We are delighted to announce that the IHF People Day: "Shaping Brighter Futures - Nurture, Develop, Evolve" will take place on Wednesday, 22nd June 2022 in the Midlands Park Hotel, Portlaoise.

We have an outstanding speaker line-up designed to inspire, challenge, and motivate attendees. Speakers will explore the key challenges facing our industry, share key considerations and insights into people strategies and defining your business as an attractive and meaningful place to work. 

The day will also provide a great opportunity to network, engage, and catch up with your peers and will be of particular benefit to General Managers, HR Managers, Owner/Operators, Heads of Department and those with responsibility for HR management and people development.

Jonathan Healy, MD of Healy Communications, experienced broadcaster and interviewer, is our host for the day. First among our speakers is Lord Mark Price, Former Government Minister of Trade, Managing Director of Waitrose and Businessman, who is on a mission to help transform the way employees think about their work by giving them and their employers the framework, services and ideas they need to make meaningful change. His session, "Leading your people for better results”, will kickstart our day, followed by Una Crilly of Positive Impact, who has seen how leading with emotional intelligence can build happy, cohesive teams, boost productivity and keep your best people. Emotional intelligence is a critical skill for leaders to build trust and create inclusive cultures.  No matter how hard we try to ignore emotions at work, every workplace is filled with emotional highs and lows. Understanding how to leverage the dimensions of emotional intelligence to build effective relationships and lead teams through emotional challenges is critical for every leader in the modern workplace.

Kathleen Linehan, Group Strategic Director of Human Resources with Trigon Hotels, a passionate advocate for Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace and qualified Behavioural Analyst and Coach, will discuss how to Attract, Recruit and Retain your people. It’s no secret that the past few years have changed the game when attempting to recruit and retain talent. The COVID-induced “Great Resignation” and labour shortage is posing an on-going challenge for every hotel in the country. So how can you up your onboarding game to attract talent that stays? Join us as we explore the changing workforce and discuss action-oriented strategies for aiding your recruitment, onboarding and retention efforts. 

After lunch, Jack Kavanagh will inspire us with his talk on "The Future of Wellness in the Workplace". At 20 years of age Jack sustained a spinal cord injury leaving him with 15% muscle function. This event could have been the end for him but he chose to see it as a source of opportunity to grow, learn and to reset how he looks at life and what is possible. "So often we look outwardly for heroes and we forget the magic we have within ourselves." Wellness and wellbeing have been talking points for a long time and we all know why they are important. But two years after the beginning of the pandemic, the importance and impact of wellness and resilience for us all as individuals, as well as for our employees, wellness activities cannot be underestimated as we attempt to attract candidates to our businesses. As a result, businesses and leaders must think in new ways and implement expanded and creative solutions to support wellbeing for the future of work.

D&I. DE&I. DEI&B. The acronyms may be constantly evolving, the language we use – what is considered appropriate and what is not, what is in and out of vogue – is constantly changing, and how we speak to diversity in our workplaces is no exception. When it comes to diversity, employers are at the top of list to address concerns around Diversity as well as Equity, Inclusion and Belonging. Organisations recognise its potential for making a huge impact, but have come up short moving the needle in purposeful, sustainable ways. Louise Phelan did just that during her 13 years as Vice President at Paypal where she was instrumental in creating a thriving, diverse culture. Louise will explore how companies can build a culture of belonging that both attracts and retains talent, understand what diverse employees are looking for and how to integrate these needs into your management styles, and create a safe and inclusive workplace culture.

Marian Hennessy Roche, from Ability@Work, will then join Louise and Jack for a panel discussion, "Bringing a culture of inclusion to the workplace", moderated by Jonathan Healy.