Team Leadership

Meet Mark Franklin Mark Franklin is a trainer and speaker with over 20 years’ experience supporting small business owners to overcome their Four Fears® – the most common barriers preventing them from having the business of their dreams. He invests deeply in his clients’ stories, providing uplifting, relevant and engaging support to unlock the bravery and belief they need to pursue their happy path to success. His Four Fears® Programmes are designed to move business owners from inertia to victory and find joy in that journey. Mark’s vision is to help others find the confidence (and achieve the successes) they deserve.

Meet Jenson Button Jenson Button is one of the UK’s most successful racing drivers, the winner of the 2009 FIA Formula 1 World Championship who enjoyed an 18 year career at the pinnacle of world motorsport. During his career he won 15 Grands Prix and drove for renowned teams including Williams, Renault, Honda and McLaren. Like many contemporary F1 drivers Jenson started his career in karts. The son of John Button, a successful driver in his own right, Jenson was immediately competitive, winning the 1991 British Cadet Karting Championship. Over the next years Jenson became a regular winner eventually moving into racing cars in 1998 at the age of 18. He was immediately competitive, winning the British Formula Ford Championship, the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch and the annual McLaren-Autosport British Racing Drivers Club Award which resulted in him test driving a McLaren-Mercedes MP4/14 F1 car. The following year Jenson competed in Formula 3, winning three rounds of the British championship and finishing 3rd overall in the series. This led to him being offered a test drive by the Williams Formula 1 team following which he was offered a full-time drive. After a debut season with Williams, Jenson was invited to join the Benetton team, remaining with the team for two years during which it was rebranded as Renault. Those first seasons witnessed 14 top-six finishes, further demonstrating Jenson’s capabilities. In 2003 he joined the BAR-Honda team – later rebranded Honda. The highlight of six seasons with the team was finishing 3rd in the 2004 Formula 1 World Championship with 10 podium finishes. His break-through race win came at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix. Following Honda’s sudden withdrawal from Formula 1 at the end of 2008 the team was taken over by British engineer Ross Brawn. It was for Brawn Grand Prix that Jenson won the 2009 World Championship, the team’s highly innovative, Mercedes-powered car winning six of the first seven Grands Prix in the hands of Britain’s star driver. As reigning Champion Jenson was signed to drive for McLaren, winning a further 8 Grands Prix between 2010-12 and finishing runner up in the 2011 World Championship, ahead of 5th placed team mate Lewis Hamilton. He remained with McLaren during the first three seasons of the hybrid engine formulae, stepping back from Formula 1 at the end of 2016. He made a guest appearance for McLaren at the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix, deputising for the absent Fernando Alonso, and finished his career racing sports cars in Japan until 2019. He won the 2018 Super GT title. In 2021 Jenson Button became a Senior Advisor for the Williams F1 team, working with its driver academy and acting as a team ambassador. Since 2019 he has been a member of the Sky Sports F1 presenting team, providing expert insights to audiences worldwide.

