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The PA Hub Liverpool Conference

Friday 8th October 2021, 08:30 - 17:00

Essential Training to Support & Encourage Thought Leadership, Role Development and Recognition

We were so excited to be back with a face to face conference and were delighted for our delegates to experience a live conference again with a wonderful line up of speakers.

We covered essential skills that enabled our delegates to:
  • Level Up in the Modern Role
  • Create Exciting Career Possibilities
  • Consider Promotion Prospects within the Profession
  • Have a Positive Perception
  • Communicate Successfully at all Levels
  • Increase Productivity
  • Find Time Saving Skills that Really Work
  • Deal with Unprofessional Behaviour
  • Manage Difficult Situations
  • Mastering Confidence
  • Create Strong Relationships
  • Use Social Media as a Key Tool
  • Establish Good Habits
  • Become a Better You
  • Stop Holding Yourself Back
  • Stay Motivated on the Low Days
  • Present Well
  • Have a Voice and Speak Up
  • Shift Your Mindset
  • Adapt Successfully to Change
  • Believe in Yourself

Marion Lowrence

Conference Host

Founder & Co-Director, The PA Hub

Lucy Brazier OBE

EA vs. Chief of Staff: What is the Difference?

CEO, Marcham Publishing

Heather Baker

Reinforce Positive Perceptions

Director, Baker Thompson Associates

Abigail Barnes

Boss Your 24: Turning your time into productivity & reclaiming an hour a day

Founder | Success by Design Training

Liz Hardwick

Social Media – An Essential part of the PA Toolkit?

Professional Speaker & Trainer, DigiEnable

Heather Wright

Authentic Transformation – How to free yourself from unconscious habits to become the real you

Director of Advance Performance Ltd

Steve Judge

Achieving Your GOLD

Author, Two Times World Champion and Multi Award Winning International Speaker

Laura Belgrado

Present like a Boss!

Expert trainer & EA to the ‘President KIND International’ @ MARS INC.

Liam Ryan

The Relativity of What a Real Problem is!

Speaker, Author and Architect

FULL SESSION DETAILS

Our speakers are hand-picked by us to deliver market-relevant content directly to you.

Lucy Brazier OBE

EA vs. Chief of Staff: What is the Difference?

The Chief of Staff is becoming more prevalent as a role across the world and it clearly emerging as a career path for the Senior EA. Lucy Brazier OBE explores the clear differences between an EA and Chief of Staff role.

  • What are the differences between the roles?  Is there a difference in the education needed, the qualifications, the hours, the responsibilities, etc.
  • What are some of the things you can do if you want to move from one position to the next?
  • How do you need to shift your mindset?
  • What can you expect in terms of salary difference?
  • Are there some industries where this trend is more noticeable?
  • How can you prepare and train for this role?
Read more
About Lucy

Lucy Brazier OBE is one of the world’s leading authorities on the administrative profession.

As CEO of Marcham Publishing, specialist publishers of Executive Support Magazine – a global training magazine dedicated to the professional development needs of senior and aspiring administrative professionals – Lucy works with the best trainers of Executive Assistants from around the world to deliver the most up-to-date and current training in the market.

Her passion is for the Assistant role to be truly recognised as a career and not just a job. Her formidable training expertise and speaking style have given her opportunities to train, present and emcee events in over 50 countries at over 450 events.

With access to the most forward-thinking, passionate and knowledgeable trainers and administrative business leaders in the world, as well as personally meeting and speaking to literally thousands of Assistants over the last nine years, Lucy’s knowledge of the market and what Assistants all over the world are facing on a day- to-day basis are second to none.

In 2018, Lucy was awarded an Honorary Fellowship to the Institute of Administrative Management. She was awarded the ‘PA Contributor of the Year Award’ by Office* Show in 2015 and the YPA Special Award ‘International Ambassador for the PA Profession’ in 2016.

Heather Baker

Reinforce Positive Perceptions

Despite a significantly improved profile of PAs, some people still have negative perceptions of the role. Many PAs are still patronised and spoken down to.  It is infuriating and demeaning, and the wrong reaction will only reinforce those negatives.  Don’t complain about this, take action to change it …

  • reflect on how our behaviour can reinforce the often existing negative perceptions of the PA
  • discover ways to create professional, excellent and positive perceptions within your organisation and elsewhere
  • learn how to react professionally to unprofessional behaviour
  • create exciting possibilities for your careers
Read more
About Heather

After over 20 years working as a secretary and then a PA, Heather established Baker Thompson Associates in 2000 to enable office professionals to achieve their potential for their career development and the success of their organisation.

