From AI to Quantum Computing: Key Takeaways from the ASPIRE Leaders’ Summit 2024

The first-ever ASPIRE Conference took place in 2013. The team at Verita HR remembers the event, because we were there. This year’s event was a little different though. It was the first ASPIRE conference since the Boomtown event in 2019. The topics were as strong as always. But did the ASPIRE Leaders’ Summit go beyond the bubble?

Andrew Hallam, General Secretary of ASPIRE, opened the Summit with a pre-event called the ASPIRE Leaders’ Gala, which took place the evening before the main event. During the Gala Andrew showed a timeline of all the ASPIRE events since 2013.

Following Andrew’s welcome speech, guests were given an overview of the ASPIRE Process Tracker for 2024. One of the areas highlighted was the difficulty in maintaining a sales and marketing function in a global business centre (GBS). There was plenty of discussion with the audience about the rest of the tracker.

The ASPIRE Leaders’ Summit at Dwor w Tomaszowicach

It was a bright sunny morning in October – almost warm. By 9 a.m., delegates and speakers, sponsors and partners were arriving en masse to take part in the Summit. The Mayor of Krakow himself, Aleksander Miszalski, attended to meet and greet as the World Stage started to fill up with people.

We were fortunate to have a great communications team to support the event. There was (from right to left) Klaudia Archimowicz, Head of Growth at Verita HR, Zuzanna Gorna, Junior Product Manager at Verita HR, Marcelina Polak, Marketing Specialist at MOTIFE, Wojciech Kubica, Marketing Manager at Sterling Outsourcing and Magda Bojda, Internal Communications Specialist at AMS. The Comms team supported the individual MCs who ran the four stages at the Summit. On the left is Andrew Samu, Commercial Director at Verita HR, who supported the World Stage at the Summit.

The World Stage was the largest stage at the Summit, with three other stages: The People Pavilion, the Future Forum, and Cutting Edge. Most delegates started their day listening to Rakesh Sangani of Proservartner. Rakesh explained that GBS is far from done, describing how global trends support this industry sector and how artificial intelligence is affecting jobs within it.

Michal Targiel, PwC Partner and Leader of Intelligent Business Process Automation, continued on artificial intelligence topics on the Cutting Edge stage.

There were more than 80 speakers at the Summit and more than 400 delegates. By the afternoon, as each stage became busier, the speakers drew in exceptional interest.

Some of The Speakers at the ASPIRE Leaders’ Summit

Philippe De Brouwer, Head of Model Risk at HSBC

Tomasz Horacek, Head of Global Service Centres at IG Group

Peter Mitchell, Global People Services Transformation Lead at STMicroelectronics

Bartosz Brak, COO & Head of Transformation for Europe Operations at HSBC

Eoin McCoy, Chief Transformation Officer at OANDA

Magda Rabiej, Engineering Director and Site lead at Google

John Lyons, Head of Krakow Centre at AON

Slawek Kumka, Managing Director of IBM Software Labs in Poland

Hanna Piwowarczyk, EMEA FSS Centre Head at Abbvie

Roland Walters, FP&A Director at IAG GBS

Gagan Sabharwal, Head of Global Finance Centre – Krakow at HSBC

Timothy O’Brien, Managing Director at Brown Brothers Harriman

Dorota Franczukowska, ESG Senior Manager at PwC

Aleksandra Stelmach-Grzyszka, Partner at PwC

Ewelina Kus, Senior Manager at PwC

Dariusz Pastula, HR Director at AON

Eoghan O’Dwyer, Senior Managing Director at HedgeServ

Sylwester Wisniewski, GBS Site Leader at Qurate Retail Group

Magdalena Weiner, Director, HR Hub Europe at American Express Global

Agnieszka Malinowska, Site Leader at Ecolab Services Poland

Wojciech Karpinski, Center Director at Amway GBS

Ewelina Usarek-Nowak, Head of Digital & Data at Jacobs

Perhaps the most engaging speaker at the event, Steve Suarez, founder of HorizonX Consulting and ex-Head of Innovation, Global Functions at HSBC wrapped up the talks. Joined by Slawek Kumka of IBM, the two shared insights into why quantum computing is an essential consideration for business leaders today. Slawek went a step further, explaining how his team has been supporting Krakow students in learning quantum computing. While Steve Suarez was among those who helped establish HSBC in Krakow years ago, Slawek is now playing a key role in sustaining the success of the Krakow ecosystem.

For followers interested in quantum computing, there’s a special interview from earlier in 2024 that may be of interest.

The Next Steps for Krakow

The ASPIRE annual conference has been absent from Verita HR’s annual calendar over the past few years. Many of our clients, partners and friends attend. It offers a great chance to keep abreast of trends. It is also a great chance to see what the next challenges for the industry might be.

Krakow remains one of the most important places for companies to locate their global business service centres. It has always faced competition. But, like all good ecosystems, instead of standing in the face of change, ASPIRE embraces it.

Does your recruitment partner work with the key stakeholders in your industry sector? Do you want to talk to the specialists at Verita HR to find out more?

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That Little Bit Extra:

Klaudia, Andrew, Steve Suarez and Zuzanna on the World Stage