Overview
When experts from diverse fields come together, groundbreaking innovations emerge that were once thought impossible. From renewable energy to wearable technology, cross-disciplinary collaboration has driven some of the world’s most remarkable advancements.
Many diverse teams, however, can become siloed, stifling creativity and collaboration, which leads to missed opportunities and hindered organisational growth. But this can be avoided.
To deliver outstanding solutions for clients and stakeholders, you need to combine deep expertise with collaborative innovation. This two-day Korn Ferry Academy course will equip you with critical skills to instil cross-team synergies and drive transformative change. Cross-Team Collaboration and Innovation is designed to foster teamwork and unity, helping you break down silos that limit your team’s potential and enabling them to achieve exceptional performance.
Learning Outcomes
- Explore the Impact of Mindsets: Discover how individual beliefs can either enhance or hinder effective collaboration.
- Enhance Communication and Negotiation Skills: Develop the tools to build trust, facilitate open dialogue, resolve conflicts and foster cross-team synergy.
- Analyse Team Dynamics: Assess the needs and motivations of diverse teams, recognising both competing and complementary priorities.
- Embrace Integrative Thinking: Learn how to transform opposing perspectives into innovative solutions through collaboration.
- Adopt a Systems Thinking Approach: Understand how rewards, incentives, organisational structures and workspace design contribute to a culture of collaboration and innovation.
- Utilise Design Thinking: Apply a user-centered methodology to effectively solve problems for customers and colleagues.
Course Topics
Overcoming Silos: Identifying Barriers to Collaboration
The Competitive Mindset: Understanding Collaboration Challenges
Harnessing the Power of Cross-Team Collaboration
Collaborative Techniques for Collective Success
Identifying Cross-Team Needs and Motivations
Innovative Solutions Through Integrative and Design Thinking
Who Should Attend
Assessment & Evaluation
To be eligible for funding, participants are required to attain a minimum 75% attendance and pass the course assessment. Please refer to our Terms & Conditions for more details.
Course Fees & Funding
| Participant Profile | Self-Sponsored | Company-Sponsored | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SME | NON-SME | ||
|
Singapore Citizen
≥ 40 years old |
$266.70
(After SSG Funding 70% + MCES Funding** 20%) |
$266.70
(After SSG Funding 70% + ETSS Funding* 20%) |
$266.70
(After SSG Funding 70% + MCES Funding** 20%) |
|
Singapore Citizen
< 40 years old / Permanent Resident |
$686.70
(After SSG Funding 70%) |
$266.70
(After SSG Funding 70% + ETSS Funding* 20%) |
$686.70
(After SSG Funding 70%) |
| International Participant |
$2,289
(No Funding) |
$2,289
(No Funding) |
$2,289
(No Funding) |
*ETSS – Enhanced Training Support for SMEs
**MCES – Mid-Career Enhanced Subsidy
Self-sponsored participants may use SkillsFuture Credit (SFC) to offset fees
Course Fees are inclusive of 9% Goods & Services Tax
Course Schedule
Facilitator Bio
Eileen Seah
Eileen Seah is a distinguished faculty member of the Korn Ferry Academy and a seasoned Organisational Psychologist, Executive Coach and founder of The Art of Career. With her innovative "blue-ocean" approach to Talent Management and People & Culture, Eileen seamlessly blends insights from organisational psychology with her rich personal experiences.
As an experienced HR Business Partner, Eileen has successfully driven People, Learning, and Culture initiatives across various sectors, including Defence Science, Banking & Finance, Telecommunications, and Management Consulting. Her multifaceted roles from front-line to mid- and back-office functions—have equipped her with a deep understanding of diverse organisational dynamics.
In her role as an Executive Coach, Eileen works with leaders at both individual and organisational levels, specializing in transformation through strategic design and active experimentation. She champions a psychology-centred approach, empowering professionals to discover their best selves through ongoing renewal and growth.