Meet Jann Mardenborough Jann Mardenborough’s remarkable journey from computer gamer to professional racing driver has captured the imagination of millions of fans around the world. Ultimately his ‘gamer-to-racer’ life story inspiring the 2023 Sony Pictures film Gran Turismo Movie starring David Harbour and Orlando Bloom. Born in Darlington, England, Jann’s journey into the world of international single seater and sports car racing began when his passion for cars and motorsport led him to the world of on-line gaming, specifically the Gran Turismo game which was available on platforms including Sony Playstation. A tie-up between Gran Turismo and Nissan Motorsport led to the creation of the Nissan GT Academy, an on-line tournament which was hotly contested by legions of would-be racers. Jann won the series in 2011, the prize for which was his dream of becoming a professional racing driver in one of Nissan’s highly sought after GT teams. Jann’s skill behind the wheel resulted in him expanding his career to include both GT and sports car racing alongside single seater programmes including Formula 3, GP3 and GP2, the important feeder categories to Formula 1. In 2013 Jann made the first of three appearances at the world famous Le Mans 24 Hours sports car race, finishing 3rd in the competitive LMP2 class at the wheel of the Greaves Motorsport Zytek-Nissan. He returned to the French classic in 2014 and 2015, but in 2016 he focused his racing career in Japan, scoring 2nd place in the national Formula 3 series with six pole positions and four victories to his credit. Since then Jann has focused primarily on Japan’s ultra competitive GT500 sports car series and become involved with the highly innovative, all-electric Formula E series as both a test and simulator driver. His was closely involved in the 2023 production and promotion of the Grand Turismo Movie by Sony Pictures. Jann’s role in the film was played by London-born actor Archie Madekwe. As a speaker Jann is uniquely placed to give a remarkable insight into the convergence of computer gaming and motorsports as the digital landscape blurs the boundaries between virtual and real world racing. He knows better than anyone the opportunities which the connected world is creating for both fans and would-be competitors alike. His journey has been inspiring, a young man whose passion for motorsport led to a ground breaking career path which has captured the imagination of fans around the world, not to mention the attention of Hollywood.

Why organisations work with Liz McConaghy A first-person account of operational PTSD from someone who survived a suicide attempt, not a clinical overview of mental health from a third-party expert. Seventeen years on the Chinook Fleet, including ten Afghanistan deployments and MERT casualty recovery under fire. The credibility on high-stakes teamwork is earned, not theoretical. 2023 Inspirational Woman in Defence Award, recognising her public advocacy on PTSD and recovery among veterans. A bestselling book (Chinook Crew ‘Chick’) that gives audiences a durable artefact to take back into the organisation after the talk. Direct relevance for organisations with armed-forces-connected workforces, high-stress operating teams, or active mental health and resilience programmes. Biography highlights Longest-serving female crewman on the RAF Chinook Fleet, with over 3,000 flying hours across a 17-year career. Two Iraq deployments and ten Afghanistan deployments under Operation Herrick, including service on the Medical Emergency Response Team. Author of Chinook Crew ‘Chick’ (Pen and Sword, 2022), Amazon Bestseller within three weeks of release. 2023 Inspirational Woman in Defence Award winner. Mental health and PTSD ambassador for veterans, drawing on her own near-fatal post-service crisis. Featured speaker for the Institute of Leadership and a regular contributor on military leadership and recovery. Biography The Medical Emergency Response Team flew casualty recovery under fire in Helmand. Soldiers died and were resuscitated on the cabin floor of the Chinook. Liz McConaghy spent ten deployments on that aircraft, and the operational cost of it caught up with her years later, not in service. She joined the RAF at 19, deployed to Iraq at 21, and stayed on the Chinook Fleet for 17 years. Three thousand flying hours, two Iraq tours, ten Afghanistan tours, and four years as the only female crewman on the wing. She left in 2019, and in August 2020 attempted suicide. What followed was the work she now brings into organisations. A bestselling autobiography, Chinook Crew ‘Chick’, published by Pen and Sword in 2022. The 2023 Inspirational Woman in Defence Award. An ambassadorship for veteran mental health, built on the argument that PTSD is a chapter of a life, not the definition of one. For organisations carrying the cost of psychological strain on their people, the value is the source. McConaghy speaks as someone who has been through the failure mode that mental health programmes are meant to prevent, and who is articulate about what brought her back. Key speaking topics Mental health and PTSD in high-pressure roles Resilience after operational and personal trauma Team leadership in extreme operating environments Self-leadership and recovery Women in male-dominated workplaces Veteran transition and post-service identity Ideal for CHROs, wellbeing leads, and ER teams running mental health and resilience programmes at scale Organisations with armed-forces-connected workforces, including defence primes, security contractors, and emergency services Leadership offsites where the agenda includes psychological safety, burnout, or sustained performance under load Employee network groups and ERGs focused on women, veterans, or mental health Audience outcomes A first-person reference point for what operational PTSD looks like, and what recovery from it actually involves Practical language for opening internal conversations about suicide risk and post-service mental health A clearer view of how high-functioning teams in extreme environments sustain themselves, and where they fail Renewed permission, particularly for senior leaders, to treat their own mental health as an operating variable

