Find out all about our expert speakers for the Summit on Stress Awareness Day 6 November, when there will be something for everyone with an interest in stress management, mental health, wellbeing and workplace performance.
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After completing my Postgraduate Diploma and postgraduate qualifications in counselling and psychotherapy, I became a therapist with a multidisciplinary team, steering a stress management project in the healthcare sector. I then joined an international IT company and was tasked with creating a new training programme, positioned with employee mental health and wellbeing at its heart. As an elected Wellbeing at Work representative, I attended ISMAUK conferences. I am now involved in supervising start-up wellbeing initiatives, bereavement support, and mindfulness practices. As an ISMAUK Ambassador, I set up ISMA Scotland. There is much to do in raising our profile in Scotland, but we have ISMA’s support, as a leading professional body with fifty years’ experience and I am working with committed and passionate members.
Malcolm is a Fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers and International Institute of Risk and Safety Management. He has a degree in Chemical Engineering and an MSc in Integrated Environmental Management. Previously a site engineering technologist and a plant manager, he has worked in corporate environment, health & safety for several companies before joining L’Oréal in 2009. At L’Oréal Malcolm has developed strategies for the globalisation of health & safety, with a focus on risk management, visible felt leadership, and putting people in the centre. L’Oréal’s approach to health & safety culture and high-risk management is considered a benchmark for many corporations. Malcolm is known for his networking and sharing, as well as for his hummingbird approach, which was the subject of his 2022 TEDx talk. He is considered to be a futuristic thought leader in health & safety.
Martin is Chief Operating Officer and a board director at Thrive. He is experienced in building successful purpose-driven businesses, both for-profit and NFP, and has a keen interest in clinical and non-clinical governance regimes. Martin’s extensive senior leadership experience and 18 years working with organisations has involved partnering with organisations in various ways, including governance and strategy, fast-growth scaling of sales and service delivery, leadership and development, and hands-on consulting. His current focus is on mental healthcare.
Previously, Martin was Chief Revenue Officer in Digital and Financial Inclusion, also in a customer experience software start-up, and Group COO for companies serving the charity sector, focused on individual giving. He led various European technology companies for five years. He is also Board Advisor to The Happiness Foundation and Chair of Fundify – a marketplace disrupting the grant-giving/seeking space. Martin holds an Honours Degree from the University of Lancaster.
Paul Davison is the CEO and Founder of PPWD, thought leaders in Safety Differently. Their multi-award-winning Compassionate Safety approach generates environments that accommodate humans for being human. PPWD operates within several safety-critical sectors, delivering training programmes which span from the boardroom to the classroom. Paul is a regular conference speaker and contributor to The Ergonomist magazine. He is also a non-executive director of the British Bobsleigh and Skeleton Association and a senior officer within the Royal Air Force Air Cadets.
Paul Hargreaves is a B Corp Ambassador and one of the leading voices in the UK encouraging and inspiring businesses to make a positive impact on the world. He strongly believes that businesses should be a Force for Good, which is the title of his first book. Paul’s main role is as CEO of Cotswold Fayre, a large speciality food and drink wholesale business supplying over 2,000 retail sites in the UK. The company diversified in June 2021 by opening Flourish, its first food hall, restaurant, and home and lifestyle store. Paul believes that, to bring the radical and systemic change required to reverse climate change and the growing inequality in the world, a new compassionate, loving and servant-hearted leadership is required; that is what he calls The Fourth Bottom Line, and the title of his second book.
Richard is CEO of The Mindful Business Charter, a cross-business initiative to reduce the stress we experience at work. He is also principal consultant at Byrne Dean, a workplace consultancy, and chairs the steering committee of the Lord Mayor of London’s ‘This is Me’ campaign. He is a qualified coach and mental health first aid instructor. His experience of breakdown and recovery is the subject of his memoir, This Too Will Pass – Anxiety in a Professional World.
Ruth has worked in senior HR roles for more than twenty-five years, predominantly in road haulage, trade associations and civil engineering. Ruth joined BAM Nuttall as HR Director in 2011. She has worked as Global Director for Mental Health and Wellbeing for the Royal BAM Group and is currently Head of Workplace Wellbeing for BAM UK & IRL. She has been a Trustee of the Men’s Health Forum since 2022. Ruth has a keen professional and personal interest in all matters related to mental health, particularly men’s health and child and adolescent mental health. Ruth was awarded her Masters in Workplace Health and Wellbeing in 2021. Also in 2021, she was awarded “Most Inspiring Mental Health Leader” by This Can Happen. She has a Masters degree in Law and is a Fellow of the CIPD.
Sarmado’s culinary journey began in 1990 with an apprenticeship at Gravetye Manor, the renowned Relais & Chateaux Hotel. He further honed his skills with the Roux Brothers at Boucherie Lamartine. Sarmado next became Head Pastry Chef at South Lodge Hotel, West Sussex, mentored by celebrity chef Anthony Tobin and Michelin recipient Richard Neat. He’s also been Head Chef for prestigious events such as the Wimbledon tennis tournament, the State Opening of Parliament, Royal Ascot. He's also served celebrities and catered for Hollywood movies. His cuisine has been dubbed ‘probably the best food in London’ by the President of McCann Erickson. In 2005, Sarmado became a certified Raw Food Coach & Chef, specialising in holistic nutrition. He’s been recognised as Europe’s leading plant-based educator and the first-ever chef to offer Michelin-style raw plant-based living workshops.
Tony is lead partner of the Digital Defence practice at Deloitte UK, with over 30 years’ experience in defence and national security. He is a keen advocate for changing mindset, not toolset, to achieve digital transformation and campaign advantage, helping clients to adopt new thinking, disruptive technologies, and ethical AI across military domains. He has a unique background as a former British Army officer, government advisor, and business leader, and is passionate about mental health, from his time spent on military operations and supporting colleagues in the workplace. He is Deloitte’s public sector lead for diversity, wellbeing and inclusion, and introduced their Ways of Working approach, embedding wellbeing and inclusion into their work.