Masterclasses

Tuesday 11 and Thursday 13 May 2027

The pre-and post-summit masterclasses are designed to maximise your summit experience. You will cover topics in much greater depth – enabling you to share your challenges, proactively plan and create the highest possible ROI.

You can find your 2027 masterclasses below, led by Alicia Curtis and Fiona Hewitt

Tuesday 11 May 2027

From aspiration to action: Leading culture transformation that lasts
Led by: Alicia Curtis

Thursday 13 May 2027

Organisational culture in the AI-enabled future of work
Led by: Fiona Hewitt

From aspiration to action: Leading culture transformation that lasts

Led by: Alicia Curtis

This full-day masterclass will be held on Tuesday 11 May 2027

ABOUT YOUR MASTERCLASS

Most organisations understand that culture matters. Many have invested in values, purpose, engagement, leadership development and change programs. Yet for many leaders, the real challenge is turning aspiration into consistent behaviours, shared ownership and meaningful momentum.

This practical full-day masterclass with Alicia Curtis will explore how leaders can move cultural transformation from intention to implementation. Designed for senior leaders, HR professionals and People & Culture teams, the session will focus on the leader’s role in shaping change, activating others and building the conditions for culture to become something people live, not just something organisations communicate.

Participants will examine the everyday leadership behaviours that influence culture, the people who accelerate or inhibit change and the patterns of resistance, passivity, translation and advocacy that often emerge during transformation. They will explore how to identify cultural champions, engage sceptics, strengthen accountability and build a more purposeful approach to leading change.

This masterclass will help participants clarify the cultural shift they want to lead and develop a focused action plan to create traction within their own organisation.

KEY OUTCOMES

• Understand the leader’s role in moving culture from aspiration to action
• Identify the behaviours, decisions and signals that shape culture every day
• Explore the four faces of change: resistors, passengers, translators and champions
• Learn how to engage people with different levels of energy, influence and readiness for change
• Recognise the internal voices and patterns that can sabotage cultural transformation
• Develop practical strategies to build ownership, momentum and accountability
• Leave with a clear cultural transformation action plan for your team or organisation

ABOUT YOUR FACILITATOR, ALICIA CURTIS

Alicia Curtis is the Founder of Alyceum, a values-driven leadership education platform that inspires people to lead positive change in business and the community.

Alicia established Alyceum in 2001 and has spent more than two decades designing and delivering transformational leadership programs, working with thousands of leaders to challenge traditional ideas of who can lead and the difference they can make.

With a Master’s in Business Leadership and a long history of professional and community impact, Alicia is known for her ability to create powerful learning experiences that combine purpose, values, reflection and action. Her work has been recognised through awards including Business News 40under40, EY Social Entrepreneur of the Year in the western region, Westpac 200 Businesses of Tomorrow and the Australian Financial Review and Westpac 100 Women of Influence list.

Alicia is also the co-founder and inaugural Chair of 100 Women, a giving circle supporting women and girls locally and globally. Passionately driven by her purpose to ignite leaders to transform the world for the better, Alicia brings a deeply practical, values-led and human perspective to the work of cultural transformation.

MASTERCLASS PROGRAM

8.30am Registration

9.00am SESSION 1: From Cultural Aspiration to Leadership Action

• Why culture transformation succeeds or stalls
• Moving beyond values statements, intent and communication campaigns
• The leader’s role in creating visible, practical and sustained cultural change
• Understanding the gap between the culture you aspire to and the culture people experience
• Identifying the behaviours, rituals and decisions that shape culture every day
• Practical reflection: What cultural shift are you trying to lead?

10.30am Morning coffee

11.00am SESSION 2: The Four Faces of Change

• Understanding how people respond to cultural transformation
• Exploring the four faces of change: resistors, passengers, translators and champions
• How each group influences momentum, trust and adoption
• Identifying the formal and informal influencers in your organisation
• Strategies for engaging sceptics, activating champions and supporting people in the middle
• Practical exercise: Mapping the change landscape in your organisation

12.30pm Lunch

1.30pm SESSION 3: Leading the Human Side of Transformation

• Why cultural change is personal before it becomes organisational
• The internal voices and assumptions that can sabotage change
• How leaders can model courage, curiosity, purpose and accountability
• Creating conditions for honest conversations and shared ownership
• Turning resistance into insight and uncertainty into progress
• Practical exercise: Identifying the leadership shifts required to support transformation

3.30pm SESSION 4: Building Momentum and Sustaining Change

• Translating cultural intent into practical leadership commitments
• Creating small, visible actions that build trust and momentum
• Aligning champions, communication, rituals and accountability
• Building a practical plan for cultural transformation
• Peer reflection and feedback
• Final activity: Develop your 90-day culture activation plan

4.30pm Session close

The masterclass will be interactive and practical, combining facilitator-led content, group discussion, guided reflection, peer learning and applied planning. Participants will leave with greater clarity about the cultural transformation they want to lead and a practical plan to begin building momentum immediately.

