Human Resources Speakers

FORMER ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER METROPOLITAN POLICE FORCE

Tarique Ghaffur spent over three decades in UK policing diligently and passionately working towards making communities safe within Greater Manchester, Leicestershire and London. He found it a personal honour to lead thousands of dedicated and skilled police officers and detectives dealing with community reassurance, investigations, law enforcement, counter terrorism and global security issues.

Tarique made history by becoming the highest ranking Asian and Muslim Police Officer in United Kingdom for which he received several high achievement awards.

Tarique Ghaffur has a BA (Hons) in Public Administration, MA in Criminology, Honary doctorates in Law and Criminal Justice Degrees from Manchester Metropolitan, Leicester and East London Universities. He was awarded the Queens Police Medal (QPM) in and in Commander of British Empire (CBE).

Tarique is a graduate of FBI Academy, veteran of several overseas assignments, and countless international advisory presentations.

A unique combination of recognised role model, an operational leader and all round `hands on’ and `individual` practitioner makes Tarique a unique speaker on professional issues related to leadership, crises response, policing, community dynamics and race relations. He intelligently uses a mixture of real life experiences, stories, case studies and humour to put across his material and often tests conventional thinking by being forthright and controversial on emotive and serious subjects thereby promoting learning. Tarique regularly writes articles on security related matters which are published within authoritative publications. His recent article on Airport Security was published within the Huffington Post.

Career

Tarique Ghaffur joined Greater Manchester Police in 1974 and worked in CID, undercover and uniform roles up to the rank of Chief Inspector in inner city areas including Salford and Moss Side. He led a goodwill mission to India and was commended for his work to tackle street robberies, public disorder and crime investigations.

In 1989 he transferred to Leicestershire Constabulary, where as a Superintendent and then Chief Superintendent, Tarique Ghaffur gained experience in both operational commands in Loughborough and Leicester City, as well as heading a major force re-organisation to implement community based policing. He graduated from FBI Academy, Quantico and was part of team that inspected Jamaica Constabulary Force.

In 1996, Tarique transferred to Lancashire Constabulary as Assistant Chief Constable where he was appointed head of operational policing for the force and for a short period was also responsible for Human Resources. Whilst in Lancashire, Tarique Ghaffur headed a major anti-terrorist operation in relation to the Blackpool Labour Party Conference. He also led a major corruption enquiry into a public organisation.

In 1998 Tarique was promoted to Deputy Chief Constable and worked at the Home Office Police Technology Organisation as operational adviser to develop technology for Policing.

In 1999, Tarique Ghaffur was selected to be a Deputy Assistant Commissioner and transferred to the Metropolitan Police Service. He initially assumed command of territorial policing in South London and in 2000 was appointed as the Commander of Westminster Borough (3,500 staff) with massive responsibility for the government security zone, demonstrations and public events including Nottinghill Carnival and New Year’s Eve celebrations. His innovative leadership made major impact on reducing overall crime in the City of Westminster.

Tarique Ghaffur was promoted to Assistant Commissioner in 2001 and took command of the Policy, Review and Standards Directorate. Amongst a broad portfolio, Tarique Ghaffur worked closely with senior criminal justice partner Heads in London and nationally to formulate an effective and collaborative partnership. He put in place innovative solutions to improve partnership between the Police and Private Sector.

In November 2002, Tarique Ghaffur set up the Specialist Crime Directorate (3200 detectives), to provide a distinct response to tackling all aspects of serious and organised crime in London, including homicide, drugs and gun crime. He was responsible for the institution successful innovative programmes to tackle organised crime around such issues as drugs, human trafficking, Heathrow Airport and serious fraud. He also developed Operational Quadrant to build confidence in South Asian communities in London through effective law enforcement and community engagement.

Tarique Ghaffur has overseen a number of high profile investigations, including the Damilola Taylor and Victoria Climbié cases. In 2004, Tarique Ghaffur carried out a comprehensive crosscutting review of race and diversity within the MPS and played a major part in supporting casualty recovery, investigations and building Community relations after 7 July bombings in London.

