TMA UK Annual Conference - Post Conference Review 2024

TMA UK Conference Chair, Andrew Pepper of Evelyn Partners, introduced the conference theme of Brave Decisions for a Brighter Future to 150+ attendees at the Royal College of Physicians. TMA UK's President, Joanne Rumley of Foot Anstey LLP, gave a brief introduction on behalf of TMA UK, emphasising that the focus of 2024's conference and its speakers was to provide inspiration and practical skills to take back to delegate's daily leadership roles.

Following a few introductory words from Charles Loake of corporate sponsor John Pye & Sons Ltd, our first speaker, Kabir Seehra of Teneo kicked off setting the scene by providing an overview of trends and economic factors likely to underpin brave decision-making in the coming five-year period, with a particular focus on the real wage growth experienced by consumers and a lack of corresponding increase in consumer spending. However, Kabir's analysis of the data pointed to a shift in consumer spending in the past year towards travel, at the sacrifice of spending in restaurants. When combined with the Labour government's first budget in office which targeted investment in healthcare, education, and science and an appetite to steadily increase the wages of 18-20 year old's, Kabir skilfully elicited the bigger picture analysis that the settling of economic uncertainty and emergence of consistent trends in consumer spending provided opportunities for brave leaders to exploit.

The conference focus then shifted to the importance of mental health and its relationship with high performance in business. Nick Hazell of Hazell Partners opened up with a staggering statistic that 55% of company CEOs have reported mental health issues, before moving to a stirring personal story about his own mental health journey. Nick took time to emphasise the value of openness in the workplace and understanding our colleagues' mental health, which not only benefits the human-side of the working environment, but impacts a company's bottom line; a happier workforce sees increased creativity and productivity. The discussion on mental health was then continued by Dr Phil Hopley of Cogacity in conversation with Kevin Ellis CBE, the former senior partner and chair of PwC. Kevin stressed to our delegates the increasing levels of trust that employees are placing in their employers, supplemented by poignant anecdotes from his time as managing partner of PwC during the COVID-19 pandemic and periods of social unrest, and the expectation on employers to engage openly and honestly with employees for their mutual benefit. This session concluded with a panel-style Q&A for delegates. In addressing the question as to why the UK's economic progress post-COVID has consistently lagged behind that of Europe and North America, the panellists concurred that (at least in part) this was due to slower advancements in our ability to talk openly about our mental health in the workplace. A key takeaway from the conference for all delegates came from the panellists when they explained that, even under times of extreme pressure, leaders should make time to manage their nutrition, enjoy regular exercise, take stock of their mental health and give themselves permission to take time.

Johnny Abraham of J9 Advisory took a moment to introduce the charity supported by the conference - Children's Heart Surgery Fund, Leeds Baby Bank, and Candlelighters. The day went on to raise nearly £1,500 with thanks to conference sponsor, John Pye & Sons Ltd, for donating a television for the raffle. Refuelled by a coffee break and networking John Strowger of BDO Business Restructuring introduced a panel session discussing the changing political landscape and its impact on the turnaround industry. Lee Findell of WA Communications talked to Labour's current political position following its Autumn budget, before Tauni Lanier of BDO Business Restructuring emphasised the drive that the new government was putting behind green policies and potential opportunities that the UK could look to exploit following recent political developments in America. Roland Brass of Marrons explained certain political positivity towards planning reforms and the opportunities presented by developer-friendly policies which aimed to get house-building schemes to completion, whilst further opportunities for growth were being made possible by the sterner mandating of house-building targets. Richard Bulmore of Ashurst LLP noted an apparent lack of specific government support in the turnaround arena, before the panel took time to engage in the novel topic of the potential impact of university insolvencies on wider society, and whether the industry's traditional toolkit would be equipped to address these. The session ended with an apt observation from Tauni for all business leaders to heed – businesses which ignore their environmental, social, and governance responsibilities will face greater issues in the long-term than any annual reporting requirement may pose.

