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Andrew Mitchell was appointed a Director General at the Department for International Trade (DIT) in May 2020.

Andrew was previously Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Europe, responsible for the Department for International Trade’s work promoting trade and investment with the countries of Europe.

Prior to this he held senior positions in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. Andrew led the government’s international work on Prosperity and was the FCO’s Director for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Andrew served in Germany and Nepal and was Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Sweden. Andrew’s work in the private sector focused on major international events, including World Expos and Olympic Games.

In his current role as Director General for Exports and UK Trade, Andrew is responsible for the department’s work on exports, UK Regions and the Devolved Administrations, and global supply chains.

Anne-Marie Martin is currently leading the strategy and growth of BCC’s Global Business Network, an international membership programme of British chambers of commerce and business organisations across the world. An experienced senior business executive, Anne-Marie Martin has worked in industry and the not-for-profit sector at Board level over many years. Most recent roles have included that of former CEO of COBCOE, the Council of British Chambers of Commerce in Europe and before that CEO of the British Romanian Chamber of Commerce.

A Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute, Anne-Marie was awarded the King Mihai I of Romania Medal for Loyalty for services in promoting business, social and cultural relations between Britain and Romania.

Ben Francis is the Founder and ambitious entrepreneur behind leading UK fitness brand, Gymshark.

Ben founded Gymshark when he was 19 years old, while still a student at Aston University. In addition to his full-time commitment to his studies, Ben juggled working as a pizza delivery man to fund his Gymshark venture.

Ben made the decision to step down as CEO in 2017, to allow him to continue to focus on the things that have always set Gymshark apart - innovative design, creative content and consumer first thinking.

Gymshark has gone from being an entrepreneurial start-up to becoming a global brand with millions of customers in 170+ countries via its 13 websites. Driving sales by 140% PA to £176.2m in 2019, with operating profits of £18.6m.

In August 2020, Gymshark became the first DTC brand in the UK to achieve Unicorn status with no external capital funding. The recent investment partnership with General Atlantic will see Gymshark become a true global brand.

Claire Walker is Co-Executive Director at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) a role she shares with Hannah Essex. BCC sits at the heart of a business network that spans the length and breadth of the UK, with links to markets across the world.

Claire and Hannah lead the British Chambers campaigns, communications, public affairs, policy and senior representative work on behalf of the Chamber Network.

Claire and Hannah joined the British Chambers of Commerce in September 2018 from social enterprise Teach First, where they co-led the Communications Department. Claire covered Hannah’s maternity leave and they formed their partnership when Hannah returned in 2015. As one of the only Executive level job -share partnerships in the country, they are considered trail -blazers in the concept of co-leadership.

Together, they have a combined 35 years’ experience leading in a range of organisations, driving transformation and impact. Claire has held a number of trustee positions and led a range of community projects. Hannah is Vice-Chair and Founding Trustee of The Girls’ Network.

Ed Miliband was elected MP for Doncaster North in 2005, serving as minister for the Third Sector from 2006, and secretary of state for energy and climate change from October 2008.

He served as leader of the Labour Party from 2010–2015 and was appointed as Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in 2020.

Graham Stuart was elected as the Member of Parliament for Beverley and Holderness in 2005. He joined the Department for International Trade in January 2018 as Minister for Investment. In February 2020 he was appointed Minister for Exports.

Graham was born in Carlisle. He attended school in Scotland before going to Selwyn College, Cambridge to read philosophy and law.

At Cambridge he chaired the Cambridge University Conservative Association, and founded ‘What’s On in Cambridge’.

After university, Graham developed a successful career in publishing, and was a member of Cambridge City Council from 1998 to 2004.

In Parliament Graham:

• chaired the Education Select Committee (2010 to 2015);
• was Assistant Government Whip with responsibility for the Department of Health; and
• later for HM Treasury and the Ministry of Defence (2016 to 2018).

