Speaker Bios
Kelly Thomson
Partner, RPC
Kelly Thomson is an experienced employment lawyer who works with clients on complex international and national employment matters, with particular focus on outsourcing, restructuring and the people aspects of organisational change. Kelly is regularly called on by organisations grappling with their inclusion and diversity strategies and has real depth of knowledge on gender equality.
With particular expertise in TUPE, Kelly has a wealth of experience in advising on the employment aspects of outsourcing, M&A activity and complex restructuring arrangements. Kelly also advises regularly on significant organisational change programmes including large-scale redundancies and changes to employment arrangements. Her many years of hands on project experience enable her to work as an effective extension of her clients' HR, Legal and Executive teams in delivering business critical projects.
Kelly works alongside clients' HR and Legal teams in developing and implementing strategies for the recruitment, retention and motivation of employees. She has a focus on 'employee engagement' and is passionate about issues of diversity and inclusion.
Kelly develops and provides training and seminars for clients' HR, legal and business teams and co-delivers our regular seminars and roundtables on a variety of topics. She is a regular contributor to practitioner and academic publications. Most recently she has written the Xpert HR Line Manager's Guide on TUPE and edits the Tolley's chapter on Whistleblowing.
She has also contributed to Xpert HR podcasts:
- #MeToo - sexual harassment in the workplace - listen here.
- TUPE mythbusters (part 1) - listen here.
- TUPE mythbusters (part 2) - listen here.
The Fix - podcast
Kelly has collaborated with Michelle King, global gender equality and organisational culture expert, as co-host of acclaimed equality podcast The Fix with Michelle King.
The Fix is a podcast that shares stories of remarkable people who are taking action to advance equality in the workplace and beyond. Through interviews with a diverse range of remarkable people, the Fix podcast showcases innovations and helps leaders and organisations take tangible action towards greater workplace equality.
Click here to listen and subscribe.
Sarah Lee
Non-Executive Director, Rare
Sarah Lee is a lawyer and former partner and board member at Slaughter and May. She is currently a Non-Executive Director of the Financial Ombudsman Service, a Commissioner of the Judicial Appointments Commission, a Non-Executive Director of the Independent Press Standards Organisation and the Chair of Islington Giving.
Sarah has spent most of her legal career as a partner of Slaughter and May. During her time at the firm, Sarah was Head of the Dispute Resolution Group, led the Graduate Recruitment team and was the firm’s first partner with responsibility for Diversity and Inclusion.
Raphael Mokades
Founder and Managing Director, Rare
Raphael Mokades is the founder and Managing Director of Rare, the multi award-winning leaders in diversity graduate recruitment.
Raphael founded Rare in 2005, on his own, with no recruitment experience, no technology expertise, no clients, no systems, and a desk in someone else’s office. Today, Rare works with over eighty of the world’s most prestigious employers, has some 10,000 candidates on its books, and builds cutting-edge software that is changing the world.
Raphael has a first class degree from Oxford University. He has written for the Guardian, Times and Financial Times and was Legal Week’s Outstanding Innovator for 2017.