JUDGES

Aaron Phipps MBE is three time Paralympian and gold medal winning champion from the Tokyo 2020 games. He plays the brutal, only full-contact disability sport, Wheelchair Rugby aka Murderball. His team went from being 5th in the world to the best on the planet, in the middle of a global pandemic!

He is a keen fundraiser and in 2016 became the first person in the world to scale Kilimanjaro on his hands and knees.

He has been voted in the top 100 most influential people in the UK with a disability.

Andrew has deep experience in the human resources, particularly in the area of reward and performance - both from an internal corporate and external consulting perspective. He specialises in all areas of remuneration and benefits and is passionate about providing superior customer service and value. 

Andrew focuses on partnering with organisations to help align pay with strategy and culture, including the provision of independent advice to remuneration committees.

David is an accomplished Chief People Officer (CPO) with over 20 years of experience in shaping and leading people strategies across complex, fast-moving organisations in both the private and public sectors. Known for his pragmatic leadership and ability to deliver transformation through people, David has held senior HR roles in sectors ranging from healthcare to leisure and hospitality and professional services.

When leading the People function at the Rank Group, David was integral to the delivery of their three year transformation programme which was budgeted to deliver £119m in revenue benefit. Most recently, as CPO at Newcross Healthcare, David was responsible for the People strategy at one of the UK’s leading providers of complex care and healthcare staffing solutions, where he was passionate about building an inclusive culture, enabling change and using data and technology—including AI—to drive performance and enhance the colleague experience. David is a Chartered Fellow of the CIPD (FCIPD) and a member of the British Psychological Society (BPS) with an MSc in Occupational Psychology. Both in his career, and in his voluntary work, most recently as a Trustee of South Bucks Hospice, he has supported organisations undergoing rapid change and cultural evolution.

Outside of work David is a keen follower (and less so now) participator in sport and enjoys spending time with his wife and two daughters (and of course their dog, Loki).

David Angel is the Managing Partner of Redgrave, responsible for the overall management and growth of the firm.

With 30 years in the industry, David has worked closely with senior leaders at private equity backed portfolio firms and leading public companies on their CEO, Chairman and other Board level appointments.

David joined Redgrave in 2013, initially to lead our CFO and Consumer Practices, before expanding his remit to oversee all specialist functional teams.

Following an early career in finance with Deloitte (Touche Ross), he has spent the last 30 years cultivating deep functional expertise as well as business management skills within the search industry.

David studied Politics & Philosophy at the University of York. Outside of work, he loves spending time with his family, at the Emirates Stadium or with his Canon SLR. He also enjoys running, playing 20/20 cricket and spending time in the French Alps trying to finesse his skiing style.

Deryn McIntosh is a seasoned Human Resources leader with extensive experience in talent management, organizational development, and change management. As Vice President of HR at RCI International (Travel + Leisure Co), Deryn played a pivotal role in shaping inclusive workplace cultures across EMEA, APAC, and India.

Deryn brings a wealth of knowledge and a deep understanding of workplace equity and inclusion. Her dedication to advancing DEI principles ensures that this award ceremony recognizes and celebrates the true champions of diversity.

I’m an Area Manager with over 15 years of experience in the hospitality industry, and I’ve had the privilege of being part of the WiHTL community, including serving on the advisory board for WiHTL & DiR. My time with WiHTL has been incredibly valuable – it’s given me the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals, contribute to important conversations around inclusion, and play a small part in helping to drive change across our industry. Being part of this community has not only helped me grow professionally, but also reinforced the importance of creating spaces where everyone can thrive.

With expertise in executive stakeholder management and talent acquisition, she has consistently delivered exceptional results identifying talented leaders and managing high-level Board and global leadership appointments.

