
The cHeRries Virtual Conference
Thursday 4th February 2021
09:15 – 16:00
FREE Virtual Conference, Networking and Exhibition for those in HR, Training and Recruitment
Welcome to the first cHeRries annual conference which is, for the first time, being hosted virtually – and is entirely free to attend.
After what has been a challenging year for us all, especially in HR, we at DC Thomson Media – in association with Mattioli Woods – bring you a day devoted to you, your business, and your future.
The cHeRries Virtual Conference programme is packed full of interactive activities and online sessions to help you to not only RECOVER from and REFLECT on the year that was, but also to RESET and get ready for the new and exciting challenges that 2021 will bring us. And who better to inspire us all as we ‘reset’, than Olympic-medal-winning athletics-star-turned-motivational-speaker Kriss Akabusi. He concludes our RECOVER, REFLECT and RESET sessions.
As well as all this, the finalists of this year’s cHeRries Awards will be revealed, although the overall winners won’t be announced until next month (at our virtual awards ceremony on March 4).
So whether you are in the comfort of your own home or are back in the office, take your seats; get on your marks; and get set for what promises to be a truly inspiring day for all who work in HR – this conference is already shaping up to be unlike any other you have attended.
RECOVER
10:15 – 11:15
Like most industries, we have weathered the storm that was 2020 – and we have survived. Now it is time to RECOVER. In this upbeat session we will learn to celebrate what we have achieved, the little victories we’ve experienced on our journeys, during one of the most challenging years yet for HR.
REFLECT
11:45 – 12:45
Stop! Now is the time to REFLECT. Looking back, reflecting and learning from a negative experience is something we should all be doing, but we never have enough time. This one-hour session gives you permission to do just that. What lessons will you learn, about yourself and those around you?
RESET
13:45 – 15:00
On your marks, RESET, go! Ever wondered how an athlete motivates themselves after a setback? You are about to find out from one of the best-loved personalities on the athletics track, as Olympic legend Kriss Akabusi MBE shares his stories of how to bounce back after losing a race and how we can all reset our mindset. Get ready for this mentally-stimulating training session as the three-time Olympic medallist motivates and inspires.
Itinerary
09:00: | Virtual Networking and Exhibition Areas Open |
10:00: | Welcome |
10:15: | Session 1 - RECOVER |
11:15: | Virtual Networking and Exhibition Areas Open |
11:45: | Session 2 - REFLECT |
12:45: | Lunch - Virtual Networking and Exhibition Areas Open |
13:45: | Session 3 - RESET |
15:00: | Virtual Networking and Exhibition Areas Open |
16:00: | Event Closes |
Session 1 - RECOVER
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Sean Westwood
Employee Benefits Team Director, Scotland, Mattioli Woods
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Sean Saluja
Partner Employment Division, Burness Paull
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Lee Ann Panglea
Head of CIPD Scotland and Northern Ireland
Session 2 - REFLECT
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Professor Susan Klein
Emeritus Professor of Trauma Research, Robert Gordon University
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Emily McKerchar
Client Engagement Director and Head of Coaching Practice, Re:markable
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John Booth
Deputy Chief Executive, Voluntary Services Aberdeen (VSA)
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Fiona Lindsay
Director, Lindsay & Lang
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Louise Jenkins-Lang
Director, Lindsay & Lang
Session 3 - RESET
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Kriss Akabusi MBE
Three-time Olympic medallist
Event Sponsors
Mattioli Woods is one of the UK’s leading providers of employee benefits and wealth management services, employing over 600 staff across offices nationwide and taking care of £9.3bn of clients’ assets. The Mattioli Woods employee benefits team delivers benefit solutions to help clients increase productivity and profitability through improved employee engagement, retention and motivation. These include:
- flexible benefits – our portals allow for all sizes of business, covering employee engagement, total reward statements and employee discounts
- pensions and workplace savings – pensions and group SIPPs
- employee health and wellbeing – financial education, executive financial counselling, healthcare and risk benefits
- specialist services – covering mergers and acquisitions and international
Our wealth management clients, meanwhile, come from many walks of life – from the young entrepreneur in the early stages of their career to the retired property developer couple with a combined wealth of more than £20 million.
Whoever they are, Mattioli Woods is here to help and support our clients in protecting and growing their finances to meet their aims and ambitions.
Visit Mattioli Woods website- flexible benefits – our portals allow for all sizes of business, covering employee engagement, total reward statements and employee discounts
- pensions and workplace savings – pensions and group SIPPs
- employee health and wellbeing – financial education, executive financial counselling, healthcare and risk benefits
- specialist services – covering mergers and acquisitions and international

Mattioli Woods is one of the UK’s leading providers of employee benefits and wealth management services, employing over 600 staff across offices nationwide and taking care of £9.3bn of clients’ assets. The Mattioli Woods employee benefits team delivers benefit solutions to help clients increase productivity and profitability through improved employee engagement, retention and motivation. These include:
Our wealth management clients, meanwhile, come from many walks of life – from the young entrepreneur in the early stages of their career to the retired property developer couple with a combined wealth of more than £20 million.
Whoever they are, Mattioli Woods is here to help and support our clients in protecting and growing their finances to meet their aims and ambitions.
Visit Mattioli Woods website
Listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), TAQA is an international energy and water company operating in 11 countries across four continents.
TAQA’s operations in Europe are based in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands and focus on the full cycle of oil and gas operations, from exploration and production through to decommissioning, as well as gas storage and energy innovations.