TMA UK director Anton De Leeuw then led a conversation with Maria Axente of PwC, which discussed how taking brave decisions to embrace AI (when set to an ethical and responsible backdrop) would be key in the coming years for all businesses to remain competitive and unlock their full potential. Maria's message to delegates was clear: embrace AI by identifying critical parts of the business that AI could enhance, and then work it into day-to-day operations. Brave leaders could see great success with the assistance and proper implementation of AI and, in a nod to the day's earlier panel sessions, Maria referred to the new government's intention to integrate AI into public sector operations to increase efficiency.

After a busy networking lunch, TMA's chief executive officer Scott Stuart took a moment to emphasise TMA's power to embrace, celebrate, and bring together different personalities and leadership styles in turnaround management across the globe. Our conference chair then introduced to the stage entrepreneur and philanthropist Heather Mills. Heather talked our delegates through her achievements and setbacks in the context of leadership and her business, VBites Food, which is a leading name in the development of sustainable vegan food. Heather stressed that business is all about people and the value of collaboration within industries producing common gain and protection from threat. Against the backdrop of unsuccessful investments, Heather reminded the delegates of the need to truly understand the market in which they operate and strive to take brave decisions and exploit opportunities free-from investor constraints and strangulations. Heather concluded her session by introducing our delegates to VBites' latest product, which not only represents a significant advancement in vegan food, but also Heather's ability to spot opportunities in a crowded market.

The day moved swiftly onto our final panel session featuring members of TMA UK nextGen's committee. The session was led by Vikram Shankar of HK Management Partners and provided insight into disruptions in distressed investing focussed around three key themes: high interest, political shocks, and insolvency. Dmitry Chupin of CVC Credit Partners spoke to the growth in private credit and the enhanced robustness in its use by businesses with diversified supply chains, which was echoed by Adam Keasey of Endless LLP who also championed the importance of businesses truly understanding the realities of the markets they operate in when undertaking financial analysis exercises. Rachel Seeley of Freshfields took time to explain that although the number of corporate insolvencies has been consistently high and businesses have been embattled with significant and challenging geopolitical conditions, insolvencies have not run away uncontrollably in part due to a general lack of appetite from banks to enforce security and condemn so-called 'zombie businesses' to formal insolvency. The panel offered some fantastic technical insight into three pertinent themes which our delegates experience daily.

Following a final networking coffee and cake break, our delegates re-assembled for the final session of the day. The conference was treated to a powerful and fascinating presentation by Nick Winton of his late father's work in saving 669 children in Czechoslovakia prior to the outbreak of World War 2. Sir Nicholas Winton MBE's dedication to humanitarian causes across the globe was inspiring, and Nick outstandingly brought it into the context of our work as leaders today. Nick related his father's humanitarian work deftly to turnaround management: the need to balance the ideal position with the pragmatic one; the need to trust your judgement as a leader; the need to lead, not control, your workforce; and the need to take brave and difficult decisions during times of uncertainty. Nick ended his presentation with a recap of a phrase for leaders to keep close – "if it isn't impossible, then it's possible".

Joanne Rumley then turned to two celebrations of our TMA nextGen. First, Joanne congratulated TMA UK nextGen's team which won the inaugural 'Turnaround Tourney' at TMA's annual global conference in Philadelphia. A huge congratulations to the team comprising Christopher Poel, Sam Duberley, Deniz Gunes, and Sachin Thakrar! Second, Joanne acknowledged the extremely high standard of applicants this year for the nextGen Young Turnaround Professional award, and the time that the committee took deliberating the winner. The shortlistees were: James Salt of Gordon Brothers; Daniela Pontonutti of ACMA, GCMA, Gordon Brothers; and Charmaine Doyle of Evelyn Partners (formerly ReSolve). Joanne announced that the winner for 2024 was Charmaine Doyle of Evelyn Partners. Well done to all who applied and to a worthy winner!

The conference chair, Andrew Pepper, then took a moment in his closing remarks to reflect on an excellent event, to thank the sponsors, the delegates and, most importantly, Nyree and Kelly for their tireless efforts to make TMA conferences such brilliant events to attend. The event concluded with a champagne reception and an opportunity for our delegates to recap and reflect on a packed day of technical, philosophical, and practical insights from an exceptional array of panellists and speakers.