Until September 2008, Tarique Ghaffur was responsible for Central Operations (7,000 staff) delivering ‘Capital City Policing’ and `security’ around policing of Airports, Diplomatic missions, security of State buildings. He was also responsible for firearms, public order, traffic, communications and contingency planning. His officers planned for and dealt with over 5000 public events (football, cricket, rugby, concerts, carnivals, New Years Eve celebrations, royal visits, state occasions, demonstrations). Tarique led in co-ordinating the aftermath of foiled terrorist attacks in central London in 2006.

Also, he was the Operational Co-ordinator Lead for the 2012 Olympics for which he has produced a comprehensive and holistic security and safety strategy to protect London and UK during 2012 Olympics. In 2008 he visited the Olympic Games in Beijing and produced an authoritative lessons learnt report. In 2007, He visited India with Mayor of London as one of London’s Ambassadors.

Through over 30 years of policing allied to his personal life, Tarique Ghaffur has created a real sense of proportion around vulnerable communities. He has become recognised as a positive role model, resulting in his receipt of a number of community awards from all sections of the community and high profile public profile on Race Issues within the Police Service. He is well known in South Asia, Middle East and Africa and has become an expert on protecting and securing major cities from terrorist attacks and major emergencies.

Tarique Ghaffur has a BA (Hons) in Public Administration, an MA in Criminology and three honorary doctorates from Universities of Leicester, Manchester Metropolitan and East London. He has attended the International FBI course in the USA and been awarded a Certificate in Criminal Justice Education (University of Virginia). In 2001 Tarique Ghaffur received the Queen’s Police Medal (QPM) and in June 2004 was awarded the CBE (Commander of British Empire) by Her Majesty the Queen.

Tarique Ghaffur has written a number of influential articles on policing and communities, as well as delivering a considerable number of international, national and local presentations on a range of policing issues including changing nature of serious and organised crime, global security and terrorism. Tarique Ghaffur has a strong interest in Asian music and sports – particularly squash – where he has won numerous awards and represented the police service at the national level.

Tarique Ghaffur retired from the Police Service in November 2008 and has since set up a Foundation to promote shared responsibility for security and safety amongst vulnerable communities in UK. He is also a Chairman of Community Safety Development Global Limited which provides innovative security knowledge, solutions and training.

‘THE MAESTRO OF MOTIVATION’

It’s the one thing all businesses absolutely MUST have to generate profits, stay competitive and keep their staff working effectively.

That secret ingredient is MOTIVATION.

It’s not taught much in MBA programmes or Management Training Courses, because it’s such an intangible thing to get to grips with and understand.

But one man who knows more about it than almost anyone is Lawrence Leyton.

Lawrence has been studying the intricacies of Motivation and how to apply it in the workplace all his life. What he discovered, and now teaches, are a set of mind-tools guaranteed to ignite and invigorate the fire and passion in your workforce.

In fact, Lawrence has been so successful in what he does; he’s helped over 200 companies around the world (major blue-chip names like: Microsoft, AstraZeneca, Kimberly Clarke, Vodafone, AMP, The Prudential, Provident, Lombard, plus many others) to change the mind-sets of their staff and turn them into peak performers and high achievers.

Savvy companies like these understand the value Lawrence’s entertaining, engaging, but serious messages bring to their business.

He’s so sought after; he’s appeared as a regular guest on many prime-time TV and radio shows including Richard and Judy and Russell Brand.

He was even snapped up by ITV and Channel 4 to demonstrate his unique skills in three TV specials, one being the popular peak-time Channel 4 show “Fear of Flying”.

On this particular show for example, Lawrence demonstrated another of his amazing skills; helping people overcome phobias and addictions. He helped 40 of the most extreme flying phobics in Britain overcome their fear once-and-for-all. His methods were such a success, many of the participants who would NEVER go on a plane, have now been able to take holidays abroad with their families!

With literally thousands of major stage appearances under his belt, you know you’re in safe hands as Lawrence tailors the speech for the theme of the conference or the message you’re trying to get across.

