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What’s the secret to driving organizational success? It all starts with an amazing workplace culture. But building that kind of culture doesn’t happen in a vacuum. The best way to stay ahead in HR is to learn from others, soak up the latest trends, and expand your network across different departments. Whether you’re exploring new strategies, connecting with peers, or earning those important certification credits, attending the right employee engagement events can make all the difference.
These events are more than just opportunities to learn. They’re a chance to see workplace culture transformation in action and find inspiration for creating engagement strategies at your organization.
At Achievers, we’re passionate about helping HR leaders and workplace innovators create real, lasting impact. That’s why we’re excited to highlight the 10 must-attend events of 2025 and show how our solutions are helping today’s HR leaders move forward in their industries. Plus, we’ll be there to connect with you and your peers, and highlight our award-winning employee voice and recognition solutions.
Ready to discover what’s next in employee engagement? Let’s dive into a year full of opportunities to connect, learn, and transform your workplace.
1. Transform Conference
When: March 17–19, 2025
Who you’ll meet: HR leaders, business executives, workplace innovators, and decision-makers invested in workforce transformation, culture, and organizational strategy.
What to expect: Transform isn’t just another HR conference. It’s a way to bring together executives, entrepreneurs, and global thought leaders to think critically about the future of work and spark deeper conversations. The conference takes place over three days and includes a curated list of events, awards, workshops, and keynotes — with the goal of making meaningful, transformative change across workplace cultures.
Attendees can take advantage of insights from 350 speakers on topics, including:
- Belonging
- Diversity
- Mental health
- Recruiting
- Burnout
- Well-being
- Leadership
- Building skills
- Artificial intelligence
- Hybrid work
The event includes curated sessions designed to encourage discussion and build meaningful connections between business leaders. Throughout the conference, listen to key insights about the topics that affect today’s changing workplace landscape, from employee engagement to DEIB.
Register: The Transform Conference
2. UNLEASH America
When: May 6–8, 2025
Who you’ll meet: Executives and industry leaders from the Fortune 500 companies, public sector organizations, and innovative start-ups.
What to expect: UNLEASH America Conference and Exhibition is one of the fastest-growing HR conferences worldwide. This three-day event is designed to bring together HR leaders from every market to meet, mingle, and hear from today’s thought leaders. The event is expected to draw more than 4,000 HR professionals from 100+ countries, combining a year’s worth of networking opportunities and connections into a brief but impactful time.
The conference dives deep into how AI and innovative technologies are transforming workplaces, helping HR leaders stay ahead in a fast-changing environment.
- Streamlining talent management
- Enhancing employee experiences
- The future of HR
- Navigating tech disruptions
What makes this event stand out is the opportunity to hear from world-class speakers and connect with peers in the HR space. Through inspiring keynotes and interactive panels, attendees will leave with valuable insights that can help them leverage HR tech, improve employee engagement, and build healthier organizational cultures.
Register: UNLEASH America Conference and Exhibition
3. WorldatWork Total Rewards Conference
When: May 19–21, 2025
Who you’ll meet: HR professionals looking to build an impactful compensation, benefits, and reward program.
What to expect: The 2025 WorldatWork Total Rewards Conference is an immersive conference experience. The event brings together rewards professionals from all over to learn new, innovative ways to drive retention and deliver actionable solutions that have genuine business impacts.
The event promises to be its most immersive and customized learning experience yet — with expert-led discussions, creative session styles, and an overall experience that’s customized to your goals. Explore innovative approaches to employee engagement, retention, and organizational success while simultaneously connecting with industry leaders.
Attendees can expect to hear insightful stories and panel discussions on several topics in the retention and rewards space, including:
- Strategic total rewards
- Sales compensation
- Benefits
- Well-being strategies
- Career pathways
With a variety of session formats, from TR talks to immersive deep dives, expect more reflection, camaraderie, and deeper engagement.
