Programme

12.05 Workshop sessions

Unlocking public-private partnerships for Northern Ireland's transition to Net Zero

Northern Ireland is leading the UK’s response to the two biggest crises of 21st century – the global climate change and nature or biodiversity loss for a just transition to reach Net Zero. The panel will discuss some of these challenges including how Northern Ireland organisations are supporting the government’s initiatives to progress this agenda, from tangible action at the local government level, sustainable decision making to create a circular zero waste economy, supporting businesses including small medium enterprises (SMEs) and developing strong partnerships between public, private and third sector organisations to attract global business investment.

Speakers:
Amit Verma, CIPFA Sustainability Policy Manager
Dr Caterina Brandoni, Senior Lecturer in Energy Course, Ulster University
Dr Beatrice Smyth, Senior Lecturer, Queens University Belfast
Terry Waugh, Chief Executive Officer, Action Renewables

Location: Brookfield suite

or

Exploring preventative investment in local government

This session will explore the emerging framework for tracking preventative investment in local government. Based on CIPFA's project supported by the Health Foundation, speakers will provide key insights into mapping and measuring preventative spend, ensuring the sustainability of public services.

Speaker: Dr Eleanor Roy, Policy Manager Health and Integration, CIPFA

Location: Glenbank suite

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Importance of performance audit

In recent years, the importance of performance audit as a means of holding governments to account has been increasingly recognised. This session will look at performance auditing as an important part of the governance and accountability cycle and its potential for promoting impact of public sector interventions on the lives of citizens.

Speakers:
Iain Murray, Director of Public Financial Management, CIPFA
Patrick Barr, Director, Northern Ireland Audit Office

Location: Boardroom suite

14.35 Workshop sessions

Beyond the bottom line: embedding social value in public services with TechnologyOne

Public Services in Northern Ireland are under growing pressure to deliver not just efficient services but also meaningful social value for communities. This presentation shares TechnologyOne’s journey from a traditional ERP provider to a purpose driven partner embedding social value into every stage of procurement, delivery, and impact measurement. Through real-world examples and alignment with evolving policy priorities, we will show you how TechnologyOne helps councils:

• Integrate social value into financial and service planning
• Leverage ERP and analytics to evidence long-term outcomes not just outputs
• Support local sustainability, equity and community wellbeing 

By aligning technology with government priorities, TechnologyOne demonstrates how ERP can go beyond compliance to create measurable, lasting impact for Northern Ireland communities.

Speaker: Emma Foy, Local Government Lead, TechnologyOne

Location: Brookfield suite

or

The talent futurist: hiring humans in an AI world

Forget robots taking over. This is about humans stepping up. In this fast-paced, interactive session, a Talent Futurist explores how public finance teams can thrive through transformation. As AI reshapes how we work, deliver value, and make decisions, the real drivers of progress remain: people with curiosity, resilience, and purpose. We’ll dive into:

• The quirky truth about the future of work in public finance
• What to look for when hiring in the AI era (hint: it’s not just Excel skills)
• How to build flexible, future-facing talent pipelines that serve the public good
• Why so-called “soft skills” are now mission-critical superpowers
• Expect provocations, polls, practical tools—and a radically human take on future-ready teams in the public sector
• The shift to skills-based hiring and how it can unlock new talent or bring new talent into the public sector.

Speaker: Louise Smyth, Group Chief Commercial, MCS

Location: Glenbank

or

The Code, the Better Reporting Group, and the future

CIPFA’s Head of Technical and Standards discusses how his team are working to improve the quality and usefulness of local authority accounting and reporting – and what you can expect to see in the Code next year and beyond.

Speaker: David Lyford-Tilley, Head of Technical Standards, CIPFA

Location: Boardroom suite