Here’s just a taste of what Lawrence reveals…

• Why events in your life are not quite what they seem. Your mind is a wonderful thing when you use it the right way, but can also be the biggest obstacle to your success. Here’s how to spot the limiting illusions you carry around with you…

• Discover the Number One factor that makes the difference between success and failure in your life. Top sports people, business leaders and even politicians know how to use this to get to the very top of their chosen field. You can use it too, once you know what it is…

• What three characteristics all ‘Peak Performers’ possess. These three can be honed and perfected by anyone once they’re aware of them. Which one’s are you neglecting and hold you back from reaching your destiny?

• How three simple components control your state of mind. If one or more of these components are not being nurtured regularly, then your behaviour will suffer. Which ones are you neglecting and what you can do to put them right…

• What three members of the audience and a piece of wood can teach you about taking positive action in your life. You’ll discover the factors that hold you back and what you can do to banish those limiting factors from your life… once and for all…

The techniques Lawrence reveals in his entertaining presentations, to thousands of people in auditoriums and conference halls around the world, really do work.

In fact, they’re the very same methods Lawrence uses to run his own successful businesses. These range from Optimum Health Centres, one of the fastest growing family wellness clinics in the UK, to his own multimedia information marketing company.

He’s the author of two books and many personal development related products such as books, CDs, DVDs and seminars.

So with such a successful business background and his own uniquely dynamic and entertaining stage presentation, you don’t have to look any further than Lawrence Leyton to super-charge your workforce, and help them catapult your organisation into the realms of the top peak performance companies in your industry.



This Lawrence Leyton audio course is based on trusted techniques to develop the capabilities a manager or leader needs to create loyalty and improve management effectiveness.






View video material for Lawrence Leyton.

After many years in high-level diplomacy Charles Crawford has a unique profile as an imaginative, dynamic and even provocative speaker who has addressed audiences large and small in English, Polish and Serbian

After an Honours degree in Jurisprudence from Oxford University he qualified as a Barrister before joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

From 1985-87 Charles served as Foreign Secretary Sir Geoffrey Howe’s official Speechwriter, contributing ideas/language for speeches by the Foreign Secretary (major set-piece speeches, Parliamentary debates and less formal after-dinner remarks)

His first job on joining the FCO in 1979 was to head the Indonesia Section, followed by his first posting, to communist post-Tito Yugoslavia. He returned to London in 1984 and after a year on the Aviation Desk was appointed FCO Speech-writer. He was posted to South Africa in 1987 as part of the Embassy team led by Ambassador Robin Renwick working to end apartheid.

Returning to London in 1991 he worked in the FCO Department dealing with the Soviet Union as communist rule collapsed. He then spent three years in Moscow as Political Counsellor and then served three times as HM Ambassador: in Sarajevo (1996-1998); in Belgrade (2001-2003) and most recently in Poland (2003-2007).

In 1987 he wrote the FCO’s first Guide to Speech-Writing, a dynamic text full of real-life examples on how to write speeches – and how to weed out lugubrious mistakes. Two decades later it remains a core part of the FCO’s speech-drafting training

He subsequently contributed to speeches by members of the Royal Family and successive Prime Ministers, as well as different Ministers and other senior personalities in public and commercial life

He left the FCO at the end of 2007 to start a new career as writer, consultant, mediator and trainer. In 2009 he joined the UK Conservative Party candidates list

In recent months Charles Crawford led training courses for senior EU and other officials and private clients aimed at improving their communication skills. He has written for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Independent, DIPLOMAT and Total Politics.

