HR WEEK LISBON 2025: Program Pillars

HR WEEK LISBON 2026

Crafting the Future of People & Organizations

Explore the 18 strategic pillars designed to challenge assumptions, ignite rethinking, and empower HR leaders as anthropologists and organization designers.

Program Pillars: A Meta-Perspective

Our conference transcends traditional HR topics, inviting a broader view on the organizational context through lenses of psychology, philosophy, anthropology, art, sport, science, and history. We focus on questions that ignite thinking, fostering strategic partners who design the future.

1. The Algorithmic Age: Rethinking Human-AI Collaboration

Beyond automation, this cluster invites HR to question the very nature of work and intelligence, moving from 'HR tech' to 'HR philosophy of AI'. It challenges assumptions about human roles and ignites thinking on symbiotic organizational design.

  • When Algorithms Lead: Ethical Dilemmas in AI-Driven Decisions
  • The Augmented Human: Redefining Productivity in a Hybrid Workforce
  • Decoding Bias: Anthropological Lenses on AI in Talent Systems
  • The Future of "Thinking": How AI Reshapes Cognitive Demands on Employees
  • AI as a Co-Creator: Designing Synergistic Human-Machine Workflows
  • Beyond Efficiency: AI's Role in Fostering Creativity and Innovation
  • The Unseen Impact: AI's Psychological Effects on Employee Well-being

2. The Anthropologist's Lens: Unearthing Organizational Truths

Directly addressing the "anthropologist" role, this cluster challenges HR to question deeply ingrained assumptions and cultural norms within their organizations. It's about looking outside-in, using methods from social sciences to diagnose hidden dynamics.

  • Corporate Tribes: Deconstructing Unspoken Rules and Rituals
  • The Shadow Culture: What Organizations Really Do vs. What They Say
  • Myth-Busting HR: Challenging Conventional Wisdom in People Practices
  • Ethnography for Executives: Observing Work as a Social Scientist
  • Power Dynamics Unveiled: Mapping Influence Beyond the Org Chart
  • From Symptoms to Systems: Diagnosing Root Causes of Organizational Dysfunction
  • The Unwritten Contract: Exploring Employee Expectations vs. Reality

3. Designing for Doubt: Architecting Adaptive Organizations

This cluster embodies the "invitation to doubt" and the "organization designer" role. It focuses on building structures that thrive on uncertainty, rather than resisting it, encouraging HR to design for continuous questioning and evolution.

  • The Anti-Fragile Organization: Thriving on Disorder, Not Just Surviving It
  • Beyond Hierarchies: Exploring Decentralized and Self-Organizing Models
  • Designing for Experimentation: Creating Spaces for Failure and Learning
  • The Liquid Workforce: Building Agility Through Flexible Talent Ecosystems
  • Future-Proofing or Future-Designing? Proactive vs. Reactive Organizational Change
  • The Paradox of Control: Empowering Autonomy in a Regulated World
  • From Blueprints to Prototypes: Iterative Organizational Development

4. The Philosophical HR: Ethics, Purpose & Human Flourishing

This cluster pushes HR to engage with fundamental questions of purpose and ethics, moving beyond compliance to consider the deeper human impact of organizational decisions. It's a meta-perspective on the 'why' of HR.

  • What is a "Good" Job? Reconciling Profit with Human Dignity
  • The Ethics of Surveillance: Balancing Data with Employee Trust
  • Purpose Beyond Profit: Cultivating Meaning in the Modern Workplace
  • The Right to Be Human: Navigating Automation and Dehumanization
  • Organizational Conscience: Building Ethical Decision-Making into Culture
  • Beyond Engagement: Towards Human Flourishing at Work
  • The Virtue of Vulnerability: Leading with Authenticity in Complex Times

5. The Neuroscience of Work: Brains, Behavior & Performance

Drawing on science, this cluster provides an "outside-in" perspective, exploring how understanding the human brain can inform HR practices, from motivation to learning and well-being, challenging traditional behavioral models.

  • The Dopamine Economy: Hacking Motivation for Sustainable Performance
  • Neuroplasticity in the Workplace: Designing for Continuous Learning & Adaptability
  • Stress & the Brain: Building Resilient Work Environments
  • The Social Brain: Understanding Collaboration and Conflict
  • Decision-Making Under Pressure: Cognitive Biases and How to Mitigate Them
  • Flow State: Cultivating Optimal Performance Through Brain Science
  • Sleep, Nutrition, and Productivity: The Biological Foundations of Peak Performance

6. The Art of Leadership: Cultivating Vision & Influence

This cluster views leadership through the lens of art – intuition, creativity, and influence – challenging the purely scientific or managerial approach. It encourages leaders to embrace ambiguity and inspire, rather than just manage.

