Investors in People Logo
START YOUR JOURNEY
Supportive Leadership - People Before Process

Supportive Leadership – People Before Process

Don’t miss your chance to be part of a leadership movement that prioritises people – because when we put people first, performance naturally follows.

Date and Time: 24 March 2026 9:00 am

Location: Villa Park, Trinity Road, Birmingham B6 6HE

Price: £50 + VAT

EVENT SUMMARY

**THIS EVENT IS NOW SOLD OUT – PLEASE JOIN THE WAITLIST TO BE NOTIFIED IF TICKETS BECOME AVAILABLE**

Join us on 24th March 2026 at Villa Park for Supportive Leadership – People Before Process.

This unique gathering is designed for leaders, managers, and change-makers who believe that effective leadership comes from putting people at the heart of every decision. In today’s fast-paced and results-driven world, it’s more important than ever to shift the focus from rigid processes to building strong teams and a supportive culture. This event will give you the tools, insights, and inspiration to lead with empathy, courage, and clarity.

We’re proud to welcome a lineup of keynote speakers who bring a wealth of experience and fresh perspectives. Kimberley Wilson, chartered psychologist and author, will share her insights into mental resilience and why psychological safety is essential in the workplace. Blaire Palmer, leadership expert and former BBC journalist, will challenge traditional leadership models and explore how to build trust and authenticity within teams. And Laura Willis, digital wellness consultant and trainer, will focus on how leaders can promote balance, presence, and wellbeing in an increasingly connected world.

Whether you’re leading a team, shaping an organisation, or simply passionate about creating healthier workplace cultures, this event is your opportunity to learn, connect, and grow. Expect practical strategies, honest conversations, and a supportive environment that reflects the very values we aim to promote. Don’t miss your chance to be part of a leadership movement that prioritises people – because when we put people first, performance naturally follows.

AGENDA

09:00 – 10:00: Registration and Networking
10:00 – 10:15: Welcome from TBC – Investors in People

10:15 – 11:00:
Laura Willis – Digital Leadership

Reduce stress and reclaim focus by rethinking tech. Today’s workplace is drowning in inboxes, relentless Teams notifications and back-to-back virtual meetings. As AI enters the mix, the pressure on our people’s attention and digital capability is only set to intensify. If not well managed, digital overload could increase further draining focus, wellbeing and collaboration, and leaving many teams overwhelmed and underperforming. In this energising and practical 60-minute session, digital wellness expert Laura Willis will unpack how our tech habits are impacting performance, relationships and stress levels and what leaders can do to reverse the trend. You’ll gain clear, actionable strategies to help your people use technology more intentionally, so it enhances their work rather than overwhelms it or replaces their human expertise.

11:00 – 12:00
Kimberley Wilson – Keep Your Head

In an ever-changing, competitive market, mental clarity and emotional resilience aren’t optional, they’re essential. But constant demands, stress, and unhelpful habits can quietly chip away at the very systems that keep you focused, sharp, and in control. This practical and energising session explores how food, movement, sleep, and daily micro-habits directly impact brain performance, both now and in the decades ahead. The talk bridges the latest neuroscience with actionable, time-efficient strategies you can use to: · Boost focus, memory, and decision-making · Reduce stress and mental fatigue · Protect against burnout and cognitive decline · Understand which foods fuel your brain—and which quietly sabotage it · Discover why protecting your brain isn’t just a health issue, it’s a leadership skill This session will teach you how to protect your greatest asset: your mind.

12:00 – 13:00
Blaire Palmer – Busting the Myths of Leading Change

Change. It never lets up. A new structure here, a shiny new system there, another “strategic pivot” just around the corner. Meanwhile, your people are exhausted — juggling today’s demands while bracing for whatever tomorrow brings. The pace is relentless, and the impact on wellbeing and morale is real.

So how do you lead change when everyone is change-fatigued? How do you inspire energy and creativity in a team that’s already running on fumes?

In this provocative and refreshingly honest session, thought leader Blaire Palmer tears up the rulebook on change management. She’ll expose the myths that keep organisations stuck in outdated thinking — the ones that assume people resist change, that leaders must “sell” the vision, and that success is all about managing the process.

Instead, Blaire reveals a new way to lead in a world of constant flux — one rooted in collaboration, purpose, and genuine human connection. You’ll explore what it really takes to help people not just cope with uncertainty but thrive in it.

Expect a lively, no-nonsense conversation that challenges your assumptions, sparks fresh thinking, and leaves you with practical strategies to help your organisation evolve — again and again — without burning everyone out in the process.Because change isn’t going anywhere. The only question is: are we surviving it or really leading it?

