2022 Speakers
Hear some of the leaders of our industry explore challenging and inspiring topics related to diversity and inclusion.
Host
John Amaechi OBE
John Amaechi OBE is a respected organisational psychologist, Founder of APS intelligence, Sunday Times and New York Times best-selling author, sought after public speaker, executive coach, Chartered Scientist, Trustee and Board Director of large, complex organisations.
John has delivered powerful keynote addresses within the D&I space for hundreds of organisations across the globe. John is a non-executive Director at Greencore and a board advisor for several FTSE100 organisations, including the retail sector working closely with the likes of Tesco and Booker.
“John Amaechi will make you think about who you are, what you do and believe! Don’t expect to be entertained, expect to get real.”
Headliner Speaker
Tanni Baroness Grey-Thompson DBE
As one of Britain’s greatest Paralympic athletes, Tanni inspires audiences with the story of how courage and determination led to her becoming Britain’s most successful wheelchair racer.
During her incredible sporting career, she amassed a remarkable medal haul of eleven golds, four silvers and a bronze. Breaking 30 World Records on the track and winning the London Wheelchair Marathon six times, Tanni was awarded the prestigious honor of DBE in 2005 for her considerable contributions to sport.
Since retiring, Tanni has devoted herself to helping others and uses her experience and knowledge to discuss matters including Disability Rights, Welfare Reform and, of course, Sport. She coaches and mentors groups and individuals, inspiring everyone with her discussions about motivation, diversity and beating the odds to achieve goals.
Stories to Inspire
Get a first-person perspective from colleagues sharing their own experiences of the reality of D&I in FMCG.
Maya Jethwa
Regional Sales Manager, Moet Hennessy UK
Maya began her career within Moet Hennessy over 13 years ago and is an integral part of Moet Hennessy LGBTIQ+ movement.
In 2019 Maya was at the centre point of the company’s Pride campaign and where for the first time, she shared with the business and her colleagues her journey and who she truly is.
Maya’s coming out story ‘lifted 30 years of suppression’ and has been a D&I advocate and LGBTQ+ ally ever since.
Maya’s inspiring story highlights the importance of being able to bring your true self to work each and every day, authentically celebrating the uniqueness of all to drive for positive change.
Obiamaka Azubike
European Category & Shopper Manager, Kelloggs
Obiamaka is also known as “Obi” which means “Courage” when translated from Igbo (the language of her lineage) to English. She is a strong believer in having uncomfortable conversations as discomfort is most times where the growth and the magic happens.
Obi’s passion point is advocacy with an outlook to drive gender and racial equity across both professional and cultural contexts.
She navigates daily life both as a sexual violence survivor and a woman of colour in the workplace, so she knows all too well the intricacies of living in an environment filled with daily nuances and triggers.
She uses her experiences to support other sexual violence survivors, those interested in building their racial/ethnic allyship muscles and educates on the concept of rape culture with a focus on the steps to eradicate it in Nigeria.
Dan Hughes
Sector Exec, Consumer Markets Retail & Leisure, KPMG
Dan Hughes began his career at KPMG 3 years ago in a transformative time in his life. After a mental health crisis, he was lucky enough to find a career with a company that supported his mental health journey and allowed him to thrive on his path to recover.
Through his time at KPMG, Dan has become an advocate for mental health using his own experience to help shed light on the sometimes-taboo topic of suicide. After sharing that he reached the age of 24 and had only ever seen one male role model cry, Dan knew that by sharing his story on the importance of connection, it will help others come to the realisation that it is okay not to be okay.
Senior Leaders Panel
This panel will challenge some of the industry’s most senior leaders. How can their position create real and tangible change for D&I in the grocery industry? From Lessons learn to being a D&I ally, we ask our Senior Leaders if they are really listening when it comes to D&I?
Busi Sizani
Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Deliveroo
Busi is a Founder, Board Advisor, TEDx Speaker, coach and DEI practitioner. As the Head of Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Deliveroo she is responsible for creating and executing the D&I strategy, vision and goals for the organisation. She helps drive employee engagement and business results by serving as a catalyst across the organisation, to discover, develop and deliver the best practice and resources needed to promote a culture of inclusion and sense of belonging at Deliveroo. With 15+ years experience as a consultant, coach and facilitator, she continues to contribute to the broader technology industry using a pragmatic and developmental approach to D&I with founders and venture capitalists as the Co-Founder of The Inclusion Company.
