Hugo Hunt – Parkwell Recruitment

Hugo initially qualified as a teacher, working in central London for 2 years before changing career path, moving into the recruitment industry.

He has subsequently worked in the industry for the past 30 years, covering a variety of sectors on a contingent and search basis. Since 2005, his focus has been squarely on search in the wider Investment Management sector, with a particular emphasis on regulatory and governance hiring. Most recently heas become further involved in the specifics of the Wealth Management and Private Banking sectors.

 Prash Arora – Parkwell Recruitment

Over 15 years’ experience focusing on mid to senior level roles on both a search and contingent basis. Prash’s focus has been on Wealth and Asset Management including Private Banks and Hedge Funds as well as service providers.

Prash is CFA qualified, having previously been a fund manager covering European equities and structured products for institutional clients.

James Brown – Compeer

James joined Compeer in October 2006 as an analyst following his graduation from The University of Warwick, where he studied Mathematics, Operational Research, Statistics and Economics. Today he manages Compeer’s team of analysts. He has widely presented key trends in the UK Wealth Management Industry, with in-depth experience of providing statistical analysis of firms’ business performance. He regularly provides recommendations during presentations to Executive boards, and is actively involved in bespoke research projects.

 Gareth Wadley – Bristows LLP

Gareth is a partner and head of the Bristows employment team. He joined Bristows in November 2021.

Gareth’s practice covers all aspects of employment law, including Tribunal and High Court litigation. The primary focus of Gareth’s work is on non-contentious employment matters: employment contracts and bonus arrangements; senior executive appointments and terminations; international assignments; complex investigations; reorganisations and redundancies; the people issues arising from outsourcing arrangements and corporate transactions; and international HR projects.

 Gary Merrick – JM Finn & Co.

Gary is Head of Human Resources and has been with JM Finn since 2019. He has over 25 years’ experience in Human Resources, holding senior roles for the last 20 years predominantly in Financial Services. He is responsible for all of the Human Resources activities in the company and chairs the CSR and D&I commitee.

Gary is married with 2 grown up children. A recently retired hockey player, his interests include golf, occasionally with his wife, and skiing. He is a trustee of The Garwood Foundation, a charity local to his home, that promotes the care, welfare, interest, treatment and advancement of education of adults and children having cerebral palsy and other profound, multiple, acquired or other disabilities.

Tom Emery – HEX

Tom is a leadership development expert and coach with over 20 years’ experience in Human Resources and people development. He cut his teeth in fast-moving environments like retail and call centres before experiencing the branch network, digital, technology, HR operations, and transformation areas of a multinational bank. As Chief People Officer of wealth management firm Brooks Macdonald, he was part of the c-suite with responsibility for shaping culture, delivering a complex people agenda, and facing off to the board. He works with executives, c-suite teams, and broader groups of leaders to increase their capability, effectiveness, and impact on commercial outcomes.

He now owns HEX, a consultancy that works with individuals, teams, and organisations to support them to reach their full potential. He is the co-host of the Beyond Potential podcast, and is currently writing a book on how to be a great Chief People Officer.