In 2009 his audiences included the Headmasters Conference and Conservative Friends of Poland, as well as private groups and academic gatherings

In 2010 he and other former British Ambassadors in partnership with ADR Group launched a new senior strategic dispute resolution panel, ADRg Ambassadors

Charles Crawford’s trenchant observations on public policy issues are now available to a growing readership on his blog




Such honesty has no place in modern government…it’s bloody dangerous!
Andrew Dodge (Samizdata)

The most telling critique of this delusional foreign policy comes in regular instalments in the form of a blog by the former British ambassador to Poland, Charles Crawford. It’s called www.charlescrawford.biz, and if you want to know just how much in despair many of our diplomats are, this is the place to look
Dominic Lawson (The Times, 2010)

In 2005 a humorous FCO email he wrote as Ambassador to Warsaw (a satirical speech by Prime Minister Tony Blair damning other countries’ selfishness on EU Budget issues) caused a stir when it was leaked to the Sunday Times

His FCO written work was praised at the highest levels in London, NATO and the EU for its uncompromising dynamic style:

“fabulously readable and interesting analysis, with practical application … just about the best scenesetter [No10 staff] have ever seen”

“acrobatic and eye-catching in his use of language”

As a speaker Charles Crawford draws on dramatic episodes from his diplomatic career to explain wider policy themes, paradoxes and trends. His presentations are interesting and thought-provoking, but above all memorable

He is strong on foreign and public policy issues such as:

o Communism (and Vampires)
o Dealing with extremists and war criminals
o Climate change and PPP (perverse precautionary principles)
o Amazon Space: how the Internet is changing the strategic policy context
o International negotiation (as explained by Shrek, the Joker and Clint Eastwood)
o UK/European Union relations: Too Big (not) to Fail

Malcolm Levene teaches business leaders and political figures how to significantly improve their communication skills and develop positive personal brand values.

Malcolm’s client list has included former Prime Minister Tony Blair, Alastair Campbell, Michael Marks CBE, Robert Walters (CEO of Robert Walters Plc) and Michael Gove MP.

As a Self Development Business Coach, Malcolm works with companies whose vision demands that their employees, at every level, perform at their optimum. He offers his extensive experience as it relates to enabling business people to attain their goals, maintain focus and be highly effective in their day-to-day interactions. Malcolm’s corporate clients include Prudential, Deutsche Bank, Tesco, CitiGroup, Robert Walters plc, Nestlé, Volvo (UK), The Bank of New York Mellon and M&G Investments.

In a previous business life, Malcolm owned and ran the Malcolm Levene retail fashion business in London’s West End. His retail experience enables him to understand the relevance of the customer experience and how important it is for an organisation to create long-term loyalty and trust.

Malcolm has created the Power of One: Personal Development for Business Success programme as a response to the business-world’s request for ‘something different’. The big difference with Power of One is that it is designed to spark or fuel change – real, sustainable, measurable change. Simply put, it enables people to be the best, most effective person they can be.

Malcolm is a Board Director of the Society of Complementary Medicine (SCM), a registered charity. He is a panel member of YougovStone, a Think Tank that ‘provides feedback on the most important issues facing this country’.

As a passionate advocate of authenticity as a key to success in business. Malcolm writes and speaks eloquently on the subject. The author of two books, published in the UK and USA. He also writes articles for business magazines, focusing on personal development for business success.

Malcolm has been profiled in The New Yorker, The Independent and The Observer. He is frequently quoted by the press, regularly appearing on television as an expert regarding Self Development for Business Success, Identity and Personal Branding.

Brain researcher, Chartered Neuropsychologist, Sony Award-Winning Broadcaster & Best selling author.

Renowned as the ‘father of neuromarketing’ due to his pioneering work in developing the science of Neurometrics, David is Chairman and Director of Research at Mindlab International. Based at the University of Sussex, it is the UK’s leading company specialising in brain research and neuroscience as applied to consumers.

David began his career studying medicine, later switching to psychology, gaining First Class Honours degree in psychology and a doctorate from the University of Sussex. After lecturing in Clinical Psychology and Psychopathology he left, to start his own research organisation.

Over the past twenty years David has made more than a thousand TV and radio appearances as both a presenter and contributor. His television credits include: Red Mist (LWT); Rude London; After Dark; Tomorrow’s World; Shopology (BBC1); 100 Best Television Commercials (Channel 4); Road Rages (BBC1); The Colour Eye (BBC1) – as Presenter; Work is a Four Letter Word (BBC2); The Alpha Plan (BBC1); A Little of What You Fancy (BBC1); Should We Be Worried About? (BBC1) Sky, CNN and the Discovery Channel as well as many others.

