Polina Changuleva | Founder and CEO | Same But Different Consultancy Ltd
Winner of Management Today`s 35 under 35 and Future of Work Pioneer 2024, Polina Changuleva is a multi award-winning Diversity, Equity and Inclusion specialist.
Founder of the world`s first joyful inclusion consultancy - Same But Different, she works with the brands of tomorrow to build a future in which we embrace each other`s differences and celebrate our similarities.
Having previously led the Women’s Inclusion Network at Yahoo, she has worked for some of the world’s biggest brands as a Cultural Advisor and Racial Justice advocate. Some of these brands include Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Reward Gateway and more.
Polina has continuously challenged the status quo and continues to do so through her work with Same But Different Consultancy, the UK`s 50:50 Parliament Diversity Committee and charities across London and Africa.
Having spent the last decade working in media and tech, Polina is a global expert, thought leader and international speaker on all things diversity and inclusion, partnerships and tech.
Prior to starting her business, Polina led Xbox`s partnership efforts across 16 markets, creating many pioneering multi-million partnerships with the likes of McDonalds, Burberry, Lego, Paco Rabanne, BMW, Deliveroo, Adidas and more.
Wanting to use her knowledge for good, in 2023 Polina launched Brand Partnerships House - a community of now over 600 founders, creatives and change makers on a mission to leverage the power of collaboration as a business growth tool. Those businesses have gone on to secure partnerships with brands like Soho House, Meta, Samsung, Beauty Pie, Mildred’s, TikTok and more.
Rebecca Porteous | Strategy Consultant | IBM Consulting
Since joining IBM Consulting in September 2022 as a Graduate Strategy Consultant, I have demonstrated a drive to innovate, accelerate growth, and promote inclusion.
My dedication to our consumer industries resulted in an internal award for my business development and delivery work, which are skills I’m now using to lead the Customer Experience Strategy for a major bank. I’ve also been commended for my innovation – establishing an internal strategic thought leadership team to produce new insights for clients on their most pressing issues.
My successes led to being accepted onto an internal female talent development programme, which I pay forward through the mentoring of young Consultants. I also commit myself to supporting students beginning their careers in consulting – including for LGBTQ+ and other minority groups.
Beyond clients, I’ve continued to drive IBM’s inclusion agenda – leading the Diversity & Inclusion Community for UKI Graduates before being elected to head up our broader UKI Consulting Graduate Community.
I see these roles as a real privilege, which have resulted in upskilling 300+ Consultants on allyship, raising money for charities, and representing 200+ Graduates to our most senior leaders. My perspectives on D&I have also been published by the Young Management Consultancies Association.
My leadership and impact on our organisation and wider community is reflective of my abilities. At the core, I truly believe our strength lies in getting inclusion right in everything we do. I will continue to push the boundaries in my career, whilst creating a space that people thrive in each day.
Gina Patel | DAWN Co-chair | NHS England
Gina Patel is a south Asian female equality advocate and has dedicated more than 13 years of her life promoting the rights of disabled people from all backgrounds personally and professionally.
Her own experience of growing up and attending a disability segregated service has shaped her motivation and determination to accomplish thus far, among others.
Her professional career began with an advocacy organisation where she spoke out on behalf of individuals with disabilities on a local, regional, and national level. She also served on the West Midlands Young Combined Authority as an inaugural board member. At TEDxWolverhampton 2021, she gave a talk titled ”Disability and Ambitions,” focusing on the topic of disability segregation, her personal experience during the pandemic, and her career path.
She has supported underrepresented groups by appearing in local and national media, I.e. GB News, for her campaign #CPEverydayLife, which went viral and achieved 100,000 social media impressions. She also presented a petition letter on the steps of 10 Downing Street for Changing Places Awareness Day, raising awareness of the facilities available for all disabled people. During Loneliness Awareness Week, she was featured in the Daily Mirror, drawing attention and impact to her personal experience of loneliness.
She is currently proudly serving as trustee of a learning disability advocacy organisation as well as co-chair of a disability staff network. She also hosts the podcast ”Saying It As It Is,” which promotes awareness of all underrepresented groups and currently available on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Podcasts.
Jenna Bristow | Executive Assistant | Barclays
I am a wife, a mother of two amazing children aged 8 and 14, and a fantastic Executive Assistant. My organisational skills are my most valuable asset, benefiting me both at work and in my personal life.
With over two decades of experience in support roles, I possess a wealth of knowledge and expertise in delivering the highest level of assistance, leading to enhanced overall performance and efficiency for myself, those I support and for the organisation.
Beginning my career as a Personal Assistant in 2003 after college, I have refined my skills over time and developed an exceptional understanding of excelling in this position. I play a crucial role in supporting my executives and their wider teams (currently c. 900 people) and contributing significantly to the organisation’s success. While presented with opportunities to transition away from support roles, I have remained dedicated to this profession, recognising its fundamental importance in every business.
I feel that being an Executive Assistant was my calling, as it aligns perfectly with my strengths and passions, offering a key platform for professional advancement, skill enhancement, and networking opportunities, all while allowing me to make a tangible impact and apply the skill set I have developed to other areas of the team/organisation.
Sarah Anderson-Smith | Executive Assistant | WGC
I started my career journey as an admin assistant for a coach company at the age of 22. From the outset, I was driven by a passion for organisation and a desire to excel in every task I undertook.
Transitioning to a role within a global recruitment company, I embraced the challenges and opportunities that came my way. Progressing from admin to EA, I honed my skills in managing high-pressure environments and supporting top-level executives with efficiency and professionalism.
Now, I proudly serve as the Executive Assistant to the CIO at a leading commercial cleaning company.