Eileen is renowned for her strong service orientation and innovative thinking, which she brings to her coaching sessions and workshops. Her achievements include the prestigious global Beta Gamma Sigma award and an HP Silver Award for academic excellence. With her extensive experience and unwavering passion for helping others reach their potential, Eileen has become a highly sought-after speaker and presenter.
Testimonials
Share This Program
Success Stories
Don’t just take our word for it
Will HR Be Replaced by AI or Will the Human Touch Stay?
Let’s get one thing straight: AI isn’t replacing HR. It’s redefining its most valuable work.
This shift isn’t down the road—it’s already happening. Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that 4,000 jobs were cut due to AI-related reasons out of the over 80,000 job losses. And since the launch of many AI tools, some companies have openly admitted to using them to replace employees. Take IBM: In 2025, it introduced AskHR, an internal AI tool that now handles 94% of routine HR queries, everything from leave requests to pay slip information.1
But here’s the thing: AI still has limits, especially when it comes to human connection.
So the real question isn’t, “Will AI change or replace HR?”
It’s, “How can HR lead this change and make it count?”
What AI Can (and Can’t) Do for HR
AI’s strength lies in pattern recognition, scale, and speed. It can screen resumes in seconds, write job descriptions, and even identify retention risks. Tools like HireVue and Harver already use AI to assess candidate fit based on behavioural data and psychometric models.2
Korn Ferry’s 2025 Talent Trends report confirms that leading HR teams are using AI to reduce friction in the candidate journey and enable faster, data-backed hiring decisions.3
But here’s the edge: AI doesn’t build trust. It doesn’t mentor. It doesn’t lead change. And it doesn’t earn the respect of a leadership team navigating uncertainty.
That’s why the most effective HR teams won’t outsource decision-making to algorithms. They will use AI to amplify human judgment, not replace it.
Talent Segmentation as the Catalyst for Striking the Balance Between HR and AI
AI isn’t about replacing every step of recruitment—it’s about amplifying what works.
That’s where talent segmentation comes in. It’s the practice of dividing your candidate pool into smaller, more manageable groups based on common traits, like experience level, job type, or location. Segmentation isn’t a new concept in HR. But when paired with AI, it gets a major upgrade.
Instead of sifting manually through hundreds of profiles, recruiters can focus their time where it matters most: building real relationships with the right people.
Strategies on How to Use Segmentation to Improve HR Recruitment
1. Use Tech in Areas Where It Can Perform At Its Best
Not all roles require the same level of nuance.
For high-volume roles with clear, objective criteria, like work eligibility, availability, or basic qualifications, AI is a great fit. It can screen candidates quickly and accurately, saving recruiters hours of repetitive work (and countless phone calls).
DBS Bank is a standout example.4 Their AI-driven tool, Job Intelligence Maestro (JIM), developed with impress.ai, reviews resumes, conducts psychometric testing, and flags high-risk candidates. The result?5
- 75% reduction in time-to-hire
- 40 recruiter hours saved monthly
- 880+ hires made across Asia
But when it comes to senior or strategic roles, the rules change. These hires require a deeper evaluation, encompassing cultural fit, strategic vision, and leadership potential. No algorithm can replace the insight and empathy that come from a human recruiter’s conversation.
Takeaway: Let AI handle scale while HR professionals handle nuance.
2. Consider the Candidate’s Experience
Segmentation should also consider how different candidates interact with your hiring process.
For example, using chatbots may speed up screening for factory roles, but some candidates might not respond well to automated systems. In contrast, applicants for tech-related roles are usually more comfortable engaging with AI.
On the other hand, if you’re trying to fill executive roles, it’s important to note that these candidates are not typically actively applying for jobs. Instead, they expect personal outreach and meaningful dialogue, not automated messages. These candidates require nuanced conversation, and therefore, human interaction is required.
Insight: Tailor your engagement to the expectations of each segment. A one-size-fits-all experience turns the best candidates away.
3. Segment Your Hiring Process
Segmentation isn’t just about roles. It also applies to your recruitment process.
