Judges

Toni is an experienced HR professional with 20+ years in professional services. She trained as an accountant at PwC, working with global clients across multiple sectors. After 10 years in client facing roles she moved into human resources and went on to shape and drive the firm's reward strategy. As part of the HR leadership team, she was also responsible for employee relations and global projects. She joined A&O in 2016 as Global Head of Reward and also became the firm's first Head of Wellbeing. Throughout her career Toni has worked with senior leaders to create people strategies that drive change and improve performance across many aspects of the people agenda including diversity, resourcing, performance management and wellbeing in the workplace - a topic she is passionate about.

Kristina is a work psychologist focused on approaches that encourage individuals and teams to build on healthy behaviours that support both wellbeing and high performance. Kristina joined Freshfields Global Diversity and Inclusion team in 2017 to evolve the firm’s global approach to mental health, and more recently wellbeing. She has developed and implemented a number of interventions across their global network, including their Global Mental Health First Aid programme, with over 300 people trained in mental health first aid skills and senior leadership training focused on high performance habits. Kristina holds an MSc in Occupational and Business Psychology, an MBA from Henley Business School, she is a Mental Health First Aid Instructor, and an Executive Coach.

HR executive with significant front line business partnering experience across multiple business areas and functions. Moved into the GSK Reward Centre of Excellence in 2015 and has held various positions leading Compensation, Executive Compensation, Global Benefits and Health & Wellbeing. Is passionate about employee wellbeing and the impact that this can have on engagement, culture and organisational performance.

Rob is a proven leader in the health and wellbeing space with over 20 years experience in occupational health and performance coaching. Embodying authentic leadership to inspire multi-discipline teams to deliver results for people and businesses. "I love what I do, work hard, play hard and deliver everyday with a smile on your face whilst we constantly learn and try to evolve as a humans ourselves."

Claudia is a freelance writer based in the UK. With a focus on increasing awareness about mental health and wellbeing, she has an interest in writing about her first-hand experiences with overcoming depression and reducing the stigma surrounding mental healthcare. She holds a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and a Level 2 Certificate in Awareness of Mental Health Problems.

With over 20 years working in HR and People teams across private and not-for-profit sectors, Alison is passionate about creating great workplaces where people can thrive and deliver their best work. Her current role is Group Head of People at Enginuity, a charitable organisation whose purpose is to find new ways to close skills gaps in UK engineering and manufacturing. In 2023, Alison led the Enginuity team to win the Best Mental Wellbeing in the Workplace Strategy for an SME, demonstrating how Enginuity has embedded it’s wellbeing strategy across the organisation and used data to provide insight and drive continued progress.

Chloe is a Benefits & Wellbeing Manager at NatWest Group with a breadth of experience of roles across Human Resources. A graduate of University of Glasgow, she holds an LLB in Law and a postgraduate MSc in International Business. She has also acquired an Advanced Diploma in Strategic People Management from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). Chloe has a deep interest in the employee experience, in particular how organisations can enhance employee wellbeing and create positive working environments.

Sonal is Head of Inclusion, Wellbeing and Culture at Mazars in the UK. She is responsible for setting the strategic approach for the firm, and ensuring the strategy is implemented to create meaningful and authentic culture change. Sonal believes that creating cultures where positive wellbeing practices are demonstrated, and embedded is critical in creating healthy and high performing teams. Sonal has held a number of HR generalist roles across a variety of industries, which enables her to bring a wealth of experience and expertise. Sonal holds an LLB Law from the University of Reading, is level 7 CIPD qualified, and is a qualified Mental Health First Aider.

Maria is a People executive with an unwavering commitment to transforming organisations from the inside out; with a career history that is widespread across the retail sector. A trusted advisor, who works collaboratively with humility and integrity, helping Selfridges to achieve its purpose of reinventing retail whilst creating a sustainable future for everyone. With responsibility for developing and leading on people strategies, Maria oversees the organisational culture from DE&I, Recruitment, Talent, OD, Reward, HR Systems and Communications. During her decade at Selfridges, Maria has championed inclusivity and diversity within the workplace and made long-lasting positive change by listening to the things that matter to team members and creating a culture where everyone is welcome.

