Dr Harveen Chugh | Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship | Warwick Business School
Harveen is dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs through teaching and practice.
She is Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at Warwick Business School and Course Director for the Distance Learning MBA London programme. She co-leads two of the largest modules at Warwick Business School, which are Entrepreneurial Mindset (taught to 705 undergraduate students) and Business in Practice (taught to 680 postgraduate students). She is also a Mentor on the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Leaders in Innovation Fellows programme.
She founded and managed VIS-3, which provided entrepreneurship programme design and coaching services to universities. She worked on the UK government's graduate entrepreneurs programme with PA Consulting Group, where she managed a portfolio of 25 startups to raise £4.97mn in equity investment.
Harveen has previously held academic roles at Imperial College Business School, Royal Holloway University of London and LSE. She gained her PhD in Entrepreneurship from Imperial College London, holds an MSc in Bioinformatics from Birkbeck College London and BSc in Biology with Business Studies from Queen Mary, University of London.
Katharine Childs | Research Assistant | Raspberry Pi Foundation
I am a Research Assistant at the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre, and my current focus is working on projects to broaden participation in computing.
As a former network manager and primary classroom teacher, I bring dual perspectives of technological knowledge and learning science to all my work, and am committed to exploring ways to engage a diverse range of students in computing.
My recent work includes being part of the project team that delivered a 4-year research programme called Gender Balance in Compuitng, which trialled a range of interventions to increase the uptake of Computer Science at GCSE and A-level amongst female pupils. This was the largest research programme of its kind in England, and I was responsible for recruiting over 500 primary and 250 secondary schools to take part in research trials. I also played a key role in presenting findings from the trials to a wide audience by writing summaries and blog posts so that teachers can apply the research in their classrooms. I am a contributing author to academic papers that have been written about the trials.
I also believe in working with others to strengthen the message that girls belong in computing and seek out opportunities to collaborate with others in order to bring this important conversation to as wide a network as possible. An example of this is my 2015 TEDx talk “Coding the Hairy Toe” which argued for the importance of coding as an essential skill in this digital age.
Sabrina Au | Partnerships Lead | Dot Dot Fire
Championing social impact and creative education through empathy-led partnerships has been at the forefront of my mission throughout my career, which has spanned the arts, non-profit, and tech industries.
As a History of Art graduate, I started my career seeking to integrate arts and education, with the Victoria and Albert Museum and Camden Art Center, curating material into educational events for young people. At the same time, I founded Exotero, a creator’s collective with a core concept of non-monetary art exchange, which hosted a successful online art auction during the height of the pandemic in 2020.
In the non-profit sector, I worked to raise awareness for migrant rights at Migrateful, a cookery initiative supporting asylum seekers and refugees. At Migrateful, I headed their outreach both online and offline, from strategy to execution. I also worked in events, with highlights including my tenure at CogX, an annual event that brings in over 1,000 experts with over 90,000 attendees. At CogX, I coordinated over 80 speakers and worked closely with them to deliver unique, curated sessions from start to finish.
I am currently the Partnerships Lead at Dot Dot Fire, an educational video game developer, where I lead the outreaching for schools and teachers, as well as partnerships with councils, politicians, and corporate entities. In a volunteering capacity, I am a Citizens Leader at Newham Citizens UK, where I spearhead community organising initiatives such as shaping asks for mayoral campaigns and events to bring the local community together.
Natalie Gaynor | EA | RBC
After studying Journalism at college, I decided it wasn’t for me and I took my Mum’s advice to go and get a job in the ‘Square Mile’.
Starting my career as an office junior at an insurance broker, before working my way up the secretarial ladder to supporting the CEO at insurance broker SBJ for ten years, before the company was sold to AXA. During this time, I was involved in all stages of the buy-out. I also supported the CEO with his private businesses, a small-scale aviation business, consulting, underwriting and NED positions/chairmanships.
Then followed working at Phoenix Group, EA to Group Head of HR and Executive Committee member, becoming more involved on the HR side of the business, including onboarding, dealing with commercially sensitive and private information internally and externally. It was a very deal driven role.
I am now EA to the Chief Risk Officer for RBC in Europe, who has oversight for Asia and Head of Group Risk Management for RBC Wealth Management, Insurance and Investor & Treasury Services and I assist a Board member. The CRO is a member of many boards and committees, meaning I work in a fast-paced environment with ever changing demands, problem solving and juggling expectations, including, extensive travel arrangements and meeting scheduling within multiple time-zones. My remit continues to increase as I show what I am capable of and a willingness to take on more responsibility.
I have always worked in Financial Services and am glad I took Mum’s advice.
