Volunteer of the Year 2022

Olivia is a passionate and innovative Educator who seeks to inspire her students to change the business narrative. Drawing on previous experience as a Marketing Manager she believes in building and working in collaborative teams. Olivia believes in developing ‘soft skills’ to enable people to cope with the demands of the workplace and become better Managers.

Derek is Director and Senior Advisor at Pathleader Education Consultants, a registered private K-12 institution in Hong Kong with working partnerships with schools in UK, US and HK and relocation agents in China. He manages a team of 10 teachers and consultants in helping families and students plan their education path.

Prior to his current role, Derek founded his first private tuition company in 2013, with an aim to help students learn to learn through innovative and connective teaching methods and more systematic teaching materials. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, he was one of the first educators in Hong Kong to facilitate online learning.

Having graduated from the London School of Economics, he is now pursuing a Masters degree in Teacher Education at the University of Oxford.

Among his many voluntary positions, Derek is also the Technology Engagement Member of the LSE Alumni Association Executive Committee and the Vice-chairman of the Friends of LSE in Hong

I have over 20 years of experience in the Higher Education sector gained from multiple roles – these have ranged from teaching in the classroom right through to senior management positions.

I currently hold a dual strategic leadership position as Dean of the Faculty of Business at Arden University and I’m very proud to have been appointed as Arden’s first ever Dean, giving me the exciting opportunity to build a Faculty from scratch. I was also recently appointed as the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic). My previous appointments have included working for a variety of local, national, and global organisations in supervisory, management and leadership roles.

The move into academia and the Higher Education sector came as a result of my aspirations to help equip individuals from all backgrounds with the skills and character to achieve their personal ambitions as well as giving them the means to make a positive impact on their communities. Furthermore, I was featured in the publication “We are the City” named as an inspirational woman, have made an appearance on BBC Radio 4 discussing digital technology in Higher Education and have also recently been a 2021 individual finalist in the grand prix category of the Education Investor Awards named as Business Woman to Watch in Education.

I have been the regional Chair of the West Midlands and Northwest CMI board for the past 6 years. During my tenure I have led two successful Midlands’ conferences as well as successfully delivered and hosted a variety of thought leadership events over the years with the support of the regional board.

I have a keen interest in the equality, diversity and inclusivity of organisations and have delivered several keynote presentations both locally and nationally as well as published several articles advocating the benefits of diverse and inclusive management and leadership teams. I continue to engage with audiences across a variety of sectors with the ambition to encourage and inspire more females, especially from ethnic minority backgrounds, attaining senior leadership roles.

Carl is CEO and founder of Westwood Management Consulting, a new consulting venture which takes an innovative approach to problem solving.

As a professional interim, Carl has developed a wide-ranging portfolio of experience in various business sectors helping leaders engage with the change process in the pursuit of improved performance. Organisations include EDF Energy, Eon, GDF Suez, Northern Gas Networks, Wates Construction, Stanley Black and Decker, and the NHS.

Carl is passionate about developing and delivering excellence in leadership and management, and personal high performance driven by an infinite purpose and a consistent passion to be the best version of yourself. He believes in the possibilities of problems, reframing them into positive catalysts for continuous change and improvement.

Driven by self improvement Carl has a love of reading and listening to podcasts. His book recommendations include, The 5am Club, Robin Sharma, Think Like a Monk, Jay Shetty and the Power Hour, Adriene Herbert. Podcasts include, The High Performance Podcast, Feel Better Live More and The Calmer You.

Carl studied at Hull University where he gained an Honours Degree in Accountancy Finance and a Masters Degree in Management Systems. Most recently Carl was awarded a Level 5 Certificate in Professional Consulting.