Our Speakers
Donald H.
Taylor
Chair | Learning Technologies
Conference
A renowned commentator on all things L&D, he has chaired the Learning Technologies Conference in London since 2000 and writes and speaks world-wide about Learning and Development. His annual L&D Global Sentiment Survey, started in 2014, provides a unique perspective on L&D trends from over 100 countries. From 2010 to 2021, he chaired the Learning and Performance Institute.
Damian
Hughes
Change Management Catalyst
Professor Damian Hughes is an international speaker and bestselling author who combines his practical and academic background within sport, organisational development and change psychology, to help organisations and teams to create a high performing culture.
Damian is an acclaimed author and co-host of the High Performance Podcast, whose books – on the psychology of high performance, teams, culture, leaders and change – have been translated into 10 languages.
He was appointed as a Professor of Organisational Psychology and Change for Manchester Metropolitan University in September 2010. His innovative and exciting approach has been praised by Sir Richard Branson, Muhammed Ali, Sir Terry Leahy, Sir Roger Bannister, Tiger Woods, Jonny Wilkinson and Sir Alex Ferguson.
Cathy
Hoy
CEO | CLO 100
Cathy is a seasoned learning leader with over two decades of experience in Learning and Organisational Development. She now runs CLO100, which provides CLO Community Membership and the Learning Leaders Programme, a programme dedicated to the development of L&D leaders, equipping them with the tools and knowledge they need to create high-performing learning organisations
Sarah
Furness
Speaker | Former Combat Helicopter Pilot and Squadron Leader | Best Selling author of Fly Higher.
Sarah Furness is a former RAF Squadron Leader who after graduating from Cambridge followed her dream of becoming a combat helicopter pilot. As a Squadron Leader she led on operational combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and was the first female helicopter pilot to fly and lead UK Special Forces missions in Iraq. During her experiences both at home and at war, she made two important discoveries; resilience and performance under pressure is NOT instinctive and secondly humans have an extraordinary ability to excel and lead the way under pressure…when they know how.
She now has ONE mission. To share the secret to outstanding resilience, performance and courage “under fire”.
Stévan
Cloete
Global Head of Talent Management and Development – Moët Hennessy Spirits Brands
Stévan is a heart-centred leader and coach who is passionate about growing and developing individuals and teams to perform to their full potential. He has an extensive career of over 25 years in Talent Management and People Development including roles such as Head of Know-how and Learning Operations at Sky, Senior HRBP and Learning and Development Manager with The Glenmorangie Company and now leads Talent Management and Development for the Moët Hennessy Spirits Brands, supporting famous Scottish brands such as Glenmorangie and Ardbeg.
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Throughout these respective roles he has had the opportunity to build and lead large teams, manage organisational change and transformation programmes, shape career development, mobility, and succession development strategies. He is skilled at driving engagement and designing development activities at all levels within organisations.
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He is keenly interested in “Career Coaching”, “Mental Health” and “Leading with the Heart”.
Rosie MacRae
SSE PLC | Head of Inclusion & Diversity
With over 25 years HR Change Management experience in the Media, Manufacturing and Energy sectors, Rosie has helped shape Energy Company, SSE’s Inclusion & Diversity strategy to Encourage Difference IN, ON and UP at SSE.
The achievements in Diversity include SSE being one of the first FTSE organisations to report its UK Gender pay gap 2 years ahead of the legislative requirements in 2016. It has increased the number of employees who work differently from 10% in 2017 to 85% in 2024; more than doubled the amount of Black & Ethnic Minority hires since 2014, doubled the amount of senior female hires and has reduced the amount of maternity non-returners from 17% to 6%.
This demonstration of strong diversity disclosures and best-in-class policies and practices has led to SSE being regularly listed in the Global Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index.
Christian
Moran
Head of Learning - Sky Customer Service.
Christian is proud Dad to his 1 year old son Max - a full-time job on its own, while also working as Head of Learning for Sky’s Customer Service group.
Leading an exceptional team of learning professionals across the contact centre, retail and partner operations, Christian and his team support the development of colleagues across the U.K including Sky’s sites in Livingston, Dunfermline and Uddingston.
Christian also supports colleagues at Sky as the Co-chair of the Parent & Carer network, driving Sky to be a more inclusive place to work.
Having worked across a range of industries including construction, aviation, public sector and consultancy throughout his career Christian still gets a kick out of seeing colleagues and teams grow and develop and see continuous improvement as well as pushing the boundaries as key to delivering value from learning.
Katie Drummond
Syme Drummond | Managing Director
Katie is a well-known and trusted advisor to HR professionals seeking career advancement and CEO’s aiming to build high performing HR teams. With a wealth of experience and a track record of excellence, she partners with an extensive list of local, national and international organisations across a variety of industry sectors.
Katie's expertise and success in the field have earned her company the award of Best Recruitment Consultancy (Scottish Operations) in 2023 and being shortlisted for Business Leader of the Year and Best Talent Acquisition Strategy. With a proven ability to deliver the highest level of recruitment consultancy services, Katie provides invaluable insights on emerging trends in HR and talent acquisition and is dedicated to helping individuals and organizations thrive in the HR landscape.