Register: WorldatWork Total Rewards Conference
4. Achievers Recognition Next
When: June 2025
Who you’ll meet: HR leaders who look to transform their recognition strategy.
What to expect: Join Achievers at Achievers Recognition Next, the premier employee engagement event, and connect with leading experts and HR leaders from across the industry. Explore the secrets of building an impactful employee recognition program. Learn how to design a strategy that not only celebrates employee achievements but also drives significant business results.
This event is your chance to uncover the “aha” moments that can transform your approach to recognition and ensure that recognition is frequent, meaningful, and embedded in your organization’s culture. Don’t miss the opportunity to gain fresh insights and actionable tips that will elevate engagement across your team members.
Register: Event details to be released soon!
5. SHRM Annual Conference
When: June 29–July 2, 2025
Who you’ll meet: HR professionals, executives, and business leaders who are shaping workplace practices and navigating challenges in human resource management.
What to expect: Get ready to grow your global network at SHRM25. This annual conference features over 375 handpicked sessions, so you can choose the topics and themes that mean the most to your organization. Choose from a range of session styles, from preconference workshops and seminars and rapid-fire sessions to the Main Stage experience. Each session type promises to deliver valuable long-term insights and actionable solutions that you can use to improve your current practices and stay competitive in your industry.
Hear from industry leaders on many workplace trends, including:
- AI advancements
- Emerging regulations
- HR technologies
- Wellness and self-care
SHRM25 offers peer-to-peer connections, customized learning and brainstorming opportunities, and access to the latest HR resources and technologies at the SHRM Expo. Experience everything this event has to offer.
Register: SHRM Annual Conference
6. Gartner Reimagine HR Conference
When: Oct 27–29, 2025
Who you’ll meet: Trailblazers, thought leaders, and industry experts pushing the bounds of HR.
What to expect: Gartner Reimagine promises to be the premier conference for CHROs and their HR leadership teams. This three-day event is centered around data-driven research and in-depth conversations between the HR community and Gartner experts. Sit in on keynote sessions from renowned guest speakers, collaborate with other HR leaders to solve shared pain points, and meet with today’s leading technology providers.
Attendees can expect to hear insights technology, strategy and leadership-based topics, including:
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)
- Employee performance management
- HR strategy and management
- Manager effectiveness
- Talent analytics
- Total rewards
With opportunities to network with industry peers, learn about cutting-edge research, and experience personalized product and software demos, Gartner Reimagine offers invaluable opportunities for HR leaders to drive organizational success.
Register: Gartner Reimagine HR Conference
7. From Day One Live Conferences
When: Various dates
Who you’ll meet: Principals of organizations who are ready and able to effect change within businesses, industries, teams, and their communities.
What to expect: From Day One is designed to bring together business leaders and HR professionals to learn how to build well-grounded values into their business — from diversity to responsibility and transparency. Each conference features a mix of keynote speeches, interactive workshops, and panel discussions with industry leaders. Learn from individuals who have implemented real change in their respective industries and get inspired by stories of success and innovation.
Hear from thought leaders, executives, writers, and research on key industry topics, including:
- Employee recognition and rewards
- Talent acquisition
- Artificial intelligence
- Women in leadership
- Employee productivity
At From Day One, the goal is to offer actionable insights and inspire initiatives that benefit both employees and businesses — giving you the necessary tools to make meaningful change in your organization.
Register: From Day One
8. Workday Rising
When: September 15–18, 2025
Who you’ll meet: HR professionals from some of the world’s most influential brands and businesses.
What to expect: Workday Rising is a customer-centric conference for existing and prospective Workday customers. The goal of the conference is to learn how to use the Workday platform to achieve organizational goals.
During the event, attendees can curate their own paths to ensure they have access to the sessions that mean the most to their organization. With a range of industries to learn from, there’s no shortage of insights and resources at your fingertips.
