Become a member

Annual Conference

Scotland-AC

The IoD Scotland Annual Conference returns to Gleneagles
31 October & 1 November 2019

This year’s conference takes as its theme Architects of the new Scottish Economy. Scotland is looking to its business leaders to build an economy fit for the modern age – one that is open, dynamic and connected, delivering the financial results needed for growth but at the same time, grounded in the principles of inclusivity, diversity and trust.

Meeting these goals takes great leadership and vision as the nation looks to learn from the stories of its past and present and build on them to transform the future. How do we create the economy of tomorrow?

It aims to build on the success of last year’s conference, bringing together expert speakers, workshops and panel discussions to challenge and inspire.

Now is the time to ask yourself whether you are ready for the challenges ahead – and to re-engineer your skill-set so you can play your part in creating the economy of tomorrow.

Our speakers will reflect on their experiences in tackling this challenge and share their own views on leadership in changing times. They are drawn from a broad cross-section of business and society, with representatives from cutting-edge tech sector joining charities, retail experts and big business to give an over-arching view on the future. With further speakers to be announced, the 2019 line up includes:

David Beurle, CEO, Future iQ
David Cutter, President, Global Supply & Procurement & Chief Sustainability Officer, Diageo
Edel Harris, Chief Executive, Cornerstone
Kevin Mathers, Country Sales Director, Google UK
Dr Kim Winser OBE, Founder & CEO, Winser London

Their presentations will be backed by the now regular Friday Business Panel session which will include representation from IOSH, and a number of workshops, including delivery from Where Now Consulting. The sessions will examine in-depth key issues, creating an unrivalled forum in which to become better informed and to be challenged.

The conference also holds numerous networking opportunities to connect with your peers and to discuss the issues raised. It is not only for IoD members, but for all those in the business community who strive to achieve the best.

The Conference opens on Thursday, October 31 with our Leadership Lecture, together with Director Development taster sessions and an informal networking supper. A black-tie dinner concludes the conference on Friday.

Click here for pricing options and Booking Form and take advantage of the 10% discount on all bookings made and paid in full by 2 September.

For further information, call First City Events on 01577 865498 / 07711 432745 / 07483 812596 or email conference@firstcityevents.co.uk

Some highlights from the 2018 Conference …

Architects of the new Scottish Economy Speakers and Sponsors

Select a tab for more information on this amazing line-up.

Speakers Speakers
Sponsors Sponsors
{0} More

David Beurle

Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Future iQ

beurle-david

David is a world-renowned expert on urban, community, regional and organisational economic revitalisation. His work extends from the local and regional, through to corporate and governmental levels, with a focus on future thinking and long-term planning. He specialises in creating innovative future planning approaches for use in regional and organisational settings. He developed the ground-breaking Future Game as a widely used planning and workshop tool. He pioneered the application of Scenario Planning to regions and rural industries around the world.

David has led over 200 community visioning sessions across North America, Australia and Europe; he has delivered numerous keynote addresses and workshop presentations across the globe. David has worked in the remotest parts of Australia through to the highest levels of government, with eight years as the ‘right-hand man’ to the Western Australian Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries. He has held a position on the Board of the Western Australian Community Foundation and has a BSc in Agriculture from Sydney University. David’s work in community and economic development has earned international, national and state awards, including twice receiving the International Community Development Society’s Innovative Project Award.

David Cutter

President, Global Supply & Procurement & Chief Sustainability Officer, Diageo

cutter-david

David was appointed President, Global Supply & Procurement in 2014. He is based at the Global Supply headquarters in Edinburgh and responsible for a world-class supply chain delivering Diageo’s brands to 180 markets around the world from over 100 production facilities in more than 30 countries. In December 2018, he was appointed Diageo’s inaugural Chief Sustainability Officer in addition to his role as President of Global Supply & Procurement.

Previously David was Supply Director of Diageo’s International Supply Centre, responsible for spirit and beer production operations in Europe, which included global brands such as Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Baileys, Smirnoff, Gordon’s and Tanqueray. Before this, David was President, Diageo, America Supply, overseeing the company’s end-to-end supply operations for the Americas (North America, Latin America and Caribbean markets). David also led the creation of a new distillery in the US Virgin Islands. Prior to this, David led Diageo’s Asia Pacific Supply business based in Singapore. He has worked in manufacturing, supply and product management for more than 20 years and prior to Diageo held leadership roles at other leading consumer goods companies including Frito-Lay and SC Johnson.

