HR Leader Podcast Network

Justine  Figo  is an HR director, author and executive coach. She spoke with The HR Leader about how HR has changed over her career, the exciting network of senior HR professionals that she's created, and what she'd love to see from HR in the future. Ms  Figo  related anecdotes about being part of the family business as a child and how she learnt very early about the important role people play in...

Kellie-Ann McDade, partner at Baker McKenzie, spoke with The HR Leader about what employers should be mindful of following the return to work after COVID-19 lockdowns, including considerations around letting employees work out of the employer's home state.  Ms McDade touched on some of the WH&S concerns that employers should be aware of, including obligations they still need to fulfil, regardless...

From high school teacher to positive psychology coach, Michelle Falzon shared her unique insights around the trauma that workforces have undergone due to COVID-19. She also spoke about why caution should be exercised regarding hybrid working and the challenges she's seeing in the HR market right now. Whether the impact of COVID-19 has been profound or minimal for an individual, everyone has experi...

The CEO and MD for auticon in Australia and New Zealand, Bodo Mann, joined The HR Leader to share auticon's story – a business with 70 per cent of its workforce on the autism spectrum. Mr Mann explained that auticon isn't a charity, even though its mission might be similar to charities that support neurodiverse workers. He shared what he feels Australia can learn from auticon's work overseas, as w...

Founder and CEO of Enboarder,  Brent  Pearson, joined The HR Leader to talk about why they're putting human connection at the heart of how they work as a business, as well as incorporating this into their product offering. Mr Pearson shared the origin story of Enboarder, relating the research he discovered that evidenced how critical onboarding is to employee retention. He shared this video for po...

AVL Wines people and culture director, Tash Cahill, joined The HR Leader to talk about how she has achieved a senior HR role so quickly in her career, the support she's received to help her achieve success, and how she's crafted her role so HR at AVL Wines can have the most impact. Ms Cahill knew that she wanted a career in HR, rather than falling into it like many in the profession. This gave her...

Leroy Wilkinson-Maher, the managing director and founder of Dhiira, sat down with The HR Leader to discuss what organisations can do to increase inclusion and equitability for Aboriginal people. In this second part of the conversation, Mr Wilkinson-Maher provided some insights for organisations looking to better understand the history of Aboriginal people, what positive changes businesses can supp...

The head of HR at Haleon ANZ, Abby Krause, joined The HR Leader to talk about the organisation's rebrand, how they've designed their offices to reflect the changing needs of their workforce, and how DEI has been considered throughout that journey. Haleon ANZ includes well-known brands from Sensodyne and Voltaren through to Panadol, Centrum, and ChapStick. Ms Krause shared how they were able to dra...

Niall  O'Rourke, partner at Sharp and Carter, spoke with The HR Leader about what the recruitment firm does to keep wellbeing front and centre. Sharp and Carter's  website  calls out their 'culture of uncommon care'. Mr O'Rourke described how this is reflected in the business, including assigning a founding member of their firm to look after the wellbeing of employees. Mr O'Rourke shared with The...

Mimma Mason, business development director of the clinical assessments arm in APAC for Pearson, joined The HR Leader to talk about her role as a cognitive scientist, and how her speciality relates to HR and people leaders. Ms Mason shared what she means when she refers to a 'career passport' and how it reflects a need to look beyond skills to the candidate/employee's experience more generally. Ms...

Leroy Wilkinson-Maher, the managing director and founder of Dhiira, sat down with The HR Leader to discuss what organisations can do to increase inclusion and equitability for Aboriginal people. In the first of this two-part special podcast, Mr Wilkinson-Maher shared insights into his career journey to date, starting with a school-based traineeship with a bank, to working in HR and now managing Dh...

Kate Newey, the head of human resources at Adaptalift Group, sat down with The HR Leader to talk about the challenges and the opportunities involved in being a parent and a senior part-time employee. Ms Newey discussed what it was like adjusting to being a part-time HR professional and establishing new boundaries to juggle work and home duties. She also shared how she has created the right team an...

