Exeter Chiefs legend Gareth Steenson and polar explorer Ann Daniels kick off Astley Media’s Inspired series

Exeter Chiefs’ Gareth Steenson and polar explorer Ann Daniels are set to inspire the region's business community when they speak at a ‘Road to Resilience’ event on 5 October.

The one-day event in Exeter will also see appearances from business leaders including Robert Camp, Managing Partner of UK Law Firm of the Year* Stephens Scown.

Exeter Chiefs' record league points scorer Gareth Steenson will be talking about developing a resilient mindset and the lessons he has taken from a lifetime in rugby. Ann Daniels, one of the only women on the planet to trek to the North and South Pole as part of women-only teams, will be discussing how you build resilient teams and overcome adversity.

‘The Road to Resilience - lessons from sport, exploration and business’, is the first in a series developed by award-winning communications agency Astley Media, to provide a platform for extraordinary people to share their experiences and learnings.

Astley Media CEO Marc Astley, explains: “Bringing people together to inspire, learn and collaborate is a key part of what we do at Astley Media.

“We’ve had some brilliant events already this year and now we’re looking forward to hearing from a fantastic line-up of speakers at the ‘Road to Resilience’ event.

“At a time of disruption, with new and emerging businesses and ways of working, globalisation, Brexit and new technologies changing how we do business, more than ever we need to think about the skills and resilient mindset we need to develop to thrive in a rapidly changing world.”

Robert Camp, Managing Partner of Stephens Scown, will be talking about the journey the law firm has been on in the last five years, with innovative working practices introduced, including employee ownership, which gives all eligible members of staff an equal share in the firm’s profits.

The firm has overhauled its approach to staff engagement, leading to it reaching number 16 in the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For 2017 and being named the UK Law Firm of the Year at the British Legal Awards.

Robert said: “One of the hardest things to do in business is to listen to difficult feedback from staff and then change as a result. But that is exactly what we have done at Stephens Scown.

“A few years ago our staff told us that they didn’t feel appreciated and we have worked hard as a firm to turn that around. From simple ideas, like encouraging staff to send thank you cards to each other to embed a culture of gratitude in the firm, to overcoming many obstacles to be the first large law firm to bring in employee ownership.”

The event will include question and answer sessions with Gareth Steenson and Ann Daniels and a panel discussion. Further speakers are set to be announced in the coming weeks.

Stephens Scown has been announced as the headline sponsor, for the event, and Exeter independent travel company Nomadic Travel and Leapfrog Animation are event partners.

World record holder Ann Daniels has been described by The Daily Telegraph as ‘one of the top 20 Great British Adventurers of all time.’

She said: “It is within us all to achieve great things individually and within a team. Find reasons why you can and can’t do something that challenges you. Plan, take action and find solutions to any and all obstacles in your way. It’s important to be resilient, keep your vision in mind and move forward one step at a time. As leaders it's important to care for all members of the team and their development. Their success will become your own. Great leaders inspire others to achieve more.”

Gareth Steenson has reached the pinnacle of Rugby Union playing for English Premiership winning side Exeter Chiefs. Currently celebrating his testimonial year, he is the Chiefs' record league points scorer and won the Golden Boot in the 2016 Aviva Premiership Awards.

Marc added: “We work with lots of incredible people and by bringing them together, be that as speakers, panelists or delegates, we’re confident the event will provide invaluable insight, learnings, new connections and inspiration.”

Tickets are available for the event on Thursday October 5, via: http://bit.ly/2tsf5yL