GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Matthew Wright

One of the most senior voices globally in Executive Search. As CEO of Russell Reynolds, he ran 1 of the most respected search & leadership advisory firms worldwide, with ~3,000 employees & 47 offices.

Matthew will be our guest speaker on topics including "How to negotiate compensation at senior levels"; "How to work effectively with Executive Search" and "How to land NED roles & build a portfolio career".

Matthew draws on a 20-year career at Russell Reynolds. Before being appointed CEO, he ran their global financial services sector and led the businesses in Europe and Asia Pacific.

Matthew is also an advisor to Manchester Square Partners, a non-executive director of Berry Bros & Rudd and Chair of Cripps Leadership Advisors. He has also chaired multiple charities.

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Cornerlia Raportaru

CEO of Stuart, a leading last-mile logistics platform operating across Europe. Over the past 20 years, she has held senior leadership roles at TaskRabbit, Twitter, Vodafone, and Cadbury — spanning commercial strategy, partnerships, operations, and product. 

Cornelia has scaled businesses across multiple markets, led full P&Ls, and built high-performing, diverse teams in both tech scale-ups and large corporates. Her experience spans launching new ventures, expanding internationally, and navigating complex strategic and operational challenges.
Now leading Stuart through its next phase of growth, Cornelia brings a clear-eyed, personal perspective on what it takes to become (and succeed as) a CEO.

She will be our guest speaker on topics including “Path to the C-suite” and “The expected and unexpected realities of being a CEO.”

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Rory Davidson

Rory started his career in consulting before spending ~12 years in corporate roles within the FMCG industry - ultimately as Sales & Marketing Director for a global beer brand. In 2025, he successfully moved jobs to become Country CEO for a new market for an internationally expanding agricultural-tech start-up.

Rory will be our guest speaker on topics including "Startup -  Pivoting your Career to Land & Succeed in a Senior Startup Role".

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Karen Hilton

Karen is a senior business leader with a blend of corporate, start-up, and scale-up experience. She’s led teams from 5 to 1200 people, taken businesses from pre-revenue to £20m+, and held leadership roles across sales, operations, marketing, and strategy.

She is currently Managing Director at BA Euroflyer, BA’s short-haul airline based out of London Gatwick. This follows three years as CEO of heycar UK, where she led the business through growth and transformation. Previous roles at Nested, carwow, and Volkswagen gave her hands-on experience building and leading commercial and growth teams in fast-paced settings.
Known for her commercial sharpness and energy, Karen offers a candid view on what it takes to lead authentically — whether scaling a disruptor or stepping back into the corporate world.
 

Karen will be our guest speaker on topics including “Careers in Leadership.”

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Mcklein Javeri 

A strategy leader turned multi-board director, Mcklein built his early career at Virgin, easyJet and Monitor Deloitte before pivoting into board work. He's held 7+ Non-Executive Director (NED) and board advisory roles across various industries — all before turning 35.

Mcklein will be our guest speaker on “How to Land a Board Role” — covering myths, tactics, and how to build a portfolio that boosts income, expands your network, and enhances your career beyond the day job.

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Emma Kamel

A powerhouse operator and accomplished D2C leader, best known for leading Naked Wines through phases of rapid growth, stabilisation, and turnaround. She’s held senior roles across commercial, supply chain, and operations — most recently as UK General Manager with full P&L responsibility for a £125m business and a 100+ person team. 

Emma is known for her commercial sharpness, team-first mindset, and infectious energy. She brings a candid and inspiring perspective on what it takes to lead in fast-moving environments.

She will be our guest speaker on the topic: “Joining a scaling disruptor and growing into GM."

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Dominic Rose

An experienced Chair, advisor and Non-Executive Director focused on growing and scaling brand-led, tech-enabled consumer businesses — particularly eCommerce brands and marketplace platforms with a strong sustainability focus.

He is currently Chair of Rise & Fall and SarahRaven.com, NED at Anansi, and Advisor to Fussy, Sous Chef and Hirestreet. He was previously a NED at Wolf & Badger (2021–2025).