Belinda Leon shared with The HR Leader her experience being diagnosed as an adult with ADHD, her tips for employers on supporting a neurodivergent workforce, and DEI at Bendigo Bank. Ms Leon looks after employer branding at Bendigo Bank. She spoke with The HR Leader about her career trajectory, how it's helped to have a variety of experiences, and what being diagnosed with ADHD has meant for her i...

Anu Villarosa, the HR Director at Pitcher Partners and parent of four, shared how she balances work and her personal life without sacrificing career goals or time with family. Ms Villarosa spoke about her path to the role of HR Director and how she unapologetically moved forward in her career while also building her family. She shared tips for women to achieve equality in the workplace, looking at...

Sally McKibbin from Indeed sat down with The HR Leader to talk about recruitment in relation to automation, inclusion and hiring graduates. The conversation explored the impact of automation on recruitment. Ms McKibbin also talked about what can be done to make recruitment a more inclusive process, including understanding the impact of job ad language and placement. Rounding out the episode, Ms Mc...

Jo Mason, the co-founder and CEO of WorkHaven, spoke with The HR Leader about the work her organisation is doing to support those affected by domestic and family violence (DFV). Please note that this episode may be triggering for some listeners. Ms Mason talked about how organisations can support employees affected by DFV, highlighting the importance of understanding the stages people go through f...

Sapia.ai's CEO and founder, Barb Hyman, spoke with The HR Leader about business transformation, data and tech in HR, why Saipa.ai is part of The Circle Back Initiative, and much more. Ms Hyman shared how Sapia.ai is changing how feedback is given to candidates, using tech to provide a level of feedback that would have been hard to match in the past.  The conversation also delved into why having th...

Mercer Career Australia country managing director, Cynthia Cottrell, spoke with The HR Leader for a special 2-part podcast on AI and automation in HR, work design and how data complements redesigns. The conversation examined how employers can use automation to facilitate 'sustainable and enjoyable' work for all employees. And Ms Cottrell talked about what AI really means as it's a concept that's o...

Nicole  Mason  heads up change management at Blackmores Group. She joined The HR Leader to share her journey getting into change management, the challenges of the discipline, and how change management and HR teams can work well together. Ms  Mason  explained some of the change management work involved in implementing a new HRIS, as well as imparting three tips for those looking after change manage...

Lance Scoular, fondly known online as 'The Savvy Navigator', spoke with The HR Leader about how he developed his social media marketing acumen and in turn becamea mentor to others looking to build their social media presence and following. Mr Scoular shared what he finds most rewarding about mentoring and the creative ways he's mentored people via social media. He provided insights into working wi...

Andrea Kirby, Talent Table's founder and director, spoke with The HR Leader about all things related to talent acquisition (TA). The discussion looked at both internal and external TA, the skills difference between the two disciplines, and the hurdles professionals need to overcome when moving from agency to internal recruitment. Ms Kirby also spoke with our editor, Shandel McAuliffe, about what t...

CEO of Hoban Recruitment, Alison Watts, spoke with The HR Leader about the insights the company discovered via its recent  Workforce Trends Survey, 2022–23 . Ms Watts shared why the report is valuable for the market and some of the top findings. The podcast discussion also included what roles are particularly difficult to recruit for at the moment, and three tips for mitigating those challenges. H...

Productivity coach and author of the 'It's about time' series, Donna McGeorge, shared her insights on time management for leaders with The HR Leader. Delving into concepts like 'surge capacity' and 'adaptive capacity', as well as the '15 per cent rule', Ms McGeorge shared tips to help leaders and people managers make the most of their time. The conversation also covered how managers can help their...

Mercer Careers Australia country managing director,Cynthia Cottrell, spoke with The HR Leader for a special two-part podcast on AI and automation in HR, work design and how data complements redesigns. The conversation examined how employers can use automation to facilitate 'sustainable and enjoyable' work for all employees. And Ms Cottrell talked about what AI really means as it's a concept that's...

Michelle Novotny, managing director at Discovering People, joined The HR Leader to talk about her experiences as a business owner, parent, and mentor in the recruitment industry. Ms Novotny discusses how she achieves work-life balance as a busy parent and managing director. She delves into why she believes it's important to give people professional opportunities, and why this has been rewarding fo...