13:00 – 14:00: Lunch and networking drinks

HOSTS AND SPEAKERS

Laura Willis

Digital Wellness Consultant

×

Laura Willis

Digital Wellness expert Laura Willis is a leading voice in managing and minimizing digital overload in today’s constantly-connected world. She has trained thousands of employees across diverse industries, working with organisations such as Visa, UBS, Lacoste, Warner Bros. Discovery, Sky, TikTok, the UK Government, NHS and more than 35 law firms. Renowned for her engaging and insightful talks, workshops and webinars, Laura brings a fun and dynamic approach to her training. With a background in Social Psychology and as an associate of the Mindful Business Charter and Investors in People, she combines expertise with practical strategies to create lasting change. Her mission is clear: to empower individuals and organizations with actionable solutions that enhance digital habits, boost performance and support mental wellbeing and critical thinking in a 24/7 digitised world.

Kimberley Wilson

Chartered psychologist and author

×

Kimberley Wilson

Kimberley Wilson is a Chartered Psychologist and author who works in private practice. A passionate advocate for the importance of mental health, she is the author of the book How to Build a Healthy Brain . The book draws on ways to give practical, holistic advice on how you can protect your brain by making simple lifestyle changes.

She is a governor of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Mental Health Trust and the former chair of the British Psychological Society's training committee in counselling psychology. She also managed the psychology service for Holloway Prison, which at the time was Europe’s largest women’s prison.

Kimberley believes the way we think about mental health – as separate from physical health – is flawed. Her philosophy of Whole Body Mental Health is a comprehensive approach to mental health care. Her degree in nutrition informs her approach of looking at the roles food and lifestyle play in our mental health.

Alongside Dr Xand van Tulleken Kimberley hosted the podcast Made of Stronger Stuff on BBC Radio 4. Each episode they went on a journey around the human body exploring a different body part and asked what it can tell us about our innate capacity for change.

A former finalist on the Great British Bake Off, and an award-winning food producer with a degree in nutrition, Kimberley’s work looks at the role food and lifestyle plays in our mental health. She was the featured mental health expert on several Channel 4 documentaries about the impact of Coronavirus, and is a regular contributor to Lorraine on ITV.

Blaire Palmer

Leadership expert and former BBC journalist

×

Blaire Palmer

Future of Leadership Expert Blaire Palmer has been helping organisations drive real change in their businesses and create places where people can come and do their best work. As a Producer on the BBC’s flagship Today
Programme in the nineties, she spent a decade breaking stories and shaping the UK news agenda before her
fascination with leadership and change led her to train as a corporate coach. Two decades on, she gives audiences
unparalleled insight into what’s happening in the most innovative boardrooms in the UK and Europe, trends she’s spotting in her work, and what works (and doesn’t) when it comes to change and leadership in businesses.

Blaire realised early on that there is something about the workplace that stops people doing their best work and that the standard models about motivation, change, culture, and leadership were just academic theories. They didn’t work on the ground. And that is even more true today when we need to recalibrate how to lead our businesses in an unfamiliar and volatile post-pandemic world.

Audiences want to know what leaders in other companies are doing in these uncertain times, how to engage and
motivate people, how to improve retention and attract the right talent in a competitive market, and how to
confidently lead through change. Blaire draws on her experiences working with businesses across industry sectors
and presents a new kind of leadership based on authentic human connection, trust, empowerment, and continual
innovation.

She shares practical tips that mean audiences can start collaborating with each other more enthusiastically, support their teams to solve gritty problems, create safe spaces where people can speak up and speak out, and feel inspired and energised about the future.

Blaire is the author of three successful books on leadership and is regularly quoted in the media. She writes a
monthly column for the UK's leading HR publication HR Zone, has a regular column with AccountingWeb, and is
host of The Human Revolutionaries Show.

EVENT SOLD OUT!

Share this event

14th Nov 2023 | Old Billingsgate, London

MORE INFO

MAKE WORK BETTER

Attract Top Talent.
Boost Business Growth.
Get Recognition.

Discover how we can assess your organisation against established benchmarks to improve your business performance.

Related Events

Related Articles

START YOUR ACCREDITATION JOURNEY

Ready to make work better? Complete the form below and one of our team will be in touch to discuss your accreditation enquiry.

START YOUR ACCREDITATION JOURNEY

Ready to make work better? Complete the form below and one of our team will be in touch to discuss your accreditation enquiry.