Thriving Through Change: Talent, Technology, and the Future Workforce
Date: 12 November 2026
Location: The Promenade Docklands, Suite 2, Level 1/78 Newquay Promenade, Docklands, Melbourne, VIC 3008
Headline Sponsor: TBC
Elevation Evening Headline Sponsor: TBC
After the incredible success of the IEP Summit Australia 2025, we’re back for our third year: bigger, bolder, and more impactful than ever.
This is an ‘anti-conference’. It’s a high-energy, future-focused experience that brings together the brightest minds in employability for real conversations, actionable insights, and powerful connections.
Why Attend?
- Connect with top industry leaders and forward-thinking peers
- Explore cutting-edge policy, practice, and innovation
- Advance your career with insights you can act on
- Influence the future of employability in Australia
More Than Just Seminars
The IEP Summit Australia is not just another sector event; it’s a unique opportunity for sector leaders and key figures to connect, discuss, and share best practice. The Summit offers a unique blend of formal seminars and informal networking sessions, creating an environment conducive to meaningful conversations and the forging of valuable connections.
Bridging Borders in Employability
Building on the success of the past two years, the IEP Summit Australia 2026 is committed to promoting global collaboration. The Summit aims to maximise engagement from our international colleagues and partners, ensuring a diverse range of voices and perspectives to shape the future of employability.
Shaping the Future of Employability
The IEP Summit Australia is not just a gathering; it’s a platform for sector professionals to discuss, debate, and shape the strategic agenda of the employability sector. It provides a space for learning from experienced colleagues, offering insights and solutions to the challenges facing the sector now and in the future.
Your Opportunity to Contribute
The IEP Summit Australia is for anyone passionate about employability services, policy, and strategy. It offers a unique chance to have your say, contribute to the sector’s growth, build new business opportunities, and partner with like-minded individuals. By participating, you actively contribute to the development of effective practices that benefit both practitioners and participants.
What's On the Day
The Changing Face of a Candidate (10:15am)
A social demographer opens the day by unpacking how Australia’s workforce is shifting, before a panel tackles the pressures facing young people, the growing importance of mature-age participation, and what genuine workforce inclusion looks like — with perspectives spanning youth, mature-age employment and neurodiversity.
The Changing Nature of Recruitment (11:30am–1:00pm & 1:45pm–2:45pm)
A debate-style session pitting private sector HR against employment services on what AI is actually doing to recruitment, skills vs. qualifications, rising candidate flexibility expectations, and how we support people further from the labour market. After lunch, the panel turns to the retention crisis inside employment services — staff churn, patchy training, and underinvestment in skills.
Skills, Competencies & Professionalisation Workshop (3:00pm)
A hands-on session built on IEP’s latest skills gaps research, exploring the disconnect between what job roles ask for and what the work actually requires. Insights gathered here will feed directly into IEP’s ongoing work defining core competencies for the profession.
Dinner, Reflection and a Laugh (from 6:00pm)
An evening of dinner, light entertainment, and the Fellow of the Year toast — hosted by a distinguished cybersecurity leader whose identity stays under Chatham House Rules until the night itself.
Playlist
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