Hamad Buamim is the President & CEO of Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry since 2006. He also serves as the Chairman of the World Chambers Federation (WCF) and board member of the International Chambers of Commerce’s (ICC) Executive Committee based on Paris, France.

In addition to his role at the Chamber, Buamim also is the Managing Director and board member of Dubai World. Within this capacity he sets at the boards of CityCenter Holdings LLC. Nevada, USA, International Hotel Investment Plc. Malta, Inchcape Shipping Services World Ltd. London, UK.

Previously, Buamim held number of board positions including Kerzner International Holdings, Mandarin Oriental New York, UAE Central Bank, Emirates NBD Bank, Emirates Financial Services, Emirates NBD Capital, Network International, and Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance in MENA.

Educated in the USA, Buamim holds MBA (Honors) in Finance from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. He also obtained a Bachelor of Science (Magna Cum Laude) in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

Hannah Essex is Co-Executive Director at the British Chambers of Commerce, a role she shares with Claire Walker.

As Co-Executive Directors, Claire Walker and Hannah Essex lead the BCC’s campaigns, communications, public affairs, policy, marketing and senior representative work on behalf of the Chamber Network.

Claire and Hannah joined the British Chambers of Commerce as a partnership in September 2018 from social enterprise Teach First, where they co-led the Communications Department. Claire covered Hannah’s maternity leave and they formed their partnership when Hannah returned in 2015. As one of very few Executive level job-share partnerships in the country, they are considered trail-blazers in the concept of co-leadership.

Together, they have a combined 40 years’ experience leading in a range of organisations, driving transformation and impact. Claire has held a number of trustee positions and led a range of community projects. Hannah is Vice-Chair and Founding Trustee of The Girls’ Network.

Helen builds innovation strategies for corporates and draws on the successes and failures learned from 17 years leading digital transformation initiatives in the city. In 2012 she co-founded innovation consultancy, Blukudu, which has created multi-million-pound partnerships between corporate clients and start-ups including, most recently, Standard Industries, the world’s largest roofing and weatherproofing manufacturer.

Helen holds two degrees in Fine Art, is a staunch champion of women in business and STEM, judge for Saïd Business School Executive MBA in Entrepreneurship and a mentor at London Business School. She has been nominated for several awards including 50 Most Influential Women in IT, the Top 100 Women in Fintech and the top 30 inspirational innovators in the city.

In her spare time, Helen teaches business skills to young adult's pro bono and when not working she can be found under a tent in very remote corners of sub-Saharan Africa.

Henrietta is CEO of the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce. The GBCC is a not for profit business membership organisation that exists to Connect, Support & Grow local businesses. At age 30, she is the youngest CEO in the organisation’s 208 year history.

Prior to becoming CEO in 2021, Henrietta was Director of Policy & Strategic Relationships leading the GBCC’s research, policy, stakeholder engagement and campaigns activity as well as management of the GBCC’s top tier of membership: the Patronage group. Henrietta was appointed to the role in 2015. In 2018 she was appointed to the GBCC Board as an executive director. In 2019 she was named as one of Birmingham Live’s Brum 30 Under 30. Outside of work, she is a Trustee of the University of Birmingham’s Guild of Students and a graduate and supporter of the UpRising Leadership Programme.

Jonathan Guthrie is an associate editor of the FT and the head of Lex, the agenda-setting premium commentary service on companies and investment. For six years he was City editor and writer of Lombard, an irreverent column on the Square Mile and corporate Britain. He has also been enterprise editor, Midlands correspondent and UK companies editor.

He has led investigations into Eurasian Natural Resources Corp, British Biotech and the “Gem of Tanzania” accounting fraud. Aside from Lex, he contributes occasionally to the opinion pages of the FT.

Born in Warwickshire, Katherine is a Senior Vice President of Airbus and has been with the company for 16 years.   She leads the company’s external engagement and strategy in the UK.

Katherine’s previous employment was with Vauxhall Motors where she headed up their government affairs function and prior to that worked for Hill and Knowlton Public Relations in London, working with a range of industrial clients.