Vikky is an Lead Mental Health Champion for VolkerRail who last year won various awards for her workforce Initiative Building Relationships On Site (BROS). She has been a Mental Health Champion for 6 years and has spoken across various industry platforms about the ways companies can engage site workers in their mental health initiatives, and introduce better working relationships on site and in the office.

Arif Jiwany is a highly experienced GP & Occupational Health Physician who has worked in both the NHS as well as several different industry sectors. Having previously been at Shell, Cancer Research & GSK, he has been the Head of Occupational Health & Wellbeing for the Haleon, the former consumer division of GSK for 18 months. Apart from establishing a new function which operates as a centre of excellence. He & his team are responsible for developing & driving the new health & wellbeing strategy, improving the quality & delivery of health programmes and improving governance related processes. Our ambition being to create a culture that enables our people to be at their best.

This Can Happen Award 'storyteller' highly commended winner. I am hugely passionate about employee wellness and in particular mental wellbeing, with a particular desire to destigmatise mental illness in the world. I co-lead ‘Thrive’ the Employee-led Wellbeing network at dunnhumby alongside my role of global client delivery programme manager. From 2019 dh Thrive has been equipping managers and employees with the skills and knowledge of mental health awareness. This has not only addressed but also nurtured the mental health and emotional wellbeing of our employees. This year we focused on further reducing the mental health stigma and building trust within by showcasing employee’s own personal mental health stories and as a result won highly commended in the 2023 This Can Happen Awards.

Currently CEO and part owner of Festival of Media, the world's leading curator of awards programmes for the global media industy, which involves creating inclusive categories and juries to celebrate the best in class in the sector. Jeremy was previously the Communications and Marketing Director at The O2. Prior to this he spent 10 years at Haymarket Publishing as editor of Media Week and Event magazines after starting his career in regional newspapers.

Monica is the Operations Manager at youth mental health charity Beyond. Following a career in Brand Marketing, Monica joined Beyond back in 2021, helping to launch their very first UK wide mental health festival for schools and colleges. Having been diagnosed with OCD and anxiety at the age of 12, Monica hopes that by sharing her own lived experiences with mental illness she can inspire others to speak up. Monica is passionate about mental health education and particularly interested in challenging the stigma of mental health within minority communities.

Louise Lyons-Appiah, a dynamic 22-year-old co-founder of BreatheUnion, is a passionate advocate for mental health, personal development, and equality. Her journey is a testament to her resilience in overcoming imposter syndrome, racial trauma, and gender inequality. Louise's relatable and enthusiastic approach to facilitation and public speaking inspires individuals to embrace resilience, challenge societal expectations, and fearlessly drive positive change.

As Chief People Officer, EMEA, Helen Matthews is the overarching guardian of the agency’s employee experience, co-designing new ways to find, know, grow and keep our talent. She specialises in creating, shaping and delivering world-class employee experiences, ensuring organisations are future-proofed to succeed. Prior to joining Weber Shandwick, Matthews worked as Chief People Officer and Head of DEI EMEA at Ogilvy UK, where she led the award-winning people strategy, working across the integrated agency to design a best-in-class employee experience and award winning wellbeing strategy.

Steve leads the IT and Communications team in Omexom, a global engineering and construction business. He has worked in many sectors including manufacturing. IT and local government. Steve is passionate about employee wellbeing. Two of his family members suffered serious mental health issues including a suicide. He strives for inclusion and support for all employees regardless of position. In an industry where site employees are often the forgotten ones, he is determined to change this. Steve leads the wellbeing team within Omexom and has developed many initiatives including Fish and Chip Friday.

