IA Culture Conference 2026: Navigating Transformation

Amanda Cowley, People & Culture Director, The Roundhouse

Angela Hayes, Partner, DAC Beachcroft

Angela is a financial services regulation expert with a main focus on investigations and enforcement defence but also with an advisory practice. Angela has more than 20 years’ experience advising clients across the spectrum of financial services - banks (investment and retail), asset managers and investment funds, securities brokers, wealth advisers, insurers, and listed companies. Angela is well known for her particular expertise regarding market abuse, financial crime and regulatory issues impacting the asset management sector.

Professor Bobby Duffy, King's College London

Bobby Duffy is Professor of Public Policy and Director of the Policy Institute. He Chairs the CLOSER Advisory Board, is a member of the Executive of the Academy of Social Sciences, a trustee of British Future and a Senior Fellow of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto. He was previously Chair of the Campaign for Social Science and the Global Director of the Ipsos Social Research Institute, has been seconded to the UK Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, and was a fellow at the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion at LSE.

Cassie Waller, Chief Executive Office, Santander Asset Management UK

Cassie Waller joined Santander Asset Management UK as Chief Commercial Officer in February 2023, earning promotion to the role of Chief Executive Officer in May 2024. Cassie joined Santander Asset Management from Syntax Research Inc, where she was Chief Operating Officer. She also held the role of Chief Marketing Officer based in Florida, as well as a number of senior roles in State Street Bank Europe and State Street Global Markets, with responsibility for consultant relationships and portfolio solutions sales. Roles at Putnam Investments, Friends, Ivory & Sime and Wellington Management saw her gather a wealth of experience across a diverse range of disciplines. A forward-thinking senior executive with a proven record of accomplishment during her 25-year career, Cassie is a driven and ambitious business leader, dedicated to continuous business improvement, with a focus on enhancing revenue and streamlining business operations. Cassie has been successful in executing successful investment sales strategies, establishing winning teams and forging strong industry and internal partnerships. Cassie Waller holds a degree in International Politics, Communications and Marketing from Boston College. She is committed to diversity and inclusion, supporting women in business through a number of industry initiatives.

Charlotte Clark CBE, Director of Cross Cutting Policy and Strategy, FCA

Charlotte Clark CBE has been the Director of Cross-Cutting Policy and Strategy at the FCA since November 2024. Her team leads on areas such as Consumer Duty, Vulnerability, Redress and Prudential Policy, Pensions as well as areas such as the development of policy for AI. Prior to this Charlotte was the Director of Regulation at ABI, leading on areas such as Solvency II reform and the ESG. Her background is in the civil service where she had senior roles in HMT, DWP and DfE including being the Director for Private Pensions at DWP.

Ciaran Bowler, Director, Employment Lawyer EMEA, Columbia Threadneedle Investments

Ciaran is Columbia Threadneedle’s in house employment lawyer responsible for employment law matters across EMEA and APAC. Prior to working at Columbia Threadneedle, Ciaran performed a similar role for Bank of Montreal’s operations outside of North America. He started his career in private practice advising financial services clients across the City. Ciaran’s work at Columbia Threadneedle spans all aspects of the employment lifecycle, from recruitment, compensation and benefits to disciplinaries and grievances, and restructuring and transformation projects. Ciaran’s multi-jurisdictional experience gives him insight and perspective on how other jurisdictions approach some of the areas covered by the Employment Rights Act 2025.

David Sims, Partner, Head of Financial Services and London Employment, DAC Beachcroft

David is DAC Beachcroft’s Head of London Employment and advises global firms in the financial services and technology sectors on a broad range of complex employment matters. With extensive experience supporting regulated businesses, David specialises in discrimination, whistleblowing and breach of contract litigation, as well as privileged and open investigations. He also advises on employment regulatory issues, board-level matters, confidentiality and restrictive covenant disputes, strategic international projects, and the employment aspects of corporate transactions.

David Speakman, Partner, DAC Beachcroft

David specialises in all areas of employment law, with a particular interest in Investigations and Tribunal Litigation. He has almost 20 years’ experience advising clients including investment banks, insurers, professional services firms, private equity firms, asset managers, and corporates in the property retail and hotel sectors.

