Risk Management

Strategy & Leadership

Accounting & Finance

Buff has a long and diverse career in strategy, risk, accounting and finance, having held senior roles in practice, financial services, education and industry.

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Buff has tutored multiple CGI prize winners in Development of Strategy & Risk Management, with three prize winners in the 2024 sittings. To date, Buff's students have a 97% pass rate in Development of Strategy compared to the national average of 88% and a 74% pass rate in Risk Management compared to the national average of 55%. 

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For many years Buff has written and presented on ACCA & CIMA examination courses with a pass rate of 75% compared to the national average of 55%. In addition he has tailored financial, risk & strategy courses for businesses such as Renault Cars, Anglo Technology and Kyocera.

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​As well as being a Chartered Certified Accountant, Buff also holds Chartered Financial Planner status of the Chartered Insurance Institute. During his time in financial services, he specialised in risk management of large and diverse investment portfolios holding the Institutes Advanced Diploma in Investment Planning.​

Strategy & Leadership

Human Resources

Change Management

Louise is skilled practitioner in management and organisation development. An innovative and focused strategist with over 30 years practical experience.

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An experienced facilitator, working at chair, CEO and board level, Louise holds a rigorous grounding in all HR functions.

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Louise has lectured in higher and further education, in tandem with providing management consultancy.

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In recent years she has expanded her portfolio to include providing the strategic lead in research, insight and engagement within the not-for-profit sector.

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 Louise specialises in leadership, human resources and change management and is the lead on Strategic Tutors EDI training programme.

Risk Management

Laura is a senior risk professional with a background in enterprise risk, operational risk, data governance and ISO 27001 in financial services.

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Laura has worked across the financial services sector, embedding operational resilience, business continuity plans and enterprise-wide frameworks.

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When running her own consultancy, she supported boards through complex transformations. creating space for challenge, and championing the importance of human-centric risk management.

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Laura is a trained Neuro-Linguistic Programming practitioner and therapist and cares as much about mindset and behaviour as she does about metrics.

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​Laura's approach is simple but powerful. Empower people to make better decisions. Whether it's building a resilient risk framework or coaching someone through a tough crossroads.

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Laura philosophy is clarity and calm which she brings to her Risk Management sessions.

Corporate Governance

Board Practice

Board adviser and authority on corporate governance and good board practice.

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Nigel is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and a long-standing Member of the Institute of Directors.

Nigel’s vast experience includes Group Chief Accountant of a listed company, Finance Director of a private venture capitalist company and Business Director for a global strategy practice.

Nigel currently runs his own consulting business advising boards of FTSE 100 companies and delivering international assignments for global businesses.

Nigel has written and delivered board level courses for public and private sector clients, including government departments and local authorities.

He has chaired international conferences on corporate governance, and written a number of books and publications, including Real World Corporate Governance, published by FT Pitmans, Non-Executive Directorship, a Guide for Chartered Accountants, commissioned by the ICAEW, and Good Corporate Governance, with a foreword by Sir Adrian Cadbury. He is currently working on a new book, Beyond Compliance, the Board of the Future, and writes regular articles on current board matters.

His mission is to improve general board practice, particularly the role of the Non-Executive Director.

AI in Corporate Governance

Paul is a leading thinker and practitioner at the forefront of boardroom transformation, where artificial intelligence meets board effectiveness.

As the founder of Agentia Boardroom and the Centre for AI in Board Effectiveness (CAIBE), Paul has dedicated his career to helping boards and governance professionals adapt to the demands of the digital era without losing sight of the judgment, accountability, and human insight that define effective leadership.

Drawing on deep experience across governance, technology strategy and organisational change, Paul works with directors, board secretaries and governance professionals to rethink how board operations and decisions are supported. His work is grounded in the belief that AI, used well, can empower, not replace, those at the heart of boardroom decision-making.

Through CAIBE, Paul leads pioneering research on how AI is changing the role of the board secretary and reshaping the effectiveness of board members. At Agentia Boardroom, he is building new technologies and methodologies that embed AI within the secure environments of regulated organisations, ensuring data sovereignty, governance assurance and trust.

Corporate Governance Code

Zia is a CIMA qualified Risk, Controls and Compliance Executive with over 20 years building enterprise-wide governance frameworks across FTSE 100 companies and NYSE-listed organisations.

As the lead on Strategic Tutors' Provision 29 Masterclass, Zia brings unparalleled practitioner insight from a comprehensive governance transformation experience preparing one of the UK's largest retailers for Provision 29 compliance.

Zia's career spans the evolution of corporate governance from the early days of Sarbanes-Oxley implementation through to today's UK Corporate Governance Code reforms. Through internal controls leadership roles at BP, Subsea7, Royal Mail, Lloyds Banking Group and CBRE, Zia has designed, implemented and assured control frameworks across multiple sectors, geographies and regulatory regimes.