David has written many best selling books on practical psychology, including Thinking Better (Rawson Wade) which became a best selling business book and a Fortune Book Club Choice. Also, The Secret Language Of Success (1989) a practical guide to body language which was also a best seller. Business Week wrote: “The best book on the subject”.

Other books include, The Soul of the New Consumer: What People Buy and Why in the New Economy; of this book Tim Waterstone wrote in Management Today: “This is such an enjoyable, important and timely book…required reading.” Bookpage described it as: “…a lucid analysis of a wide range of sales related issues…for anyone in the business of sending those messages, it’s an enlightening and compelling guide.”

David now lectures to major corporations in Europe, Scandinavia, USA and the Far East with clients including IBM, British Airways, BT, Disney, Coca-Cola, MacDonald, Hewlett Packard, SAP, Novartis, Glaxo, and Merck as well as other leading financial institutions and pharmaceutical companies. In 1978 he founded the registered charity Action on Phobias and has been active in working with self-help groups for phobics and anxiety sufferers.

Academic Qualifications & Affiliations
Director of Research Mind Lab International (www.themindlab.org).
First class honours degree in psychology (BSc Hons). University of Westminster, 1981.
Doctorate in Philosophy (D.Phil), University of Sussex, 1986.
Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society.
Fellow of the Institute of Directors.
Fellow International Stress Management Association.
Fellow Royal Society of Medicine.
Member of the American Association for Psychological Science.
Member of the International Society for Neuronal Regulation.
Member of the New York Academy of Science.
Member of the Medical & Scientific Network.
Member MENSA
Member of the Society of Authors.
Member National Union of Journalists.

Dr Adrian Atkinson, business psychologist, strategic advisor and executive coach travels the world reorganising companies and advising CEOs and senior management. Drawing on 30 years experience working with a wide range of companies of all sizes, from all sectors, Adrian is an enthusiastic and inspirational coach and speaker.

Following a recent corporate event one delegate commented: “Best speaker I ever met, he took complex questions and theories and made them into down-to-earth solutions.”

Adrian specialises in revitalising companies, ensuring that business objectives are achieved through having the right people in the right roles. This can involve developing a new vision and mission for the company, coaching and developing senior managers, creating or restoring focus on wealth creation and managing organisational culture as well as identifying and developing key people and high performance teams.

Currently retained as strategic advisor to the board of several international companies, Adrian’s work has taken him as far afield as the jungles of Borneo, the streets of Jerusalem and the frozen seas of the Arctic Circle. Malcolm McClean, founder of Bearhunt recently described Adrian as speaking “in one of those soft, soothing Scots accents, so that if he were a medical doctor you would conclude that he had a good bedside manner.” This combination of empathy and firmness has often been critical to the success of Adrian’s projects, with well-known CEOs and business figures relying heavily on his advice and expertise.

In his excellent book ‘Leading HR – Delivering Competitive Advantage’ Andrew Newall, Corporate Human Resources Director for Allied Domecq described his experience of working with Adrian: “Over time I saw Adrian work his magic, and each of the directors grow.”

Through many years of work with some very charismatic business leaders Adrian has developed his fascination with the entrepreneur into an area of expertise. This particular specialism led to him being selected as the lead expert and commentator in the BBC series ‘Mind of a Millionaire’. Since then he has regularly been called upon to comment upon the characteristics of this typically misunderstood business personality. However, Adrian is the first to admit that fascinating as they may be, entrepreneurs are not always a positive force in a corporate environment.

View video of Dr Adrian Atkinson

Larry Hochman spent many years as Head of British Airways in New York and as Director of AIR MILES. Hochman is a globally recognised expert on the future trends of ethics, values, loyalty, service, people leadership and corporate team culture.