Dorothy Hamilton, Director of Supplier Management for Asset Management, M&G plc

Dorothy Hamilton is Director of Supplier Management for Asset Management at M&G plc, where she leads the strategy, governance and oversight of the firm's supplier ecosystem. With more than 30 years' experience in financial services, she is recognised for driving operational excellence, leading large-scale transformation programmes and delivering strategic change across global organisations. Prior to joining M&G, Dorothy spent 24 years at HSBC Securities Services, most recently serving as Global Head of Securities Services Operations, where she led international teams supporting clients across multiple markets and jurisdictions. In addition to her executive responsibilities, Dorothy chairs M&G Asset Management's Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Steering Committee, championing initiatives that foster an inclusive culture and ensure diverse perspectives are represented across the business. Dorothy holds an MBA from Heriot-Watt University, is a Fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute, and served as President of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) Scotland Region in 2022/23.

Elizabeth Marks, Head of Human Resources EMEA, Amova Asset Management

Elizabeth Marks is Head of Human Resources for EMEA at Amova Asset Management UK Limited and a member of the regional Senior Leadership Team. With more than 25 years of HR experience, largely within the financial services sector, she has expertise across HR strategy, workforce planning, employee relations, talent acquisition, organisational effectiveness and regulatory change. Prior to joining Amova in 2016, Elizabeth held HR roles at Trafigura, Bank of America, and Dresdner Kleinwort. She holds a Master's degree in History from the University of Glasgow and serves as a School Governor in East London. Outside of work, she enjoys the arts and gardening.

Helen Kewell, Associate Partner, Q5

Helen Kewell draws on nearly three decades of consultancy experience to help organisations facilitate and deliver impactful, practical change. Her expertise spans strategic organisation design, organisation development, leadership and team development, organisation-wide culture change, employee engagement and the implementation of new global ways of working. She brings a broad and grounded perspective, having worked across large-scale consulting, smaller boutique advisory environments and in-house operational and HR roles within scaling businesses. This gives her a strong understanding of both the strategic and human realities of change, from shaping future operating models and organisational structures through to helping leaders and teams adopt the behaviours, capabilities and ways of working needed to make change stick. Helen is a seasoned, pragmatic and versatile advisor, with experience across a broad range of sectors and organisational contexts. As a qualified and practising psychotherapist, author and leadership coach, she brings Q5 clients a distinctive combination of organisation design expertise, organisation development depth, behavioural insight and practical change leadership. Her work is grounded in helping clients move from intent to implementation, building the leadership confidence, team effectiveness and organisational capability required for sustainable performance.”

Jenny Barber, Director of Careers and Talent, Investment20/20

Jenny Barber is Director of Careers and Talent at Investment20/20, the investment management sector's talent solution. Drawing on a background in education and careers guidance, including senior leadership experience at a national careers and social mobility charity, she works with employers, talent leaders, education and government partners to strengthen routes into the profession and support the development of future talent. Jenny is a passionate advocate for ensuring that the next generation can access high-quality career opportunities and develop the skills, insights and networks needed to thrive. 

Karis Stander, Director Culture, Talent & Inclusion, The Investment Association; Managing Director, Investment20/20

Karis is Director of Culture, Talent and Inclusion at the Investment Association (IA) and a member of the IA’s Executive Committee. She oversees the IA’s people and talent agenda for the UK investment management sector, leading advocacy, shaping policy and delivering programmes that support a future ready workforce. In her role as Managing Director of Investment20/20, Karis leads the investment sector’s flagship early career talent solution, connecting industry with emerging talent, cultivating a vibrant cross industry learning community and providing shared insights that help members align talent strategies with rapidly evolving business needs.

Mark Kennedy, Director of the Data Science Institution and Associate Professor of Strategy and Organisation, Imperial College London

Mark Kennedy is Director of Data Science Imperial (DSI) at Imperial College London and Professor of Strategy and Organisational Behaviour. Mark’s research pioneers and applies methods of computational social science to explore how innovations become social realities people accept as part of life, like it or not. For innovations (like AI) to become real in this sense, people must collectively create new language and make up a room in their heads where a new category gets to live rent-free—definitions, examples, near neighbours, etc. This is a high hill to climb. His work can be found in top journals in management and sociology, and he is also active in executive education and as an advisor to early-stage companies. Mark holds degrees from Northwestern University and Stanford.

Shrena Fraser Johnson, Culture, Talent & Inclusion Specialist, The Investment Association

Shrena Fraser Johnson is the Culture, Talent and Inclusion Specialist at the Investment Association, the trade body representing UK investment managers. Her work focuses on UK culture and conduct, employment policy, and inclusion. She leads the IA’s people and talent agenda for the UK investment management sector, driving advocacy, shaping policy, and delivering insights to support a future ready workforce. Shrena holds a BA in Political Science from the University at Albany, New York, and a law degree from Howard University School of Law in Washington, DC.