His last executive role was as COO of Depop, the Gen Z resale platform, which he joined in 2018. There he led global scaling to a 400+ person team, grew revenues 250% in under two years, and played a key role in Depop’s $1.65B exit to Etsy — creating $1.5B in shareholder value since 2018.

Outside of work, Dominic founded Britain's Biggest Living Garden, an urban biodiversity initiative, and runs a local children’s gardening club.

Dominic will be our guest speaker on topics including “Building a Portfolio Career” and “From Consulting to NED: The Strategic Path Through In-House Roles.”

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Kate Van Akin

Works with high-achievers who are at a crossroads in their careers—those who have built impressive professional lives but now find themselves questioning what comes next and feeling stuck despite their success. 

As a Senior Expert at McKinsey & Company, Kate worked with multinational companies on their transformation journeys, supporting individuals and teams through complex change—not just the external changes, but the inner shifts that make lasting change possible. She left because she was tired of seeing intelligent, passionate people burn out climbing the ladder when they were clearly longing for something different.
Since McKinsey, Kate has developed her career transitions coaching practice, supporting leaders through the inner journey of change—creating space, dreaming big, addressing barriers, and getting practical. Her approach focuses on the deeper work that creates lasting transformation rather than surface-level career advice. She also works as a leadership facilitator and team coach, continuing to support leaders in developing their capacity to navigate complexity.
Kate holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and has been an expat for 20 years, currently based in London.

Kate will be our guest speaker on topics including "The Inner Journey of Career Transitions".

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Nick Patterson

Nick started his career at McKinsey & Company. Subsequently, he has spent the last 15 years scaling Movemeon. As CEO and co-founder of Movemeon, he has supported 5,000+ organisations to hire (ex)consultants. Nick regularly analyses Movemeon's unique data to understand the latest market trends.

Nick will be our guest speaker on topics including "Market Trends", "Demand & Supply in the (ex)Consulting Jobs Market".

GUEST SPEAKER PROFILE

Joe Siantonas

Joe's career has always focused on Private Equity. As an Executive Search Director at Movemeon, he advises many of the world's leading large-cap and mid-cap funds when it comes to their talent strategy, both for the fund and within portfolio companies.

Joe will be our guest speaker on topics including "Private Equity; Careers & Trends" and "Freelance as a career - how to get started".

Benefit from 6 months of expert guidance, for less than the average cost of 1 standard coaching session

• Stay 100% anonymous if you prefer
• 6 months of expert advisory sessions for only £360 / $500 / €420
• Join live and/or catch up on demand - all recordings accessible via your login

"Rich's advice is first rate. His overview of different career paths & how to navigate into / away from / up through them, really is unique."        - Olivia, ex-McKinsey

6 months support, that's tried, tested & proven to deliver results.

Common topics: 

• Navigating a clear path to the C-Suite
• Assessing offers & negotiating compensation
• Landing a P&L role; moving away from Strategy/Transformation
• Getting the most out of Exec Search firms
• Landing a Non-Exec role
• Leaving consulting at senior levels
• International career moves
• Building a portfolio career
• Pay & work-life balance benchmarks
• Running a highly effective job search
• Resumé / CV - how to stand out
• Forming a fulfilling career plan
• ...& many more - all questions are welcome!

How Rich's Q&A sessions work:

• Stay 100% anonymous if you prefer
• Submit your questions in advance
• Benefit from senior guest speakers from Rich's network (on topics such as Private Equity, Start-ups, Portfolio Careers, Executive Search, Leadership development...)
• Join live or catch up via the video recording - to hear your questions being answered & benefit from answers to questions sent in by others
• Join as many sessions as you like in 6 months
• Dip back into previously recorded sessions - all accessible in 1 place via your login
• [Optional] Get matched free or charge with a peer - someone at the same seniority as you thinking through the same challenges / opportunities

Benefit from 6 months of expert guidance, for less than the typical cost of 1 standard coaching session:

• 6 months of expert advisory sessions for only £360 / $500 / €420
• Stay 100% anonymous if you prefer
• Join live and/or catch up on demand - all recordings accessible via your login