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Last week’s HR Technologies 2025 exhibition at ExCeL London provided a valuable platform for connecting with HR and payroll professionals facing increasing workplace demands.
In this blog
Plenty to inspire on the Zellis stand
Insightful Talks from our industry experts
Plenty to inspire on the Zellis stand
Interactive demos of our AI-enabled HR, WFM, and payroll solutions punctuated conversations around trending topics including AI good practices and improving employee retention with case management systems.
Visitors could also fuel the day with hot drinks made by our on-stand barista . Additionally, visitors to the stand had the opportunity to see themselves become unstoppable through a series of photographs depicting them as a race car driver, superhero, pilot, and Gatsby-era lady. These images were then added to the ‘Unstoppable’ mosaic for visitors to revisit.
Insightful Talks from our industry experts
Brave new world: Putting AI to work – Steve Elcock with Chris English
Director of Product AI and HCM, Steve Elcock’s session explored the evolution of AI and how it is beginning to use thinking and reasoning techniques – like human brains.
He explored the current landscape of AI adoption in the workplace, examining how organisations are navigating the sophisticated capabilities of modern AI models -including best practice on approaching AI and checking for data bias and accuracy.
Steve explored the practical applications where frontline teams, regardless of their technical expertise, are successfully leveraging AI tools in real-time to enhance operational efficiency and decision-making. This included an appearance from Chris English, Director of National Operations for the UK and Ireland at McDonalds, to talk through the use of AI to create a speak-up channel that reflects the needs of a digital-first employee group.
The HR advantage: using financial wellbeing to build a resilient, high-performing team – Gethin Nadin
Gethin examined the profound impact of financial stress on the UK workforce, drawing insights from several major studies.
The session highlighted the far-reaching consequences of poor financial wellbeing, demonstrating how money worries extend beyond personal finances to affect physical safety, relationships, health, and professional development. Gethin also explored how financial stress manifests in unexpected ways, from increased car accidents and relationship breakdowns to physical pain and declining mental health outcomes. Particularly concerning was the finding that financial anxieties are creating barriers to skills development and AI adoption, potentially limiting both individual career progression and organisational innovation. However, the session also revealed encouraging evidence that workplace financial wellbeing support programs can create positive ripple effects, including the development of better management capabilities.
Learn more about the link between financial wellbeing, skills, stress and performance in Gethin’s webinar on Friday 11th July.
Conclusion: Building unstoppable workplaces together
The CIPD Festival of Work 2025 reinforced our commitment to helping you and your teams be more unstoppable. From exciting demonstrations to insights on financial wellbeing, the conversations confirmed that HR professionals are ready to embrace transformative change. Thank you to everyone who joined us.
Key takeaways
- Organisations across sectors are successfully implementing AI tools, with frontline teams leveraging these technologies to enhance real-time decision-making and operational efficiency.
- Poor financial wellbeing affects not just personal finances, but extends to physical safety, relationships, health, and even barriers to skills development and AI adoption.
- Modern workforces require innovative communication channels, like AI-powered speak-up platforms, that reflect their digital-native expectations and needs.
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