The agenda for IAMPHENOM 2026 is beginning to take shape as the first group of confirmed speakers is announced for the three-day human resources conference focused on applied artificial intelligence and automation. Scheduled for March 10–12 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, the event is positioned as a forum for HR, talent, and IT leaders seeking practical insight into how AI technologies are being deployed across workforce-related functions.
Organized by Phenom, the conference is expected to draw more than 3,000 attendees from large enterprises and complex organizations worldwide. Participants are expected to include talent acquisition and talent management leaders, HR technology teams, and senior executives responsible for workforce strategy and digital transformation. The emphasis for 2026 is on real-world application: how AI systems, intelligent agents, and integrated platforms are being implemented to address persistent challenges in hiring, skills development, workforce planning, and employee experience.
Focus on Applied AI Rather Than Theory
Unlike broader technology or HR conferences that often emphasize emerging concepts or long-term predictions, IAMPHENOM is structured around applied use cases. Sessions are designed to examine how organizations are using AI today, where implementations have delivered measurable outcomes, and where limitations or organizational friction remain.
Practical Use Cases Across the HR Lifecycle
Topics planned for the 2026 program include the deployment of AI for specific operational needs, such as scaling recruitment volume without sacrificing quality, improving candidate matching, supporting internal mobility, and building structured skills frameworks. Attendees will also explore how AI-enabled tools can be integrated into existing HR technology stacks, a common challenge for enterprises managing multiple vendors and legacy systems.
Demonstrations of AI agents and automation workflows are expected to play a central role, giving attendees visibility into how these technologies function in live environments rather than conceptual slideware. Organizers have emphasized that sessions will prioritize candid discussion, including lessons learned from unsuccessful pilots or incomplete rollouts.
Speakers With Direct Operational Responsibility
The initial speaker lineup reflects this applied focus, drawing heavily from practitioners who oversee talent, HR operations, and workforce strategy within their organizations. According to Christina Brown, Vice President and General Manager, Global Customer Value at Phenom, the emphasis is on speakers who are “actively solving real problems with AI across HR and IT,” rather than external commentators or consultants.
Representation Across Industries and Organization Types
The confirmed speakers span healthcare, financial services, education, retail, manufacturing, logistics, and professional services. This breadth is intended to highlight how applied AI strategies vary depending on regulatory requirements, workforce composition, hiring volumes, and organizational maturity.
Among the first wave of speakers are:
- Julie Eagy, Senior Manager, Talent Acquisition Operations, Alight Solutions
- Astraea Lilley, Director of Talent Management, Alight Solutions
- Camilla Langenderfer, Senior Director, Talent Acquisition Operations and Strategy, Bright Horizons
- Grant Clifton, HR Manager, Cheyenne Regional Medical Center
- Caroline Liddell, Career and Succession Partner, Dallas College
- Johnathon Bye, Assistant Vice President, New Talent Strategies, Duke University Health System
- Breanna Buchanan, Director of Talent Acquisition, Dutch Bros Coffee
- Anne Stickroot, Vice President, Talent Acquisition, Elara Caring
Additional speakers include leaders from organizations such as Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield, HUB International, OMERS, OmniCable, Regions Bank, SASR Workforce Solutions, Sweetwater Sound, Truist, the University of Maryland Medical System, United Airlines, Varsity Brands, and WEX. Several organizations, including Regions Bank and United Airlines, are represented by multiple leaders across talent acquisition, workforce planning, and recruitment operations, reflecting the scale and complexity of their hiring environments.
Addressing HR’s Most Pressing AI Questions
A consistent theme across the announced sessions is the need for clarity and accountability in AI adoption. While interest in AI-driven HR solutions has accelerated rapidly, many organizations continue to struggle with translating pilot projects into sustainable, enterprise-wide capabilities.
Scaling Without Fragmentation
One focus area is how organizations can scale AI-driven recruitment and talent processes without creating fragmented experiences for candidates, recruiters, or hiring managers. Speakers are expected to address governance models, cross-functional alignment between HR and IT, and the role of data quality in sustaining AI performance over time.
Another recurring topic is skills intelligence. As job roles evolve and traditional career paths become less linear, organizations are under pressure to identify, develop, and redeploy skills internally. Sessions will explore how AI can support more dynamic skills frameworks and inform workforce planning decisions.
Integration and Change Management
Technology integration remains a significant obstacle for many HR teams. Attendees will hear how peers are approaching system consolidation, interoperability, and vendor coordination, as well as how they are managing organizational change. This includes training recruiters and managers to trust AI-supported recommendations while retaining human oversight and accountability.
A Forum for Candid Experience Sharing
Organizers have positioned IAMPHENOM as a venue for transparent discussion rather than polished success narratives. Speakers are expected to share not only outcomes but also trade-offs, constraints, and organizational resistance encountered during AI initiatives.
This approach reflects a broader shift in enterprise technology conversations, where buyers are increasingly seeking peer validation and operational detail rather than aspirational messaging. By bringing together HR leaders who are at different stages of AI maturity, the conference aims to surface patterns and practical guidance that can be adapted across industries.
Continuing Announcements Ahead of March
The speaker lineup announced represents the first phase of the 2026 program, with additional speakers and sessions to be confirmed in the coming weeks. As the agenda expands, organizers indicate that it will continue to emphasize applied intelligence, automation, and experience design across the employee lifecycle.
For HR and talent leaders navigating the transition from experimentation to execution in AI, IAMPHENOM 2026 is shaping up as a concentrated opportunity to examine how peers are operationalizing these technologies under real-world constraints, and what that means for the future of workforce strategy.
About Phenom
Phenom is an applied AI company that helps organizations hire faster, develop better and retain longer. By uniquely combining proprietary industry-specific AI, agentic AI, automation and personalized experiences, its Intelligent Talent Experience platform helps companies fundamentally reshape their HR processes and strategies for scalable and sustainable transformation. Driven by a purpose to help a billion people find the right work, Phenom takes a holistic approach that unifies the entire talent journey, augmenting human capabilities and creating a symbiotic relationship between technology and talent.
Phenom has earned accolades including: Inc. 5000’s fastest-growing companies (6 consecutive years), Deloitte Technology’s Fast 500 (5 years), 11 Brandon Hall ‘Excellence in Technology’ awards including Gold for ‘Best Advance in Generative AI for Business Impact,’ Business Intelligence Group’s Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards (3 consecutive years), The Cloud Awards 2025/2024, The A.I. Awards 2024, and a regional Timmy Award for launching and optimizing HelpOneBillion.com (2020).
Headquartered in Greater Philadelphia, Phenom also has offices in India, Israel, the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom.