  • Leading in the Grey: Embracing Ambiguity and Nuance
  • The Symphony of Influence: Orchestrating Change Through Persuasion
  • Storytelling as Strategy: Crafting Compelling Narratives for Organizational Vision
  • The Leader as Curator: Shaping Environments for Creativity
  • Intuition vs. Data: When to Trust Your Gut in Decision-Making
  • The Aesthetics of Culture: Designing Visually and Emotionally Engaging Workplaces
  • From Command to Canvas: Empowering Teams as Co-Creators

7. Sport Psychology for Organizational Agility

Applying insights from sport, this cluster offers a unique "outside-in" perspective on performance, resilience, and teamwork, challenging HR to rethink how high-performing teams are built and sustained under pressure.

  • The Team as an Ecosystem: Lessons from Elite Sports for Collaboration
  • Mental Toughness in Business: Building Resilience Under Pressure
  • Coaching for Peak Performance: Beyond Skills, Towards Mindset
  • The Flow State in Teams: Synchronizing Collective Genius
  • Recovery & Regeneration: Preventing Burnout in High-Paced Environments
  • Gamification of Growth: Learning from Sport for Employee Development
  • The Psychology of Winning: Cultivating a High-Performance Culture

8. History's Echoes: Learning from Past Organizational Shifts

This cluster uses history as a lens to understand current transformations, encouraging HR to take a long-term view and question whether current challenges are truly novel or echoes of past patterns. It provides context for future design.

  • The Rise & Fall of Bureaucracy: Lessons from Industrial Revolutions
  • Pandemics & Work: Historical Precedents for Remote and Hybrid Models
  • From Guilds to Gig: Tracing the Evolution of Work Contracts
  • The Great Resignations of History: Why People Leave and What We Can Learn
  • Innovation Cycles: How Past Breakthroughs Reshaped Organizations
  • The Human Cost of Progress: Historical Perspectives on Automation
  • Empire Building & Organizational Scale: What Ancient Civilizations Teach HR

9. The Global HR Compass: Navigating Cross-Cultural Complexity

This cluster emphasizes the "outside-in" perspective, acknowledging the global context. It challenges HR to move beyond universal best practices and embrace cultural nuances, particularly relevant for international conferences like HR WEEK.

  • Beyond Western Models: Adapting HR for Diverse Cultural Contexts
  • The Language of Leadership: Communicating Across Cultural Divides
  • Global Mobility: Talent Management in a Borderless (Yet Bordered) World
  • Cultural Intelligence: Developing HR Professionals as Global Navigators
  • The Local vs. Global Paradox: Centralization vs. Decentralization in HR
  • Navigating Geopolitical Headwinds: Impact on Talent & Operations
  • Building Bridges, Not Walls: Fostering Inclusivity in Global Teams

10. The Unseen Workforce: Gig, Freelance & Blended Models

This cluster encourages HR to question traditional employment models and explore the implications of the growing contingent workforce, pushing for new organizational designs that integrate diverse talent pools.

  • Beyond the W-2: Designing for a Multi-Status Workforce
  • The Gig Economy's Ethical Dilemmas: Fair Pay and Benefits for Freelancers
  • Integrating the External: Onboarding & Engaging Contingent Talent
  • The Future of the "Employee": Redefining the Psychological Contract
  • From FTEs to Skills: Building a Talent Ecosystem, Not Just a Headcount
  • Legal Labyrinths: Navigating Global Regulations for Gig Workers
  • The Blended Team: Optimizing Collaboration Between Employees and Contractors

11. Psychological Safety: The Foundation of Innovation

This cluster delves into the core psychological underpinnings of high-performing teams, challenging HR to design environments where "doubt and exploration" can truly flourish without fear of reprisal.

  • The Courage to Speak Up: Fostering Psychological Safety in Toxic Cultures
  • Beyond Trust Falls: Practical Tools for Building Team Vulnerability
  • Failure as Fuel: Creating a Culture Where Mistakes are Learning Opportunities
  • The Silent Killer: Addressing Microaggressions and Exclusion
  • Leading with Empathy: The Neuroscience of Connection and Belonging
  • Designing Feedback Loops for Growth, Not Judgment
  • The Antidote to Burnout: Psychological Safety as a Well-being Strategy

12. The Future of Learning: From Training to Transformation

This cluster challenges the conventional view of L&D, proposing a meta-perspective on how humans learn and adapt, moving towards continuous transformation rather than episodic training, essential for future organizational design.

