CMI South East facilitates and supports professional development and networking for CMI members who live and/or work in the South East region. The volunteers who form the Regional Board are all members within the region and believe passionately in the vision, mission and values of CMI and the importance of excellent leadership and management for all individuals and organisations.
Our focus is on our regional members, however we work closely with the CMI executive team and with neighbouring regions to support members in their development of management and leadership competencies aligned to the CMI Professional Standard and in the growth of their professional networks.
We work with members to organise events relevant to them, share best practice and information using a range of media, and build links with other professional bodies, higher and further education institutions, employers and other community partners.
The Regional Board looks forward to meeting you and working together as we continue to jointly shape the future of leadership and management excellence in the South East region and as Chair, I would like to personally invite you to join our community by connecting with us on social media.
If you would like to know further information about activities in your region or would like to get involved, get in touch.
+44 (0)1536 207394
Luke Birkett is a very well qualified and experienced construction professional, from a mixed construction background, having both practical and academic skills, training and qualifications, being four times chartered, with a number of the top global but British based professional associations, as well as being qualified to a Doctorate level in Global Strategic Direction and Leadership, who has worked for and progressed up through his career, for a number of the top tier national, main contractors and housing developers, working from a bricklayer trade background, working his way up through the career ladder from site management, all the way up to construction director level management.
Luke’s experience covers a mixture of both commercial and residential, for projects such as high end hotels, high end shop and boutique fit outs, high end office fit outs, volume house building, super- prime and even ultra-prime, high value, prestigious, luxury housing developments, across some of the top prime areas within the Surrey and central London borders.
Luke is a very focal and an active, committee member of CABE (Chartered Association of Build Engineers), CIOB (Chartered Institute of Building) and CMI (Chartered Management Institute), promoting high standards, new working industry practices, EDI (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion) and supporting the younger school and college generations, being part of many charitable associations and events.
I am a senior project specialist currently focused on brand development in FMCG. Over the last 20 years, I have led product, operational, technical and quality teams in organisations ranging in size from small farms to international companies. Most of that time was spent within the fresh produce industry, working with global suppliers and UK customers as varied as retail, wholesale, food service and on-trade.
I am also a Chartered Manager (Level 7), which I gained alongside a Master of Business Administration (MBA), continuously promoting professional standards, continuous development and a growth mentality within the management community. I typically work in transformative projects taking organisations to a new level, usually centred around developing new competencies. I see supporting CMI as critical to ensuring that the future management standard of the United Kingdom remains one of the highest in the world.
Lisa is a development and talent management specialist with over 25 years of working in education and leadership, 5 years within professional apprenticeships. As a CMI Certified Level 7 Leadership Coach & Mentor, she is driven by lifelong learning. With decades of coaching and mentoring experience she has a huge passion for professional development, and careers guidance.
Lisa has Careers Guidance, Learning and Development, Vocational Assessor and Internal Quality Assessor {IQA} qualifications and thrives on expanding her skill set and developing best practice and mastery. Lisa genuinely believes in adding value and connecting with others through understanding their approach to their own development trajectory. With a vision that is to inspire people to invest in their development so they can thrive in their endeavours with a solution focused mindset. Experience of working with professional bodies for over thirty years, Lisa strives to enhance operational practices including benchmarking, continuous reflection, refinement of approach, and facilitating the architecture of growth.
Lisa is an active coach and mentor professionally and in a personal capacity.
An accomplished senior leader specialising in the delivery of change within the Technology space for the past 17 years, Matt has been managing and leading teams for over a decade. Matt has recently moved into the Interim Management area, working to deliver transformational change on behalf of clients primarily in the Private Equity sector.
Recently graduating from Henley Business School with an MBA run as a Level 7 apprenticeship in partnership with the CMI, and therefore now also a Chartered Manager, Matt has a deep appreciation for the support of developing managers and leaders and has derived great satisfaction from supporting peers and team members in turn over the years and seeing their journeys unfold.
A performance-driven CFO with more than twenty years’ international and regional experience spanning both listed and non-listed entities. A critical thinker, he specialises in sustainably transforming businesses and improving bottom-line profitability and performance. He comes with a wealth of international experience having spent time working in the USA, South Africa and the UK where he is currently based.
By profession a Chartered Accountant and a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute. he also holds an Executive MBA from triple-accredited Henley Management College in the UK along with post-graduate and under-graduate degrees in Commerce and Accounting.
Drawing inspiration from leaders like Nelson Mandela who stated “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”, he continues to drive this agenda in both his personal and professional life.
Gillian has a strong belief in the role and impact a professional body can have across all organisations. This led her to apply to be a Regional Board Member for CMI. She said: “I hold many key areas of the CMI close, including CMI Women, CMI Race Equity and the drive to grow the number of Chartered Managers’.
She also has experience of working internationally, in people management and with a HE partner of CMI, which she hopes will benefit her work to support members in the region.
In her current work role, Gillian is Director of Knowledge Exchange & Enterprise (Interim) & Executive Education at the University of Southampton Business School, and was previously the Head of Business, Finance & Accountancy and Higher & Degree Apprenticeships at Solent University. She has worked with the CMI since 2014 to dual accredit business programmes, develop and deliver Level 5 Operations & Departmental Manager, Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeships and Senior Leader Master’s Degree Apprenticeships.
Gillian is a Chartered Fellow of CMI, and is the Deputy Chair and Diversity & Inclusion Lead on the CMI South East Regional Board. She also holds Chartered Member status of the CIPD, is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Certified Management and Business Educator (CMBE). She has a MA (Dist) in Personnel & Development and a Post Graduate Diploma in Tourism Management and is currently undertaking a Doctorate in Business Administration.
Before coming into Academia in 2010, Gillian was a HR Manager with Global Cruise Operator – Carnival UK, and previously worked at sea as a Senior Hotel Officer with both P&O Cruises & P&O Ferries.
The highest accolade you can achieve in the profession. Find out more about starting your journey becoming chartered.
Discover all the handy benefits that come with having us as a career partner.
Join our community of allies to women in business, for tools and resources to aid gender equality at work.
