2026: The Future @ Work

In an era powered by rapid digital acceleration and shifting local markets, an organisation's ability to adapt is no longer a luxury—it's essential for survival. Talent Summit Galway delivers a practical playbook for the "What Now?" era, equipping leaders with the insights needed to build resilient, human-centric, and forward-thinking workplaces.

  • Redesigning Work for the AI Era: As AI reshapes entire job categories, HR is being asked to rebuild job architecture, redesign roles, and decide who to upskill versus hire—with no established playbook to follow. Hear how senior HR and L&D leaders are making these calls in real time, balancing genuine productivity gains against workforce trust.

  • Beyond the Tech Stack: Get practical, actionable ways to start with AI—building team confidence, spotting high-value opportunities, and adopting it safely and effectively in everyday work. Discover how small, deliberate steps can accelerate adoption and unlock lasting productivity gains.

  • Closing the Gap: With graduate careers still concentrated in Dublin, discover what it actually takes to align education and industry, and build a regional talent pipeline that keeps skilled graduates building careers in the West and Midlands.

  • The Real Cost of Absence: Move beyond the sick cert to understand what absenteeism and presenteeism really cost your organisation, and how to build a genuine, numbers-backed case for investing in workplace health.

Plus more session announcements, featuring leading local and national voices tackling the unique workplace challenges of the West.

Speakers

Plus more to be announced shortly

  • JP McMahon

    JP McMahon

    Chef, Restaurateur, Author and
    Food on the Edge Founder

  • Dave Gribben

    Dave Gribben

    Co-founder,
    Below The Line

  • Dr Aoife Kiely

    GP Partner and Occupational Physician, Galway Bay Medical Centre

  • Peter Casey

    Peter Casey

    Associate Director,
    Sigmar Recruitment

  • Teresa Murray

    Site HR Director, Surmodics

  • Karen Ronan

    CEO Galway Chamber

  • Adriana Taheny

    Group HR Director, OneTouch Health

  • Adrian O’Flaherty

    Director at Accenture, AI and Data

A conference room filled with people seated at tables, watching a man giving a presentation on stage. The presenter is standing next to a large screen displaying colorful characters from Sesame Street.

Agenda

8.30 am: Registration & Networking
Teas, coffees, pastries

9.00 am Welcome
Peter Casey, Associate Director at Sigmar Recruitment

09.40am Aligning Education and Industry to Build Ireland's Regional Talent Pipeline

As regional hubs compete for FDI and indigenous growth, the question is no longer just how many graduates the system produces, but whether they're equipped with the skills industry actually needs, and whether they're staying in the region to use them. This panel brings together voices from higher education and regional enterprise to examine where the education-to-industry pipeline is working, where it's breaking down, and what closing that gap really requires: curriculum that keeps pace with employer needs, stronger pathways between third-level and local industry, and a genuine reason for graduates to build their careers outside Dublin. A grounded look at what it takes to build a talent pipeline that serves the region, not just the capital.

Panel:

  • Seadna Ryan, Dean of Faculty of Business & Hospitality, Technological University of the Shannon

  • Karen Ronan, CEO, Galway Chamber

10.10am Beyond the Tech Stack: A Practical Playbook for AI Adoption

As AI rapidly reshapes the workplace, organisations are discovering that the biggest barrier to success is rarely the technology itself, but human readiness. This session offers practical ways to get started with AI—helping leaders and teams build confidence, identify high-value opportunities, and adopt AI safely and effectively in their everyday work. Drawing on real-world experience across industries, Cleo will explore how small, practical steps can accelerate adoption, unlock productivity, and create lasting organisational value. Attendees will leave with concrete, actionable starting points for building AI confidence and capability within their own teams—moving beyond the tech stack to focus on what actually drives adoption: people, culture, and everyday practice.

Speaker: TBC

10.30 am Present But Not Productive: The Real Cost of Absence, Presenteeism and Workplace Health

Absenteeism is visible, measured, and budgeted for. Presenteeism — employees at their desks but unwell, disengaged, or running on empty — isn't, and it may be costing Irish businesses far more. With statutory sick pay reform stalled at 5 days after government concern over the cost to employers, and the burden of managing workplace health increasingly falling on HR, this panel brings together clinical, strategic and financial perspectives to unpack what absence and presenteeism actually cost, why the two are more connected than they appear, and what a genuine cost-benefit case for investing in workplace health looks like — beyond the sick cert and the spreadsheet.

Panel:

  • Dr. Aoife Kiely, Occupational Health Specialist, Galway Bay Medical Centre

  • Vicky O’Neill, HR Strategy Specialist, Ibec

  • Paul Cameron AMCA, CGMA, Senior Cost Accountant, PEM Europe

11.00 am: Tea/Coffee Break

11.30 am HR's Role in Redesigning Work for the AI Era

As AI absorbs entire categories of task overnight, HR is being asked to make consequential calls with no playbook: which roles to redesign, who to upskill versus hire fresh, how to hit productivity gains without them reading as cover for cuts, and how to do all of it inside GDPR and data-governance constraints that don't move as fast as the tools do. This panel brings together senior HR and L&D leaders navigating that redesign in real time — from rewriting job descriptions and job architecture around AI-augmented work, to building internal capability where no formal training yet exists, to the harder judgement calls: what happens to critical thinking and human judgement when a generation enters the workforce AI-native. Practical, occasionally uncomfortable, and grounded in decisions being made right now, not theory.

Panel:

11.45 am Teaming: The Next Competitive Discipline

Modern organisations increasingly operate as complex, overlapping "teams of teams"—yet few treat teaming itself as a serious, rigorous discipline. In this interactive session, Dave Gribben explores how organisations can bridge the gap between team dynamics and execution. Packed with real data, practical frameworks, and simple, memorable concepts, this isn't just a talk to listen to—you’ll actively practice actionable teaming habits you can take straight back to your organisation.

Speaker: Dave Gribben, Co-founder, Below The Line

12.20 pm From Galway to the World

Michelin-starred chef, restaurateur, and founder of the international food symposium Food on the Edge, JP McMahon has spent over a decade building something world-class without ever leaving Galway — and this year, he's taking it global, with Food on the Edge expanding to Malta. Closing out Talent Summit Galway, JP sits down for a wide-ranging conversation on where it all began, what it takes to build and hold a team together in one of the toughest industries there is, and what it really means to build something the world notices — from the West of Ireland.

Speaker: JP McMahon, Chef, Restaurateur, Author and Food on the Edge Founder

12.45 pm: Closing Words
Peter Casey, Associate Director at Sigmar Recruitment


12.50-1.45 pm: Networking Lunch

Sigmar Recruitment

Brought to you by

  • "It was fantastic to attend Talent Summit Galway 2025 last week at the Radisson RED Galway. The topic of ‘Embracing Disruption’ brought really interesting discussions. All speakers provided engaging viewpoints on embracing disruption in the workplace and described different approaches to take from a HR perspective."

    HR Generalist

  • "Talent Summit Galway 2025 — still buzzing from the energy, insights, and conversations that filled the day last week. Grateful to be part of a community that’s not just adapting to change — but driving it."

    HR Director

  • "Had a fantastic time attending Talent Summit Galway yesterday. The event was insightful, engaging, and thought-provoking—especially the conversations around AI and Recognition of Prior Learning. Huge thanks to the organisers for the warm hospitality, and it was great to reconnect with some old colleagues along the way. Plenty of ideas and inspiration to take forward on how we can continue to adapt, innovate, and build resilient workplaces in times of constant change.

    TA Manager

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