As we wrap up another successful Digital Workplace Conference, held in the vibrant city of Sydney, it’s time to reflect on the key moments that made this event a cornerstone for digital workplace enthusiasts and professionals.

Fuelled by some exceptional Sydney fare, Day 1 was launched. Attendees ranged in role from Business Analysts and Managers to Executives and End Users, and they came from as far afield as Indonesia.

The conference kicked off with a bang, featuring Keynote speakers Phillip Meyers (Microsoft) and Bonita Nuttal (Turn Up the You). We also gave the finalists for the Most Game-Changing Vendor award 5 minutes each to present their solution to attendees – the winner would be announced at the Awards Dinner that evening.

It’s hard to go past how much Copilot has infiltrated our thoughts and discussions, with 8 sessions based on Copilot, it certainly was the ‘talk of the town’. However, one of the key themes (as usual) is still the importance of investment in training, coaching and change management.

We put on our glad rags and glitz at the end of the first day to enjoy hearing the stories behind the other Digital Workplace Awards at the Awards Dinner:

⁂ Most Impactful Digital Transformation

⁂ Digital Workplace Superstar

⁂ The “Maestro” Award

⁂ And Most Game-Changing Vendor (which was the people’s choice from the Keynote)

Day 2 brought more insights and learning – but what truly brought the conference to life were the attendees themselves. Their energy and enthusiasm for learning and connecting with peers were palpable throughout the event.

Comments at the Close revolved around how the opportunity to come together with a shared interest and passion as a community has so much value: and that the atmosphere of open sharing of experiences reminds us that we are not alone in our challenges.

As we bid farewell to this year’s conference, we carry with us the knowledge, connections, and inspiration to continue pushing the boundaries of the digital workplace. We look forward to the next gathering, where we will once again unite to share, learn, and shape the future of our industry.

Most of our wonderful speakers at the conference, who made it all possible!

Thank you to all the attendees, speakers, sponsors, and organizers who made the Digital Workplace Conference Australia 2024 a memorable and impactful event. Here’s to many more!

Exhibitors

It is always great to explore what our exhibitors have on offer. New products to help enhance and innovation that helps make life simpler!

Key Takeaways

Debbie Ireland

These days, you seriously cant go anywhere without hearing AI and how it will (or won’t, if your head is in the sand) impact us all. How will it become your “personal assistant” esp if you have never had one! To help us all work better.

People understand the “people first” mentality more than ever. While the technology is great, it is how people use it, the habits, and behaviours that need to be changed, and bringing people along on the journey, that are the critical elements of any implementation. (for any role)

Events like the conference emphasise the desperate need for connection – in person. Nothing beats it. People understand the challenges with the hybrid workplace and lack of the connections and personal contact …. so the trend will be how to get people BACK to work rather than working remotely

Shannon Donovan

From Rishi’s session – 7620 mins a year is how long people spend on refocusing to get work done after being distracted (3 weeks of work time)! The problem is not shortage of data, it is scarcity of human attention. We need to be thinking about attention management as a core competency (rather than time management). Copilot is a tool that can help maintain momentum, prevent distraction (as it helps you create content by bringing multiple information sources together rather than needing to switch between those sources)

Bonita: Whatever we’re not changing we’re choosing

Lisa & Daniel: you need to make Copilot a habit. In rolling it out to others, ensure you understand how it’s useful for different roles to avoid the bell curve (all enthusiasm, peak, lose interest)

Ben Bell

Ignore AI at your peril – people who can effectively harness AI functionality in their jobs are more likely to be successful in their role – and less likely to be “out-of-work” because of AI.

While we’re all excited about the latest and greatest Apps being offered (I’m looking at you Loop and Copilot), there is no silver bullet or “swiss-army” app that has functionality for every occasion – thoughtful planning, policy and processes are essential to match the right app to the right person and situation.

From Vanessa Oshaughnessy and Rachel Harnott’s session – the key to successful and long-term user adoption of new intranet projects lies in fostering a “product mindset” – an approach which sees functionality, enhancements and ongoing change driven by the users themselves. Iterative design and development, audits and user surveys and regular training and adoption – along with the occasional bribe (Cupcakes with QR Codes!) keep interest and usage of the new intranet high!

Other Comments from Conference Attendees

A truly a standout event! The organization was impeccable, ensuring a seamless experience for all attendees. The speakers were exceptional, delivering insightful and engaging presentations that left a lasting impact. Their expertise and passion for the digital workplace were evident, making the conference both informative and inspiring. Kudos to the entire team for putting together such a fantastic event!
This Conference will be on my Planner to attend every year now. Self development and such quick evolution of Digital tools, means you must keep ahead of that knowledge. I can’t think of a better way, then participating in such a fabulous opportunity to learn, grow and develop yourself and your team.
I cannot recommend the Digital Workplace Conference highly enough. It is the best place to connect with people from our industry, gain insights from case studies and develop you thinking on how to build a great digital workplace for your organisation. – Steve Knutson, Director, Stratos Technology Partners

