On 17^th April 2026, the European Chamber hosted its annual Human Capital Conference in Beijing, with more than 100 human resources (HR) professionals and executives in attendance.

As one of the European Chamber’s signature events, the Human Capital Conference provides a platform and community for HR professionals from member companies to address their key issues, share up-to-date insights from top consultancy and C-suite-level leaders, and discuss best practices in relation to supporting organisations’ development.

Wang Shuhong, chair of the European Chamber’s HR Forum in Beijing, opened the event with welcome remarks. She highlighted how artificial intelligence (AI) has become deeply embedded in every aspect of daily life and business across industries.

Next came a CEO panel featuring Jean-Philippe Lamarcade, vice president of EDF Group and chairman of EDF China, and Michael Chang, executive vice president and chief technology officer of Nokia Greater China. The pair shared their experiences of AI transformation at a strategic level, their perspectives on how AI will shape their industries over the next three to five years, and stressed the importance of establishing clear AI policies.

Jane Xing, partner at Heidrick & Struggles’ Beijing office, delivered a keynote speech outlining three key ‘hard truths’ of AI adoption: AI cannot be treated as an isolated information technology project; leadership need to acquire the technology skills to understand and utilise AI; and organisational culture is a critical determinant of AI success.

Sharon Liu, consulting partner at LABOURS, delivered a keynote speech on how multinationals can manage employment risks, and shared insights on managing labour relations amid organisational changes driven by AI and economic shifts.

The HR vice presidents’ panel was moderated by Sunny Sun, vice chair of the HR Forum in Beijing, and featured four panellists: Anna Wang, principal HR business partner at Amazon Web Services CMHK; Melody Xu, head of people organisation at HP Inc. Greater China; Jenny Liu, senior vice president and head of HR at Swiss Reinsurance China; and Rebecca Sun, senior corporate relationship manager at Pacific Prime China.

The panel debated the AI skills required in the current jobs market, how AI can reshape HR in the workplace, and how workers can be helped to acquire the right skills to properly leverage AI while staying responsible for outcomes. One panellist mentioned that HR faced challenges adopting AI due to resource constraints, data security risks with public tools, and adoption being a low investment priority. The panellists concluded that AI should empower humans through hybrid intelligence and healthy workplace relationships.

The young professionals’ panel was moderated by Cindy Jensen, founder and CEO of INPOWER ONE, and featured four panellists: Ye Jiashan, International Graduate Program, Novo Nordisk; Angelo M’BA, Schwarzman scholar at Tsinghua University; Jing Jing, Schwarzman scholar at Tsinghua University; and Yin Xiaoyue, founder and chief executive officer of Vinsoo AI (Yunsi Intelligent Technology).

The panel explored AI’s impact on work, careers and organisations. They discussed young professionals’ priorities, which included making a meaningful contribution, maintaining a work-life balance, and working for organisations that trust and nurture their potential. They also discussed the generational differences in approaches to work and the importance of human-AI integration. They stressed that AI should be a tool to enhance human work, not replace it, and highlighted the value of continuous learning and responsible AI use.

Wang Shuhong returned to give closing remarks, during which she expressed appreciation to all speakers and guests for attending and reiterated the importance of embracing AI and learning to work with it.