Introduction

How can organisations foster productive and inclusive workplaces, protect employee well-being, and create meaningful work in today’s fast-changing and uncertain landscape?

The Department of Human Resource Management & Employment Relations at King’s Business School invites researchers, practitioners, and business educators to join us in exploring this vital question. We are seeking cutting-edge research to better understand how workers, organisations, policymakers, and business educators can respond to current challenges and shape the future of work. We invite studies at all levels of analysis, from individual to organisational, and from local to global perspectives. Both academic research and practical insights are welcome, as we aim to spark a dialogue between scholars and practitioners on how organisations and policy makers can best navigate and shape the future of work.

Please note that this conference is in-person only and free of charge.

Conference Schedule

9:00-9:20     Registration and arrival refreshments

9:20-9:30     Welcome

9:30-10:00   Opening Keynote: Shaping the Future of NHS Work in an era of Polycrisis: From Model to Anchor Employer? Professor Stephen Bach. Dean, King's Business School

10:00-10:30  Keynote: Can remote working improve gender equality or will it exacerbate it? Professor Heejung Chung, Director, King's Global Institute for Women's Leadership, King's College London

10:30-11:00  Keynote: Flexible working, employer equality policies, and the role of government in improving disabled people’s employment outcomes. Kim Hoque, Professor of Human Resource Management, King's Business School, King's College London

11:10-12:10  Parallel Sessions

Room 1: Managerial Insight Session for Practitioners: Flexible Working and the Meaning of the Workplace

This session examines flexible working beyond policy. As it reshapes when and where we work, it also transforms how individuals understand their work, the workplace, and their lives. With many organizations encouraging a return to the office, we ask: what are we really returning to? While the workplace includes the physical office, it also encompasses the relationships, emotions, identities, and sense of purpose people associate with their work. This session is interactive, inviting participants to explore how the workplace can be redefined and reimagined, engage with the panel by asking questions, and discuss strategies that foster a positive work experience in a flexible era.

Panel Lead: Professor Mike Clinton, King's Business School, King's College London

Panelists: Matthew Davis (Professor of Organisational Psychology, University of Leeds), Morag Lynagh (former Global Future of Work Lead at Unilever and Director of Blue Moth Consulting), Archontia Manolakelli (Architect and interdisciplinary Design Researcher, Atkins), Lizzie Penny (cofounders, Workstyle Revolution)

Room 2. Meet the editors from Personnel Psychology

Curious about what it takes to publish in Personnel Psychology, a psychological research journal centered around people at work. Join this interactive session to meet the journal’s editors and gain insight into the priorities of the journal and the review and decision-making process. The editors will share what they look for in submissions, common pitfalls to avoid, and how authors can prepare their submissions.

Chief editor, Tammy Allen (University of South Florida)

Associate editors: Elizabeth Campbell (University of Minnesota), Christopher Nye (Michigan State University), Winny Shen (York University), Scott Tonidandel (University of North Carolina-Charlotte), Kristen Shockley (Auburn University), Chia-Huei Wu (King's College London)

Rooms 3 to 5: Academic Presentations

12:10-13:30  Lunch and poster session 

13:30-14:00  Keynote: Ethnic Differences in Recruitment Outcomes: What Evidence Tells Us About Inclusive Hiring. Mladen Adamovic, Reader in Leadership & Global Management, King's Business School, King's College London

14:10-15:10 Parallel Sessions

Room 1. Managerial Insight Session for Practitioners: Diversity and Inclusion in organizations: Shaping the Road Ahead

Focusing on the role of organizations in driving diversity and inclusion, this interactive session invites participants to engage with panelists, ask questions, and explore how organizations can foster inclusive environments, overcome challenges, and embed D&I into organizational culture, with discussions tailored to their specific experiences and insights.

Panel lead: Alexandra Budjanovcanin. Reader in Leadership, King's College London

Panelists: Nathan Clements (Managing Partner, Epiphanies LLP), Jonathan Ashong-Lamptey (Managing Director, Element of inclusion), Dami Umeh (Head of Inclusion for Fraud Investigation Service at HMRC), Nikunj Upadhyay (Inclusion and Diversity Director, Wates group), Madeleine Wyatt (Reader in Diversity and Inclusion, King's College London)

Rooms 2 to 5: Academic Presentations

15:20-16:20   Parallel Sessions

Room 1. Managerial Insight Session for Practitioners: Meaning, Purpose, and Strategy: Shaping the Future of Meaningful Work

This interactive session invites participants to engage with panelists, ask questions, and explore how organizations can integrate meaning, purpose, and strategy to create a thriving workplace through meaningful work. Panelists, including both academics and practitioners, will share scholarly perspectives and real-world practices to align purpose-driven leadership with strategic goals, providing actionable insights for building engaged, high-performing workforce.

Panel lead: Dana Minbaeva. Professor of Strategic Human Capital, King's College London

Panelists: Hannah Kozlova Lindsay (Chief People Officer, Pinsent Masons), Knut Laaser (Senior Lecturer in Employment Relations, King's College London), Lynn Hawkins (Previous Global Head of HR, ViiV Healthcare), Tim Haynes (Founding Director, QQ HR Partners Ltd)

Rooms 2 to 5: Academic Presentations

16:30-17:30  Keynote: AI in The Changing Work Environment. Alexia Cambon, Director, Innovation & Insights - Office of Applied Research, Microsoft

17:30-18:00   Networking reception