Katherine was awarded the Order of Commander of the British Empire in January 2019 for services to the aerospace and aviation sector.  She has served on various boards of public/private enterprises.  She is Vice President, Aerospace on the Council of ADS (the UK aerospace trade association), on the Board of the Aerospace Growth Partnership (part of the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy) and of the Wales Government Science and Innovation Council.

In November 2019 Katherine was appointed as Chair of the Western Gateway, a cross government and local authority initiative which will aim to promote and maximise economic growth across south Wales and the West of England.  Katherine managed the public affairs for VentilatorChallengeUK which was led by the HVM Catapult.

In July 2018, Katherine founded the UK’s Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter which is committed to building a fair and balanced industry for women in this sector and is on the Board of the International Aviation Women’s Association.  Katherine has an Honorary Doctorate from Cranfield University.

In January, The High Value Manufacturing Catapult announced that Katherine would succeed Dick Elsy as its CEO. She will join the organisation in June this year

Karen Beardsley has worked for Unipart Rail for over 20 years and as Managing Director of Rail Operations she leads the Supply Chain operational activities across UK sites that supports the UK and international rail operations, including supply chain outsourced operations for Siemens, Anglian Water, Thales and RSPB. Her role is to support and grow the business through delivery of high levels of operational excellence and engagement with current and new clients.

She has worked in a variety of senior management roles across a range of business sectors in the UK and internationally and has over 40 years experience in Supply Chain Management, Lean development and Business transformation.

She is also a NED for Doncaster Chamber and the SCR LEP Board.

Unipart Rail, part of Unipart Group are experts in Supply Chain and Technology & Product Solutions for the Rail Industry. Unipart Rail addresses the challenges of the rail industry by working collaboratively with our partners to deliver technology and supply chain solutions that improve performance, reduce risk and optimise cost.

Karima-Catherine Goundiam (KC) is the founder and CEO of B2BeeMatch.com, a business matchmaking platform launched 3 weeks before lockdown, this platform is designed especially, but not only, for small and medium businesses. Like online dating, but for businesses. B2BeeMatch is now present in over 28 countries. The fastest growing markets are US, UK, Canada, UAE.,

KC is also the founder and CEO of Red Dot Digital, a digital strategy and management consulting firm launched in 2014. KC has twenty years of international integrated campaign and project management experience. Before becoming an entrepreneur, she managed digital and social media for Deloitte Canada and she directed social media for Ford.

Lewis Iwu specialises in campaigns, social purpose, presentation and debate coaching and building coalitions between corporates and NGOs. Lewis was the founding Director of the Fair Education Alliance, a national advocacy coalition of almost 100 non-profits and businesses. He has also worked with a range of companies and organisations on ESG issues, including Natwest, Sky, Nesta, bp, BT, AT&T, The Grantham Institute, F1, Pfizer, Avast, Novo Nordisk and Sage. As a trustee, he currently chairs the Ethical Fundraising committee at the British Red Cross.

He is also a global public speaking and debating expert, having participated in or moderated over 1000 debates. He is a former World Debating Champion and has coached England to win the World Championship in 2016. He is the author of a book about debating social issues called Words that Win.

He has written about social issues for The Economist, The Guardian, The Times, The Telegraph, The Independent and the New Statesman and has made numerous TV appearances. Lewis has also given a TEDx talk about social mobility. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of East London for his social justice work in 2019.

Having graduated from the UK’s first PR degree and subsequently working in the Harrods and Poole Pottery press offices as well as a regional agency, I started Liz Lean PR from the back of a Sandbanks apartment twenty years ago. The business is now home to an expanding team of PR, marketing and digital talent and we continue to go from strength to strength.

2019 President, Board and Council member of the Dorset Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Personality traits which have enabled my business to be successful - alongside having an incredible team - include relationship building skills, high levels of emotional intelligence, interpersonal relationship and people engagement, and strong intuition. 

