CIPD Annual Conference and Exhibition 2026: highlights from day two – People Management
From employment rights reforms to AI adoption, People Management explores the key takeaways from the final day of the event
6 November 2026
The second and final day of the CIPD Annual Conference and Exhibition 2026 (5 November) saw HR professionals return to Manchester Central for discussions on leadership, workplace culture, skills and employment rights.
Opening the day, Greg Jackson, chief executive of Octopus Energy, joined a fireside chat exploring the importance of motivated teams and giving people greater responsibility. “Good teams are made up of very different people,” he said, adding: “What you need to have is everybody motivated.”
The rest of the day explored how employers can prepare for greater trade union access rights and changes to unfair dismissal protections, alongside practical approaches to building an AI-ready workforce.
Here, People Management runs down the key takeaways from day two of the conference:
Managing new trade union access rights is all about cultivating relationships, Amanda Chadwick, expert speaker at CIPD HR-inform, told delegates. “Don’t start off on the wrong foot. Focus on building positive relationships,” she said.
When employees are happy and engaged in their role, they’re less likely to join a union, she explained: “It’s often disgruntled people who don’t feel that their voice has been heard who are joining unions.”
Employers can keep staff happy by engaging with them, Chadwick added. “It’s about keeping that bond with your staff, not just giving someone a job and expecting them to enjoy it because you’re paying a wage,” she said.
Employers must prioritise organisational purpose and collaboration over technology when adopting artificial intelligence, delegates heard during the ‘Building AI-ready workforce’ session.
Graeme Burns, AI implementation adviser at AI West and former AI people lead at Nationwide, warned against rushing into adoption or expecting AI to “fix things”. “It’s not just about training people on tools,” he said. “It’s about purpose and whether your technology delivers the purpose in your organisation.”
Burns explained that assessing AI proposals against Nationwide’s organisational purpose helped eliminate 50 per cent of potential use cases.
Meanwhile, James Faulconbridge, professor of management at Lancaster University, warned against treating AI adoption as a “one off” initiative. He stressed the importance of building a culture of continuous learning that enables organisations to “adapt and adopt” as technology develops.
During his presentation, ‘Navigating the Employment Rights Act 2025 – what teams should prioritise now and what’s next’, Michael Warren, employment rights director at the Department for Business and Trade, acknowledged the speed of the reforms. “We recognise the pace and the volume of the changes,” he said.
“It has been two years in the making to get to this point and there’s a year to go. Even spreading some of these changes over two years means it’s a very steady, demanding drumbeat.”
Describing the reforms as “the greatest upgrade of workers’ rights in a generation”, Warren stressed that the changes would be worthwhile. “It’s the right thing for workers, employers, the country and the economy and, if we all work together to get there, we will be glad we did,” he added.
During the debate ‘What’s the biggest change management or transformation challenge you’re facing at the moment?’ Claire Gore, director of future of NHS HR and OD at NHS England, said shifting organisational culture requires senior leaders to reflect internally. “If you’re going to change the culture, sometimes turning it on yourselves from the top can be a very powerful thing to do,” she said.
Helen Ketteringham, chief people officer at NCFE, recommended scorecards to track managers’ performance and accountability as they progress into senior roles. She suggested adopting core “leadership principles” to help managers deliver the intended workplace experience for every employee.
Employers should consider shortening probation periods to three months to reduce the risk of unfair dismissal claims when new employment rights take effect in January 2027, delegates at the conference heard.
During a masterclass session, HR consultant Edua Effiom warned that reducing the qualifying period for unfair dismissal from two years to six months would require employers to rethink how they managed new starters. “Probation is no longer a formality, it’s a legal buffer zone,” she said.
Recommending a three-month probation period with clear extension processes, Effiom urged managers to act earlier, adding: “Performance conversations need to happen in week two, not month five.”
During her afternoon presentation, ‘Navigating change and building trust during employment rights reforms’, Michelle Hobson, HR services director at Moorepay, emphasised the key role that managers play in helping their organisations adapt to the reforms. “We always come back to the importance of the managers in your organisation – not just recruiting competent managers, but those who feel comfortable and confident in supporting their employees through change,” she said.
“Managers could be your greatest asset in making this change stick and making employees feel that you have embraced it in the right way. They are absolutely key and, with something this big, they matter more than ever.”
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