Agenda

Tuesday, 3 June 2025
GDI, Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute, Switzerland

Workday Elevate is your chance to see how we’re helping EMEA organisations reach new levels of success. See what we’ve got lined up for you below.

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10:00–10:30
  • Arrival and coffee
10:30–11:00
  • Opening keynote
    • Dorien Roes

      Dorien Roes

      Country Manager Belgium and Luxembourg, Workday

11:00–11:30
  • Keynote
    • Tom Simonts

      Tom Simonts

      Senior Financial Economist, KBC Group

    Tom Simonts delves what A.I. means for your financial department

11:30–12:00
  • Vanuit het hart
    • Marc Herremans

      Marc Herremans

      Triathlon, Founder and Keynote speaker

12:00–13:00
  • Lunch
13:00–13:30
    • Finance

    • HR

    How AI and ML will enable the CFO to create value and anticipate change
    • Frederic Portal

      Frederic Portal

      Product Marketing Sr. Director, Workday

    In recent years, CFOs has been under more and more pressure. Expectations for the finance function rose, not only on new regulation like EGS, but also supporting the business to increase beyond just maximizing shareholder value, to meeting the expectations of a broader set of stakeholders and becoming the architects of value creation.

    This expanded role means finance must have the right data, technology foundation, and people to be successful. Yesterday’s CFOs focused mostly on tracking value, reporting what happened in the past, whereas, tomorrow’s CFOs need to create value, and anticipate and navigate what’s coming next.

    But, how do they do that? It starts with having the right insight at the right time, the adaptability to keep up with the velocity of change, and the right talent with the right skills to take the business into the future. In this session we will review the fundamental for AI and ML and we will provide you with practical use cases of how AI and ML can modernize your finance function and allow your user to work on more value added tasks to support the business.

13:30–13:35
  • Transition time
13:35–14:05
  • The skills journey continues…time to get practical

    In this session we’ll take a look at what it takes to become a skill based organization and how to get there. We will share some possible strategies and hone in on some customer examples to see how each of them have approached their journey into the wonderfull and exciting world of skills.

14:05–14:30
  • Break
14:30–15:00
  • Creating the path for continuous Strategic Workforce Planning: How to integrate talent with finance and risk to better balance staffing needs
    • Bernd Carette

      Bernd Carette

      Director HR Advisory, KPMG

    • Andreas Gemis

      Andreas Gemis

      Sr Manager CFO Advisory, KPMG

15:00–15:05
  • Transition time
15:05–15:35
  • VNDLY: Optimizing external workforce management
    • Tom Illic

      Tom Illic

      Product Specialist, Workday

    Businesses are increasingly augmenting their workforce with extended workers to fill critical skills gaps, reduce costs, and increase agility in hiring in order to scale quickly. The ability to adapt the workforce to change is now a strategic differentiator and organizations are looking for better ways to manage this important part of their worker population. Join us to explore how VNDLY can benefit your organization to better navigate these challenges

15:35–15:45
  • Break
15:45–16:30
  • Customer Award + Closing
16:30–18:00
  • Drinks
10:00–10:30
  • Registrations & Refreshments
10:30–10:50
  • Workday Regional Welcome | Welcome to Workday Elevate Zurich
    • Fred Alran

      Fred Alran

      VP, General Manager Switzerland and Austria, Workday

    • Ana Mislitchi

      Ana Mislitchi

      Head of DACH Services, Workday

10:50–11:20
  • Embracing the Future of Work
    • Rich Bye

      Rich Bye

      VP, Global Product Vision & Experience, Workday

11:20–11:50
  • Moving business forever forward
11:50–13:00
  • Lunch & Expo Area
13:00–13:30
    • People

    Strategy & Vision: Moving the Office of the CHRO Forever Forward
    • Richard Doherty

      Richard Doherty

      Senior Director Product Marketing, Workday

    Workday HCM Suite is the AI platform that elevates HR. Transform HR into a strategic powerhouse by unlocking total workforce insights on a dynamic AI-powered platform designed for extensibility, personalised experiences and operational efficiency. Join this session to hear the Workday vision on how HR can embrace new ways of working and navigate the future.

    • Finance

    Strategy & Vision: Moving the Office of the CFO Forever Forward
    • AW

      Anthony Walker

      Head of Corporate & TA Systems, GAM Investments

    • Jerry Ting

      Jerry Ting

      Founder, Evisort

    • Tim Wakeford

      Tim Wakeford

      VP Financials Product Strategy, Workday

    The potential for accounting and procurement teams to make strategic business impact has never been greater. Together, we’re charting a course to unlock this potential and harness the power of data, people and processes. Join this session to learn about the latest enhancements in AI, analytics and user experience – and see where we’re heading next.

    • IT

    Workday Illuminate™ Strategy & Vision: AI That Lights the Path Forward
    • Clare Hickie

      Clare Hickie

      CTO EMEA, Workday

    Learn how AI is built into the core of the Workday platform and how we deploy different types of AI – including machine learning, generative AI and agentic AI – to solve specific business problems. Find out what the recently announced Agent System of Record actually means, why only Workday can deliver it and how it will benefit your organisation.

