2026 - GT (Gulf Time, GMT+04:00)

The CHRO role is undergoing its most significant transformation in decades and is no longer sufficient to be just "people experts". This session reveals how pioneering CHROs are earning board seats and CEO trust by proving HR's revenue contribution and driving business outcomes. Learn how to transform from support function to profit centre, build board-level credibility, and position HR as indispensable strategic growth driver by:

• Positioning HR as the primary catalyst for business transformation and growth

• Developing frameworks for aligning people initiatives with enterprise-wide business objectives

• Building executive influence by demonstrating HR's measurable impact on revenue and market position

• Designing sustainable change management approaches that balance business agility with employee wellbeing

Achieving substantial productivity improvements requires moving beyond experimentation to strategic execution. This session equips leaders with proven methodologies for designing AI-human partnerships that generate documented performance gains through targeted opportunity analysis, intelligent tool deployment, and accelerated scaling.

Key Learning Takeaways:

• Identify high-impact zones for 30-50% efficiency gains through AI integration

• Design AI-human models that amplify expertise while preserving judgment

• Build ROI-focused cases demonstrating quantifiable returns and competitive advantage

• Deploy rapid strategies that produce measurable results within 90-180 days

Most initiatives fail to scale beyond initial pilots. This session examines how forward-thinking leaders are bridging this divide, converting experimental AI initiatives into scalable revenue drivers that deliver quantifiable business value and competitive advantage.

Key Learning Takeaways:

• Set clear ROI thresholds to determine when pilots are ready for enterprise-wide scaling and investment

• Build governance frameworks that align stakeholders around business outcomes and maintain executive support

• Create change strategies that overcome resistance by demonstrating tangible financial and operational benefits

• Implement dual-metric tracking that measures both financial impact and people outcomes

Senior leaders are building AI ethics frameworks that translate regulatory requirements into competitive advantage, protecting the business while maintaining innovation velocity and stakeholder trust. This session demonstrates how companies embed ethical considerations into their AI transformation, ensuring responsible deployment while driving measurable business outcomes.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• Design practical governance frameworks translating ethical principles into operational people practices

• Implement fairness protocols across all talent processes, from recruitment to performance management

• Navigate regulatory complexity while maintaining innovation and business agility

• Build stakeholder trust through transparent decision-making and inclusive leadership approaches

AI transformation succeeds when HR and IT function as strategic partners. This conversation explores how CHROs and CTOs can collaborate effectively, featuring real-world examples of successful partnerships and actionable frameworks to overcome integration challenges.

Key Learning Takeaways:

• Align AI transformation initiatives with business objectives

• Conduct joint tech stack audits to eliminate redundancies

• Build cross-functional governance for responsible AI deployment

• Create shared accountability frameworks for AI ROI

Talent acquisition stands at the epicenter of AI disruption. This session explores how leading companies are fundamentally redesigning recruitment, leveraging skills science to decode capability requirements, automating transactional workflows, and elevating recruiters into strategic, judgment-led partners.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• Deploy skills-based frameworks that transcend traditional role descriptions and credentials

• Redesign end-to-end recruitment workflows using AI to eliminate friction and bias

• Transform recruiter roles from administrative coordinators to strategic talent advisors

• Measure AI impact on quality of hire, time-to-productivity, and candidate experience metrics

Move HR from intuition-based to evidence-driven decision-making. This session demonstrates how to build robust people analytics capabilities connecting workforce metrics to business outcomes and elevating HR's credibility.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• Audit and enhance data quality ensuring reliable insights for decision-making

• Design integrated analytics frameworks connecting people metrics to business performance

• Develop predictive capabilities anticipating workforce challenges before they materialise

• Build executive dashboards translating HR data into compelling business intelligence

Businesses increasingly expect HR to demonstrate a measurable impact on productivity and performance outcomes. Explore how HR professionals are using data analytics, workflow optimisation, and performance barriers analysis to show direct contribution to business results.

Key Learning Takeaways:

• Balance productivity with wellbeing to prevent burnout while maximising output

• Implement data-driven productivity metrics that identify bottlenecks, optimise workflows, and demonstrate HR's ROI on business performance

• Remove performance barriers through technology integration, skills development, and cultural practices

• Leverage generational insights to tailor productivity strategies that align with diverse work styles and motivational drivers