Dr Kim Winser OBE

Founder & CEO, Winser London

winser-obe-kim-bw Kim was born in Helensburgh, Scotland and is one of Europe’s most internationally renowned businesswomen. Kim was appointed as the youngest ever first female Director of Marks & Spencer, she then held global posts as CEO of Pringle of Scotland and CEO of Aquascutum. She was a special adviser to Natalie Massenet at Net-A-Porter. In 2013 Kim launched her own digitally-based fashion business, www.winserlondon.com.

Kim was awarded a Doctorate by Heriot-Watt University, an OBE for her contribution to the British fashion industry and in 2013 she was appointed by the British Prime Minister as Board Trustee of the Natural History Museum. She also serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director of the Hongkong & Shanghai Hotel & Property Group (Peninsula Hotels).

Edel Harris

Chief Executive, Cornerstone

harris-edel Edel joined Cornerstone, one of Scotland’s largest charities, as Chief Executive in 2008, having previously been Deputy Chief Executive of Aberdeen Foyer. A former Metropolitan Police Officer, Edel’s background is in health promotion, holding a 1st class honours degree in Health and Social Care. She spent eight years working for NHS Grampian and has significant experience in setting up and leading successful social enterprises and in developing new social care services.

Edel is a Director of the Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust, Director of Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI), Director of Robertson Trust and served as the first female President of Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce. She was also one of the first Directors of Opportunity North East (ONE), former Chair of The Life Changes Trust and former Chair of the Scottish Government’s Social Investment Fund.

Edel was awarded the 2015 IoD Scotland Aberdeen & Grampian Regional Director accolade and in 2017 became the Scottish EY Entrepreneur of the Year. On International Women’s Day 2018, Edel was awarded an honorary doctorate from Robert Gordon University for her contribution to charity and business in Scotland.

Kevin Mathers

Country Sales Director, Google

mathers-kevin Kevin leads teams that help Google’s UK advertising clients make the most of the web. During his 12+ years at Google, Kevin has also been the MD of YouTube UK, led Google UK’s new products team with responsibility for the introduction and growth of all their advertising products, and led their technology sales and UK search partnership teams. Prior to Google, he worked at Deloitte, T-Mobile and one2one. He has an engineering undergraduate degree and an MBA from London Business School.

Where Now Consulting is a leading management consultancy that specialises in helping companies and organisations to develop effective growth and operational plans, and to convert these into actions and results. Focusing on the development of business models for growth, we advise on sales and channel strategy, market entry strategies, mergers and acquisitions, alliance partnerships, customer experience and operational excellence.

Our team of professionals have extensive experience in leading the growth and development of companies across a variety of sectors. From strategy to implementation we will help you to grow and compete.

For more information, visit www.wherenowconsulting.com

The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health is the Chartered body and largest membership organisation for safety and health professionals.

We act as a champion, adviser, advocate and trainer for more than 47,000 members, who work for organisations of all sizes, in 130 countries. Our focus is to support their efforts to create workplaces that are safer, healthier and more productive.

Our accredited training courses provide valuable knowledge, skills and qualifications for members and their colleagues – our market-leading courses for workers, managers and business leaders are delivered to over 180,000 people in more than 70 countries each year.

Chartered Membership of IOSH is recognised worldwide as the hallmark of professional excellence in workplace safety and health and our members are instrumental, from technical to board level, in enabling businesses to succeed in a responsible, sustainable way.

For further information, visit www.iosh.co.uk

VISTRA is one of the world’s leading corporate service providers. We work with clients of all sizes and types, including corporations, family businesses, investment funds, private equity firms and private clients to expand and support them around the world. Our 4,300 professionals working across 46 jurisdictions throughout the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East maximize the global potential of businesses, funds and portfolios. We consistently deliver solutions with unrivalled speed and accuracy, which allows our clients to stay ahead of the game.

For further information, visit; www.vistra.com

Gleneagles