We find ourselves in incredibly turbulent times - socially, politically and economically - all of which can have a huge impact upon our mental wellbeing. In our opening session of the day, we will share how workplaces can continue to drive forward efforts around employee mental wellbeing, and how these efforts are especially important during the uncertain times that we are living through.
Khushboo Hoda
Head - Health & Wellness
Khushboo Hoda heads Health & Wellbeing at Volvo Group India, driving strategies that integrate mental health, employee engagement, and holistic wellness into workplace culture. She has designed impactful programs that promote psychological safety, proactive well-being practices, and measurable cultural change with a deep commitment to employee experience. Khushboo is deeply passionate about breaking stigma around mental health and enabling organizations to prioritize people as a core business strategy. Her initiatives combine data-driven insights with empathy-led leadership, fostering workplaces where employees feel supported and empowered to thrive. A strong advocate for storytelling and open dialogue, Khushboo brings practical, people-first approaches to wellbeing.
Susie Bates
Chief People Officer - Asia Pacific
Chief People Officer for the Weber Shandwick Collective in Asia, Susie has been living and working across the Asia Pacific region for over 25 years, holding people and HR leadership roles in multinational organisations.
Based in Hong Kong, Susie has been a part of the IPG network since April 2013 having worked across multiple brands during her tenure, overseeing People initiatives across China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and India. In addition to her HR responsibilities, Susie actively developed Weber Shandwick's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Asia Pacific strategy and has been leading the initiative for the region since early 2021.
We talk a lot about workplace stress - and the intense workload pressures facing some employees in APAC - but how can employers recognise the warning signs that an employee might be facing excessive stress levels? In this session, we'll hear from a range of perspectives about burnout across different age demographics in the workplace, sharing key learnings with all in attendance about how to recognise red flags and avoid reaching the crunch point of burnout.
Serina Tan
Founder & Managing Partner
Serina Tan is the Founder and Managing Partner of Brewer, an award-winning strategic communications advisory firm headquartered in Singapore. An established leader and trainer in public relations, Serina has a proven track record in leading award-winning communication programmes across the Asia Pacific. She was recognised by Campaign Asia’s 40 under 40 for her impressive achievements. Committed to promoting a culture of mental-well-being in the PR industry, she regularly conducts mental well-being workshops for both in house and agency practitioners.
Danny Tan
Managing Director
Danny is an experienced and versatile communications professional who is passionate about everything related to storytelling. He has counselled organizations spanning a wide range of industries, helping them to design award-winning communications programmes that connect with their stakeholders and drive measurable impact across the entire customer funnel.
Harnesh Kaur
SEA Health & Wellbeing Manager
Harnesh Kaur is a SEA Health & Wellbeing Manager at Mars, where she has been for over 2.5 years, supporting teams across Southeast Asia. She partners with leaders to embed health, wellbeing, and inclusion into the organizational culture, driving impact across diverse markets. With over a decade of experience in corporate health, Harnesh has worked closely with senior leaders to design and implement strategies that improve employee wellbeing, mental health, and inclusion. Her career spans clinical, community, and corporate health, giving her a unique ability to bridge evidence-based practice with practical organizational impact. Beyond her corporate role, Harnesh is also a certified Sound Healer and Clinical Hypnotherapist, integrating holistic approaches that support balance, resilience, and personal growth. Outside of work, she’s a proud mother to Jay and Jesleen, and pet parent to Daisy, who all continue to inspire her to live and lead with empathy, kindness, and purpose.
Dr. Justin Chin
Managing Director
Dr Justin Chin is a public health trained medical doctor with > 20 years general management and commercial experience in the pharmaceutical sector. He has worked with teams and organizations in Singapore, China, Taiwan and Philippines to transform culture and deliver on business goals. He is passionate about partnering individuals, teams and organizations to reach their fullest potential and achieve a state of flourishing.
In this keynote, we will look at how diversity, equity and inclusion intersects with mental wellbeing in the workplace, and show how businesses can use inclusion as a driving force for building psychological safety and a mentally healthy workforce.
Lyn Lee
Author and Public Speaker
Lyn R. Lee, author of ST bestseller Tiny Rice Grains, and public speaker, is an influential figure in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) space. She is an advocate for mental well-being in the workplace, and for inclusion and accessibility for people with disabilities. She brings a wealth of experience and a uniquely Asian perspective to a deeper understanding of DEI and the power of inclusive leadership.
In this panel session, we will highlight what parents need to know about the impact of our digital usage upon our mental wellbeing - with key learnings about how we can liberate ourselves from screen time to thrive free from devices.
Tanya Strongman
Founding Member
At the heart of Tanya’s journey is one core belief: nothing is more powerful than genuine human connection. She has witnessed this truth in refugee camps, disaster zones, and boardrooms—where strong relationships became the lifeline that allowed people to adapt and thrive in times of challenge. Now working with teams and communities, Tanya helps people rediscover connection as a source of creativity, fulfillment, and resilience. As a mother of two young daughters, Tanya feels this belief is more urgent than ever. She sees how digital technologies compete for attention and threaten the time and space needed for real-world connection. Through Look Up Hong Kong, she supports parents in navigating these realities with balance and hope. She champions “know tech, not no tech”, inviting open conversations rather than conflict. For Tanya, whether raising children, guiding communities, or supporting organizations, connection is always the path to thriving.