Rita Corbo | PA | Direct Line Group
I have been working as a PA for over 20 years in various industries including Property, Finance, Law, Entertainment and Insurance.
The role requires the need to be constantly adaptable.
Symone Zelkin | Executive Assistant to the CEO | Three UK
I started my career as an Admin Assist at a small print ad agency and am now the EA to the CEO of Three UK.
I have been fortunate enough to work in media, fashion, finance, motor racing/cycling and now technology. These differing worlds areas have given me a huge scope to be a well rounded, highly experienced and unflappable EA, doing a role I love, and sharing that with others.
Amber L'Oste-Brown | Executive Assistant | IFS UK LTD
Amber is a senior Executive Assistant with over twelve years' experience supporting Senior Executives at C-Suite, Director and Group Chairman level across the Charity, Corporate and Private sectors.
Amber currently works as an Executive Assistant providing a high level of support to the Chief Commercial Officer and the General Manager for Enterprise Asset Management at IFS UK Ltd. Previously, Amber worked as an Executive Assistant at Rentokil Initial (FTSE 50 company) supporting multiple Senior Executives including the Chief Marketing, Innovation & Strategy Officer (who was awarded the Marketing Week's Top 100 Marketers in the UK 2021 & 2022) and completed a nine-month secondment as a Project Manager.
Prior to that, Amber was a Personal Assistant to the Chief Executive of WWF-UK, the global conservation charity and a Personal Assistant to the Group Chairman of The Trevellyan Group (HNWI).
Amber has a degree in Criminology & Criminal Justice from the University of Portsmouth, is a Fellow of the Executive & Personal Assistants Association (EPAA) and a Member of the Strategic PA Network. Amber also owns a small bespoke floristry & home decor online business, loves to travel and is a keen amateur photographer.
Caroline Rees Williams | Operations Manager and Exec Assistant | The Valesco Group
Ms Rees Williams is currently Operations Manager and Executive Assistant to the CEO at The Valesco Group, responsible for operations and infrastructure.
Prior to joining Valesco, she worked at an award-winning international hospitality company within the Executive Team, where she managed the global headquarters across operations, finance and HR. Prior to this, she worked for a boutique executive search company, where she project-managed senior searches within the private equity and venture capital industries. Ms. Rees Williams holds a BSc. (Hons) Economics from the University of Birmingham.
Jackie Weldon | Executive Support Assistant | PwC
I’ve been in the EA/PA profession for most of my career, starting as a clerical assistant for a global communications company in the customer services department and eventually moving on to become a PA supporting the senior leadership team.
As part of my personal development, I took on the additional role of leading a programme where I was responsible for guiding new recruits through their development journey and allowed me to develop my own authentic leadership style.
I joined PwC in 2019 as a virtual assistant, quickly building strong relationships with peers and colleagues who now trust me for advice and guidance about the role. I work off site providing proactive support to Partners and Directors, with responsibility for managing my own workload, acting with autonomy, and using my initiative to provide an enhanced experience internally and for clients.
I’ve continued to build my understanding of the business and culture of the company whilst learning new ways of working. I get involved in projects where I can leverage my strengths and learn new skills.
In 2020 I led a team of fellow PAs to design and deliver a virtual digital summit, creating an environment and space where my team were empowered to be creative and curious, expanding their knowledge and stretching themselves further than they believed possible to achieve incredible results.
I ensured my team understood what was expected of them and that they were fully engaged in delivering the best possible outcomes.
Stephanie Brooks | Studio Manager | Igloo Regeneration Limited
Starting as an Office Manager at jmarchitects in 2015, I quickly grew the role given to me and assisted my two Directors in the growth of the practice, focussing on creating an office culture in which everyone felt connected and felt as though they had a voice and a part in helping the drive of the company.
I left in 2020, due to the impacts of pandemic, as part of the senior management team (still acting as PA to 2 x Directors) and national bid co-ordinator. Shortly after I started a similar role at Bowker Sadler Architects, acting as PA to 3 x Directors and "Practice Manager". The role allowed for me to create connectivity amongst the team in a period where many were suffering from isolation caused by the lockdown. I implemented regular 1-2-1 meetings with each team members, to allow for an insight into their workload, work stresses and general mental health. This allowed for all team members to feel as though there was an impartial (non-project related) person to offload to as required, and meant that their wellbeing was treated as priority. I also took ownership of the practice's Social Value outputs, acting as a mentor to NEET adults and as a volunteer with a local charity. I was the driving force behind the practice becoming market leaders in Sustainability. I recently moved to Igloo Regeneration Ltd after learning that they are leaders in both SV and sustainability, in order to further achievements I've made.