Why organisations work with Mark Schulman He has spent decades performing in front of stadium crowds with P!NK, Cher, and Foreigner, and translates that experience into specific attitude and focus habits a workforce can use the next morning. His keynote includes live drumming and audience participation, which moves a conference room out of passive-listening mode and produces engagement that in-house speakers cannot replicate. He carries the Certified Speaking Professional designation from the National Speakers Association, a credential held by a minority of working keynote speakers, signalling consistency at the level Fortune 500 buyers expect. His Conquering Life’s Stage Fright framework gives audiences a named three-step model (Clarity, Capability, Confidence) for managing performance anxiety, not a generic motivation message. He pairs the music-industry story with a working business voice, having co-founded and run West Triad Studios in Venice for over a decade. Biography highlights Touring drummer for P!NK from 2006 to 2021, Cher from 1999 to 2017, and Billy Idol from 1993 to 2001 Performed with Foreigner, Stevie Nicks, Sheryl Crow, Simple Minds, and Velvet Revolver Author of Conquering Life’s Stage Fright: Three Steps to Top Performance, and co-author of The Attitude Equation with Dr. Jim Samuels Cover feature, Modern Drummer Magazine, May 2019; voted Top 3 Pop-Rock Drummer in the Modern Drummer Reader’s Poll Awarded the Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation by the National Speakers Association in 2021 Co-founder of West Triad Studios, Venice, California Biography The difference between a strong team and a top-performing one is rarely talent. It is whether people can switch on under pressure, recover quickly when something goes wrong, and stay engaged on the night the room actually matters. That is the territory Mark Schulman works in. His credibility comes from the stage. Schulman spent more than two decades as the touring drummer for P!NK, Cher, Billy Idol, and Foreigner, performing in front of stadium audiences where there is no second take. The performance-mindset content he now delivers to corporate audiences is drawn directly from that environment, not borrowed from a leadership textbook. The work is anchored by his book Conquering Life’s Stage Fright: Three Steps to Top Performance, which sets out a Clarity, Capability, Confidence framework for managing performance anxiety. He co-authored a second book, The Attitude Equation, with Dr. Jim Samuels, focused on the attitudinal habits that separate consistent performers from one-off ones. In 2021 he was awarded the Certified Speaking Professional designation by the National Speakers Association, the standing credential of full-time keynote speakers. What organisations book is a session that changes the energy of a room. Schulman drums live, brings the audience into the performance, and ties the story back to specific attitude shifts a team can apply on Monday. The format is unusual; the underlying argument, that consistent high performance is a learnable discipline, is what keeps Fortune 500 buyers returning. Key speaking topics Performance mindset under pressure Attitude and personal accountability Confidence and stage fright Team engagement and collaboration Peak performance habits Creativity and reinvention Ideal for Sales kickoffs, annual conferences, and leadership offsites looking for an opening or closing keynote that shifts the energy of the room CHROs and culture leads programming for engagement, motivation, and people-performance themes Leadership development audiences working on confidence, presence, and personal performance Audience outcomes A named three-step framework (Clarity, Capability, Confidence) for managing performance anxiety in high-stakes moments Specific attitude practices borrowed from world-class touring musicians and adapted to a business setting A shared, high-energy experience that resets the tone of a conference and gives teams a common reference point A clearer sense of how individual presence and preparation feed collective team performance

About Mikkey Dee Mikkey Dee has played the drums in King Diamond, Don Dokken, Motörhead and is the current Scorpions drummer. Lemmy had repeatedly been asking Mikkey to join Motörhead since 1986. Mikkey turned him down during the years for two major reasons. The first being that he was happy with where he was and never wanted to be a drummer jumping around between bands for fame and fortune and the second reason being that he simply did not feel ready. You just don’t walk in to a band like Motörhead like it´s just another day at work. Mikkey strongly felt he had not yet earned the strips to be a full member of Motörhead. Finally, in 1991 Lemmy cornered Mikkey at the famous Rainbow Bar & Grill in Hollywood and told him to join the band already… Mikkey replied: – “Let’s do it!” and the rest is history. After Lemmy´s passing in December of 2015 Mikkey has been sharing the message to celebrate the life of Lemmy rather than mourn his death. In 2016, Mikkey joined The Scorpions permanently. One of the legendary drummers in rock, Mikkey is also a keen ice hockey player, and the owner of a rock bar in Paris called Alabama.