Even before a job is posted, AI can support early planning by helping craft better job descriptions or analysing location-based requirements. Once hiring begins, technology can streamline repetitive tasks like interview scheduling or coordinating calendars.
A great example: FloCareer partnered with ThisWay Global and IBM watsonx Orchestrate to revamp their hiring workflow. AI handled candidate matching, removed bias, and managed scheduling, allowing recruiters to focus on meaningful conversations and better hiring decisions.6
Key point: Smart segmentation combines automation and attention, letting recruiters focus on people, not processes.
4. Personal Touch Still Matters
Even if AI handles parts of your recruiting, it shouldn’t replace real human interaction.
Candidates want to feel connected to the people they’ll work with. Without that, they’re more likely to leave for a better offer elsewhere. Humans are social—we need to feel that we belong.
Onboarding is a great time to create that connection. A simple message like “We’re excited to have you onboard” or a welcome note before their first day can make a big difference. That human touch helps build long-term engagement.
Final takeaway: Technology enhances the journey. But it’s the human moments that make it meaningful.
Ensuring the Ethical Use of AI in Talent Acquisition
AI promises speed and scale, but without strong ethical guardrails, it risks amplifying the very biases hiring teams have long sought to eliminate.
Bias doesn’t vanish when a machine takes over; in fact, it often becomes less visible and harder to correct. AI models trained on historical hiring data can inherit outdated prejudices, disfavouring candidates based on their school, postcode, employment gaps, or demographic profile.
The consequence? Qualified candidates get filtered out before they even get a chance. Over time, these small biases compound, resulting in less diverse teams, reputational damage, and recruitment processes that feel anything but fair.
A notorious example is Amazon’s 2015 AI recruitment tool, which was trained on a decade of resumes mostly submitted by men. The system began to favour male candidates, reinforcing gender bias rather than reducing it.7
How Singapore Addresses the AI Bias
As more businesses in Singapore adopt AI for recruitment, ethical oversight is becoming a priority.8 The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has issued guidelines on the use of Automated Employment Decision Tools (AEDTs) to ensure fair practices.
If AI-driven decisions result in discriminatory outcomes, job seekers can approach the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP). TAFEP works with employers to address grievances and ensure hiring and appraisal processes stay aligned with Singapore’s fair employment principles.
How Businesses in Singapore Can Address the AI Bias in Their Recruitment Process
So, if you want to use AI responsibly in recruitment, you’ll need more than good intentions. You need guardrails:
- Regular audits to check for bias and adjust models accordingly.
- Clear boundaries around where AI adds value and where it must stop.
- Transparency so candidates understand how decisions are made, and hiring managers remain accountable for their outcomes.
Hiring is high-stakes. If AI is going to be part of the process, it must be designed and deployed with care because fairness isn’t automatic, even when the process is.
Empowering HR to Lead in the Age of AI
AI doesn’t eliminate the need for HR—it magnifies the need for HR to evolve.
At Korn Ferry Academy, we help HR professionals build the future through skills that blend AI fluency with strategic judgment. Our HR AI course, Driving HR Efficiency Through AI and Tech, equips teams to:
- Integrate AI into recruitment, performance, and workforce planning
- Make tech decisions that align with human values
- Lead digital transformation without losing the human core
And for those ready to make workforce data a strategic lever, sign up for our talent analytics course. Our Talent Analytics for Decision Making programme teaches HR leaders how to turn data into action, from succession planning to predictive attrition models.
AI may be the disruptor, but HR is the designer.
The future won’t belong to those who fear AI. It will belong to those who use it to amplify what humans do best: connect, lead, and create lasting impact.