Imogen’s experience spans executing retained executive searches for publicly listed and private equity-backed clients in the UK and across the globe, reaching as far as Australia. Skilled at identifying and attracting international talent, her growing client base spans Travel & Leisure, including cruise lines, hotel groups, airlines, tour operators, destination management companies (DMCs), travel management companies (TMCs), online travel agency (OTAs), and travel tech. Additionally, her expertise extends to fashion and apparel, health, wellness, and beauty.

Her commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion is evident in her work, where she has helped clients build leadership teams that reflect the communities they serve.

Before her return to Redgrave, Imogen was a Principal at a global strategy and transformation specialist, recruitment services and independent consulting firm, leading their EMEA Consumer business.

Beyond her professional achievements, Imogen is a former Principal Flautist and a music graduate from the University of Birmingham. Her passion for live music often finds her enjoying performances at various venues, including world-renowned Ronnie Scott’s. An adrenaline seeker with a need for speed, Imogen likes to follow in Susie Wolff’s footsteps and can often be found out on the go-kart track. Imogen’s love for travel takes her to all corners of the globe, especially places where she can indulge in her love for sailing.

I am Head of Accounting and Tax at Elior and proudly serve as an Elior champion for diversity and inclusion. Previously, I had the honour of contributing to the WiHTL Advisory Board and judging the inaugural Inclusion in EDI Awards 2024.

I am thrilled to return as an honorary judge for the second time. Drawing on my lived experience at the intersection of faith, family, and culture, I bring a heartfelt commitment to advancing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) across all facets of life. My personal journey fuels my passion for creating inclusive spaces where everyone, especially those from underrepresented communities feel seen, heard and valued.

Once again it is an absolute privilege to explore and assess the outstanding initiatives led by companies in the hospitality, leisure, and tourism sectors.

Jie Zheng is the Technology Team Lead for Innovation Hub - Sourcing at TUI, where they drive innovation with a technical speciality in AI and data science applications.

Jie began her career in hospitality, advancing to the position of General Manager at Nando’s before transitioning to technology. She served as an advisory board member for WiHTL in 2024 and remains a passionate advocate for inclusion in the hospitality and tourism industry, as well as in data and technology.

I was born and brought up in London and I stayed in London for University – studying International Relations at the London School of Economics. After graduation I went to work for Deloitte where I worked as an auditor and trained to be a Chartered Accountant. After a short stint at Marks & Spencer, I moved to Hilton with my first role working in the finance team for Continental Europe. Over the years I have done various roles within finance and was promoted to the role of VP Finance for EMEA in 2020. I started in my current role as VP Finance for MEA in 2023, moving with my family to Dubai. I have a husband and 2 children aged 14 and 18. As a family, we really love to travel and have visited over 30 countries together.

Pavlina is a Partner in Q5’s Organisational Development and Culture practice. She has extensive experience leading large-scale behavioural change and leadership effectiveness initiatives that help organisations drive performance and achieve their strategic ambitions. Her work focuses on creating environments where individuals and teams can thrive.

She partners with clients to develop robust talent strategies, activate vision and values, embed behaviours, and build critical capabilities across all levels. Her focus is on practical, high-impact change — enabling leaders and teams to work more effectively together and deliver stronger outcomes. Pavlina is particularly passionate about supporting leadership teams to strengthen their effectiveness through open dialogue, the right tools, and the right environment to tackle their most pressing challenges and opportunities.

Her tailored interventions are known for delivering real and lasting shifts in how people work. Her style is both compassionate and constructively challenging, creating safe spaces for experimentation while addressing the systemic dynamics and behavioural patterns at the heart of organisational performance. She helps teams think and act differently to make strategic change stick.

Pavlina has worked across multiple sectors including retail and consumer goods, with clients such as Unilever, Magnum Ice Cream Company, BAT, and N Brown. She is an ICF-accredited Executive and Team Coach and holds an MSc in Organisational and Social Psychology from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Rashi started her recruitment career in 2000 working for a global FTSE 250 recruitment business. Since then, she’s led, managed and recruited talented professionals across industry and commerce, professional services firms, and public sector and not-for-profit organisations. Rashi works with a network of clients across the UK, Europe and US and is responsible for Group Operations.

