We are delighted to share this invitation to join our Q2 meeting on 3rd April from 18:00 – 20:30 hosted by Accenture, 30 Fenchurch St, City of London, London EC3M 3BD.

We’ve heard your questions and concerns about the current context for EDI and networks within that, so we’re doing something special in response. For this Q2 meeting, we are opening our doors to gender ERG leads from non-member firms too and holding The Great Gender Networks Meetup – an opportunity for us to look at lessons from the journey that gender networks have been on so far and then collaborate on some practical reimagining about who we are as networks and what we can do to stay fit for the future. Our co-chairs Dr Vanessa Vallely OBE and Birgit Neu will set the scene with some provocations, before turning it over to you to roll up your sleeves and get inventive together!

We’ll also get the latest gender news from Harriet Minter and have spotlights on our host ERG and a charity as part of this event.

Please share this invitation with ERG chairs from other gender networks at your client/partner firms across sectors to help us bring even more diverse perspectives into the discussion. We look forward to having a vibrant in-person conversation and lots of new ideas and connections for all of our participants.

See you there!

For The Great Gender Networks Meetup, we ask that participation is limited to 2 gender ERG leadership representatives per company.

Agenda

18:00 – 18:30 – Registration and Networking

18:30 – 18:40 – Welcome from Dr Vanessa Vallely OBE and Birgit Neu, Co-Chairs, Gender Networks

18:40 – 18:50 – Welcome and Host Spotlight from Accenture

18:50 -19:00 – ‘In the News’ with Harriet Minter, Journalist and Broadcaster

19:00 – 19:15 – Gender Networks Working Session: How Gender ERGs Survive the EDI Backlash (and Thrive!): Dr Vanessa Vallely OBE and Birgit Neu, Co-Chairs, Gender Networks

19:15 -19:45 – Facilitated Table Discussions

19:45 – 20:00 – Charity Spotlight

20:00 – 20:30 – Networking/Drinks/Canapes

20:30 – Close

Speaker bios

Dr Vanessa Vallely OBE is one of the UK’s most well-connected women and a leading authority on gender equality. She has delivered keynotes for over 600 companies, inspiring more than 50,000 women globally. A sought-after consultant, Vanessa advises both government bodies and corporations on strategies to attract, develop, and retain female talent. In June 2018, she was awarded an OBE by King Charles for her contributions to women and the economy, and in 2024, she received an honorary Doctorate of Science from Warwick University.

In 2008, at the peak of her 25-year career in banking and finance, Vanessa launched the award-winning WeAreTheCity, a platform designed to support women’s career development. Its sister organisation, WeAreTechWomen, together with WeAreTheCity, has grown to a membership of over 80,000, offering resources, conferences, awards, and job opportunities to women worldwide. To date, Vanessa has helped over 50,000 women gain new skills and expand their networks. In 2024, she launched the first-ever National Women in Tech Week, which offered more than 50 free events across the UK to women in the tech sector. Vanessa is also the founder of several prestigious awards programs, including Rising Stars, TechWomen100, Trailblazer50, Pioneer20 and Themis20, collectively raising the profile of over 2,500 extraordinary women and men. She is the author of the acclaimed book Heels of Steel: Surviving and Thriving in the Corporate World, which chronicles her journey from a council estate in East London to the C-suite. Her next book is set for release in 2025. Vanessa is co-chair of Gender Networks, the UK network for gender employee network leaders.

Over the past 20 years, Vanessa has earned 26 industry accolades, including Women in Banking & Finance’s Champion for Women, Financial News’ Top 100 Rising Stars, and The International Alliance for Women’s Top 100 Women globally. She has also been recognized as one of Brummell’s Top 30 London Entrepreneurs and was recently inducted into Computer Weekly’s Hall of Fame as an icon for women in tech. Additionally, Vanessa has been featured in GQ UK’s Top 100 Connected Women and the Evening Standard’s 1000 Most Influential Londoners. A regular media contributor, she has appeared on Sky News, BBC, Talk London, and Radio 4.

Birgit Neu is an award-winning independent Senior Advisor focussing on strategy design, change management, research and communications advisory at the crossroads of inclusion, AI, social impact, and the future of work for organisations including multinational corporates, think tanks and UK sport governing bodies. She previously held a variety of global roles at HSBC including Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion, and she has had a broad career spanning multiple sectors including digital, retail, and publishing as well as financial services.

Birgit is a Visiting Lecturer for Warwick Business School’s MBA and Executive Education programmes. She is a regular contributor to thought leadership and advisory groups for leading organisations worldwide. She has also been named as one of LinkedIn’s Top Voices. Birgit is a trustee for legal charity Advocates for International Development (A4ID) and an advisory board member for pay transparency compliance platform Syndio.

Birgit holds a number of UK network leadership roles, including co-founder and co-chair of KNIT (for inclusion specialists), senior advisor to NEXUS LGBTQ+ (for LGBTQ+ employee networks leaders), and co-chair of Gender Networks.

Harriet Minter is a Journalist, Broadcaster, and Gender Networks Advisory Board member.

Harriet has spent nearly two decades writing about, and changing, the future of work. She specialises in future leadership, building interdependent teams and DEI strategy. She works with individuals and businesses around the world, helping them create inclusive workplaces and redefine their culture.

She has written for the likes of the Guardian, the FT and the Times. She has appeared on the BBC, Sky News and Good Morning Britain, as well as hosting a top ten business podcast and writing two business books, on leadership and hybrid work respectively. She has given two TED talks. The first on women and work, the second on what yoga taught her about failure.

Important: Upon arrival at Accenture, all guests will be required to present photographic ID (passport or driving licence).

REGISTER HERE