Meet René Meulensteen René Meulensteen is a renowned Keynote Speaker on Leadership, Team Building, and Cultivating a Winning Culture, leveraging his extensive experience alongside the legendary Manchester United Manager Sir Alex Ferguson. Born in Beugen, Netherlands, René has forged a distinguished career in football management, marked by his tactical acumen and expertise in player development. His coaching journey began in Qatar, where he honed his skills under the tutelage of the influential coach Wiel Coerver, shaping his vision for player development and style of play. He achieved notable success managing Al Etehad and Al Sadd, clinching three major trophies in the late nineties. In 2001, René made a pivotal move to Manchester United, where he spent over a decade in various coaching roles, notably serving as the first-team coach under Sir Alex Ferguson. His tenure coincided with one of the club’s most triumphant periods, securing four Premier League titles, along with Champions League and World Club Cup victories. Renowned for his innovative training methods, tactical prowess, and ability to elevate player performance, René emphasises technical skill, creativity, and attacking play. Beyond coaching, he has ventured into football consulting and conducted coaching clinics worldwide, sharing his insights with aspiring coaches. As a Keynote Speaker, René is in demand for his insights on high performance, leadership and team building. He talks about working with stars like Roy Keane, Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs, before he was called to work with the first team on a more permanent basis. There, he enjoyed notable contributions, transforming Cristiano Ronaldo into a goal machine and featuring heavily in the move that brought Robin van Persie to Old Trafford. Following his tenure at Manchester United, René assumed the role of head coach at Fulham in the English Premier League. Despite facing challenges, his coaching philosophy and dedication to player development earned widespread respect globally. Currently serving as the Assistant National Team Coach of Australia, René continues to be a revered figure in football coaching, admired for his contributions to player development and tactical understanding of the beautiful game.

Key speaking topics Formula 1 race engineering High-performance teamwork Real-time decision-making under pressure Motorsport strategy and execution Engineering leadership in elite sport Performance optimisation in competitive environments Ideal for Senior leadership teams Engineering and technical audiences Performance-focused organisations Corporate conferences seeking elite sport insights Audience outcomes Clear understanding of how Formula 1 teams operate under pressure. Insight into race-day communication and decision-making processes. Practical perspectives on teamwork in high-stakes environments. Greater appreciation of the role of data and engineering in performance delivery. Why organisations work with Julien Simon-Chautemps Direct experience from senior trackside roles in Formula 1. First-hand insight into collaboration between engineers and world-class drivers. Credible, technical perspective grounded in elite motorsport. Ability to translate complex engineering environments into accessible business lessons. Biography Julien Simon-Chautemps brings over two decades of elite motorsport engineering experience, including senior trackside roles in Formula 1. Working at the heart of high-performance race teams, he operated in environments defined by precision, pressure and constant competitive scrutiny. Across his Formula 1 career, he held race-engineering positions with Toyota, Lotus/Caterham, Renault/Lotus Renault and Sauber, later rebranded as Alfa Romeo. In these roles, he worked directly with world-class drivers including Kimi Räikkönen, Romain Grosjean, Jarno Trulli and Marcus Ericsson, supporting performance delivery at the highest level of international sport. His work required real-time decision-making, technical leadership and seamless communication between drivers, engineers and senior team management. The Formula 1 paddock demands clarity, discipline and alignment across complex technical systems, disciplines directly relevant to organisations navigating high-stakes operational and strategic environments. Following his Formula 1 career, Julien founded JSC7 Engineering, a motorsport and automotive consultancy drawing on his experience in race strategy, engineering execution and team performance. He also contributes technical analysis for Canal+ and has appeared as an on-air analyst for F1 TV, providing expert insight into the engineering and strategic dimensions of Formula 1. Fluent in English and French, with Italian also listed, Julien works with organisations seeking credible insight from elite performance environments. His perspective combines engineering depth with first-hand experience of operating where performance margins are measured in milliseconds and decisions shape outcomes instantly.