Robert Richardson FIH MI is the Chief Executive Officer of the award-winning Institute of Hospitality (IoH), the world’s largest professional body of almost 16,000 hospitality professionals worldwide, and a registered charity. IoH is dedicated to driving the recognition of the hospitality profession and uplifting its membership through lifelong learning, mentorship, and network-building.

Richardson built his career in the hospitality industry, working his way up through the ranks from hotel floor staff to hotel General Manager, and now as CEO of IoH, he has a deep belief in making the hospitality industry open, inclusive, and accessible to all who seek to join it. In 2021, Robert led the Institute to win the Chartered Governance Institute UK&I “Diversity & Inclusion Strategy of the Year” award in recognition of these efforts.

Prior to joining IoH, Richardson served in senior management positions at major hotel chains including Hilton Worldwide, IHG and Ramada Jarvis, before applying those industry best practices to a few of England’s best independent hotels. For 12 years, Richardson served as General Manager across two independent, luxury properties, including a luxury boutique hotel and golf resort in the Kentish countryside, and a grade 2 listed coastal heritage property. 

A true people champion, Richardson believes that for organisations to succeed and thrive, people must feel they belong regardless of background or position. To this end, he regularly speaks on his efforts in the international and U.K. conference circuit and trade press, as well as contributing frequently to radio and podcast conversations in both his home country of the U.K. and abroad. 

Richardson was recognised by Hotel Designs on their 2020 Brit List as “one of the top 25 hoteliers operating in Great Britain” and Boutique Hotelier magazine has recognised Richardson in their annual Power List as a “Young Trailblazer”, and an “Industry Titan”.

In 2022 Richardson was made an “Honorary Master Innholder” by the Worshipful Company of Innholders and was recognised in the USA produced Global Hospitality Magazine as “one of the 100 Most powerful People in Europe’s travel and Hospitality Industry” in both 2022 and 2023, and in 2024 as “one of the 50 Most Inspirational People in Global Hospitality and Travel”.

Richardson is a trustee for the registered charity “Room to Reward”, a unique volunteer- recognition charity created to say ‘thank you’ to the inspirational volunteers who give up their time to make a difference to those who need it most.

Scott has worked in the recruitment and executive search industry since 2001. Before joining JSS, he co-founded Investigo in 2003 and, alongside Simon Smith, and he led the MBO in 2013, which was backed by Investec Bank. He eventually exited under the sale to Career International in 2017. Under his leadership, Investigo grew its revenues to over £100m, winning numerous industry awards and gaining a reputation as one of the industry’s success stories. Since joining JSS, client mandates have increased by over 100%.

Sherry Ndala is the Apprenticeships & Emerging Talent Lead at JD Sports, where she takes a strong focus on driving equity and access within her role and is passionate about creating inclusive pathways for diverse talent to thrive.

Sherry also chairs JD’s ethnicity, faith, and culture employee resource group, CORE, and sits on the advisory board for Diversity in Retail, using her voice to champion meaningful, sustainable change across the industry.

Vivienne is the CEO of the FTSE Women Leaders Review, the UK’s business-led voluntary framework, supported by Government to improve the representation of women on the Boards and Leadership teams of the FTSE 350 and 50 of the UK’s largest private companies. 

Vivienne also holds a number of board and advisory roles supporting businesses in their data, privacy and digital strategies, with a focus on digital identity, anti-financial crime and equality & diversity. Vivienne has over twenty five years experience in global financial and professional services sectors, including at London Stock Exchange Group, Refinitiv, Thomson Reuters and Citibank.

Vivienne is an exceptional advocate for gender balance in business, and is the former CEO of Women in Banking and Finance. She was awarded an OBE for services to Financial Services and Gender Diversity in 2021.