Entrepreneurship
Facilitators
- Nicki Bone MITI, NB Language Works
- Lara Fasoli, FSL Language Solutions
- Alun Gruffydd, Bla Translation
- Lydia Marquardt, Freelance Translator and Qualitative Research Analyst
Keynote speaker: From uncertainty to opportunity - leading and growing through change
In this inspiring keynote, Sonia will explore how delegates can navigate uncertainty, build resilience, and lead their businesses through change while identifying realistic opportunities for growth. Drawing on her research in the fields of entrepreneurship and business psychology, she will invite delegates to embrace choice and the resources around them as we reimagine the future of our profession and our businesses in this new world. With an honest and clear-eyed understanding of the challenges of creating new ventures, she will offer practical ways to navigate change with purpose and creativity.
Dr Sonia Koller
Panel discussion with Q&A
Chair: Nicki Bone MITI
Our panellists will draw on their range of experience and business development perspectives to discuss the realities of building success, the support available to you, and the key things to consider as you look to overcome challenges and grow your business.
Got a burning question? Attendees will have the opportunity to pick the brains of the panellists.
Panellists
Dr Sonia Koller
Dr Sonia Koller is a Lecturer in Entrepreneurship/Innovation at King’s Business School (King’s College London). Sonia teaches and researches the Psychology of Entrepreneurship, with a focus on understanding the cognitive processes, emotions and affect that drive the creation of new ventures, as well as entrepreneurs’ well-being. Her research sits at the intersection between the cognitive sciences, psychology, and entrepreneurship. Sonia’s research has attracted funding from the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy Fund. She has previously helped companies such as HireVue, RedBull, and UCL develop innovative,technology-based psychometric assessments to assess human potential.
- Website:
- www.kcl.ac.uk/people/sonia-koller
- LinkedIn:
- https://linkedin.com/in/sonia-koller-34528690/
Debbie Lewis
As a Community Manager for NatWest’s Accelerator team, Debbie is responsible for building and nurturing strategic relationships and regional stakeholder engagement opportunities to support SMEs to start, scale and exit their business.
An entrepreneur herself, she successfully scaled and exited a chain of hair and beauty salons (plus a salon industry recruitment company and social media education agency) over 17 years, before starting a career in coaching and mentoring.
Teemu Purmonen
Teemu Purmonen is a co-founder, entrepreneur, and Chair of the Board of Youpret Oy, the first BCorp certified language service company in the Nordics, specialising in public interpreting and translation services as well as language technology. Through its extensive interpreter network and proprietary technology, Youpret helps more than a thousand people every day to access essential public services smoothly. The company has succeeded in lowering the threshold to employment and making it easier to hire workers with an immigrant background. Youpret has also been listed on Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 list in Finland for two consecutive years.
- Website:
- www.youpret.com
- LinkedIn:
- https://linkedin.com/in/teemupurmonen/
Collective conversations
Sparked by the ideas shared in the keynote and panel, delegates will join facilitated conversations to discuss their ideas around entrepreneurship and business development. Everyone will be encouraged to think about tangible steps they can take to address concerns, overcome barriers, and move towards implementing their ideas. Delegates will connect with others who are in the same situation and find support in their peer community, which we hope will continue well beyond the event.
