Graduate Employability Conference 

Stephen is Director of Careers & Employability at the Manchester Metropolitan University. He has extensive strategic leadership experience having worked in the HE careers sector for over 20 years. During that time, he has been fortunate to work with some amazing colleagues and had the privilege to lead some fantastic teams and, as such, been involved in some major innovations and developments in the careers and employability space. Areas of interest are widespread covering all aspects of employability work but his current focus includes organisational culture; diversifying talent into careers work; managing change within teams and services; and measuring the impact of employability interventions. The Careers Service at Manchester Met has recently received national and international recognition for its pioneering careers work, picking up a number of awards in 2023 including Best Student Programme at the Global Careers Services Summit in London and the Best University Employability Strategy at the National Graduate Recruitment Awards 2023. A keen writer, speaker, and researcher of all aspects of employability, his doctoral thesis was entitled “Expectation, Interaction And Transition: A Study Of University Careers Fairs” (a subsequent article on this research was published in the NICEC Journal).

Stuart has over 20 years’ experience within higher education with extensive experience in designing and developing strategic, institutional-wide change. In his role as Senior Consultant, Education at Advance HE, he focuses on both thought leadership and providing evidence-based solutions to support institutions, educators and students.

Stuart has a proven record of delivering transformative initiatives to enhance the overall student experience in academia. He is driven to empower students to reach their maximum academic potential, achieving this by prioritising their wellbeing, ensuring an inclusive approach, and fostering and maintaining collaborative efforts.

Stuart is skilled at working collaboratively with senior colleagues, academics, academic networks, students, the Students’ Union, industry, employers, and external agencies. His work also includes international projects where most recently he has supported HEIs in Lithuania, Bahrain, UAE, Oman and Thailand, as well as regional initiatives with the British Council (across Africa) and the Department of International Trade (MENA).

Stuart’s experience includes over 15 years in management and leadership, he is a Principal Fellow (PFHEA), a fully certified advanced LEGO® Serious Play® facilitator and holds an MA in Learning and Teaching and an M.St in Applied Criminology and Police Management (Cantab).

Lucy is an established Employer Engagement specialist, with over 16 years’ experience in Careers and Employability, bridging the gap between employers, students and Higher Education. She is involved in the ISE Universities steering group, strategic city-region Local Employability Partnerships, and several cross-University Governance Groups around Internationalisation, Freedom of Expression, business development systems and events management. Whilst doing her Careers Education postgrad, she developed strategic diagnostic tools for Employer Engagement professionals, now being used by university careers services around the UK. And during her 5 years co-chairing the AGCAS Employer Engagement Task Group, she designed and delivered the first peer-led Employer Engagement training and coordinated 2 Employer Engagement Conferences. She currently sits on the AGCAS Learning Committee and is an AGCAS trainer on the Introduction to Employer Engagement and Recruitment Practices and Talent Management training courses.

Ailsa is a Careers Consultant at Newcastle University and has worked in higher education careers for over 15 years. In this role she supports all Newcastle students but has an active teaching caseload directly linked to Humanities and Social Science. She works with academics and other stakeholders to create different ways to embed employability and enterprise in the curriculum.  Elected as AGCAS Learning and Professional Development Director in 2022 her role is to ensure that AGCAS members have access to relevant CPD training to enhance their professional development in the diverse roles encountered within the careers and employability sector in HE.

In addition Ailsa has also an AGCAS trainer and leads on the training courses ‘Challenges of Careers Work in HE’, focusing on supporting members at the start of their HE careers roles and ‘Designing and Delivering Peer Training’, for those interested in becoming a trainer within their own institutions and for AGCAS.

Ali is the Director of Student Development and Graduate Success at Kingston University London, overseeing the proactive student development journey from pre-entry through post-graduation. He is the co-lead for the strategic Future Skills programme, which is embedding development of Graduate Attributes into the curriculum for every student at every level. Ali is a member of the Future Talent Council and adviser to the National Centre for Universities and Business. He is a former TEF (Teaching Excellence Framework) Panellist and member of the TEF subject level pilots.

I have a strong background in Training and Development and have been in the Rail Industry for over 10 years in various roles, including 4 years in Network Rail. I am currently leading on a new programme in the Eastern region, managing the recruitment, onboarding and development within the business of high-level apprentices and graduates, with a purpose to write the strategy for early careers and lead on related improvement programmes.

Prior to joining Network Rail, I have worked for a tier 2 M&E contractor, managing their training and development department within HR. I also have valuable hands-on experience in the rail industry, as I started my career in Rail as a Train Captain for DLR.

