East Midlands Women in Business Conference 2010
Venue: Pride Park, Derby
Date:Thursday 4th March 2010
Keynote Speakers
Rosemary Conley CBE is the UK's leading diet and fitness expert and highly successful business woman. Rosemary, with more than 37 years experience, is well known for her diet and fitness books and DVDs which have consistently topped the best seller lists in the UK with several topping the charts worldwide selling more than 9 million copies. It is over 20 years since Rosemary launched her revolutionary "Hip and Thigh Diet" which topped the best seller charts for almost a year. Rosemary is married to Mike Rimmington and between them they run four thriving companies. "Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Clubs", which operates a national network of almost 200 franchises running over 2000 weekly classes for more than 80,000 members.
Rosemary started her career in 1971, In January 2004 Rosemary was awarded a CBE in the Queen's New Years Honours List for her services to the fitness and diet industries and three years earlier was granted the Freedom of the City of Leicester, the first woman ever to receive this honour. 
Jo Fairley is co-founder of Green & Black's, the premium confectionery range now owned by Cadbury's. Jo and her entrepreneur husband set out to market the world's first organic chocolate. They decided on ‘green' to represent their environmental and social ethos, and ‘black' to represent their particularly high-quality cocoa beans.
Green & Black's immediately picked up a host of awards for entrepreneurial and ethical achievement. They were amongst the first to highlight the social responsibility of food producers, and the first UK business to earn the Fairtrade mark. The fortunes of the Maya Indians in Belize who grow the cocoa have since been transformed, with seven times more village children attending secondary school. Jo will share her determination to succeed and the risks involved in building a business and exploiting a niche market. She also demonstrates the power of branding, how business can be both ethical and highly successful, and why you should never underestimate the intelligence of the consumer. Unwilling to retire, she and Craig now run an organic bakery and a health centre. 
Susan Hallam is a leading provider of internet marketing consultancy and training services in the UK. Established in 1999, Hallam Communications works with a range of clients, including small and medium sized businesses, corporate clients, and the public sector. Susan is an independent business consultant specialising in web marketing strategy and tactics, customer relationship management and the business impact of emerging Internet technologies.
Qualified in America, Susan has an MSc in Information Science, and is an accredited independent business advisor. She is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, and has worked in the British information industry since 1985. She serves on the board of EMITA, the East Midlands International Trade Association.
Regional Round Up
Penny Coates is Managing Director of the Manchester Airports Group's Regional Airports (East Midlands, Bournemouth and Humberside) and is a member of the Manchester Airports Group (MAG) Board. In addition to her responsibility for the airports, Penny is also the main Board sponsor for the Manchester Airports Group's Sustainability agenda. Penny joined the Airport 5 years ago, building on a career in FMCG and retail management.
Penny belongs to a number of other East Midlands regional boards such as the Melton Mowbray Building Society and Prospect Leicestershire. Penny is also a member of Council for Loughborough University, where she once studied for her MBA. Outside of work, Penny enjoys the outdoors, intermittent fitness campaigns, supporting Leicester Tigers and relaxing with friends and family. 
Joanne Glynn, Managing Director of both the Nottingham Post Media Group and Derby Telegraph Media Group has been in the publishing business for the last 21 years. Joanne joined Northcliffe Media, the regional division of DMGT, 18 years ago and has worked in five of their businesses within the South-East and Midlands.
Joanne's commercial background has enabled her to lead a number of initiatives which have helped to drive the transformation to become a multi-media company. This leadership is retained today across eight publishing sites and is combined with Joanne's day job!
Joanne lives in Rutland with her husband Ted and daughter Jessica and is interested in travel, photography, equestrian, theatre, dining out and keeping fit albeit intermittently!
Kathryn Stone OBE is Chief Executive of VOICE UK, a national charity that supports people with learning disabilities who have been abused. VOICE UK also supports their parents and carers. Before joining VOICE UK, Kathryn was Principal Inspector for Milton Keynes Council and Head of Inspection for the London Boroughs of Hammersmith & Fulham and Barking & Dagenham, responsible for the regulation of residential, nursing and day care. She also worked as an independent inspector for 8 local authorities across the UK.
Kathryn has experience of child protection, training, counselling and supporting people with mental health needs. Kathryn is involved with the development of the Intermediary scheme with the Home Office. She is a member of the Home Office Victims Advisory Panel, Her particular interests in this context are violent crimes against women and children.
Kathryn was awarded an OBE in 2007 for her services to people with learning disabilities and was made a Chartered Director by the Institute of Directors in 2008 and a Fellow of the Institute of Directors in 2009. Kathryn led a management review of circumstances at a residential special school in 2008.
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