He is not just a theorist, but has turned his thoughts into tangible business triumphs internationally. At AIR MILES, Larry created what is widely recognised as one of the most progressive cultures and remarkable commercial successes, first as Director of Customer Service, then as Director of People and Culture.

Hochman currently consults and advises internationally recognised brands and service leading companies on building customer relationships to last a lifetime; global leadership in times of radical change; the war for talent and the future for HR; customer collaboration and building one corporate culture for success. His international experience and global focus have made him one of the top advisors to the world’s greatest multinational companies.

Alongside his numerous speaking engagements all over the world, Larry, who pioneered corporate mentoring work in the U.K. at Air Miles, is personal mentor to many senior executives and CEO’s.

• “BUILDING CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS to last a lifetime”,
• “GLOBAL LEADERSHIP in times of radical change”,
• “THE WAR FOR TALENT and THE FUTURE OF HR”,
• “CUSTOMER COLLABORATION – the only sustainable edge”,
• “BUILDING ONE CORPORATE CULTURE FOR SUCCESS”

Hochman is one of the most popular keynote speakers in the world and has now delivered nearly 500 speeches in 45 countries and has spoken on every continent.

Mike Street is former Director of Customer Service and Operations for British Airways, and was appointed to the British Airways Board in December 2000.

Mike’s department looked after and delivered a cost effective, punctual operation and one that ensured the airline’s customers received the highest possible level of customer service worldwide from its 26,000 ‘front line’ staff, both in the air and on the ground.

Mike was also responsible for British Airways Operational and Airport planning, its Property portfolio including Terminal 5 and the day-to-day management of the British airways operation.

He is a Fellow of the Aeronautical Society, an Honorary Fellow of the Lancaster University Management School, Deputy Chairman of British Airways Charitable Trust and a non-executive Director of WSH (a contract catering company).

Dr Neville Bain is Chairman of the Institute of Directors. He is a Non-Executive Director of Scottish & Newcastle plc, Biocon Ltd, an international company registered in India with a market cap of $1.2 billion, and Provexis plc, an Aim listed company developing functional food Until March 2006 he was Chairman of Hogg Robinson plc. He was Chairman of Royal Mail.

Dr Bain has worked internationally for most of his career, first with Cadbury Schweppes in New Zealand where he was born; in Australia, South Africa and the United Kingdom. He also spent 6½ years with Coats Viyella plc where he was Group Chief Executive.

Dr Bain graduated from Otago University, New Zealand, with a Master of Commerce (Hons) degree and with double Bachelors degrees in Accounting and Economics. He has also been awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws, is a Fellow Chartered Accountant, a Fellow Cost and Management Accountant, a Fellow Chartered Secretary, a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Keenly interested in business education, he has published numerous papers and is the author of three management books published by Macmillan: “Successful Management” 1995, “Winning Ways Through Corporate Governance” which he co-wrote in 1996 with Professor David Band, and “The People Advantage” written with Bill Mabey, published in 1999.

The book Roads to the Top profiled eighteen of the country’s most outstanding business leaders, including Sir John Harvey-Jones, Gerry Robinson, Archie Norman, Martin Taylor and Lord Sheppard. In the book, Neville Bain is described by a colleague at Coats Viyella thus: ” Truly bright and outstanding as a leader, with the capacity to run an even larger, more complex organisation than Coats Viyella. His strength lies in his ‘helicopter vision’, his ability to rise above things and also a charisma that leads people to transcend themselves.”

Neville Bain is equally charismatic as a speaker on topics such as leadership, change, globalisation, governance and strategy.

Well-being Scientist At Cambridge University, Nick is co-Director of the newly created Well-being Institute, where he endeavours to understand how each of us can make profound progress in our everyday lives: psychologically, physically, and socially.

TV & Radio Presenter, Nick is the on-screen expert for each episode of a ten-part BBC television series about ‘dream careers’, hosted by Adrian Chiles (presenter One show, Match of the Day). Each episode of the series also has contributions from world-famous personalities representing the full range of careers.