Organisational culture in the AI-enabled future of work

Led by: Fiona Hewitt

This full-day masterclass will be held on Thursday 13 May 2027

ABOUT YOUR MASTERCLASS

AI is reshaping how work gets done – changing roles, decision-making, collaboration and the way organisations operate. Successful transformation will be shaped by culture: by the trust people feel, the behaviours leaders model, the systems organisations reinforce and the ability of teams to keep performing today while preparing for tomorrow.

This practical full-day masterclass with Fiona Hewitt will explore how leaders can build the cultural conditions required for an AI-enabled future of work. Moving beyond hype, fear and surface-level adoption, the session will focus on how culture influences an organisation’s ability to adapt, experiment and translate technological possibility into meaningful progress.

Participants will examine the leadership behaviours, mindsets and organisational conditions that support trust, learning and responsible innovation. They will explore how changes to work, roles and workforce expectations affect culture and how leaders can involve people in shaping new ways of working while maintaining clarity, connection and performance.

Designed for leaders, HR professionals and People and Culture teams, this masterclass will provide a practical roadmap for creating a more adaptive, human-centred and future-ready organisational culture.

Key outcomes – Participants will:

• Understand why culture is critical to successful AI-enabled workforce transformation
• Explore how changes to work, roles and workforce expectations may affect organisational culture
• Identify the leadership behaviours that build trust, adaptiveness and engagement through change
• Recognise the cultural and organisational barriers that may slow progress or undermine innovation
• Learn how to create the conditions for responsible experimentation, ongoing learning and meaningful participation
• Develop a practical culture activation plan for an AI-enabled future of work

ABOUT YOUR FACILITATOR, FIONA HEWITT

Fiona Hewitt is the Founder and Managing Partner of Unboxable, a New Zealand future-of-work consultancy helping organisations strengthen the leadership, culture, capability and ways of working they need to evolve.

A strategy and workforce transformation advisor with more than 25 years’ experience, Fiona has led significant business, people and organisational transformation from within executive roles. She now works with boards, executive teams and leadership groups across Australia and New Zealand to navigate growth, transformation and organisational change.

Her work spans strategy, leadership, workforce capability, organisational design, future of work and AI workforce strategy. Supported by executive education at Harvard University and the University of Sydney, Fiona combines practical executive experience with future-focused thinking to help leaders shape what comes next.

Known for her clear thinking, practical insight and human-centred approach, Fiona helps organisations build the capability to perform today while preparing for tomorrow.

MASTERCLASS PROGRAM

8.30am Registration

9.00am SESSION 1: Culture, change and the AI-enabled future of work

• Why AI is a cultural and organisational challenge, as well as a technological one
• How AI is changing work, roles, decisions and workforce expectations
• How culture shapes trust, adoption, experimentation and performance
• The dual leadership mandate: performing today while preparing for tomorrow
• Recognising where your organisation is now and what may need to shift
• Group discussion: What is AI already changing in the way we work?

10.30am Morning coffee

11.00am SESSION 2: Building adaptive and human-centred cultures

• What adaptive cultures do differently
• Creating the conditions for curiosity, learning and responsible experimentation
• Balancing innovation with psychological safety, ethics and trust
• How leadership behaviours and organisational systems influence culture
• Building shared purpose and involving people in shaping change
• Practical exercise: Map the cultural enablers and blockers in your organisation

12.30pm Lunch

1.30pm SESSION 3: Leading people through AI-enabled change

• Understanding the emotional and behavioural responses to changing work
• Engaging people who feel uncertain, sceptical or overwhelmed
• Exploring how roles, capabilities and ways of working may need to evolve
• The leadership behaviours that build credibility, clarity and momentum
• Supporting managers to translate change into everyday team practice
• Aligning culture, performance and wellbeing in a changing work environment
• Practical exercise: Identify the conversations, decisions and leadership signals that will matter most

3.00pm Afternoon tea

3.15pm SESSION 4: Creating your future-ready culture action plan

• Turning insight into practical cultural priorities
• Identifying the behaviours, systems and leadership commitments that need to shift
• Building momentum through focused experiments and visible progress
• Creating accountability for cultural adaptation
• Measuring progress and sustaining change beyond initial AI adoption
• Final activity: Develop a focused 90-day future-ready culture action plan

4.30pm Session close

The masterclass will be highly practical and interactive, combining facilitator-led content, group discussion, guided reflection, practical exercises and peer learning. Participants will work with their own organisational context throughout the day and leave with clear actions they can apply within their leadership, team or organisation.