I have proven board level understanding of governance, using objective diplomacy and persuasiveness for the best interests of the organisation in question.

Career highlights;

• Liz Lean PR Ltd, MD and Founder, 1998 – present
• Poole Pottery Ltd, PR Manager
• Aylesworth Fleming Ltd, PR Executive
• Harrods Ltd, Press Officer

Mark Price is the founder of WorkL for Business, a platform offering market leading employee engagement surveys and data to help businesses and organisations develop and engage their workforce. Mark’s mission is to help everyone get a little happier at work.

Mark is a writer and former government Minister of Trade. A former Managing Director of Waitrose, Deputy Chairman of the John Lewis Partnership and President of the Chartered Management Institute, Mark has spent over thirty years unlocking the power of people in organisations. He is passionate about creating engaged and happy workforces who in turn create longer-term sustainable success for businesses.

Miriam González Durántez currently leads the trade practice of US law firm, Cohen & Gresser, splitting her time between California, Washington and London. She advises clients on international trade and regulation, with a particular focus on European Union law. Her practice also includes international sanctions, export control, and cross-border investigations.

She is Deputy Chair of the Supervisory Board of UBS Europe SE, a Member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, and a member of the International Advisory Board of the Circulo de Empresarios in Spain.

Miriam is the Founder and Chair of Inspiring Girls International, a global charity dedicated to raising the aspirations of young girls by connecting schoolgirls and women role models.

Miriam holds a degree in Law from the University of Valladolid and a Masters in European Policy from the College of Bruges. She is the author of “Devuelveme el poder” and “Made in Spain”.

Paul Thwaite was appointed Chief Executive Officer, Commercial Banking in November 2019, and is responsible for the business supporting clients ranging from SMEs through to multi-nationals.

Paul has a track record of success in senior business and functional roles across Wholesale, Corporate, International and Retail Banking for the Group, and was most recently responsible for the bank’s SME franchise and commercial product businesses, including Lombard Asset Finance and Transaction Services. Prior to this, he held Managing Director and Chief Risk Officer roles in International Banking, based in the UK and the US and working across multiple geographies.

Outside the bank, Paul is a Non-Executive Director of Motability Operations Group plc, and member of the Whitehall Industry Group, various Financial Institutions advisory boards, and the Business Finance Council. Paul is a strong supporter of Diversity & Inclusion, and has been the Executive sponsor of D&I for the Commercial Bank since 2017.

Paul Farmer has been Chief Executive of Mind, the leading mental health charity working in England and Wales since May 2006.

Paul is Chair of the NHS England Independent Oversight & Advisory Group which brings together health and care leaders and experts to oversee the current mental health long term plan for the NHS in England. He co-authored ‘Thriving at Work’ for the government, setting out how to transform mental health in workplaces.

Paul is a Commissioner at Historic England. He has an Honorary Doctorate of Science from the University of East London, is an Honorary Fellow of St Peter’s College, Oxford, and The Royal College of Psychiatrists, and was awarded a CBE in the New Year’s Honours 2016.

Baroness Ruby McGregor-Smith is the President of the British Chambers of Commerce.

Ruby is currently a Non-Executive Director at the Department for Education and Tideway; senior independent advisor at Mace Group; and chair of the Airport Operators Association. She is a member of the House of Lords Committee on Democracy and Digital Technologies, and patron of the Employers Forum for Equality and Inclusion.

Previously, Ruby spent fourteen years at Mitie Group PLC – including a decade as CEO, as one of a small number of female CEOs in the FTSE 250. She also served as Chair of the Women’s Business Council, and has held a range of NED and public appointments and won a number of national awards during her business career.

Ruby was appointed CBE in 2011 for services to business and to diversity in business, and became a life peer in 2015.

Sarah Howard is Chair of the Brtish Chambers of Commerce.

Sarah is immediate past president of Suffolk Chamber of Commerce. She joined the BCC board in 2016, chairs the accreditation board, and became Vice President in December 2017.

