Edwards, Lilly and Cochlear crowned winners: Australian HR Awards

The 2026 Australian HR Awards have recognised 20 leaders for outstanding contributions to the workplace, with Edwards Lifesciences, Eli Lilly Australia and Cochlear emerging as the only winners from the pharma and medtech sectors.

Hosted by HRD Australia, the annual gala brought together hundreds of industry professionals to celebrate achievements across leadership, workplace culture and technological innovation.

The three companies were recognised across workplace culture categories, with Eli Lilly Australia receiving the Timecloud Employer of Choice (100–999 employees) award, Edwards Lifesciences named the winner of Best Reward & Recognition Program, and Cochlear taking out the BTS Best Leadership Development Program award.

Speaking on Lilly’s win, Senior Director of HR, Katie Price said “Ultimately, this comes down to the people who shape our culture. Thank you to everyone at Lilly for the ideas and energy you bring every day, and your unwavering commitment to our purpose of making life better for people.”

For Edwards Lifesciences, the award marked the second consecutive year it has won Best Reward & Recognition Program at the Australian HR Awards. The company was also recognised as a repeated Excellence Awardee across three additional categories.

“This recognition belongs to our employees and leaders whose commitment, passion and collaboration help make Edwards a great place to work,’ said Pat Williams, Vice President & Country Manager ANZ & Korea Edwards Lifesciences.

Beyond the individual awards, this year’s honours reflected the rapidly evolving remit of the human resources profession, with recognition spanning developments in artificial intelligence (AI) integration, graduate development and flexible working frameworks.

The event highlighted a pivotal time for People & Culture leaders as the profession continues to navigate the increasingly complex intersection of technology and human capital. Industry leaders highlighted the collision of human and agentic intelligence and the need to rethink the nature of leadership, while also emphasising the importance of recognising and celebrating a workforce whose contributions are often behind the scenes.

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