13:30–13:45
  • Break
13:45–14:15
  • Session powered by IBM
    • Finance

    • People

    Strategy & Vision: Shape the Future With Workday Adaptive Planning
    • Kelsea Vaughan

      Kelsea Vaughan

      Product Marketing Manager, Workday

    • Helmut Köhler

      Helmut Köhler

      Senior Solution Consulant, Workday

    In an unpredictable business environment, agility in planning is more critical than ever. Join us for an exclusive look at Workday Adaptive Planning and discover how it empowers organisations with smarter, more flexible, AI-driven financial planning. We’ll explore key differentiators, showcase success stories and provide a sneak peek into upcoming innovations.

    • People

    Building a Skills-Based Organization: Practical Strategies and Workday Innovation
    • Lorena Gamez

      Lorena Gamez

      Sr Director, Strategic Engagement - Product, Workday

    This session will guide you through the process of establishing a skills-based organization, featuring real-world examples from our customers, and Workday. We'll highlight the critical role of a strong foundation, particularly a well-defined job architecture. Learn how Workday's innovative tools, such as the Job Architecture Hub, empower agility and drive organizational success.

    • People

    Session powered by PwC
14:15–14:45
  • Networking Break: Meet the Experts
14:45–15:15
    • For Beginners

    Go for Growth

    Your forever platform.

    • Adam Navratil

      Adam Navratil

      Value Manager, Workday People

    Invest in your future with a platform that gives you agility, insight and grow alongside you. Have peace of mind knowing that no matter what stage of growth you're in—IPO, M&A, international expansion, new product launch, and beyond—Workday is the last HR and finance platform you will ever need.

    • Finance

    The Strategic CFO: Gain a Competitive Edge with AI-Driven Finance
    • Frederic Portal

      Frederic Portal

      Senior Director Product Marketing, Workday

    Helping CFOs protect and grow the value of their business is a top priority for Workday. This session explores the latest advancements in AI that transform finance business processes, simplify the interrogation of data and drive new levels of impact across the business.

    • For Beginners

    • People

    Session powered by Strada
    • For Beginners

    4.5 Months, 3000 Employees & 2 formerly independent companies – Medbase’s journey to harmonization
    • Thomas Biegel

      Thomas Biegel

      Director People Services, Medbase

    • Yannik Kindler

      Yannik Kindler

      Manager HR Transformation, Deloitte

    Medbase's acquisition of the Swiss arm of Zur Rose brought in 600 new employees and the need to harmonize processes and systems across two formerly separate companies. In just 4,5 months, Deloitte's team ensured a seamless Workday go-live, covering key HR processes, data cleansing, and standardized working conditions – and it brought larger screens to some consultants in the Deloitte India office. This transformation showcased teamwork deploying and integrating various Workday functionalities. The Medbase & Deloitte collaboration will continue going forward ensuring post go live system maintenance, improvement, and innovation.

15:15–15:30
  • Break
15:30–16:00
    • IT

    • Getting the Most from Workday

    AI-Powered Experiences That Drive Users Forever Forward
    • Daut Ajeti

      Daut Ajeti

      Sr Solution Consultant, Workday

    • Sylvan Schmid

      Sylvan Schmid

      Principal, Value Manager, Workday

    • Raul Degenhart

      Raul Degenhart

      Enterprise Architect, Workday

    Are complex systems and fragmented workflows holding your organisation back? Step into the future where AI guides employees and admins through complex tasks, streamlines processes and empowers your workforce to achieve more. Learn how Workday is revolutionising the user experience with AI through intuitive interactions and powerful insights.

    • For Beginners

    Customer Conversation
    • IT

    • People

    • Getting the Most from Workday

    Agents at Work
    • Selçuk Boydak

      Selçuk Boydak

      CEO & Founder, AI Business School

    • Léonie Kirchgeorg

      Léonie Kirchgeorg

      Head of Sales & Business Development Switzerland, AI Business School

    • HA

      Hind Ayachi

      Sr Solution Consultant, Workday

    This session explores one of the hottest current AI trends: Agents entering the workplace. In this strategic overview, Workday and the AI Business School demystify AI agents. Understand their core concepts, different types, potential value, and the critical factors for successful integration - including adoption insights and trust considerations. Explore how HR and IT's roles are expanding to manage both human and digital employees effectively.

    • IT

    • People

    • Getting the Most from Workday

    Unifying and Scaling HR Document Management, inside Workday
    • Rainer Kaiser

      Rainer Kaiser

      Head of HR Technology, Julius Baer

    There are many challenges when it comes to managing employee documents, including complex compliance requirements and working across multiple HR document stores. Hear from Kainos and Swiss bank Julius Baer on how to consolidate and transform employee document processes inside Workday across the areas of compliance, HR efficiencies and user experience. Learn how you can benefit from a Workday-first approach for all HR operations.

    • Getting the Most from Workday

    Driving success with a lean team: How Workday Success Plans can help
    • Lynda Taumann-Yrisarry

      Lynda Taumann-Yrisarry

      Sr Principal Managing Partner, Workday

    Achieving success with a lean team can be challenging. Which features will make an impact, and how do you implement them? How do you grow your internal expertise? Join us to learn how Workday Success Plans empowers lean teams to solve problems faster.

16:00–16:15
  • Break
16:15–16:55
  • Inspirational Keynote "Breaking Limits"
    • Jonas Deichmann

      Jonas Deichmann

      Athlete, Adventurer & Six-time World Record Holder

16:55–17:10
  • Announcing Winner "Forward Thinkers Award"

    Wrap up and Close

17:10–19:30
  • Networking Apero

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