A passionate advocate for every dimension of employee health and wellbeing, and for inclusion in and out of the workplace

Craig Redihough is the Group Belonging & Wellbeing Manager at Sky where he passionately advocates for destigmatising conversations about mental health. In his previous operational role in the customer service division, he co-founded the Body&Mind at Sky employee network which he chaired alongside his day-to-day responsibilities. With over two decades of leadership experience, Craig moved into the People Team in 2021 to lead on wellbeing and has since leveraged his expertise to craft Sky’s wellbeing strategy. This strategy is founded on the principle of enabling managers and leaders to authentically support their teams, role model sustainable performance and create a culture where everyone can thrive.

With over 20 years of global cross-industry experience in employee experience (EX) design, HR and Employee Engagement, Jane is passionate about creating engaging, productive and inclusive workplaces that enable people to thrive and grow. Jane is also a keen advocate for improving the experience of grief and other key life moments in the workplace.

Adrian is Corporate Responsibility Director at VolkerWessels UK, a leading multidisciplinary contractor that delivers innovative engineering solutions across the civil engineering and construction sectors including rail, highways, airport, marine, energy, water, and environmental infrastructure. He is responsible for maintaining corporate governance for an employed and subcontract workforce exceeding 8,000 people. He has over 25 years in the construction industry across operational, training, supervision, management, change, and professional services. Adrian is approaching 18 years of service at VolkerWessels UK, with accountability for the provision of a range of services including health, safety, environment, quality, sustainability, and occupational health and wellbeing.

Amy Small is the EVP, Creative at Media Cause, a digital marketing agency for nonprofits. Throughout her 20 year career, she's developed campaigns and experiences for everything from coffee brands to educational justice orgs. However, she’s most proud of her work developing and leading Wholebeing—Media Cause’s employee wellbeing program, which was awarded 2023 Bell Seal Certification by Mental Health America, and named "Best New Workplace Approach to Mental Wellbeing" by This Can Happen Global. As part of her efforts to create healthier company cultures, Amy has studied Organizational Leadership, Positive Psychology, and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction; received certifications from the Center for Compassionate Leadership and SIYLI; and is a Certified Empathy Decathlon Facilitator.

Emily is Avanade's first Global Well-being Lead and is responsible for developing and implementing Avanade's Well-being strategy across 26 countries and 17k+ employees. She has over 20 years’ experience working with clients in the technology consulting sector to find innovative and practical solutions to complex challenges. Her personal experience with burnout led her to establish Avanade's first cohort of mental health allies and began her move into HR 5 years ago. A strong advocate for mental health and the importance of sharing stories, she has been recognized externally for her efforts. Her own journey has made her a thought leader and driving force behind Avanade's commitment to well-being, making it a strategic company priority, and a focus for all its employees worldwide.

Gabby is a DEI, Wellbeing and Belonging leader, and is currently leading Experian’s global wellbeing strategy. In her personal life, Gabby experienced anorexia and depression for nearly 10 years which led to her becoming an anorexia ambassador and mental health speaker, holding several public speaking appointments at various charities and government departments throughout her career.

Lisa joined Deutsche Bank in 2009 and has held a variety of strategic and operational roles in businesses and infrastructure functions. Like many, she spent the first 13 years of her career at DB advancing the diversity and inclusion agenda on the side of her desk. She feels privileged to have turned this passion into her full time job and has been Global Head of DEI since August 2022.

Helen leads the Mental Health and Energy strategy in the Mars Inc Health & Wellbeing COE. This role strengthens our commitment to cultivating a culture that champions and protects positive mental health and enables us all to reach our full potential and contribute to an inclusive and high-performing workforce, community, and society as a whole. Helen has a Masters degree in Workplace Wellbeing from the University of Nottingham and has had a progressive career in health & wellbeing spanning more than 25 years including; strategic workplace wellbeing, occupational health & safety, public health nursing, health benefits and business partnering in organisational health.