- https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/ibm-ceo-ai-replaced-hundreds-of-human-resources-staff/491341
- https://harver.com/gamified-assessments/
- https://www.kornferry.com/insights/featured-topics/talent-recruitment/talent-acquisition-trends-2025
- https://www.dbs.com/india/newsroom_media/how-ai-is-shaping-the-employee-experience-at-dbs.page
- https://impress.ai/case-studies/dbsbank/
- https://www.ibm.com/case-studies/flocareer
- https://www.reuters.com/article/world/insight-amazon-scraps-secret-ai-recruiting-tool-that-showed-bias-against-women-idUSKCN1MK0AG/
- https://www.mom.gov.sg/newsroom/parliament-questions-and-replies/2024/1113-oral-answer-to-pq-on-guidelines-on-employer-use-of-artificial-intelligence-in-hiring
Redefining the High-Performing Team in Today’s Business Landscape
If you’re a middle manager in Singapore, this may feel familiar: your senior leaders are shifting priorities with each quarter. Budgets are tight. The market is sluggish. Meanwhile, your team is weary, some demotivated, some anxious about AI, and some quietly drifting. You’re trying to hold everyone together, deliver results, and keep morale up, even when you yourself feel uncertain about the direction.
Leadership has never felt more complex from the middle.
In 2017, Google’s Project Aristotle identified five timeless characteristics of a high-performing team: psychological safety, dependability, structure and clarity, meaning, and impact. But the environment in which these traits must now be nurtured has changed dramatically.
Trade tensions, inflation, demographic shifts, and the rise of agentic AI are reshaping how teams work and what they need from their leaders. The question isn’t just how to build a high-performing team anymore. It’s how to help teams stay human, adaptable, and aligned in a world that no longer stands still.
What’s Holding Teams Back Today?
Even with capable people and good intentions, many teams are underperforming, and the reasons run deeper than individual skill or will.
In Singapore and across Asia, employees are grappling with job security fears, especially in light of slowing markets and restructuring. The rise of AI has made roles less predictable—some feel replaceable, others unsure how to grow with the technology. Many are craving career development, not as a perk but as a survival strategy. And increasingly, especially among Gen Z, there’s a desire for work that aligns with personal values.
📌 Korn Ferry research confirms this shift—employees today prioritise job security, development, well-being, and belonging more than ever before.
At the same time, team structures and leadership expectations are straining under pressure. Uncertainty and ambiguity are now the norm—strategies shift, timelines compress, and few managers feel truly equipped to lead through fog. AI anxiety, unclear priorities, and generational friction make alignment harder than ever.
🧩 When these tensions go unaddressed, even high-potential teams lose trust, energy, and cohesion, making it difficult to perform, let alone thrive.
High-Performing Team Characteristics in 2025 and How Leaders Can Build Them Now
To lead a high-performing team today, you need more than motivation and monitoring. You need to cultivate five core capabilities and translate them into team behaviours week by week.
What great teams look like: They pivot quickly without burning out. They absorb change while protecting emotional resilience and shared purpose.
Korn Ferry’s 2024 resilience study shows that emotionally resilient teams outperform others by 31% during disruption.¹
What leaders must do:
- Talk openly about change; Acknowledge ambiguity without sugarcoating.
- Set a sustainable pace; Model boundaries and prioritise rest.
- Introduce recovery rituals, such as team check-ins and debriefs after high-stress cycles.
Signal that adaptability includes emotional and strategic flexibility.
What great teams look like: They stay focused even when the world shifts. Everyone understands the “why,” the “what,” and their role in delivering it.
A 2024 meta-study in the Journal of Organizational Behavior found that clarity of purpose is the most reliable predictor of team performance in volatile environments.²
What leaders must do:
- Establish shared goals and revisit them monthly, not quarterly.
- Co-create team norms and decision rights using simple tools (e.g., RACI, team charters).
- Start each week by anchoring on priorities: “What matters most now?”
- Use ambiguity as a moment to clarify, not retreat from, direction.
🎯 A powerful example came from Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s ministerial statement following recent tariff announcements. While he couldn’t provide certainty, he showed up quickly, framed what was known and unknown, and, most importantly, shared what the government planned to do next. That’s the essence of clarity in uncertainty—and what today’s teams need from their leaders.
What great teams look like: They don’t just feel comfortable—they feel courageous. Team members speak up even when it’s hard. They challenge assumptions, surface risks, share contrarian views, and still rally behind the final decision once it’s made.
