Future Faces: Professional Development

• 5:30pm: Arrival, registration & refreshments
• 6:00pm: Welcome from the Chamber
• 6:10pm: Speaker presentations
• 7:00pm: Q and A
• 7:30pm: Event close 

Will Crawford

Will Crawford is the Founder and Creative Director of quietnote. Based in the UK, quietnote is helping people to gain more control over their mental wellbeing and mindset by teaching mindfulness all through the power music. A graduate of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire with a first-class honours degree in music, Will has always understood the powerful effect of music on our mental wellbeing. His passion for mental wellness led him to become a fully qualified mindfulness teacher at the UK College of Mindfulness Meditation. Since the start of 2022 Will has also held a position on the Future Faces Chamber of Commerce.

“I’m really pleased to be hosting the Future Faces panel on stress awareness. I’m excited to facilitate a conversation about managing workplace stress. Stress is a common challenge faced by young professionals, and this can affect our performance, mental well-being, and personal-work life balance. By bringing together a group of experienced panellists, we are hoping to create a space for discussing practical solutions to stress management, and to provide valuable insights and resources to everyone. This event is an opportunity for us all to gain an invaluable insight into the world of stress whilst learning how to promote a culture of self-care and resilience in the workplace.”

Zach Fairbanks

Zach is a qualified Mindfulness Meditation teacher qualifying with Mindfulness Now recognised by the British Psychological Society and also holds the rank of 5th Dan in Aikido at the World Headquarters Aikikai. Essentially, Aikido is an embodiment of Mindfulness.

Zach has worked in corporate companies for nearly all his working life within hospitality, leisure and sales. He openly suffers with anxiety and has experienced burnout. Zach has found that the practice of mindfulness meditation, yoga and aikido have really benefited him, not only with dealing with anxiety but with focus, calm and clarity in everyday life as well as work.

Zach and his partner Gosia set up Wellbeing in Your Office to bring practical mindfulness, yoga and nutrition practice into the workplace to benefit many others that are suffering with how they are managing chronic stress. Zach often works with busy lawyers & professionals to help them incorporate mindfulness and body movement into their lives.

Amanda Jackson

Amanda has had over 18 years of experience in Learning and Development. As a competent trainer and qualified coach, she is in an excellent position to support any organisation through a tailored learning approach.

Specialising in working with HR or Training Managers to increase mental health awareness, Amanda is accredited through MHFA England to provide MHFA (Mental Health First Aid) training to their employees. By educating and teaching simple tools and techniques to the workforce it will enable and give them the confidence to talk openly about their mental health and create a culture where people feel supported at work. This in turn will reduce the stigma associated with mental ill health, decrease both absenteeism and presenteeism and enable people to be more productive and thrive.

A confident presenter and engaging facilitator who works well with people at all levels across an organisation. She has an infectious enthusiasm that can motivate people to want to embed what they learn in the classroom out in the real world. She is a professional with high integrity and is truly passionate about what she does.

Paul Unwin

Paul is a Regional Sponsor with National Highways, a Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transport and a Registered Project Professional Member of the Association of Project Management.
He has over 35 years of experience in National Highways and the Department for Transport, leading large multi-disciplinary teams delivering complex high-technology motorway infrastructure projects.

Passionate about encouraging and supporting new leadership talent, Paul invests time in identifying and nurturing potential, encouraging and mentoring colleagues at all levels to be leaders, leading by example with positive behaviours, and is a qualified collaborative behavioural maturity assessor.

He is a valued visiting lecturer at Aston University and Coventry University and a frequent interviewee for online podcasts speaking about Positive Leadership Behaviours, Situational Leadership, Leading through Stressful Times and Preparing for the Workplace.

Paul has authored a number of Papers and is a Media Spokesperson for National Highways on TV and radio.