All her sessions are very much discussion-based to ensure relevance to attendees’ specific needs. The training is informal and relaxed and is aimed at building delegates’ confidence and appreciation of their value, as well as enhancing their skills. Courses are endorsed by the Institute of Administrative Management and CPD Certified, whether face-to-face or online.

Heather now travels around the world meeting PAs, EAs and administrators of all levels and from all types of companies.

She is the author of four Amazon top ten selling books and the creator of the BakerWrite speedwriting system. Heather is also an NLP Practitioner, TAP cert trainer and 3 years winner of the North West Enterprise Awards Best Administrative Staff Training Provider. She is also nominated for a National Business Women’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Heather is proud to be a Prince’s Trust Business Mentor and a supporter of Isipho Admin in South Africa.

Abigail Barnes

Boss Your 24: Turning your time into productivity & reclaiming an hour a day

In this session, Abigail will give you practical tips, tools, and strategies to up-level your career, life, and influence in 2021 and beyond. Say goodbye to overwhelm, distractions, fire fighting and constantly feeling like you are on the back foot. It’s time to get into the driver’s seat of your life and start bossing your 24.

What we will cover:

  • Reinventing your relationship with time
  • 5-Steps to turn your time into productivity
  • Reclaiming an hour a day using the 888 Formula
Read more
About Abigail

Abigail Barnes is the founder of Success by Design Training, an award-winning entrepreneur, author, speaker, and corporate trainer on time management and productive wellbeing. She is a qualified coach and creator of the renowned 888 Formula.

Success by Design Training is on a mission to teach 1 million entrepreneurs & professionals how to reclaim an hour a day by 2025 using The 888 Formula.

Book Details & Links

Time Management for Entrepreneurs & Professionals is the ultimate step-by-step guide to turn your time into productivity. In this book, you will learn how to become a confident time manager and resolve the age-old problem of never seeming to have enough time to do what you want when you want. 

Buy a copy of Abigail’s New Book: https://bit.ly/BUYYOURCOPY

 

Liz Hardwick

Social Media – An Essential part of the PA Toolkit?

Since 2018 over 60% of UK businesses have used Social Media to support their strategic development, and that number grows year on year. For many, Social Media is viewed as a key aspect of organisational growth, lead generation and customer service, but is it really necessary for Personal Assistants to understand how the many online platforms work? This session will examine how Social Media can become a key tool for Personal Assistants, not only for the organisations they are part of, but also for self-development and online promotion for PAs themselves. Liz will share tips and examples showing that a little understanding can go a long way, giving you and your organisation, the competitive edge.

 

Read more

About Liz

Liz is an award winning Speaker, Trainer and Co-Founder of DigiEnable, based in Chorley, supporting clients across the UK and beyond, with bespoke digital training and search marketing services, to help businesses be more digitally savvy and visible online.

Before starting the business, Liz worked in Radio and TV broadcasting for some of the big names, as well as supporting charities to produce their own digital content.

An advocate for open source technologies, a self-confessed SEO and Productivity geek, Liz also spends a lot of time supporting non-profit organisations, including Chairing the National Womens Committee and part of the Exec board for BECTU, is always proud to be a visible Lancashire lass doing international work, and is currently a director at Digital Lancashire, with responsibility for Women and Women in Technology.

Liz has over 20 years experience in the media and digital sectors and has been recognised for her achievements in the TechWomen100, TechWorld’s Top 111 UK Women in Tech Speakers, BC’s 101 Female Founders in Tech, and the Digital Leaders UK 100.

Heather Wright

Authentic Transformation – How to free yourself from unconscious habits to become the real you

Are you ever frustrated by a lack of ability to kick a habit that you know isn’t helping you?  Imagine having a simple process that you can apply successfully every time you want to change.

One of the issues with changing is not that we don’t know what we should do but in knowing how to establish new habits and not revert to old comfortable ones.

Heather will lift the lid on our brains (not literally!) and reveal exactly why the brain creates habits and how they may hinder us or even make us ill.  She will then give a practical effective 4 step process for creating new healthy habits that can be used to change physical, emotional and cognitive habits.