Zia has authored the DECLARE implementation framework and "Jenga Test" materiality tool, methodologies that help governance professionals navigate the 2026 design year with confidence.

The Provision 29 Masterclass reflects Zia's commitment to evidence-based education. Every teaching point is grounded in actual company practice, FRC guidance and real-world implementation intelligence gained from both consulting engagements and comprehensive FTSE disclosure analysis.

Currently serving on the Finance, Audit & Risk Committee at the Chartered Institute of Librarians and Information Professionals and as Non-Executive Director at University of Sussex Students' Union, Zia brings boardroom perspective to the course content, ensuring students understand both the practitioner and director viewpoints on material controls governance.

Guest Speaker

Content Adviser

Sally is an experienced business journalist and editor and a leadership contributor to Forbes.com.

During her career, Sally has written for numerous publications, including ‘The Telegraph’, ‘Professional Manager’, ‘Accounting and Business’, ‘CFO World’, ‘Financial Risks Today’ and ‘STEP Journal’. She has also contributed to special reports in ‘The Times’. She is a former editor of ‘Accountancy’ magazine, ‘Project’ magazine, ‘The Treasurer’ magazine and ‘Edge’, the official journal of the UK’s Institute of Leadership. Her first job in journalism was working as a reporter on the ‘Wairarapa Times-Age’, a daily newspaper in New Zealand.

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Sally has spoken on webcasts and chaired roundtable discussions and conference panels. She has interviewed numerous senior leaders and decision-makers from around the world, including several CEOs and CFOs of FTSE 100 companies, as well as Members of Parliament. She writes on a wide range of business-related subjects.

Sally also works as a commercial copywriter, speechwriter and ghostwriter, creating thought leadership content for well-known business leaders. Over the years, she has produced numerous blogs, articles, newsletters and white papers. In addition, she helps organisations to develop their content strategies.

Sally is author of The Disruptors: How 15 Successful Businesses Defied the Norm (Kogan Page), 21st Century Business Icons: The Leaders Who Are Changing our World (Kogan Page) and Reach the Top in Finance: The Ambitious Accountant's Guide to Career Success (Bloomsbury).

Prior to becoming a journalist, Sally worked as a management consultant for Accenture and for a London marketing agency. She has a degree in modern history from the University of Oxford.

Environmental

Social

Governnace

​Celine is a governance and sustainability professional with deep expertise in ESG integration, ethical leadership, and organisational accountability across both the UK and African markets.

An award-winning Corporate Trainer (NITAD Most Creative Trainer of the Year 2024) and a member of the International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP). Celine holds an LLM in Corporate Governance and is an Associate Member of Corporate Governance Institute Nigeria. She also holds an MSc in Accounting, an LLB and is a Barrister & Solicitor in the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

Her experience spans corporate governance, legal advisory, compliance, and strategic operations. Celine brings a uniquely global and practical perspective to ESG education. Her work blends regulatory understanding with realworld implementation, helping organisations translate sustainability principles into measurable, boardlevel outcomes.

Celine has supported Boards, senior leadership teams and regulated organisations in strengthening governance maturity, embedding responsible business practices, and aligning decisionmaking with longterm value creation.

Celine has developed governance frameworks, lead compliance initiatives, designed sustainability training, and advised on stakeholder engagement, risk oversight and ethical culture.

Celine is particularly passionate about the intersection of ESG, corporate purpose and organisational behaviour, ensuring that sustainability is not a reporting exercise but a driver of strategic clarity and resilience. 

Known for her structured, empathetic and insightdriven approach, Celine brings clarity to complex ESG concepts and connects global standards to practical organisational realities. Her sessions emphasise critical thinking, scenariobased learning and the application of ESG principles to real governance challenges. She equips learners with the confidence, language and analytical tools needed to support Boards in navigating sustainability risks, regulatory expectations and stakeholder demands.

Guest Speaker

Content Adviser

For decades, Andy's leadership experience and dynamic forward-thinking has informed modern retail strategies that have helped small, medium and large creators and owners revitalise and grow their businesses.

Based in the USA, Andy has created and sold over 350 million greeting cards and stationery products, sourcing from Asia and locally, distributing globally, and earning multiple awards for innovation.​

His tough-love alter ego, Mr Margin, has revitalised numerous creative brands that are busy but broke through his "teardown" approach.

As President of the Greeting Card Association (2023-2025), Andy created and spearheaded initiatives in major retailers such as Barnes & Noble and Paper Source driving revenue, engagement, and member benefits. ​Andy has founded and run the largest global network for the stationery industry with over 14,000 members. 

Andy's expertise in strategy development covers sales, customer acquisition, channel expansion, and talent development.