Globalisation has facilitated the growth of knowledge-based businesses that rely on the power of knowledge to achieve greater productivity and relevance in the market place. However, much of this knowledge is tacit - inside people and hence is lost to the organisation when employees leave. What can be done to stem this tide? The practices of Asian firms in the creation, capture and use of knowledge that are discussed in this track will give you pointers you can use.

Competencies make up the foundation for organisational performance as they clarify performance standards and highlight the types and levels of competencies an organisation requires. Despite the benefits, organisations fail to make full use of competencies.

Fortunately, there are frameworks available today that can simplify the process of introducing competencies into Human Capital Development applications such as Talent Management, Succession Planning, Deployment, etc.

This track will explore what other organisations have done successfully, the best practices in competency profiling, assessments as well as application and implementation strategies. The Return On Investment (ROI) on these initiatives will also be addressed.

Leadership plays a central part in developing an organisation's talent pool. In fact, leaders are the ones who provide a winning difference to the organisation. They are in a unique position to enable employees to think beyond their environment.

Kouzes and Posner remarked that leadership is not the private reserve of a few charismatic men and women but a process ordinary people use when they bring forth the best from themselves to others. Seen this way, leadership is simply a relationship between leaders and followers and one that can be learned.

The Leadership track will explore successful global leadership practices and models with particular relevance to Asia.

The nature of work has changed dramatically due to the impact of technology and the pace of change. In a competitive world, time is a scarce commodity. Organisations today talk about 'fast track training' to prepare their employees to be work-ready as rapidly as possible. This has resulted in the convergence of work and the learning place. All learning and development initiatives undertaken are expected to make a difference to job performance as soon as possible.

This track will explore learning and development tools that accelerate learning. FUN ideas, games that involve and instruct, formal and informal models to gain the attention of learners, and skills building sessions will be covered.

Technology has made lifelong and continuous learning easier by allowing us to access knowledge from locations other than traditional classrooms - to learn at one's own pace, and to benefit from collaborative learning, game-based learning, and template-driven content creation.

The adoption of technology-based learning has been slow in Asia. How much of the potential can be realised? Can learning costs be reduced? Can we achieve better returns on investment?

Apart from answers to the above, this track will showcase a variety of technology-led initiatives such as Blended learning, Pod Casting, Blogs, Animating Content, Online Games, Online Worlds, Learning Management Systems, E-Books, Tele seminars, Blooks and Virtual Classrooms.

Massive social changes and the changing ways of work are causing upheavals in the world of work. Ageing and migrant workforces; a drive for efficiency led by demand for cost reductions and continuous quality improvements; minimum wages to remain competitive; job creation to maintain the social equilibrium; skills upgrading to move into high value jobs; flexible work arrangements to enable alternate employment; positive employer - employee relationships and shifting of talent across borders are all emerging issues in Human Capital Development.

This track will feature world-class speakers, thought leaders and trend analysts who will address the emerging issues in HRD.