Delegates will leave with

  • An understanding of why certain behaviours seem to pop up time and again
  • A knowledge of a 5 step process for changing bad habits and establishing good habits
  • Tips for taking the first vital steps to becoming an even better you
Read more

About Heather

Heather Wright is a habit change specialist.  She has studied the brain and human behaviour for over 20 years and now helps companies and individuals to free themselves from old habits and become their best authentic selves.  She runs master classes, speaks at conferences, and is also loved as an MC.  Heather’s energy levels and wit have gained her many admirers and followers. Her personal brand is quite simply her ‘uniqueness’ She is known for her no-nonsense approach in getting to the heart of everything she does.  She makes her message stick.

With black belts in 4 different martial arts Heather pulls no punches and is as charismatic as she is inspiring.

A magnetic speaker in a field of ordinary, Heather stands out from the crowd and has her audiences captivated and musing at her honest humour and compelling insights. A trainer, speaker and presenter like no other, Heather has the capacity to ignite the fire within.

If you are looking to arouse inner passion in your people and business, then you need look no further…

YouTube: Heather Wright Live and Kicking

Steve Judge

Achieving Your GOLD

From this session you will be inspired by the power of visualisation and motivated to physically create your future so that you can work towards it.

  • How to clearly see your vision every single day
  • How to smash through those barriers that hold you back
  • How to stay motivated even on your lowest days
Read more
About Steven

“At the age of 28, a devastating car accident left Steve Judge fighting for his life and following life saving operations was subsequently told that he may never walk again”

From hearing Steve speak you’ll become aware of your own vision and goal in life. With real-world takeaways you’ll be inspired to build up your resilience, to not lean on your excuses and be motivated to take action by turning your excuses into challenges. Even on your lowest days you’ll be able to see your vision clearly and smash through the barriers that hold you back.

His uplifting, poignant and yet humorous performance will enable you to achieve your own journey of excellence. Sharing his unique story and messages he’ll explain the tools and methods that he used. He’ll demonstrate the many times he used his resilience to pick himself up after being knocked down both mentally and physically enabling him to go from wheelchair to world champion.

Steve is now an established author, transformational coach and has set up and now runs his business as a professional speaker. He talks internationally and has received multiple speaker of the year awards from the Professional Speaking Association.

Book Details

Don’t Lean on Your Excuses

https://www.steve-judge.co.uk/steve-judge-book/

Laura Belgrado

Present like a Boss!

Public speaking is apparently one of the things that people in general are terrified of doing although it does not necessarily mean you need to go on a stage and start to present in front of a large audience! Presentation skills are something we do without even knowing and a very much needed skill to learn to master in our profession as Assistants. How come that when we need to speak up or present something for our Executives, even though we might not feel very comfortable, we do somehow manage to find the courage to do so because we want to do a great job for them. This session will bring you tips and skills that with practice will give you the confidence to ‘Present like a Boss’ for your personal growth and development.

Presenting is needed during crucial conversations, during interviews, finding solutions when dealing with difficult and complex situations or people. Mastering the skill will also give you more confidence to get straight to the point with your Executives when asking for things or finding more efficient ways of working or communicating together. Laura will show you some fun and easy ways to practice and take the fear of presenting away. There is no secret about this – practice, practice, practice and believe in yourself when standing in front of one person or a crowd of thousands.

Read more

About Laura

Laura Belgrado holds a Bachelor degree in Office and Business administration and a Bachelor of English. She has over 30 years of experience working in an international corporate environment; almost 10 years as Executive Assistant to the Global Managing Director of Microsoft Global Strategic Accounts. Laura continued her career as EA working for the President and 2 VPs of Mars MultiSales and recently was promoted to Project Coordinator and EA to the President of KIND International for MARS. INC. Laura now is also part of the Leadership team alongside her Manager to lead and support the LT into the Global launch of a new Healthier snack segment at MARS INC.

She has travelled around the globe coaching Executive & Personal Assistants. She is a licensed Executive Coach (AoEC and ICF Certified) and is one of Europe’s most sought-after speakers at Global Conferences in various prominent EA associations in the UK & other parts of Europe, the UAE Region as well as North America and Australia. She has long and vast experiences working with top global CEOs as their trusted EA and advisor.

In the past 10 years, Laura has been designing and delivering training and coaching programs for Executive Assistants, Personal and Administrative Assistants.  She authored an innovative new training program for Executives and Managers to connect their EAs and PAs to their own success and develop a collaborative, successful and powerful working partnership with their managers.  Her workshops have been designed with flexible modules on different topics and Laura’s strength is to create tailor made trainings each time depending on the needs of the audience.

Laura has over 15 years past experience in Event and Project management working for one of Belgium’s leading Tour operators in Florida and then for a DMC located in Brussels organising incentives, large scale events and conferences. Laura gained extensive experience in business management, budget management and operations in a complex international business matrix. Laura is a true linguist, fluent with excellent writing and communication skills in all 5 languages (Dutch, French, English, German and Spanish).