What leaders must do:
Since the pandemic, many leaders have rightly focused on comfort, responding with empathy to burnout, disconnection, and stress. But many now find themselves stuck. Their teams are pleasant, but passive. Harmonious, but hesitant.
The next evolution is moving from comfort to courage. Teams must feel safe enough to speak hard truths, share unpopular opinions, and then be committed enough to act decisively together.
To create this, leaders must go beyond good intentions:
- Invite respectful dissent: “What are we not seeing yet?”
- Acknowledge contrarian views, even when uncomfortable.
- Show that disagreement and alignment can coexist.
- Pay close attention to your words, tone, and body language—are you empowering individuals or causing them to shrink?
A leader must constantly ask themselves: “Am I creating light—or casting a shadow?”
Courageous cultures aren’t accidental. They’re designed, moment by moment, by how leaders show up.
What great teams look like: Trust isn’t just relational—it’s operational. People deliver. They keep promises. They give visibility, not just updates.
Korn Ferry’s 2023 research found that operational trust, built through transparency and follow-through, is the strongest predictor of performance in distributed teams.¹
What leaders must do:
- Use visible team dashboards to track progress.
- Acknowledge and reward consistent delivery, not just heroics.
- Set clear expectations around responsiveness, turnaround times, and ownership.
- Create norms for feedback: “I expect to hear from you if you’re stuck.”
What great teams look like: They don’t wait for direction—they shape it. Everyone has a stake. Leadership is distributed, and execution is faster because buy-in happens early.
According to the Center for Creative Leadership, inclusive teams make better decisions 87% of the time and execute 60% faster.⁴
What leaders must do:
- Use “decision canvases” to co-create decisions with teams.
- Involve people early when scoping change, not after the plan is made.
- Delegate not just tasks, but outcomes and authority.
- Regularly ask: “Who hasn’t spoken? Whose view haven’t we heard?”
💡 To activate these shifts, leaders need new tools and capabilities. Korn Ferry Academy offers leadership programmes like the strategic problem-solving course and business communication training course, built to equip leaders with the mindsets and methods to lead in today’s environment.
Learn from the Experts in Building High-Performing Teams
To develop a high-performing team in today’s dynamic economy, leadership development is essential. At Korn Ferry Academy, we support organisations in building high-performing teams through expert-led programmes rooted in real-world insight and behavioural science.
Our programmes cover:
- Developing emotional intelligence and adaptability
- Creating clarity in complex environments
- Managing a high-performing team across generations and geographies
- Coaching leaders through AI transitions and strategic uncertainty
Whether you’re managing a high-performing team today or aiming to build one, we’ll equip you with the mindset, tools, and frameworks to lead with impact.
Middle Manager’s Survival Guide: 5 Moves You Can Make This Week
- Re-anchor your team. Start Monday’s meeting with: “What’s changed? What’s unclear?”
- Show your presence. Even if you can’t give certainty, offer clarity: “Here’s what I know, and what I don’t. Here’s what I’m focused on this week.”
- Make one person feel heard and stretched. Ask someone, “What’s something you see that others might be missing?”
- Normalise feedback. Schedule 15-minute check-ins. Praise challenges and contrarian views.
- Don’t fake optimism. Be honest, be hopeful, and keep moving.
It won’t fix everything. But it will build trust, direction, and momentum—one conversation at a time.
- Korn Ferry Institute. (2023–2024). Global Talent Trends.
- Journal of Organizational Behavior. (2024). Meta-analysis on clarity and performance.
- Edmondson, A. (2019). The Fearless Organization.
- Center for Creative Leadership. (2023). Inclusive Leadership and Decision Speed.
- Microsoft Work Trend Index. (2024). AI Readiness at Work.
SUGGESTED COURSES
Contact Us
Great leaders know an opportunity when they see it—and grab it on the spot. There’s no better time than now to start investing in yourself and your people. Speak to a Korn Ferry Academy consultant today.
