Recognised as “the man who fixes businesses” Kevin Gaskell has an impressive track record in building and leading successful companies. As CEO of Porsche, Lamborghini, and BMW, Gaskell led hugely successful turnarounds that are pointed to as examples of how to successfully transform companies and position them for long-term success. His energy and leadership have helped companies to achieve world-class levels of customer service and financial performance, and he speaks with electricity about using inspired leadership to achieve incredible results.

John Paul Volanthen is a world record-holding British exploratory cave diver who specialises in rescues through the Cave Rescue Organisation, South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue, and the British Cave Rescue Council. John hit the headlines in July 2018, when he was part of the multi-national team involved in the rescue of 12 young football players and their coach in the Tham Luang caves in Thailand. John and his co-diver, Rich Stanton, were the first to make contact with the missing youngsters when they had been lost for nine days. Both men were part of the team that successfully rescued all the boys and their coach and brought them to safety. In keynote talks, John gives audiences an astonishing account of the harrowing rescue effort. With heart-pounding anecdotes from the high-risk rescue mission, he hammers home the importance of perseverance, determination, and preparation, and explains why he believes success in life is rarely due to “luck.” John also shares his belief that anyone can rise to the occasion and achieve extraordinary things in the face of insurmountable odds. Using a combination of pictures and audio, he communicates what it was like to be there and the joy he felt when it was all over. Uplifting and inspiring, John’s story is one in a million.

Ash Alexander-Cooper OBE is a former Specialist Military Unit Colonel in the British Armed Forces and a former Partner at McChrystal Group - an elite advisory services firm that builds agile teams and enables clients to adapt to their complex operating environments. Ash was a Partner in McChrystal Group's London, England office, where he focused on expanding the firm’s offerings and developing relationships with European clients. With a focus on leader development, talent management, and team-building solutions, Ash draws upon lessons learned from over 22 years of experience leading and managing diverse multinational military, civilian government and other elite teams.

Alex Macqueen is an actor, best known for his roles as Julius Nicholson in the BBC’s Thick Of It and Neil’s Dad in the Channel 4 comedy The Inbetweeners. He was a member of the National Youth Theatre and President of the Cambridge University Theatre Company, before qualifying as a Barrister at the Middle Temple. In 2017, he was elected by the Inn as a Master of The Bench.

Daniel Hughes has spent the last 15 years leading and making decisions in high pressure and often environmentally hostile environments. He describes himself as a “determined problem solver, who builds teams to succeed”. He previously has been a Special Forces Instructor, Great Britain Athlete and in 2013 built a team of 268 for him to deliver the world’s highest video broadcast from the summit of Mt Everest to the BBC Newschannel. Hughes is a current 787 pilot and as the founder of Reignite Consulting, he globally delivers Management Development programmes to executive teams and helps organisations establish or reaffirm their vision and values.

In four years as Foreign Secretary William dealt with a turbulent period encompassing wars in Libya and Syria, withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Ukraine crisis, the struggle against terrorism and relations with Europe. He expanded Britain's diplomatic network and placed a renewed emphasis on export success. William also led the negotiating team that created coalition government in 2010. His mix of international and domestic experience has given him a deep knowledge of the inside of politics and the reasons for growing instability in world affairs.

Robert Hannigan is a leading authority on cyber security, cyber conflict and the application of technology in national security. He is an international speaker and contributing author on cyber security topics. Currently, Robert serves as Chairman of BlueVoyant International, a global cybersecurity services firm. He is a Senior Adviser to McKinsey & Co and advises a number of international companies on cyber security. Prior to moving into the private sector, Robert served as Director of GCHQ, the UK’s largest intelligence and security agency. Robert has a long history of involvement in cyber security and technology, having drawn up the UK’s first Cyber Security Strategy and outlined the government’s ambition of making the UK ‘the safest place to live and do business online’. He set up the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre as part of GCHQ and launched the active cyber defense program for the UK in 2016. He was responsible with military colleagues for the UK’s national offensive cyber programme.

With an extraordinary career at the highest levels of sport, politics, and international diplomacy, Lord Coe has achieved huge success by leading from the front to make vision a reality. He cemented his place in public life leading the successful bid, and subsequently the organising committee, for London 2012, and is today the President of the IAAF and Executive Chairman of CSM Sport & Entertainment.

She joined the business team at the BBC in 2002 and has been presenting the early morning edition of World Business Report on BBC One, BBC News Channel and BBC World News for the past 10 years. Sally has also recently launched the BBC’s flagship business programme, Business Live which airs every week day at 0830 on BBC News Channel and BBC World News. It’s a packed 30 minute programme that covers all the key business stories and gets the inside track from the world’s leading CEOs. In 2014 Sally was named as one of the UK’s 50 most powerful part-timers on the third annual Power Part Time List compiled by both Timewise and the Financial Times. Sally is now a part of the judging panel working with Timewise.

Dr. Kjell Nordström is an expert on the new world of business. Named one of the world’s most influential thinkers by Thinkers 50, the global ranking of management leaders, he focuses on corporate strategy, multinational corporations, and globalization. He is the associate professor at the Institute of International Business (IIB) at the Stockholm School of Economics and one of the founders of the school’s most prestigious management programs.

Richard William Stanton MBE is a British civilian cave diver who specializes in rescues through the Cave Rescue Organisation and the British Cave Rescue Council. Rick is from Coventry and was formerly a firefighter with the West Midlands Fire Service for 25 years prior to his retirement. Rick has been recognized as a leading cave diver, and in 2012 he was appointed to the Order of the British Empire. He has participated in numerous cave diving rescues and recoveries including the 2004 rescue of six British soldiers who were trapped for eight days in a flooded cave in Mexico. In 2018 he played a leading role in the Tham Luang youth soccer team cave rescue. Rick and diving partner John Volanthen were the first to make contact with the team and played a leading role in the successful rescue thereafter.

Joe Studwell is an expert on China and the emerging Asian marketplace and the best-selling author of ten books, including The China Dream, Asian Godfathers, and How Asia Works. He has worked as a writer, journalist, and broadcaster around the world, and his expertise has been featured in publications including The Economist, titles of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), The Financial Times, the Asian Wall Street Journal, the Far Eastern Economic Review, the Observer Magazine, Asia Inc., and the Evening Standard as well as on television and radio. Joe's talks are always lively and positive, filled with anecdotes and humour, and thought-provoking for policy-makers, management strategists, and portfolio investors alike.