Public Speaker Nick has a vocation to prove that ‘the skills of well-being’ can pay their way in the workplace, as well as in our personal lives. Recently he has given workshops and lectures on ‘Applying the Skills of Well-being’ to organisations ranging from The Royal College of General Practitioners to The Royal Mail, and from City investment banks to the BBC World Service and Oxford University Business School. Nick’s findings can also contribute to the research & development of products & services that helpfully anticipate the emerging requirements of 21st century life.

Therapist through the Media. Nick is a practicing psychotherapist, and as ‘Dr FeelGood’ for The Times, he wrote over 100 weekly columns, many of which have now been syndicated by The Australian newspaper.
From autumn 2005 onwards, Nick wrote a year’s worth of monthly columns about the healing and inspirational potential of feature films, for the successful new Psychologies Magazine. Nick’s first book written for a general readership, is ‘Learning from Wonderful Lives: Lessons from the Study of Well-being.

In 2003 Nick was invited to co-convene the first ever ‘Royal Society of London’ three day conference on ‘The Science of Well-being’, and then became co-editor of the multi-disciplinary collection of academic chapters by world-leading voices that comprise The Science of Well-being (Huppert, Baylis and Keverne, Oxford University Press, 2005).

Nick also chairs conferences and seminars and is a highly skilled conference facilitator and after dinner speaker. He has a wealth of experience hosting events and award ceremonies, both at home and abroad.

Paul Birch is a creativity and organisational change consultant who helps organisations to solve impossible problems and find profitable solutions. He is an inspirational teacher, speaker, coach and facilitator whose style is both common sense and fun.

Paul worked for British Airways for 18 years, in everything from Marketing to Mergers & Acquisitions. As Head of Business Planning he took a billion pounds out of the cost base; as Corporate Jester he challenged the set thinking that permeates most modern organisations. He has worked extensively in the public sector, advising on HR strategy, integrating change programmes and developing definitions for future focussed management planning.

He has been a visiting lecturer at Henley Management College and Oxford University and has written nine books on creative thinking, organisational change, coaching, teamwork and leadership.

Lord Jones (Digby) of Birmingham

From July 2007 to October 2008 Digby Jones served in the UK Government as Minister of State for Trade & Investment. During his 15 months in Ministerial office he made 45 overseas visits, travelling to 31 different countries and meeting with the world’s top business leaders and politicians. He changed the way that UK Trade & Investment was perceived in delivering a record year for inward investment and expanded the UK’s presence in all of the major international markets.

Digby Jones was made a Partner at Edge and Ellison, the law firm in 1984. He was responsible for developing the firm’s London presence and establishing its representation in many European countries and several states in America. He was involved in most of the major management buy-outs and merger and acquisition activity in the West Midlands in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was made Deputy Senior Partner in 1990, becoming the Firm’s Senior Partner in 1995.

In 1998 he joined KPMG as vice chairman of Corporate Finance, acting as close adviser to many public companies across the United Kingdom and in KPMG’s global markets.

Digby served as Director-General of the CBI, the Confederation of British Industry, the UK’s ‘Voice of Business’, from 1 January 2000 to 30 June 2006 where he regularly visited businesses in the UK and worldwide – taking their views back to those who make the rules. During his appointment he took the British business message to 70 different countries, internationalising the organisation and opening CBI offices in Washington DC and Beijing.

Following his departure from the CBI he held a number of senior corporate advisory positions – Senior Advisor to the Executive of Deloitte; Senior Advisor to Barclays Capital; Corporate and Governmental Affairs Advisor to Ford of Europe and its Premier Automotive Group; Senior Advisor to JCB; Special Advisor to His Royal Highness the Duke of York in connection with his role as the UK Special Representative for International Trade & Investment; Senior Advisor to Computer Science Corporation inc, Member of the Advisory Board of Monitise Ltd; Member of the Advisory Board of Thales (UK) Ltd; Advisor to Hugh James, Solicitors, Cardiff and London, Advisor to Wragge & Co., Solicitors, Birmingham and London, Non-Executive Director of Alba plc, i-Clean Systems Ltd and Leicester Tigers Rugby plc. Its a wonder he ever sleeps really!