In the UK TAQA operates eight platforms, which produce from several fields spread across the northern North Sea and the central North Sea. TAQA is also the operator of the Brent System Pipeline which transports oil from some 14 northern North Sea fields to the Sullom Voe Terminal in Shetland, of which it also has a 24% non-operated interest.
TAQA continues to ensure a relentless focus on ensuring excellence across all areas of late-life operational management. This includes safely and efficiently maximising economic recovery and life extension; driving operational excellence; effectively managing integrity, while at the same time taking ownership of and planning for decommissioning.
For more information please visit www.eu.taqa.com
Visit TAQA website
activpayroll is a leading global professional service organisation, offering integrated global payroll solutions, expatriate taxation services and online HR people management tools to over 1,000 customers operating in more than 140 countries worldwide. The company was founded in 2001 by CEO Alison Sellar in Aberdeen and is an SSAE 16 & ISAE 3402 Type II approved organisation holding the highest level of BACS accreditation available. Over the past 16 years, activpayroll has gone from a small local firm to an award-winning international leader servicing some of the world’s leading brands, growing organically through recommendation and without a sales team.
Visit Activpayroll website
The CIPD team in Scotland works closely with our network of members, volunteers and stakeholders to develop the profession and build our policy relevance and reach. Our mission is to establish the voice of CIPD in Scotland.
With more than 11,000 CIPD members across Scotland, we sit at the heart of a proud, growing community of practitioners, members, partners, policymakers and thought leaders in the world of work. Through our collaborative efforts we’ll take big steps towards championing better work and working lives.
Visit CIPD website
CNOOC International, the international division of CNOOC Limited, is a global energy company with operations in Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe. Our successful growth as an upstream oil and gas producer has been achieved by consistently finding and developing world-class assets.
Our business is focused on safely exploring and producing from conventional offshore, unconventional and oil sands assets. As part of the CNOOC Group of companies, which span the entire energy supply chain, our size and capability create a competitive advantage that ensures we deliver long-term value. Our growth strategy is to safely and sustainably develop our high-quality portfolio to deliver energy for all.
Visit CNOOC International website
Lindsay & Lang are a people-focused consultancy concentrating on Whole Person Management. We support businesses to deliver a positive culture in the workplace. We create this by looking at Development, Wellbeing and Communication within the organisation. This includes resilience, self-awareness, mental health, and behaviours to improve the employee experience and the organisation’s productivity and profitability.
Whole Person Management is centred around Wellbeing and Mental Health. Our Wellbeing programmes combine emotional and physical support to encourage organisations to foster an open company culture when it comes to mental health issues.
Whole person management provides the catalyst for a meaningful conversation within the workforce that connects and underpins leadership, people and wellbeing within an organisation. This is even more important in our current challenging climate.
Visit Lindsay and Lang website
Orion Group is an international leader in the provision of personnel and specialist manpower to a number of industry sectors. Today Orion Group manages the recruitment and supplementary services of thousands of contractors and permanent personnel every year throughout our worldwide network of offices. Our footprint spans Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa. Orion Group has the market intelligence and vital project experience that ensures a holistic approach to project delivery for our all our clients manpower requirements, from start to finish.
Visit Orion Group website

Aberdeen Business School (ABS) comprises 3 departments, Management, Accounting and Finance and People, Organisations and Practice.
At undergraduate level students study can study BA and BA (Hons) in various Management related areas, or BSc Accounting.
At Postgraduate level prospective students have the choice of studying a variety of Degree courses including an AMBA accredited MBA which also has various specialist routes. A range of specialist MSc courses is offered including International Business, Finance, Project Management, Human Resource Management and Purchasing and Supply Chain Management.
A feature of study at the Aberdeen Business School is that the majority of our Degree courses carry Professional Practitioner Accreditation, for example, the HRM course is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
Prospective students interested in undertaking a Postgraduate Degree, but who may not have a previous degree, may achieve entry to their selected course by completing the Graduate Certificate in Management Studies. The Aberdeen Business School is also developing its business in the delivery of Corporate Programmes and has a growing reputation in Research.
Visit Robert Gordon University website
Founded in 1495, The University of Aberdeen is the third oldest University in Scotland. With a community of 120 nationalities and 14,500 students the University is ranked consistently among the world’s top universities.
Our Business School is internationally recognised for its excellence in world-leading research, and was ranked as a top three UK University for impact in Business and Management Studies as ranked by Times Higher Education based on REF 2014 GPA scores. REF assesses the quality of research in UK higher education institutions. Our strength in research means that Masters students benefit from the expertise of staff who are pioneers in their discipline, and the personalised nature of the study experience ensures a high degree of individual contact with leading academics.
The University’s location in Aberdeen – an internationally recognised business centre that boasts the offices of 20 FTSE 100 companies – means that our curriculum is strongly geared towards the needs of industry. Many of our academics began their careers in the business world, and our courses benefit from strong engagement with industry meaning that students are ready to hit the ground running in the workplace.
Another strength of the Business School is the flexibility that we offer to students. There are a number of part-time and distance learning study options, plus we offer all students the chance to break into the business world by converting their undergraduate degree from any discipline, in any background, into a highly valuable Masters degree in accounting, finance, economics, marketing, or real estate.
With academics at the forefront of research and teaching, and a curriculum that is relevant to the needs of industry, the University of Aberdeen Business School is a place where students can benefit from a highly personalised and flexible study experience that will considerably enhance their job prospects and set them on a path to a brilliant career.
Visit University of Aberdeen Business School website