Michelle Mone is a highly successful entrepreneur and marketer and is the founder and co-owner of MJM International Ltd. Michelle left school aged 15 with no qualifications, spent a number of years successfully modelling in Glasgow and then went on to work for Labatts Brewers in her home town. When the Labatts brand moved to Whitbread, Michelle chose to take redundancy and in November 1996, Michelle started MJM International Ltd with her husband Michael.  The business has gone from strength to strength and Michelle has won a number of prestigious awards. In 2005, Michelle presented BBC’s Mind Your Own Business, advising business owners on what they are doing right and where they are going wrong, and offering straightforward suggestions on how to improve their businesses. Since then Michelle has made frequent appearances on BBC’s The Apprentice as well as being a correspondent for GMTV. Michelle Mone has built a hugely successful career on an incredibly simple concept: giving today's women what they want.

Archie started working for Citibank NA in 1975, then went on to become a partner at McKinsey & Co Plc before moving on to the position of Group Finance Director of Kingfisher Plc. then making a well publicised impact on Asda as Chief Executive in 1991. It was here that he undertook one of the most high-profile turnrounds in British corporate history, and as a result became a household name. Archie has had a large involvement in politics, being elected Conservative MP for Tunbridge Wells in May 1997 and being appointed Vice-Chairman of the Conservative Party in June 1997, he later became Chief Executive of the Conservative Party, Spokesman for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and was also Shadow Secretary for Environment Transport and Regions - in  May 2005 he stood down as MP. Archie Norman is now one of the most respected business leaders in the country and is an outstanding conference speaker on leadership, change and customer service.

Mark Palmer

When he joined, Green & Black’s held 95% of the organic market but barely registered in overall chocolate sales. Mark changed the proposition, turned it into a premium mainstream product, raised the bar and saw sales rise ten fold. He advocates outsourcing, investing in brand not machinery, developing existing markets and following your instincts.

The BBC’s former Business Editor is now Editor-at-Large at the Daily Telegraph.  From '86 to '88 Jeff was City Correspondent for the Sunday Telegraph, having joined from the Financial Weekly where he was Assistant Editor. He spent the next five years as City Editor on the Sunday Times. There then followed spells as City and Business Editor on the Sunday Times, Director of Times Newspapers, Deputy Chairman of Financial Dynamics Ltd, a City PR firm until becoming Assistant Editor and Sports Editor on the Sunday Times where he was responsible for launching the Sunday Times' 20-page colour sports section in 1996. He won the London Press Club's Business Journalist of the Year Award in 2000 and was the FT Analysis' Financial Journalist of the Year Award in 1991. One of the UK's best known and most influential business commentators, Jeff is an ideal moderator, conference host and highly entertaining speaker.

A legendary figure in the business world, Gerald had transformed his family business into the world’s largest jewellery retailer with 2500 shops, when a casual joke he had told many times before, hit the papers. He became a laughing stock and was forced to step down. Now back on top with a thriving online operation, he talks candidly about the rollercoaster journey and the valuable lessons learned.

Karren Brady began her career at LBC when she was 18 years old and swiftly moved onto Saatchi & Saatchi as Account Handler. She joined Sports Newspapers Ltd in 1988 and became Director within a year. Karren is now known as the first woman in football. She has been Managing Director of Birmingham City Football Club since 1993 and has turned the Club's fortunes around.  She was voted by Cosmopolitan as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world and in 2004 attended The Queen's lunch for Women Achievers. In December 2007 Karren was a guest on Desert Island Discs and was voted Business Woman of the Year in 2007.

Acclaimed expert in cross-cultural communication, Frances Edmonds is a seasoned keynote speaker and moderator at international events. She has also been voted Britain's most amusing and entertaining female speaker in a survey by The Times. A best-selling author and broadcaster, she holds a Masters degree in modern languages from Cambridge University. After training with the European Commission in Brussels, she worked for all the major international organisations before publishing her first, highly controversial sports book, "Another Bloody Tour." After creating a highly successful construction company, Frances was also elected Fellow of the British Association of Women Entrepreneurs

In 1995 Sahar Hashemi together with her brother Bobby founded Coffee Republic, and built it into one of the UK's most recognised high street brands with a turnover of £30m. Giving up highly professional jobs, she a lawyer in London and he an investment banker in New York, they staked everything on a dream - and made Coffee Republic one of the main players in the 'coffee revolution' that transformed a nation of tea drinkers into one obsessed with 'triple decaf half-caf lattes'. In 2005 Sahar launched her new business idea-SKINNY CANDY- a brand of sugar free confectionary. It has already been named 'Hot!' by Tatler magazine and 'a winner' by the ES magazine. It is sold nationwide in branches of Harvey Nichols. Sahar intends to sell it shortly through Waitrose and other supermarkets. Sahar's book, 'Anyone Can Do It' is the 2nd highest selling book ever published in the UK on entrepreneurship (only Richard Branson's book has sold more copies).

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