In 2007 he served as the UK’s Skills Envoy, campaigning for both private and public sector employers to raise the level of skills of all of their employees to Level Two by 2010.

He accepted a lifetime peerage in the House of Lords where he now sits on the cross benches and is known as Lord Jones of Birmingham.

Duncan Smith is a Director of iCompli® and Principal Trainer on Information Law and Privacy. He specialises in delivering real world compliance solutions in the arena of information law, privacy and corporate social responsibility.

Duncan does not believe in ‘brandishing the compliance stick’; preferring instead to deliver practical, technology-led solutions to help manage both the legal and cultural risks associated with information management. Duncan is a champion of the principle that “It’s not just about compliance with legislation; it’s about building a business case around compliance”.

He is an excellent speaker and motivator having delivered solutions to a wide cross section of UK industries. Duncan develops and delivers training courses for many of the UK’s leading Professional Bodies and is currently delivering information law and privacy courses for the Institute of Direct Marketing (IDM), the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) and leading digital marketing consultancy e-Consultancy.com.

Areas of Expertise

Information law and privacy (ILAP) Data Protection Act 1998 Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 Telecommunications (Lawful Business Practice) (Interception of Communications) Regulations 2000 Trans-border e-marketing Freedom of Information Act 2000

Risk@Work™ Illicit image abuse in corporate networks Olympic Marketing and UK legislation Business Risk assessment Business Process Modelling and Business Process Optimisation (BPO)

Chris Corbin is one of the most inspirational examples of entrepreneurship and determination on the speaking circuit today. He firmly believes that it is within the grasp of anyone to build a successful life for their family.

He started his career as a medical sales representative with a flair for success. Born in 1955 and educated at Cardinal Allen Grammar School, Liverpool. After completing a business studies degree he joined the pharmaceutical industry as a medical representative.

By the age of 27 he was sales manager at May & Baker and moved on to have successful roles with Astra, Fisons and Parke Davis.

His career came crashing down after a management change and Chris found himself out of a job following redundancy. His first marriage had failed and he was in the midst of an acrimonious divorce, he had been forced by circumstances to a fairly low point in life. Yet it was whilst sat on the ‘third step’ of his mother’s house with just £20 in his pocket that life offered him the contract that began his rapid rise to success. In the course of a chance conversation with an ex colleague Chris spotted the opportunity to say ‘I can do that’, determined to win the contract he inspired confidence and won the deal.

In 1996, Chris founded his own company. With the support of his wife Samantha, they converted their spare bedroom in Shepshed, Leicestershire into the office, hired 60 cars on credit and started recruiting; and thus Ashfield Healthcare, a company involved in contract sales outsourcing was born.

Six months later they won a contract with Sankyo and moved into their first 1,000 square feet office in Market Street, Ashby de la Zouch.

Continued success brought attention from investors and Ashfield Healthcare was bought by United Drug in 2000. A year later, Chris was appointed as a main board Director of United Drug.

In 2002, Ashfield House, a multi-million pound training centre was opened just a few miles up the road from where it all began just 7 years earlier.

In the same year, the father-of-six was awarded Business Personality of the Year by Leicestershire Business Awards and Ashfield Healthcare Business of the Year.

Since then the company has continued to thrive and has established itself as the market leader in its field. Expansion into Ireland and the thriving US market have followed.

Chris is keen to support the local community and founded the Ashfield Worthy Causes Fund in 2004. The trust donates to schools, talented individuals and initiatives in and around Ashby de la Zouch and has already donated over £120,000 to local educational establishments.

In July last year, the tenth anniversary of Ashfield Healthcare, the business merged with In2Focus to become Ashfield In2Focus now employing over 1,500 people with a turnover of £83million. Chris is still at the helm and driving the business harder than ever.

Chris speaks honestly and advisedly, his talks are focussed on what they don’t teach you at business school, the pitfalls and how to find the determination to succeed in the face of overwhelming odds. The huge respect this inspiring, witty and passionate speaker invokes is simply amazing.