Dr. Charles Brantly
General Practitioner
Dr Charles Brantly is a UK-trained and qualified general practitioner. He graduated from Imperial College Medical School and completed his general practice training in London. Charles had developed an interest in Hong Kong over many years and made the move to relocate here with his family in 2014. Charles has an old-fashioned approach to general practice and believes in offering a “cradle to grave” service to his patients. He has a special interest in preventative medicine, cardiovascular disease, mental health and sports science. Charles grew up in the expatriate community of Brazil and speaks fluent Portuguese and Spanish. He is married to a Hong Konger and has two daughters. He is a keen squash player and enjoys outdoor activities. Charles works full time as a doctor and is also a managing partner at Central Health medical practice. He cares for patients in the hospital setting when required and provides out of hours services to his regular patients.
Robert Broad
Founder
Robert is the founder of Look Up Hong Kong, a registered Hong Kong non-profit on a mission to help families prepare their children for a digital future while safeguarding their wellbeing. The organization champions device-free activities, real-world experiences, and gradual, child-centered technology introduction through evidence-based programs that forge coalitions across Hong Kong's cultural, educational, and regulatory environment. Robert has called Hong Kong home for 28 years and serves as Executive Vice President of Healthcare for Weber Shandwick. As both a communications executive and parent advocate, Robert brings unique expertise in building community movements and driving meaningful conversations around childhood digital wellness, combining professional strategic communication skills with passionate advocacy for protecting children's developmental wellbeing.
Over recent years, tremendous progress has been made in speaking about mental wellbeing at work - but stigma all too often remains about talking about diagnosed mental ill health. In this powerful 1:1 session, we will spotlight a lived experience perspective of diagnosed mental illness, highlighting key takeouts for employers in attendance about how to best support these members of staff and tackle stigma in having these conversations.
Uday Burra
Head of People Care - APJ & India
Uday Burra is an Executive Coach, HR Strategist, and strong believer in Normalizing mental health conversations. He has close to three decades of experience contributing to various HR & Leadership roles across various countries & cultures. He is Currently Leading People Care function for Nokia APJ. He is PCC Trained and a Master Coach at Nokia. As Executive Coach his focus is on solution oriented approaches to work & life overall. He practices solution-oriented coaching method. His has many years of experience coaching senior organization leaders, first time entrepreneurs and sales professionals. His experience includes working for Dell, TATA Group & Sapient where he made significant impact in HR service delivery, leadership development & business partner leadership roles.
Gowreesan Ariaratnam
Regional Occupational Health Lead (APAC)
Gowreesan is an Occupational Health Physician with a strong focus on promoting and protecting the mental well-being of employees. With extensive experience in occupational health and a deep understanding of the psychosocial factors that influence the workplace, he is committed to creating safe, supportive and productive work environments. Gowreesan serves as the Asia Pacific Regional Occupational Health Lead at Haleon, a world-leading consumer health company with a clear purpose to deliver better everyday health with humanity.
In this panel discussion, we will spotlight LGBTQ+ mental wellbeing in APAC, hearing from different perspectives about how their identity intersects with their mental wellbeing, challenges that the community is facing, and how the workplace can best support their psychological safety.
Cheng Hsiang Cheong
Global Quality Staff Program Manager
Cheng Hsiang Cheong 张清翔 is a Senior Quality Program Manager at Micron Singapore and the APAC regional lead for the PRIDE+ Allies Employee Resource Group. With a mission to influence people and leverage technology for meaningful impact, Cheng Hsiang brings deep expertise in human performance, leadership, and quality culture building. He is a passionate advocate for workplace inclusion, striving to create safe spaces where individuals feel accepted and empowered to share openly. His inclusive leadership style is rooted in empathy, authenticity, and a commitment to mental wellbeing. Cheng Hsiang is PMP Certified, a Certified ScrumMaster®, Certified Scrum Product Owner®, and SAFe® 5 Agilist. He believes that fostering collaboration and psychological safety is key to unlocking team potential and driving sustainable change. In this session, Cheng Hsiang will share insights on how inclusive environments support mental health and belonging within the LGBTQ+ community.
Bhuvan Daniel
Freelance
Bhuvan Daniel is a transman born in Singapore who is a Creative and Ex Social Service Professional. He is an advocate for Youth Transgender Rights and Visibility in Singapore where his journey started with documenting his own gender-affirming care online. He was also a part of a Mental Health group specifically for South Asians in Singapore called MentalACT. Daniel has spoken at PinkDot's 2024 media launch and served as a speaker at the H0m0haus Theatre Arts Festival in Bangkok sharing about Queer Theatre and its history in Singapore. He is also an active member of the Ballroom Community and has walked internationally and won Transman Realness and Face at the 2025 Voguing World Awards. Through theatre, ballroom, and media, Daniel seeks to foster dialogue, inspire change, and create inclusive spaces that support queer communities, particularly in conversations around identity, personal motivation, and mental health in the workplace.
Fertility challenges can have a huge impact upon our mental wellbeing, both inside and outside of the workplace - yet employees often find it difficult to speak about their experience. This session will spotlight This Can Happen's recent research in this space, highlighting key learnings for employers in APAC about supporting staff with fertility challenges.
