Prof. Na Fu (Trinity College Dublin) and Dr. Catherine Tilley (King's College London)
Organisations are under pressure to change in response to the polycrisis facing the world. Business as usual is not solving our problems as fast or as effectively as we need it to. One response has been for organisations to redefine their purpose, clearly stating how they serve stakeholders, and giving people a sense of meaning at work. However, the full benefits of a purpose are only felt if its message is internalised by the organisation, changing the way in which people interact and make their decisions. In this talk, Dr Catherine Tilley and Professor Na Fu will examine the ways in which purpose can be embedded in the day-to-day work of organisations in order to help make better decisions and create more meaningful work. In particular, Dr Tilley will focus on the ways in which organisations bring their purpose into decision-making and Professor Na Fu will share how purpose-driven organisations manage their most valuable resource, human capital, at each stage of the employee lifecycle through the lens of sustainable and digital Human Resource Management (HRM) practices.
About the speakers
Prof. Na Fu
Professor Na Fu is Chair of Responsible Leadership at Trinity College Dublin and Founder and Director of the Trinity AI XR Hub. Her research focuses on the intersection of responsible leadership, artificial intelligence, digital transformation, and the future of work, with a particular emphasis on how organisations can create sustainable and human-centred workplaces in an AI-driven world.
Professor Fu has led and contributed to major European research projects, securing and contributing to over €11 million in competitive research funding focused on advanced digital skills, AI adoption, human-technology complementarity, and organisational transformation across sectors including healthcare, education, and industry. Her work explores how organisations can balance technological innovation with human judgement, creativity, empathy, and wellbeing. Through the Trinity AI XR Hub, she has led immersive AI and extended reality learning initiatives that have engaged students, executives, researchers, and public sector leaders in exploring the responsible use of AI and the development of critical human skills for the future of work.
An award-winning researcher and educator, Professor Fu has published extensively in leading international journals and regularly collaborates with policymakers, industry leaders, and public organisations on the responsible adoption of AI and digital technologies. Through her work, she advocates for purpose-driven organisations that place people, meaningful work, and responsible leadership at the centre of digital transformation.
Dr. Catherine Tilley
Catherine Tilley is a Reader in Business Ethics and Sustainability at King’s College London and Impact Director for the Centre for Sustainable Business. She has an MA and PhD in from the University of Cambridge, and an MBA from Manchester University.
Catherine worked for over 20 years in management consultancy with a particular interest in organisational and strategic problems. She has also worked as Head of Sustainability for a 5bn Euro retailer. She returned to academia in order to focus on research about decision-making for sustainable business.
As well as her consulting and research, Catherine teaches on Undergraduate and Postgraduate programmes at King’s Business School and is a regular visiting speaker at the University of Cambridge.