Some Very Enthusiastic LinkedIn Testimonials

Name	Link to Message	Key Quote
Kelly Coyle	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	The Digital Workplace Results (DWR) conference was a fantastic event in Sydney! I learnt so much and loved seeing real examples of Copilot in action. We have plenty of new ideas to share.
Geoff Prior	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	I just spent 2 incredibly valuable days at the Digital Workplace Conference in Sydney organised by Debbie Ireland and the team at Digital Workplace Results (DWR) …So good to connect in person with so many people I’ve only seen online!! After more than 20 years of productivity training, it’s been a long, long time since I dedicated two full days to my own professional development with like minded professionals. I’m sooo glad I did this and I am already planning to attend the next event!! I was so busy learning that I rarely got my phone out to take decent pictures …but here’s a few and some from last night’s dinner.
Steve Knutson	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	Dear Debbie Ireland & the Digital Workplace Results (DWR) team, thank you for organising the Australian Digital Workplace Conference. It was a fantastic event that offered many valuable insights and opportunities for learning and networking. I especially enjoyed getting a deeper understanding of Purview, the new Microsoft service that helps organisations manage and govern their data. I was impressed by the demo and the use cases presented by Jennifer Jones. I also appreciated the sessions on change management for rolling out Microsoft 365 in organisations with varying degrees of digital literacy. It was very informative and practical, and I learned a lot from the speakers and the Q&A. The message we hear time and time again is that we are creating solutions for people with all level of skills, experience and willingness to engage! Another highlight for me was getting insights into the value of coaching and how it can enhance the digital workplace experience. Mathew Gilbertson really got me thinking about how much more needs to be done to empower organisations. If builders are required to do training on how to use their tools effectively, why don’t we do the same for digital tools? I enjoyed hearing Lee Stevens talk about the TIDE approach for Copilot adoption, reinforced the importance of having a plan and being purposeful when rolling out new technology. I’m grateful for the chance to have led a session on Search and Intelligence in Microsoft 365. I hope everyone took away something they can apply in their digital workplace. Finally, I want to thank you for creating such a friendly and supportive atmosphere at the conference. I enjoyed connecting with people from a wide variety of organisations and backgrounds, and had many great conversations. Thank you the amazing sponsors and presenters who help make this event the must attend conference it is!
Gwenno Hopkin	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	Incredibly honoured this week to receive a nomination on behalf of Step Two at the Digital Workplace Results (DWR) conference for Most Game-Changing Vendor. I’m very fortunate to work with such a talented a dedicated team who genuinely care about great client outcomes and great employee experiences James Robertson Rebecca Rodgers Rowena Keefe Natalie Ryan
Jennifer Jones	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	I was honoured to speak at the Digital Workplace Conference in Sydney this week. I had a fabulous time, met many interesting people, and learned a lot. A particular highlight was Bonita Nuttall ✨ and her keynote “Turn Up the You”. I found it empowering and her energy carried me into my session feeling confident and relaxed. Thank you to Debbie Ireland for inviting me to speak, Steve Knutson for the chats about the MVP programme and the introductions, Datacom for investing in me, Ashish Trivedi for helping answer audience questions, Wednesday Wilson for being my hype girl and photographer, and to all of you who came to my session and laughed at my jokes or gave me feedback – I appreciate it. I took myself for a walk on Titahi Bay beach this morning to reground myself in Aotearoa, and I’m energised for the future. I’m thinking maybe a YouTube channel?
Jeremy Hancock	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	Congratulations to Debbie Ireland and the Digital Workplace Results (DWR) team for a fantastic conference in Sydney. I had discussions with a number of attendees that all agreed that this is THE conference to attend in this part of the world for those with an interest in Microsoft 365. It is great to attend not just technical sessions, but sessions on change management and adoption. A call-out to Bonita Nuttall ✨ for an outstanding keynote presentation. You are an inspiration. Thank you all.
Jemma Hirst	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	This week, I had the opportunity to attend the Digital Workplace Results (DWR) Conference. I walked away with a wealth of knowledge that I’m excited to bring back to Grant Thornton Australia Networking with industry colleagues who share my passion for tech education, user enablement and empowerment was a highlight. I am super grateful to have met some of the thought leaders I’ve long admired (Kirsty McGrath, Sharon Connolly, Lisa Crosbie) and seeing them present in person was brilliant! The conference themes reinforced our people-centric approach to AI at GT, emphasising the importance of bringing everyone on the journey. I was thrilled to see that some of the case studies and AI implementation sessions reflected the work William Vuong and I have been doing for the last 12 months. Special shoutout to Kat Klee Olsen for her session on being an Augmented AI Leader and Rishi Nicolai for his insights on Attention Management in Modern Work. Also appreciated the practical insights and use cases for productivity in Copilot – thanks Daniel Anderson! I was honoured to be nominated for the Digital Workplace Superstar at the awards night. While I didn’t take home the win, it was a privilege to share a small piece of Grant Thornton’s Digital Enablement story. (Plus my husband and I got to enjoy a date night without the kids Thank you Debbie Ireland and the whole team at Digital Workplace Results (DWR) for a fab event.
Rapid Circle	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	We saw some great connections with a number of our experts at the conference, including 📚 John Liu, Chander Ram… and Kat Klee Olsen who took to the stage to share her lessons learned in “Empowering leaders with AI” A big thank you to Debbie Ireland and the Digital Workplace Results (DWR) team for inviting us to speak again this year. Congratulations on delivering another great event in Australia!
Alan Hinton	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	So grateful for the opportunity to attend the Digital Workplace conference. A huge thank you to Debbie Ireland and the entire team for organizing such an outstanding event. It is two days filled with valuable insights, reconnecting with old acquaintances, and forming new connections.
Alan Hinton	Post \| Feed \| LinkedIn	OMG…. What a great start to the conference the keynote by Bonita Nuttall ✨ talking about the Codes of Confuct and yes I did say Confuct …. Her energy and her story and how she connected with the DWC audience here was truly an inspiring thing in a conference full of technology it is a bright emotional rainbow of difference focusing on “Turning up the You”.

Reflecting on the Digital Workplace Conference Australia 2024