We've forgotten how to disagree

There’s something refreshing about being in a room where people don’t feel the need to have everything figured out. That was one of the reasons we created The Unconference.

In a world where LinkedIn often rewards certainty, hot takes and perfectly packaged opinions, the day felt like a welcome reminder that employer branding is still a discipline built on questions. Questions about people, culture, attraction, belonging and what work should look and feel like, and perhaps more importantly, questions we don’t always agree on.

One of the strongest conversations of the day centred around the EVP debate. Not because anyone definitively won the argument, but because it challenged assumptions. The discussion wasn’t really about whether EVPs are good or bad. It was about whether some of the traditional approaches many of us have relied on are still fit for purpose in organisations that need to move faster, adapt more frequently and respond to constant change.

The debate highlighted something many employer brand teams are wrestling with: how do you create clarity and consistency without becoming rigid? How do you build something meaningful that can still evolve as your organisation, workforce and audience expectations shift? There were no neat answers and that was the point.

Then there was AI. Predictably, it generated some of the biggest discussions of the day. But what stood out wasn’t excitement or fear. It was pragmatism. The conversation wasn’t about whether AI will change employer branding. It already is. The more interesting discussion was around where it genuinely adds value and where it doesn’t. AI can help teams work faster, create more efficiently and remove some of the repetitive tasks that slow us down. What it can’t do is fix broken processes, poor experiences or a lack of strategy.

Technology might accelerate the work. It can’t replace the thinking behind it.

There was another thread running through the day too.

Inclusion.

Not just as a panel topic. Not as a programme of work. As a series of choices.

Creating space for disagreement only works when people feel comfortable enough to participate in the first place. The reality is that employer branding doesn’t exist in isolation. If people don’t feel heard internally, it becomes increasingly difficult to tell a credible story externally. The strongest employer brands are often built on cultures where challenge is welcomed rather than avoided.

It’s why some of the things people remembered most about the day weren’t the debates or the discussions. They were the details.

The subsidised travel that helped people attend who otherwise might not have been able to.

Paying panellists for their time and expertise.

For the panellists, detailed briefings so nobody felt like they were walking into an unfamiliar room unprepared.

Badges that simply carried a name and an icebreaker question rather than a hierarchy of job titles.

None of those things are revolutionary on their own. But together they send a message.

You belong here.

Your perspective matters.

You don’t need the biggest job title, the loudest voice or the most experience in the room to contribute something valuable.

That's what inclusion often looks like in practice. Not grand gestures or perfectly worded statements, but dozens of small decisions that make it easier for people to show up as themselves. Because before people will disagree honestly, they need to feel safe enough to speak honestly in the first place.

Perhaps that's the point. None of those decisions are particularly complicated. None are expensive enough to transform an event on their own. But together they create something far more valuable: an environment where people feel comfortable enough to contribute honestly.

The Unconference creates room for that honesty. For debate. For uncertainty. For people to share what isn’t working as well as what is. For practitioners to learn from one another without feeling like every conversation needs to end with a framework, a model, a perfectly packaged conclusion or a good news story.

In many ways, that feels increasingly important.

Employer branding is evolving quickly. Expectations are changing. Technology is reshaping how we work. Budgets are under pressure. Teams are being asked to do more with less. While there is no shortage of opinions about where the discipline is heading, there are fewer spaces where people can openly explore those questions together.

That’s what makes the Unconference feel different. Not because everyone agreed - but because they didn’t. And somehow, that made the conversations far more valuable.

Employer branding doesn’t move forward when we all think the same thing. It moves forward when we’re willing to challenge assumptions, listen to different perspectives and stay curious enough to keep asking better questions. The future of our profession won’t be shaped by consensus. It will be shaped by our willingness to have the conversations we're often too afraid to start.

If you want to attend our next Unconference - check out all the details here