About Cristiana Pace Dr Cristiana Pace is the founder and CEO of Enovation Consulting which specialises in helping sports organisations and teams – including in Formula 1 – to deliver robust, data driven sustainability strategies in their quest to achieve ambitious ESB goals. The first woman to work trackside for the FIA’s technical departments in Formula 1, her subsequent work at Williams Advanced Engineering saw her apply advanced motor sport engineering techniques in a range of solutions across complex industrial applications. With an Engineering Degree from Bologna University and MSc from Cranfield University, Cristiana’s career in professional motorsport commenced when she joined the FIA as a data analyst and technology developer, provided trackside support to Formula 1. From 2009 to 2016, she made key contributions to the FIA’s safety legacy, consulting for the FIA Institute for Sustainability and Safety in Motor Sport. In 2012 Cristiana focused on technology transfer and sustainability, joining the newly created Williams Advanced Engineering as Business Development Manager. She worked closely with the Formula 1 team’s CEO and commercial department, writing the business strategy. This led to major contracts including one to supply battery technology to the FIA Formula E series, a project which Cristiana led from 2013 until 2015. Cristiana then studied towards a PhD in Sustainability and Strategic Management at Coventry University, exploring low-carbon sustainable transitions in the motorsport industry. During this time, she also consulted for a number of motorsport stakeholders, including the FIA and Formula E, on measuring and reducing the environmental impact of existing technologies and increasing sustainability awareness across the sector. She founded Enovation Consulting in 2018, a purpose driven strategy and sustainability firm focusing on building sustainability strategies for the motorsport and sport industry. Customers include the Williams Racing, Alpha Tauri and Haas Formula 1 teams, the FIA, Motorsport UK, Silverstone Circuit and AS Roma football team. Cristiana is a member of the FIA Environmental and Sustainability Commission, the FIA carbon offsetting working group, a member and advisor to the Motorsport UK Sustainability Committee and Chair of the Sustainability Working Group of eSC, the newly created electric scooter championship. She is also a board member of BASIS, the British Association for Sustainable Sport. Cristiana is also a well-known speaker in technology transfer, motorsport, e-mobility, STEM and diversity. Her work on diversity includes collaborating with Susie Wolff’s Dare to Be Different initiative, being an ambassador for the FIA Girls on Track and helping to create The Grace Influential Positive Impact Award in F1, working with The Princess Grace of Monaco Foundation. In 2021 she was recognised as one of the Top 50 Engineering Heroes by the Women in Engineering Society and The Guardian. Cristiana is fluent in Italian and English.

Meet Tony Martignetti Tony Martignetti is a leadership advisor, best-selling author, podcast host, and speaker. He brings together over 30 years of business and leadership experience and extreme curiosity to elevate leaders and equip them with the tools to navigate through change and unlock their true potential. He has been recognized by Thinkers360 as one of the Top Voices in Leadership and by LeadersHum as one of the Biggest Voices in Leadership. Before becoming the founder and Chief Inspiration Officer of Inspired Purpose Partners, Tony was a finance and strategy executive with experience working with some of the world’s leading life sciences companies. Along his journey, he also managed small businesses and ran a financial consulting company. Tony hosts The Virtual Campfire podcast and is the author of Climbing the Right Mountain: Navigating the Journey to An Inspired Life and Campfire Lessons for Leaders: How Uncovering Our Past Can Propel Us Forward. He has been featured in many publications, including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Forbes, Life Science Leader, CEOWORLD, and CEO Today.

