Over 60 international and local speakers to share insights at CIPM World HR Congress

SHRM President and CEO Johnny C. Taylor Jr.

CIPD UK Chief Executive Officer Peter Cheese

Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Chief People Officer Paul Mills

TV Rao Learning Systems India Chairman Prof. T.V. Rao

CIPM Sri Lanka – the nation’s leader in human resource management – announced a line-up of 53 international and 11 local speakers including Chairpersons, CEOs, and General Managers of top Sri Lankan blue-chip companies together with leading academics in Sri Lanka who will share their knowledge and insights at the World HR Congress 2021. 

The World HR Congress will be held in virtual mode from 6 to 8 December on the theme ‘Exalting People Professionals Amidst a Planetary Pandemic: Explore, Expand and Excel’. These 64 speakers will participate in four plenary sessions, four panel discussions, and four rounds of concurrent technical sessions covering a wide range of topics that will deliberate the risks, challenges, and opportunities in the new world of work following the global pandemic. 

“We are delighted that some of the world’s renowned international speakers, and top corporate experts and academics from Sri Lanka have accepted our invitation to share their knowledge, expertise, and firsthand experiences. The strategies in managing and motivating their respective workforces to achieve and exceed business goals in the pandemic-hit world of work would no doubt add tremendous value to the HR and business leaders at the conclave in terms of shaping their own people and business strategies,” said Dhammika Fernando, World HR Congress 2021 Chairman and CIPM Sri Lanka Immediate Past President, Asia Pacific Federation of Human Resource Management President and WFPMA Board Director.

Johnny C. Taylor Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), leads the list of international speakers at the conclave. With over 300,000 members in 165 countries, SHRM is the largest HR professional association in the world, impacting the lives of 115 million workers every day. He is a global leader on the future of employment, culture, and leadership, and is a sought-after voice on all matters affecting work, workers, and the workplace. 

Peter Cheese – Chief Executive Officer, Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD), UK is the next on the list. CIPD is the professional body for more than 150,000 HR and people development professionals around the world. Cheese writes and speaks widely on the development of HR, the future of work, key issues of leadership, culture, organisation, people, and skills. 

Chief People Officer – Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team, Paul Mills who has over 25 years of experience in HR is the next speaker in the line-up. Mills is a Chartered Fellow of CIPD and has worked for Ford, Siemens, Volvo Cars, and Jaguar Land Rover in a variety of HR roles. 

The next speaker in the line-up for the conclave is Prof T. V. Rao, the Chairman of TV Rao Learning Systems, India. He was a professor at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmadabad and is the co-founder of the National HRD Network and Academy of HRD in India.

The other international speakers joining the line-up at the conclave include Ivan Livoni, Global HR Director Operations and HQ Staff Trelleborg Wheel Systems; Sarah McCann Bartlett, CEO/MD Australian HR Institute; Dr. Fang Lee Cooke, Fellow, the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia and Distinguished Professor Monash Business School; Dr. Lester Massingham, International Management Consultant, Executive Trainer and Speaker; Dr. D. Prasanth Nair, Chief HR Advisor in TVS Capital Fundsis Co-founder of Asynithis (Indus Partners); Udaya Indrarathna, CEO, Tourism Vertical of a large Saudi owned global conglomerate; Colin Blackwell, Founder, Enablecode and Hyperion Fintech AG; and Dr. Kazuo Yano, Fellow, Hitachi Ltd. and CEO, Happiness Planet Ltd.  

Jetwing Hotels Chairperson Shiromal Cooray, hSenid Group Founder/Chairman Dinesh Saparamadu, Seylan Bank GM/CEO Kapila Ariyaratne, Nations Trust Bank Director/CEO Priyantha Thalwatte, CBL Foods International CEO Dr. Samitha Perera, MAS Holdings CEO Suren Fernando and CIPM Sri Lanka Council Member Dr. Neil Bogahalande are some of the expert Sri Lankan speakers at the World HR Congress 2021.

More details including the other confirmed speakers at the conclave and bios can be accessed at https://wfpmacongress.com/confirmed-speakers/.