Choose from sessions from members of the Workday community, on topics including:
- Financial planning
- Workforce management
- HR analytics
- Finance IT
- Artificial intelligence
- Business services
Facilitated by Workday product experts and partners, Workday Rising gives hundreds of finance, HR, and IT professionals the opportunity to connect with different departments, learn, and discover new ways to maximize their investment.
Register: Workday Rising
9. HR Tech Conference
When: September 16–18, 2025
Who you’ll meet: Senior HR professionals, business leaders, HR tech analysts, and influencers addressing the most pressing workplace challenges faced by organizations and driving workforce management solutions through advanced HR tools.
What to expect: The HR Technology Conference brings together HR professionals and tech innovators from a range of industries, with over 200 sessions from the industry’s top players. Over the course of the event, you’ll hear about the latest industry trends and leave with actionable strategies that you can utilize in your organization to achieve your business goals.
With a mix of sessions and a diverse range of topics, attendees can tailor their HRTC experience to reflect their interests and key drivers. Discussion topics may include:
- Emerging HR technology
- Talent management
- Learning and development
- Artificial intelligence
- Workforce challenges
With ample networking opportunities, HR Tech offers actionable insights to drive business transformation through innovative HR solutions. Plus, get hands-on access to the latest technology HR Tech Expo, with real-world case studies, HR tech talks, in-depth demos and more.
Register: HR Tech Conference
10. UKG Aspire
When: November 3–6, 2025
Who you’ll meet: HR professionals from some of the world’s biggest, most influential brands and businesses.
What to expect: UKG Aspire is an annual customer conference bringing together 5,000 workplace leaders to learn, celebrate successes, and connect on the technology that helps make organizations great places to work. This three-day experience is designed to help unpack today’s most complex workforce challenges. Attendees can learn industry best practices from UKG product experts, partners, and their peers with hands-on learning opportunities, inspiring sessions and so much more.
Hear from technology specialists, industry experts, and thought leaders on a variety of topics, including:
- Change management
- Employee well-being
- Workplace culture
- User adoption
- Generative AI
With lots of opportunities for learning, networking, and exciting product highlights, UKG Aspire has something for everyone.
Register: UKG Aspire
How to make an employee engagement event calendar?
With several employee engagement events and HR conferences in 2025, creating a calendar is the most effective way to stay organized and connected with your team throughout the year. Here how you can get started:
- Identify key events: Start by researching top employee engagement conferences and HR events for 2025. Look for those that align with your goals, such as boosting team recognition or learning about emerging workplace trends.
- Mix it up: Include a variety of events, from large conferences to local workshops or online webinars. A diverse mix ensures you’re addressing different engagement needs and learning opportunities.
- Set reminders: Schedule reminders for event deadlines, like registration dates and early-bird discounts. This keeps your planning and budget on track.
- Block follow-up time: After each event, set aside time to review insights, share takeaways with your team, and decide whether to attend next year.
- Collaborate with your team: Share the calendar with your team so they can suggest events or initiatives. This encourages collaboration and ensures the calendar reflects everyone’s interests.
- Review and adjust quarterly: Check in on your calendar every three months to see if it’s working for your team. Remove or add events based on relevance and outcomes.
This step-by-step approach will keep you organized, engaged, and ready to make the most out of the opportunities ahead.
Save your seat at the top employee engagement events
Each event year brings more opportunities for HR and business leaders to connect with one another, share their stories and insights, and learn about the industry’s biggest trends. As you plan your employee engagement events and build out your calendar for 2025, don’t forget that it’s about more than simply attending a conference or two. It’s about being able to turn those learnings into actionable engagement strategies.
At Achievers, we help HR professionals understand how our employee experience platform can help achieve their business’s goals and objectives. Through connections at events like Achievers Recognition Next and From Day One, we learn about the challenges employers face when it comes to employee retention, productivity, and belonging — challenges that our platform can help solve.
But that doesn’t mean you have to wait until the first event to learn about Achievers. We’re ready and waiting to help you take the first step to building an organizational culture you can be proud of.
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