  • Unlearning to Relearn: Shedding Obsolete Mindsets and Skills
  • The Learning Ecosystem: Beyond Formal Training Programs
  • AI as a Learning Partner: Personalized Development Paths
  • Micro-Learning & Macro-Impact: Designing for Continuous Skill Acquisition
  • From Knowledge Transfer to Capability Building: Redefining L&D Outcomes
  • The Curious Organization: Cultivating a Culture of Perpetual Inquiry

13. Well-being Beyond Wellness: Holistic Human Thriving

This cluster broadens the scope of HR's responsibility for well-being, moving beyond basic wellness programs to a holistic view of human thriving, integrating physical, mental, social, and financial aspects, linking to the philosophical perspective.

  • The Thriving Workforce: Beyond Engagement, Towards Human Flourishing
  • Financial Wellness as a Strategic Imperative: Addressing Economic Stress
  • The Loneliness Epidemic: Building Social Connection in Hybrid Work
  • Nature's Nudge: Integrating Biophilic Design for Workplace Well-being
  • Mindfulness in the Matrix: Cultivating Presence in a Distracted World
  • The Sleep Revolution: Optimizing Rest for Performance and Health
  • Compassionate Leadership: Supporting Mental Health in the Workplace

14. Data as a Dialogue: Ethical Analytics for People Decisions

This cluster addresses the critical intersection of data, ethics, and human decision-making, challenging HR to use analytics not just for efficiency but for deeper understanding and ethical intervention, fostering doubt about purely quantitative approaches.

  • Beyond Metrics: Using Data to Ask Better Questions About People
  • The Ethics of People Analytics: Privacy, Bias, and Transparency
  • From Correlation to Causation: Understanding Why People Behave as They Do
  • Data Storytelling for HR: Communicating Insights that Drive Change
  • Predictive Analytics: Anticipating Future Workforce Needs (and Pitfalls)
  • The Human in the Algorithm: Ensuring Fairness in Automated Decisions
  • Building a Data-Literate HR Function: From Numbers to Narrative

15. The Future of Reward: Value, Equity & Motivation

This cluster challenges traditional compensation models, exploring new ways to define and deliver value, linking reward to broader concepts of fairness, purpose, and intrinsic motivation, aligning with the philosophical and anthropological aspects.

  • Beyond Base Salary: Designing Total Reward for the Modern Workforce
  • Pay Transparency: Navigating the New Landscape of Equity and Trust
  • The Intrinsic Economy: Motivating Beyond Financial Incentives
  • Personalized Rewards: Tailoring Value to Individual Needs
  • Equity vs. Equality: Crafting Fair Compensation in Diverse Organizations
  • The Psychological Impact of Pay: Perception, Fairness, and Engagement
  • Rewarding Collaboration: Incentivizing Teamwork in a Competitive World

16. Portugal's HR Pulse: Local Challenges, Global Solutions

This cluster specifically addresses the "Portuguese specifics" requirement. It focuses on the unique challenges and opportunities within the Portuguese context, encouraging a localized application of global HR trends and a critical look at local assumptions.

  • Navigating Portuguese Labor Law: Adapting Global Practices to Local Realities
  • The Brain Drain Challenge: Attracting and Retaining Talent in Portugal
  • Digital Transformation in Portuguese SMEs: HR's Role in Modernization
  • Generational Shifts in Portugal: Bridging Gaps Between Workforce Cohorts
  • Lisbon as a Tech Hub: HR Strategies for a Growing Ecosystem
  • The Impact of Tourism on Portuguese Workforce Dynamics
  • Cultivating a Culture of Innovation in Traditional Portuguese Industries

17. HR & the Circular Economy: Sustainability in People Practices

This cluster introduces a broader "outside-in" perspective from environmental science and economics, challenging HR to consider its role in organizational sustainability beyond traditional CSR, integrating circular principles into talent management and organizational design.

  • Beyond Greenwashing: Authentic Sustainability in HR Practices
  • Talent for a Greener Future: Skills for the Circular Economy
  • The Human Impact of Climate Change: HR's Role in Adaptation
  • Designing for Longevity: Employee Lifecycle in a Sustainable Organization
  • Waste Not, Want Not: Applying Circular Principles to Talent Development
  • Ethical Sourcing of Talent: Supply Chains and Human Rights
  • HR's Role in Driving Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Beyond Compliance

18. The Future of Workspaces: Beyond Bricks & Mortar

This cluster examines the physical and virtual environments where work happens, challenging HR to design spaces that foster connection, collaboration, and well-being, moving beyond mere office management to strategic space design.

  • The Hybrid Paradox: Designing for Both Physical and Virtual Connection
  • The Metaverse Workplace: Exploring Immersive Collaboration Technologies
  • Biophilic Design: Bringing Nature into the Office for Well-being
  • Acoustics & Cognition: Optimizing Workspaces for Focus and Creativity
  • The Agile Office: Flexible Spaces for Dynamic Teams
  • From Desks to Destinations: Why People Will Come to the Office
  • The Digital Twin of the Workplace: Using Data to Optimize Space Utilization