Sarah started her career as a management consultant at KPMG, moving to JP Morgan before setting up her own company, Sarand Business Software with her partner in 1994. The company supplies bespoke software to a wide range of clients.

Sarah chairs Abbeycroft Leisure, a not for profit organisation running leisure services across Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. She is also a Governor at West Suffolk College and the Suffolk Academy Trust.

Shevaun Haviland is Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce.

Shevaun joined BCC from the Cabinet Office where she lead Business Partnerships. She joined the UK government in 2016 and also ran the Inclusive Economy Partnership for HMG.

Shevaun started her career in consultancy in London and New York. She then moved to the Walt Disney Company in strategic planning before joining Disneyland Paris, opening the second theme park. Shevaun then joined the agency world, running global accounts for Millward Brown, Mindshare and WPP.

Following this, she became a partner in a start-up digital innovation agency and venture builder, Independents United, where she also became an Advisor for the Danson Foundation.

Most recently, Shevaun was the New Ventures Director for Avado, building new businesses in Edtech and founding the Academy of Digital Business Leaders. Shevaun has a passion for business as a force for good. She is a social impact investor, sits on the Ventures Advisory Board of UnLtd, and is Trustee of Barefoot College International as well as a board member of Women of the World Foundation.

Alderman William Russell took office as the 692nd Lord Mayor of the City of London on 8th November 2019. He served as a Sheriff of the City of London in 2016-17 and, in that capacity, supported the then Lord Mayor, undertaking numerous visits and official functions. On 30th September 2020 William was elected to serve a further year in office, to provide continuity of civic governance during the Coronavirus emergency.

His mayoral theme for his time in office is “Global UK – The New Future”, supporting businesses through the COVID19 crisis, speeding the recovery and seizing the opportunities of the new future.

William has over thirty years’ experience in the financial and business City including holding senior positions in the national and international Banking sector. In 1987 he went to work for First Boston Corporation before joining Merrill Lynch in 1992 as an Investment Banker in Institutional Equity Sales, working in Asia, New York and London. William is currently Chair of CDAM, a London based Asset Management business and Senior Advisor to STJ Advisors.

William served on the Board of Innovate Finance, the industry body for the UK based Fintech community and is also an educational entrepreneur, as the co-Founder and Chair of Knightsbridge School and a Director of Knightsbridge School International (KSI). William is a member of the Campaign Board for Durham Inspired, a landmark philanthropic campaign focused on ensuring Durham remains at the forefront of learning, research and education for generations to come.

Alderman Russell has a number of charitable interests; he has served as Chair of the Development Board of the Royal Court Theatre, he is a Board Member of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and is on the Council of the Royal Theatrical Support Trust. He is immediate past Chair of Prostate Cancer UK and is currently Deputy Chair of Place2Be, a children’s mental health charity. As of July 2019 he is a member of the Barbican Centre Board.

William was elected Alderman for the Ward of Bread Street in March 2013 and has since served on a number of the City of London Corporation Committees including the Policy and Resources Committee and the Education Board. William is also a Governor of the City of London School for Girls and is a past Governor of the Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls, Adams Grammar School and Abraham Darby Academy.

William is a Court Assistant to both the Haberdashers’ and the Feltmakers’ Livery Companies, as well as an Honorary Liveryman of the Paviors’ Company.

Alderman Russell was born in London in 1965 and was educated at Eton College and Durham University. He is married to Hilary who also went to Durham University. They have four children: Edward (27), Nicholas (24), Alistair (22) and Helena (17). His interests include cricket, tennis, rugby and the theatre. William has a strong family history with the City of London. He is the fifth member of his family to be Lord Mayor in the past 110 years. His grandfather, Sir Ian Bowater, was Lord Mayor exactly 50 years ago from 1969 to 1970 and his great grandfather, Sir Frank Bowater, was Lord Mayor from 1938 to 1939.