Claire Pickthall
CEO, Tesco Mobile
Claire began her career with Tesco as a graduate back in 2007 and has a broad range of experience across retail, logistics, fulfilment and marketing. With a passion to keep female voices heard, Claire’s mantra; ‘your comfort zone is not your friend’ fuels her drive to ignite opportunities for women in all areas of business, whilst understanding and systematically removing barriers that get in the way. She is an authentic leader and sees her primary purpose in helping others to be their authentic self, whilst unleashing the magic that allows us all to deliver for our customers.
Simone Sargeant
Digital Director, Great Britain, Diageo
Simone Sargeant is Digital Director for Diageo Great Britain. Simone has led a number of commercial transformation initiatives; building a track record for driving product portfolio and pricing innovation, coaching for high performance and dynamic team leadership.
Simone strives to be impactful in both the commercial and social environment. Having a passion for driving diversity she mentors young female entrepreneurs and individuals from underrepresented backgrounds.
In 2021 Simone was recognised internationally for her leadership and achievements to date – listed in Forbes 30 under 30 a worldwide renowned list of ‘the world’s most impactful game-changers and entrepreneurs.
Tom Moody
Senior Vice President, P&G Northern Europe
Tom joined P&G in the UK in 1996 and spent the first 5 years in the UK in a variety of commercial roles. The second phase of his career was in Geneva, where he worked in Sales and Marketing as well
as developing a passion for the Alps. He returned to the UK in 2004, working through a number of roles including running the Beauty Division and Corporate Sales Director before becoming Managing Director in 2015.
Andy Phelps
Director of Business Services, Co-op
Joining Sainsbury’s graduate scheme after university, Andy has had a wealth of experience across major retailers throughout his career. Andy has however, experienced challenges in the workplace regarding his sexuality which has led to his drive and passion for inclusion in the workplace, starting with getting involved with the Respect Network at Sainsburys and now instrumental in the Co-op D&I Agenda.
The Great Debate
Acknowledging your privilege. We have one of the most diverse workplace opportunities but how to we support all our colleagues? How can we create the change needed across the entire supply chain?
Anujah de Wit
Director of Fresh Supply Chain, Sainsburys
Anujah was born in Sri Lanka and has both lived and studied here before travelling over to the UK as a refugee. Since her move, Anujah has found great opportunities within her varied roles at Sainsbury’s, encouraging development skills that have contributed to her successful leadership today. Within her role as Director of Supply Chain Fresh, Anujah has learnt to step out of her comfort zone to receive intrinsic reward through bringing teams together to deliver transformational change. She has a true passion for building relationships with others and driving determination to make change happen.
Andrew Shaw
Supply Chain Director, Nestle
Andrew Shaw became Supply Chain Director for Nestlé UK and Ireland in February 2021 having previously held the position of Country Business Manager for Nestlé Ireland. In his current role, he assumes responsibility for Procurement, Logistics, Demand & Supply Planning, Customer Facing Supply Chain and Customer Service. Andrew has spent the last 30 years in a variety of management and leadership roles across the business, showing his passion for driving a culture that embraces inclusion and belonging in the teams he works in. Nestlé Ireland was accredited at Silver and then Gold Standard level with the Irish Centre for Diversity, showcasing the work they had done on inclusion and belonging.
Maria Chacon Cubo
Site Director, Arla Foods
Maria Chacon Cubo is a Site Director at Arla Foods, one of the largest dairy companies in the world. Starting her working life as a veterinarian, she soon developed a passion for business. After completing her executive MBA at the University of Nottingham Trent, she actively pursued a career in the food industry.
In 2021, after leading her first site for 18 months; Maria’s site was awarded UK production site of the year. Her strengths and drive are focused on creating, empowering, enabling and coaching high-performing teams to achieve a long-term vision. After having the privilege to live in different countries including Spain, South America, and North America; Maria is a strong advocate of promoting diversity as a key driver in making a coherent team
Mariama Conteh
Flagship Store Director, M&M London, Mars
Mariama Conteh is the Flagship Store Director of M&M’S London. Her advocacy for championing race representation and parenting within our industry is a continuous initiative that Mariama reflects in her role. MARS’ brand values focus on a sense of belonging and fun by fostering an environment in which their employees feel valued and respected, regardless of any visible or invisible differences. Combining MARS’ passion for community and people, and Mariama’s distinctive love for elevating colleagues along her journey, has led to a natural transition for her to drive the EI&D force within MARS’ agenda.