10th Psychological Health and Wellbeing in the Workplace Congress

24-25 July 2024, Sydney

Conference Day One – Wednesday 24 July

8.25 Registration

8.50 Opening remarks from the chair

9.00 Developing a psychologically safe culture thoughtfully and effectively

Assessing your existing organisational culture to target key areas for improvement
Pinpointing the key actions and strategies for effective cultural change
Developing active participation and ownership of organisational culture by all employees
Improving your organisational culture continuously

Col. Jacqueline Costello, Command Psychologist, Forces Command, Australian Army

9.40 Highlighting leaders as a driver to organisational mental health

Providing psychological support teams through their leaders
Setting organisational expectations through leadership actions
Equipping leaders with people skills in addition to operational expertise
Ensuring leaders across your organisation are conscious of their obligations

Marc McLaren, Safety Director, John Holland

10.20 Morning Coffee

10.50 Ensuring line managers engage in constructive conversations around mental health

Normalising mental health topics for leaders, managers, and peer support officers
Promoting a person-centric approach to conversations between line leaders and employees
Ensuring direct supervisors consider psychosocial hazards within and beyond the workplace
Promoting respectful and constructive conversations

Anji Head, Senior Manager Health and Wellbeing, The University of Sydney

11.30 Designing effective long-term psychological wellbeing training programs

Targeting key areas of the business for effective wellbeing training
Evaluating the indicators of a successful psychological safety training program
Assessing the advantages and weaknesses of working with third-party training providers
Maximising the effectiveness of wellbeing training with efficient and regular sessions

Ann-Maree Hartley, Principal Psychologist, NSW Ambulance

12.10 Lunch

13.10 Case study:
Biopsychosocial risk program at the Department of Home Affairs

Katrina Ashcroft, Director Clinical Advice and Assurance, Department of Home Affairs

13.50 Approaching diversity and inclusion as a psychological wellbeing tool

Evaluating the benefits of inclusive organisational culture for psychological wellbeing
Collaborating with diversity and inclusion experts to improve your mental health programs
Ensuring providers and third-party consultants are engaged constructively
Reframing wellbeing relating to diversity and inclusion within a ‘capability approach’
Motivating organisational changes around diversity and inclusion which promote wellbeing

Chris White, former APS Operations officer and Senior Executive, Health and Wellbeing

14.30 Collaborating across the corporate structure in the new psychological safety paradigm

Addressing the increasing overlap of business functions in health and wellbeing strategies
Navigating internal communication between radically different organisational branches
Identifying the respective regulatory requirements of each function in psychological safety
Ensuring relevant functions can operate effectively under a guiding logic

Tiffany Auvaa, Manager WHS Projects, Department of Planning, Housing, and Infrastructure

15.10 Afternoon Tea

15.40 Developing a comprehensive wellbeing strategy to promote and foster a ‘safe and well’ work environment

Utilising data to inform and refine the wellbeing strategy, ensuring actions are evidence-based and fit for purpose
Integrating psychosocial hazard management and positive duty into your wellbeing strategy and leveraging existing programs as controls
Infusing wellbeing into organisational culture and leadership to become sustainable and part of business-as usual
Signposting and connecting the ecosystem to drive positive wellbeing outcomes

Gina Bass, Director Inclusion, Diversity, and Wellbeing, Transport for NSW

16.20 Measuring psychological health and wellbeing within your workplace

Determining reliable indicators of wellbeing in your workplace
Accessing varied sources and kinds of available information on workplace wellbeing
Designing your measurement of wellbeing around critical privacy concerns
Ensuring traditional forms of measurement such as surveys are conducted effectively
Utilising measurements of overall wellbeing to produce more effective safety interventions

Audrey McGibbon, Co-Founder, EEK & SENSE

17.00 End of Conference Day One

Conference Day Two – Thursday 25 July

8.30 Registration

9.00 Opening remarks from the chair

9.10 Considering current regulatory constraints and conditions within psychological safety law

Understanding key developments in psychosocial safety regulations and cases
Identifying relevant regulatory agencies and supportive services in psychological safety
Designing an approach to new safety regulations that transcends compliance requirements
Ensuring officers and leaders are aware of their obligations and potential penalties

Carlie Holt, Partner, Pinsent Masons

9.55 Prioritising sustainable and continuous improvement of your mental health and wellbeing strategy

Identifying key vulnerabilities and indicators of successful wellbeing intervention
Designing realistic timelines for effective improvement of organisational mental health
Ensuring your health and wellbeing policy documents complement your ongoing actions
Achieving whole-of-organisation buy-in to continuously improve health outcomes as a team

Paul Willingham, Group Manager Risk and Safety, City of Parramatta

10.40 Morning Coffee

11.10 Constructing effective risk management in a preventative wellbeing system

Laura Kirby, Chief Mental Health Officer, Commonwealth Bank of Australia

11.55 Protecting your safety and wellbeing teams from trauma risks

Providing specialised and preventative care to high risk WHS teams
Mitigating the additional risks of vicarious trauma in your team
Understanding the importance of retention and peer support for long-term staff wellbeing
Providing preventative support and check-ins for your health and safety teams

Dianne Van Berlo, Executive Director Health, Safety and Staff Wellbeing, NSW Department of Education

12.40 Lunch

13.40 Improving work design throughout your organisation for psychological health and wellbeing

Mitigating underlying operational risks of psychological injury across all business units
Integrating work design considerations into your overall health and wellbeing strategy
Collaborating between key business functions for effective and safe work design
Ensuring job design continues to adapt to new wellbeing challenges in every team

David Burroughs, Principal Psychologist, Australian Psychological Services, and Chief Mental Health Officer, Westpac

14.25 Mitigating the risks of overwork with thoughtful job design

Navigating psychosocial hazards around overwork in high performance teams
Anticipating indicators of potential overwork in your organisation
Making a business case for reduction of workloads and responsibilities
Encouraging employees to share their challenges in a safe environment

Chris Doyle, Group Head of EH&S and Assurance, Lendlease