The technical expertise that she has gained working at Microsoft over the years has enabled her to grow not only on a business and communications level but also on a personal level and she has been sharing these technical skills to EAs in most of her workshops.

Laura’s innovative way of working and thinking out of the Box will make your assistants not only grow within their role and find their personal strengths but it will bring back their awareness of how important the role of an assistant is. Well trained and motivated assistants will bring a high ROI to any Company. It is key for any assistants to gain new ideas to rethink their WOW (ways of working) to continue to support and assist the great leaders and managers of today.

Keynote

Liam Ryan

The Relativity of What a Real Problem is!

Liam Ryan’s amazing survival story is remarkable in itself; but it continues to extend with the even more incredible recovery he has made ever since.

In 2012 he ran his first marathon, post cancer, and in 2016 he reached a career milestone when he became the first ever County Architect appointed in Tipperary. He is currently responsible for Tipperary County Councils €80 million social housing programme with a range of new housing developments that he has designed, throughout the county.

Liam will introduce his session with his great association with Liverpool. It always seemed to be the city that was there for him at the key moments of his life. He came over to college in 1982, only to return 14 years later with a wife, two of his 3 sons and an established career.

Much of his work in the city was carried out at the Albert Dock and he was the project architect of the Beatles Story Museum. But 8 years later, when the rest of the world was telling him he had a month to live and Liverpool was once again the only city that opened a door to him. Liam Ryan’s association with Liverpool runs deeper than most. He owes it his life.

After giving an account of his ordeal he will culminate the session with the great appreciation and perspective he now has from it and how he uses them every day. He will never let himself forget where he was. He believes nobody should come through a major crisis without it having a major positive impact on the rest of their life. He brings his experience to work with him every day and reminds and encourages everybody on his team that nothing is a problem compared to where he was 18 years ago.

Liam Ryan will demonstrate that even the darkest of clouds can have the most amazing silver linings!

Read more

About Liam

18 years ago, Liam Ryan was anonymous in the world and happy to be so. He was an architect in a little town in Ireland, with his wife Pam. They met in college in Liverpool, where Liam then worked for many years before moving back to Ireland in 1996 to set up their own practice and raise their three small boys.

He was never destined to be a speaker at a conference.

But then in 2002, out of the blue, he began to get headaches. Over the next few weeks a suspected routine sinus infection dramatically transformed into one of the worst cases of Head & Neck cancer ever seen. From nowhere, he was simply given weeks to live.

His consultant told him that very few hospitals in the world could even look at a case like this. Both the surgery and radiotherapy required were way beyond anything seen before. Eventually, Professor Simon Rogers and his team at Aintree University Hospital had a look at the case although even there nobody really believed he would make it. However, they saw something in Liam’s acceptance and determination of what he needed to go through, to want to give him a chance.

The rest is history. Wonderful history!

This story has now gone over the world as one of the greatest cancer survivor stories there has ever been. Survival alone would have been miraculous in itself but it is his even more amazing recovery, in the 18 years since, that has made this story as big as it is.

Liam receives wonderful emails, most days, from cancer patients all around the globe and the greatest ones say “I was giving up, until I read your story”! From the humble origin of growing up in a little village in Ireland, through the world class Head & Neck Cancer facilities that exist on Merseyside, Liam Ryan has become a wonderful story.

He has become the living proof that nothing is for certain.

Marriott Liverpool City Centre

The PA Hub team, together with Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre welcomed our community of PAs from across the country to our best live conference yet.

A few words from Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre
Experience Liverpool’s bustling city centre from our hotel

The Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre welcomes business and leisure travellers alike with a central location in the heart of the city and an abundance of four-star resources.

All of our thoughtfully designed hotel rooms and suites are furnished with a plush pillow top mattress, a flat-screen TV, a well-lit desk and high-speed Wi-Fi; in addition, our spacious double-double rooms are great for visiting families.

Treat yourself to delicious International dining and Starbucks® coffee at our signature restaurant, indulge in a day of tranquillity at our hotel spa or stay in shape at our leisure club, which offers a fitness centre and a heated indoor pool. Host a business meeting or wedding with us here in Liverpool city centre to take advantage of versatile, modern event space and superb planning and catering.

Thanks to our central location, you can enjoy easy access to Liverpool ONE, Anfield Stadium and many other attractions.

Plan an extraordinary visit to the Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre.

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