Lisa is Professor of Employability and Learning Innovation at the University of East Anglia, is passionate about employability and learning innovations, has written three books, and publishes and presents widely. Lisa was awarded an Advance HE National Teaching Fellowship for her sustained and impactful work within employability. Lisa created the multi award-winning Peer Enhanced e-Placement (PEEP) – a work-based learning placement model delivered entirely online which has now been adopted widely across professions within the higher education sector and is used as a case exemplar in the presentation today and in Lisa’s recent book publication https://www.routledge.com/Constructing-Online-Work-Based-Learning-Placements-Approaches-to-Pedagogy/Taylor/p/book/9781032326207 Email: Lisa.Taylor@uea.ac.uk Twitter/X: drlisataylor LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professor-lisa-taylor-10010464/

Marie Laffey is the Head of the Career Development Centre at the University of Galway, situated in the west of Ireland. Marie leads a dedicated team of 30 career professionals, orchestrating the strategic and operational delivery of tailored career services to the university’s vast student body, numbering over 19,000. Marie is passionate about AI and how it can be employed in the delivery of career services to extend the reach to students and better prepare students for the evolving world of work.

Chris Webb is a Registered Career Development Professional, currently working in the Higher Education sector, with experience supporting the career development of students and graduates in school, college and university settings. A member of the Career Development Institute (CDI), AGCAS and the Careers Writers’ Association, Chris co-hosts the CDI’s We Are Careers livestream, as well as publishing a popular weekly newsletter on LinkedIn, entitled #TheWeekInCareers. Over the past year, Chris has created and delivered training with a range of organisations on the topic of Generative AI and Career Development, including co-hosting the AI in Action webinar series in partnership with CareerChat.

Anna Levett is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and in 2020 received a Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence from Advance HE for her work preparing students for recruitment activities . She has over 20 years of experience working in further and higher education, specialising in employability and careers education. Anna is currently Associate Director of Career Development and Head of Careers and Employment at the University of Hertfordshire. She is involved in equality and inclusion groups with the Institute of Student Employers (ISE) and the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS). She is also currently undertaking doctoral research which focuses on the experiences of international students who are looking for employment in the UK.

Noeleen Hammond Jones, Deputy Head of LUMS Careers Work Related Learning at Lancaster University Management School and Co-Chair of the AGCAS International Task Group. Noeleen has worked in careers for over 15 years delivering a blended career service through a variety of platforms and technologies to engage a diverse international talent pool of students.

Noeleen is experienced in global employer engagement, liaising with organisations, agencies and SME’s. Developing business opportunities with organisations globally to create long term mutually beneficial relationships which result in projects, internship programme development, placements, leadership development, research collaborations and contributions to international employability and recruitment strategies. 

Faculty Graduate Outcomes and Alumni Lead and Faculty Employability co-Lead at Business and Law, Manchester Met University – a triple accredited Business School and one of the largest UK Faculties.

Jeff is Chair and Founding Director of the Global Universities Forum of Digital Capability and Employability. A rapidly growing community of over 30 educators and industry partners in the UK and internationally. A passion for developing and championing emerging talent is what drives his work in HE. He proactively nurtures collaboration with industry to continue successfully addressing skills gaps. He continues to expand the alumni mentoring scheme that has seen early career graduates mentoring the talent following in their footsteps. 

Jeff is also on the DMA North Council, DMA Talent Hub, BIMA NW Council, BIMA Digital Day Council.  

In his spare time he’s also a 5x award-winning blogger.

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Ali Collins is Head of Skills at the University of Warwick, leading the team responsible for employability skills and personal development initiatives such as the Warwick Award and the Thrive personal development programme.  She has worked in Further and Higher Education for 20 years in careers, employability and curriculum development roles, in particular working with international students.

I graduated last year in BSc Microbiology (Hons) and have been in my role as VP since August. In my role I deal with various issues concerning Student Voice such as student democracy, assessments and feedback, supporting student-led campaigns, student equality and issues relating to disability, neurodiversity and accessibility around University. I am incredibly passionate in my role and I am always seeking out ways to empower students to speak up on any and every issue they face in order to improve their University experiences. As a Black, neurodiverse Woman I have faced many struggles in not only my University experience, but in many aspects in my life and wish nothing more than to be able to help others who relate to my circumstances to feel powerful and be able to achieve the greatness they are destined for.

I enrolled on my first Open University Module back in 2007, and while balancing raising a family, becoming an unpaid carer, taking a six-year break to run my MLM business to financially support the Family, I completed my BA Honours (Open) degree in 2019 Achieving a 2.1. My studies mainly focused on Classical Studies, however along my Journey I also studied modules on Law, Psychology, Counselling, Philosophy, Ancient Medicine, the Birth of Democracy and of Course the ancient worlds of Greece and Rome.