Sandra Nowaczek | Leadership Business Partner | Bloom Procurement Services Limited
I started my career, when applying for a Business Admin apprenticeship in 2019 at Hartlepool Borough Council where I was pushed straight into the deep end of working alongside the Senior Leadership Team and Chief Executive as their Personal Assistants.
I quickly fell in love with the role and wanted to develop quickly. My organisational skills and confidence came naturally to me, and drove me to move on to my current role at Bloom Procurement as a Leadership Business Partner. I feel like this role has strengthened all my skills and taught me so many more, shaping me into an efficient EA.
I originally come from Poland and I love it! I love going back to see all my family and friends, living the culture and definitely the food! I have been in the UK for 16 years, so other than my surname, you probably wouldn`t know it. I have a little dog, which if you were to meet me, I would probably mention him in the first 2 minutes!! I like to take him on walks and I enjoy going to the gym!
Zoe Haswell | EA to Head of RBC Europe and COO, RBC Capital Markets Europe | Royal Bank of Canada
I began working as a Payroll and Personnel Administrator at a subsidiary of the Bank of England and after two years of invaluable secretarial experience, I moved to Lonrho Plc as Team Secretary.
A move to a subsidiary of Lonrho saw me transition into my first PA and Officer Manager role and from there I became PA to two Divisional Directors at Alexander Forbes. I then became PA and Team Secretary at Gissings Consultancy Services Limited where I remained for five years. With nine colleagues from Gissings, I joined SBJ City Division, a start-up franchise business and was responsible for creating and implementing processes, PA to the MD and team support for nine Consultants and had management responsibility for the secretarial support team. At Bluefin, I was EA to an Executive Board Member, Manager of the Sales Support Practice and responsible for large external seminars and client events. I moved to JLT Group as an EA supporting three Directors and in 2016, transitioned into a new industry as PA to a Vice President, HR at Colt Technology Services. After one year, I became HR Project Manager at Colt travelling on business to Lisbon and Mumbai. In 2018, I joined Capita Group as an Investment Group Resource Assistant and in June 2019 moved to the Royal Bank of Canada as a Personal Assistant/HR Administrator. I was promoted to Executive Assistant in November 2020 and in February 2024 promoted to EA to Head of RBC Europe and COO, RBC Capital Markets Europe.
Fiona Shea | Virtual Assistant | Fiona Shea VA Ltd
I started working in administration at the age of 19. I was quickly promoted from telemarketing to manage mailings and data transfers to clients, from campaigns.
From there, I landed my first role as a PA in London. Over 20 years I tried to gain as much training and experience available, grasping opportunities that took me out of my comfort zone, from facilitating training courses to recruitment and mentoring.
My final role was as Executive Assistant for the Group CEO of Legal & General, a FTSE 100 business and the UK’s largest Asset Manager. There, I worked with Sir Nigel Wilson through some challenging times, such as Brexit and Covid. Nigel was awarded a knighthood in 2022. We worked together for eight years, until his retirement at the end of 2023. Knowing this change was coming, I chose this opportunity to leave L&G and launch my own business as a Virtual Assistant.
I sought advice from a few VA’s I’d connected with over recent years, they gave me the support and encouragement to set up on my own. I did this over a few months before leaving L&G, utilising opportunities to connect with potential clients. My business launched on 2nd January 2024 and I am fully booked with three amazing clients who I met during my time at L&G. I am challenged and learning every day, I have a new network of contacts to lean on for support and advice, and I’ve forged lifelong friendships from my career in the City.
Catherine Harrison | Virtual PA | Bee-Assisted Limited
Cath Harrison (52), Derby, has been working since the age of 15, After an impressive career as a Personal Assistant of over 35 years, working in the private and public sector at businesses including tech giant Hewlett-Packard, Cath honed her experience and became the right-hand woman to her employers.
In 2020, at the start of the pandemic, Cath was made redundant and decided to take the plunge and launched Bee-Assisted Ltd .
Because of her leap of faith, Cath found herself as a new business owner later in life than most, despite this she took it in her stride to quickly become fully booked, utilising her 35+ years of experience as an executive assistant.
Cath now also offers support to new VAs, and in 2024 started training to be a VA Mentor. She has been a guest speaker at networking groups, in schools and other businesses across the Derbyshire region. She regularly appears on podcasts sharing her expertise.
Cath is a passionate advocate for disability support and improving accessibility, a cause close to her heart; her eldest son was diagnosed with hearing loss and mild autism at a young age and is now profoundly deaf and a bilateral cochlear implant user.
Bo Kelestyn | Associate Professor | Warwick Business School
Bo is a design thinking academic and practitioner with a diverse teaching and scholarship portfolio.
Bo is an Associate Professor and holds multiple student experience and educational leadership roles at the University of Warwick, Warwick Business School.
Bo has designed and led a number of interdisciplinary modules on design thinking, innovation and entrepreneurship, and leads on The Guardian Masterclass on design thinking. Bo is also the creator of the Warwick Secret Challenge, a problem-solving workshop with elements of design thinking, which has become a key methodology to tackle innovation challenges at Warwick through authentic student-staff co-creation.
In May 2022, shortly after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Bo developed a vision for an educational leadership programme. Partnering with the Ukrainian Leadership Academy, Ukraine’s Ministry of Education and Science and Ministry of Digital Transformation, Bo founded the first and only of its kind Masters level programme aimed at nurturing a cadre of educational leaders in Ukraine, supporting the rebuilding of the education system post-victory.
Bo holds several awards for her contributions to teaching and learning at Warwick. Having emerged into educational leadership from her doctoral studies, she was the first ever student to have received the Fellowship of the Warwick International Higher Education Academy (WIHEA), one of the youngest at Warwick to hold the Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), and first at WBS and only one of three at Warwick to hold the Fellowship of Enterprise Educators UK (FEEUK).