HR Leader Podcast Network

New technologies are reshaping daily operations and processes, but – since every workplace has access to such tools – what will truly separate businesses from the pack is how they harness and grow their people. In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with an organisational psychologist and the former head of strategic talent at the IMD Business School in Switzerland, Tania Lennon, the ongoing shift in perspective about people, leadership, and talent, the need to future-proof businesses, necessary workplace capabilities moving forward, taking a holistic approach to leadership development succession planning, strengthening productivity and innovation without losing key human skills, and the essential role of HR moving forward.

In this special episode of The HR Leader Podcast, produced in partnership with Deel, we unpack the imperative for HR to not only implement successful AI-inspired workflows but also get the most out of teams by having a stronger focus on the people within them. Host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Guy Fenton, Global Director at Deel, about getting AI implementation right. When done properly, AI becomes an amplifier – not a replacement. Drawing on Deel's transformation, Guy shares the framework that works: the questions that drive success, cascading benefits of smart deployment, and how to keep people central while revolutionising workflows. They tackle tricky conversations around team composition and make a compelling case for why Australian businesses are positioned to make the pivots that matter. If you're leading through AI's inflection point, this is your playbook.

To learn more about Deel, click here.

The reshaping of how people work raises myriad pertinent questions, including, and especially, how employers can and must use new technologies to elevate human potential rather than replace it. In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy welcomes back Insight APAC people and culture director Elyse Philippi to discuss what it means to be a good and productive worker, how to view performance in the current climate, the inherent risks with mistaking productivity for capability, how to define capable workers, ensuring that the right skills and traits are being recognised in the age of AI, practical steps that HR must take, bringing the C-suite along for the ride, balance upskilling the workforce on new technologies against not losing sight of the need for capability, and why she's optimistic about employers' willingness to view performance as being tied to capability.

Here, an award-winning HR practitioner reflects on the headline trends that will impact the vocational direction of the human resources function in FY2026–27 and why it is so important to put one's self forward as a leader in the workplace. In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Heritage Real Estate director of people and culture Hayley Adcock, who won the Innovator of the Year (HR Manager in a Large Business) category at the inaugural HR Innovation Awards, about her transition from being a registered psychologist to working in HR, the need for HR to step into leadership roles and why, the impact of new technologies in the market, honing soft skills, prioritising psychological safety, bringing the C-suite along for the ride, best practice in FY26–27, and why staff are the first clients.

According to this award-winning HR professional, the next frontier in workplace wellbeing is shaping up to be how well workplaces manage the breakdown of relationships. In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with The Separation Guide chief executive and co-founder Angela Harbinson, whose business won the Innovator of the Year – Best ESG Program at the inaugural HR Innovation Awards, about the hidden wellbeing gap that employers haven't solved, why relationship stress is becoming an HR issue, the financial and social impact, what the data is telling us, the future of workplace wellbeing, lessons for HR leaders, and why this conversation matters.

Traditional designs for a business's HR function often lose sight of the problems they are trying to solve and fail to tie programs to commercial outcomes. Here, we explore the need to move towards more modern, holistic thinking about the role of HR and how best to succeed in FY2026–27 and beyond. In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with We Are Charlotte founder and chief executive Jessica Trumble about what she likes about outsourced HR work as opposed to being in-house, unpacking the differences between older HR approaches and newer ones, the imperative of having a commercial mindset, taking advantage of environmental opportunities in the post-pandemic market, rethinking the function of HR, what constitutes being commercially minded, and getting business buy-in for a new approach.

In this special episode of The HR Leader Podcast, produced in partnership with Deel, the all-in-one payroll and HR platform for global teams, we unpack the imperative for Australian businesses to build global workforces and not be constrained by the domestic market. Host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Deel's Asia-Pacific mid-market director, Joji Kurosaki, about why businesses must be positioned for global expansion in the post-pandemic environment, structural challenges facing Australian businesses, tax, labour, and regulatory considerations, risk and compliance costs, managing idiosyncratic jurisdictional matters, what HR needs to do moving forward, working collaboratively with the C-suite, and the opportunities available for businesses that look beyond domestic borders.

To learn more about Deel, click here.

In the post-pandemic workplace, when leaders appear more reactive and less inclined to challenge toxic employees, the costs to the business can be significant. To this end, culture must be a shared leadership responsibility.

In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Rise and Thrive Global founder Dr Catherine Plano about lessons from listening circles, key takeaways from recent research she's conducted, the dangers of being fearful of losing certain employees, the cost of toxic employees, broader workforce challenges post-pandemic, how HR can get leadership to better own culture questions, and the role of HR moving forward.

In this special episode of The HR Leader Podcast, produced in partnership with ELMO, we reflect on the workplace shifts that must occur if business use of new technologies can meaningfully transition from experimental to foundational. Host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Inventium founder and organisational psychologist Dr Amantha Imber about how Australian workplaces are falling behind global counterparts on AI implementation and therefore failing to have a bigger impact, key findings from ELMO's HR Industry Benchmark Report and what it says about the state of affairs, why adoption isn't translating into impact, why HR needs clear metrics for AI transformations, prioritising outcomes over activity, and how ELMO's AI Maturity Assessment tool can assist workplaces in moving forward.

To learn more about ELMO, click here.

In transforming a workplace's behaviours around technology and ultimately productivity and innovation, human resources teams have a real opportunity to partner with business leaders to help staff move out of the experimentation phase and make meaningful impacts. In this episode of The HR Leader Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy welcomes back Publicis Groupe ANZ and APAC chief talent officer Pauly Grant to discuss why such transformation is so essential in the new financial year, the need to explore how best to utilise new technologies and effectively roll them out, how she and Publicis Groupe approached the problem through its PL.AI Ground initiative, the need for community-led, collegiate dialogue around AI usage and implementation, the business's headline lessons and takeaways from its program, the role of HR in such initiatives, overcoming challenges, and what constitutes real confidence and adoption of AI in Australian workplaces.