Meet Stef Sword-Williams Stef Sword-Williams is a TEDx speaker, founder, and author of F*ck Being Humble— an empowering movement and consultancy dedicated to inspiring individuals to embrace their achievements unapologetically and conquer the fear of self-promotion. Recognized as a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree in Europe, Stef’s impactful talks have reached audiences in over 50 countries and have been sought after by global brands including Apple, Unilever, Google, Nike, Adidas, Microsoft, and The BBC. Her debut book, ‘F*ck Being Humble: Why self-promotion isn’t a dirty word,’ has resonated with thousands, selling over 10,000 copies. Stef’s TEDx Talk on why the world needs to shed its humility has further solidified her position as a thought leader in self-empowerment and personal branding. Named among the Top 50 Workplace Leaders in the UK, Stef has cultivated a loyal online following of over 170k individuals. Her work has been featured in esteemed publications such as Vogue, BBC World News, The Financial Times, and Forbes. In recognition of her significant contributions to social impact through F*ck Being Humble, Stef was invited to become a Fellow at the Royal Society of Arts. She remains dedicated to reinvesting profits and time into community projects aimed at improving the lives of many. Stef continues to inspire and empower individuals worldwide to embrace their worth and celebrate their successes boldly

Meet Sílvia Vidal Sílvia Vidal is a renowned Catalan climber known for her bold and pioneering expeditions in the world of big wall climbing. Born in Barcelona She started with traditional rock climbing in the Catalan mountains before transitioning to more challenging and remote expeditions. Sílvia’s climbing style is characterized by her preference for solo climbing and extended periods on the wall, often spending weeks or even months on a single route in remote and inhospitable locations. Sílvia Vidal’s achievements in mountaineering have garnered widespread recognition and acclaim, earning her numerous prestigious awards. In 2021, she was honored with the Piolet d’Or in Briançon, France, a special mention and the highest international recognition in mountaineering, marking her as the first person from Spain to receive this accolade. This was in acknowledgment of her groundbreaking solo ascent of the “Cerro Chileno Grande” in Patagonia, Chile, in 2020, as well as her illustrious career marked by numerous world-first solo ascents, characterized by commitment and technical difficulty. She was also awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Order of Sporting Merit by the Superior Sports Council in Madrid in 2022. Furthermore, she received the Women and Sport Award in 2022 from the Barcelona City Council, highlighting her contributions to women’s sports. In 2023, she was recognized as an Honorary Member of the Spanish Geographic Society in Madrid. Her achievements have been celebrated by organizations such as the Spanish Federation of Mountain and Climbing Sports (FEDME), which awarded her the Centenary Trophy in 2022 for her diverse solo climbing routes worldwide. Additionally, she received the Snowflake of Honor Award at the Torelló Mountain Film Festival in 2023. Over the years, she has been consistently recognized by both FEDME and the Federation of Hiking Entities of Catalonia (FEEC) for her outstanding mountaineering achievements, including numerous solo ascents and groundbreaking route openings in various challenging terrains around the world. In her keynote speeches, Sílvia often discusses the profound lessons she has learned from her expeditions—lessons about perseverance, self-reliance, and the importance of embracing fear and uncertainty. Sílvia can share insights into the transformative power of solitude and how it shapes not only her climbing experiences but also her approach to life. She has been delivering conferences on climbing and for corporate events for over 25 years across Europe and other parts of the globe such as Vancouver, Calgary, and Banff in Canada, as well as to Peru. She has participated in both national and international mountain festivals, delivering motivational and inspiring talks for businesses, communicating through her personal experiences. These experiences often involve solo expeditions or teamwork in wild and remote locations, characterized by a significant component of exploration, commitment, and risk. She has scaled large vertical walls, some untouched, spending weeks suspended on a vertical face to complete technically challenging climbs. With no means of communication such as radio, phone, or GPS, he operates in isolation and total autonomy. Carrying all equipment, totaling 150kg distributed across 6 backpacks of 25 kilograms each, she undertakes weeks-long journeys to reach the base of the wall and return thereafter.