I was Elected as President of the Open University Students Association in 2022. As President I represent over 186,000 OU students across all four Nations and Internationally. The Association has a Tri-partied Leadership structure, and my role is to Lead the direction of the Association, Lead the 22 members of the Student Leadership team and our 400 plus Volunteers.

My role is to Advocate for students, by lobbying government, liaising with all four nations and the relevant educational governing bodies, representing the students in policy development, formal and informal conversations and highlighting issues that affect all students Nationwide.

I sit on several Governance groups including the Senate and the highest being the OU Council. I work in partnership with University Senior Leadership and as a Critical friend.

I have a passion for representing people, and so outside of my role as President I am a Local Authority School Governor, active within my local political party including being my Branch chair and Constituency Delegate, But most importantly of all I’m also a Mum.

Vanessa has spent the past 20 years working with and within HEI’s helping graduates take their next steps on their career journey.  Starting her working life as an FE teacher and then moving into student recruitment with the ACCA and KPMG, Vanessa has complimented private sector experience working at two HEI’s in the West Country within Widening Participation and in a senior leadership role at a Careers and employability Service.  She now heads up the Employer Engagement team at LSE where she works with global and national employers looking to recruit top talent into their businesses. Vanessa also trains other Career Service colleagues on an AGCAS course which helps bridge the gap between universities and employers.

As Vice President- Student Voice, Toluwani advocates for the deliberate inclusion of student opinions and perspectives in the decision-making process. He responsibilities also include coordinating academic representation, and challenging the University to review, improve and maintain a high quality of learning and teaching. He was elected into the University of Buckingham Students’ Union as the first ever VP Student Voice in November 2022, and was re-elected for a second tenure in November 2023.

Toluwani holds a BSc in Mass Communication from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria, where he first became involved with organised student movements. He joined the University of Buckingham in January 2020 where he completed his LLB and LLM respectively.

A self-motivated, pracademic and institutional thought leader operating in the Employability and Teaching and Learning sphere who is solution driven, creating thriving environments that release the potential of individuals, teams, students, and graduates. A manager, a leader, a coach, a mentor, but always a curious and action focused educator.

I provided visual strategic leadership for an institutional employability strategy, focusing on a ‘curriculum first’ approach, educating students, enabling academic confidence and employability related pedagogy, and ensuring employer led curriculum design integration. My hybrid role straddles academic and professional services providing me with a full and thorough track record and understanding of how to succeed collaboratively across both spheres, managing and navigating the different demands and requirements.

With over 20 years in academic experience specialising in management and coach education I am responsible for providing strategic leadership across all areas of institutional employability and graduate success. I shape and design the delivery of an integrated and multifunctional team including Careers, Employability, Student Futures, Enterprise, and Work Experience teams. This successfully operates in a collaborative, target driven, cohesive way across academic and professional services, building relationships, trust, and impact across the institution to achieve success for both student experience and outcomes.

I take pride in the enormous impact my work has had on organisational culture, inspiring and developing colleagues and students alike and relish the opportunity to grow, inspire and improve teams, services, and institutional success.

Freddie Rainbow is a versatile young professional with a background encompassing leadership, coaching, and mental health advocacy.

As a Director/Trustee/Vice-President at the University of Chichester Students Union, Freddie has spearheaded initiatives fostering collaboration between academia and industry, driving positive change and enhancing student employability prospects. With first-hand experience in governance, strategic planning, and educational development in HE, Freddie understands the importance of bridging the gap between education and the workforce and allowing students to get hands-on experience in their chosen industry before graduating from university.

Armed with a commitment to innovation and a passion for creating impactful change, Freddie Rainbow is hoping to offer insights and strategies for fostering effective collaboration between universities, students, and employers to bridge the gap and drive mutual success.

Stephen is Director of Careers & Employability at the Manchester Metropolitan University. He has extensive strategic leadership experience having worked in the HE careers sector for over 20 years. During that time, he has been fortunate to work with some amazing colleagues and had the privilege to lead some fantastic teams and, as such, been involved in some major innovations and developments in the careers and employability space. Areas of interest are widespread covering all aspects of employability work but his current focus includes organisational culture; diversifying talent into careers work; managing change within teams and services; and measuring the impact of employability interventions. The Careers Service at Manchester Met has recently received national and international recognition for its pioneering careers work, picking up a number of awards in 2023 including Best Student Programme at the Global Careers Services Summit in London and the Best University Employability Strategy at the National Graduate Recruitment Awards 2023. A keen writer, speaker, and researcher of all aspects of employability, his doctoral thesis was entitled “Expectation, Interaction And Transition: A Study Of University Careers Fairs” (a subsequent article on this research was published in the NICEC Journal).