The Business of Wellbeing Summit 2020

Please note: This is a live online event via Zoom Webinar. The event will not be recorded so there is no option to play back if you miss the live streaming. Details on how to access the course will be provided 3 working days before the event. 

Complimentary Event

Aim and Objectives 

While the benefits of implementing a wellbeing programme for employees may appear self-evident, organisations do not necessarily consider the benefits that wellbeing programmes can have on their business; employee retention, reduced absenteeism, increased productivity rates, and financial benefits.

This Summit is aimed at mid to large sized firms who take professional wellbeing seriously. They may have developed, are currently developing or are considering developing a wellbeing programme themselves.

The session will open with a brief outline of the Law Society of Ireland Professional Wellbeing Programme, a presentation on the rights, risks and obligations of wellbeing and mental health in the workplace and a discussion around why wellbeing pays – the facts and figures. After the morning break there will be a presentation on developing a wellbeing business charter – its adoption, implementation and challenges arising for firms and practice  -followed by an interactive panel discussion on the business case for wellbeing including industry experts and the perspectives and experiences of other jurisdictions. After lunch our special guests will discuss vicarious trauma, secondary trauma, stress and burnout.

Topics

• Law Society of Ireland Professional Wellbeing Programme
• Wellbeing and Mental Health in the Workplace – rights, risks and obligations
• Why Wellbeing Pays for You, Your Firm and Clients – the facts and figures
• Developing a Professional Wellbeing Business Charter – adoption and implementation for firms and practice
• The Business Case for Wellbeing – a luxury or necessity
• Vicarious trauma, secondary trauma, stress and burnout – what is this and what can your organisations do about it?

Chairperson
Michele O’Boyle, President, Law Society of Ireland 

Speakers/Panellists – in order of appearance

Teri Kelly, Director of Representation and Member Services, Law Society of Ireland 
Teri Kelly is the Director of Representation and Member Services with responsibility for member and external communications for the Law Society, web and digital communications, the Gazette magazine and Gazette.ie, Library and Information Services and Support Services. Teri is leading both the Small Practice Support Project and the Professional Wellbeing Project on behalf of the Law Society. Originally from Calgary, Canada, Teri studied political science and international relations before moving into corporate communications. She has worked in the energy, technology and financial services sectors before moving to the legal profession. Teri has lived all over Ireland for more than 15 years, spending periods in Limerick, Galway, Longford, Leitrim and, now, Dublin.

Michelle Ní Longáin, Partner, ByrneWallace Solicitors, Dublin
Michelle is a partner in the Employment Department at ByrneWallace and has extensive experience in employment, equality and administrative law. Michelle qualified as a solicitor in Northern Ireland, practising there, in England and Wales, and in Ireland, in employment and equality law. She joined ByrneWallace in 1999. Michelle advises Public and Private Sector clients, primarily employers, on complex areas of administrative and employment law, including employment equality, disability discrimination, and reasonable accommodation. As well as being head of the firm’s Public Sector Group, Michelle has been a member of Council of the Law Society of Ireland for over a decade and was a member of the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland from 2007-2013. Michelle’s membership of the Councils of two regulatory bodies and many of their committees inform her advices to clients, particularly in the public and regulatory sector. Michelle has strong experience in advising and representing clients in internal and external matters and in all legal fora. Michelle provides training to clients and in public lectures including the Law Society professional training and diploma programmes

Katie da Gama, Business & Executive Coach and Leadership Development Consultant, Dublin
Katie has over 20 years’ experience as a legal professional (both Barrister and Solicitor) and, until May 2018, was the Managing Partner of the Dublin office of an international law firm.  She is also a CEDR accredited mediator.  Katie has now set up her own practice working both as a Business & Executive Coach as well as a Leadership Development Consultant.  Katie’s interest in wellbeing in the workplace (particularly amongst legal professionals) stems firstly from her personal experience of leading a team of 60 people and also now from working closely with executives who are choosing to prioritise the physical and mental health of themselves and their colleagues in order to stay ahead in their businesses.

Richard Martin, Director, Byrne Dean, England 
Richard spent the first 20 years of his career as an employment lawyer in London, serving as a partner at Gouldens and then Jones Day (following the merger of those firms) before moving to Speechly Bircham where he ran the large employment team and sat on the firm’s management committee.  In 2011 he suffered a serious mental breakdown, spent time in hospital and two years recovering.  He is now a leading activist in the field of mental health.  His day to day work involves working with organisations around the world to raise awareness of mental health and illness, enable people to be more aware of their own wellbeing, create supportive cultures in which wellbeing can be discussed and ensure that those in difficulty are supported.  He co-chairs the Lord Mayor of London’s This is Me campaign which uses storytelling to reduce the stigma around mental health and illness, he leads the Mindful Business Charter, an initiative to remove the unnecessary stress in our workplaces, he is a mental health first aid instructor and coach.  In 2018 he published his memoir of mental illness and recovery, This too will pass – Anxiety in a professional world, which has been very well received. He is a director of leading workplace consultancy Byrne-Dean.

Jeanne Kelly, Senior Partner, LK Shields, Dublin
Jeanne is a senior partner in LK Shields Intellectual Property, Technology and Privacy team. Jeanne has had a market-leading commercial and technology law practice for 20 years. She has led data protection compliance programmes for some of Ireland’s leading corporates as well as for multinationals with Irish operations.Jeanne is a regular speaker at conferences in Ireland and abroad on GDPR, legal issues for start-up and scaling companies and data privacy generally. Previous speaking engagements include IBA, ABA, UCD, TCD and Law Society of Ireland (including teaching on its MOOC on Data Protection Law). Jeanne is Chair of the Technology Law grouping of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce, in which she has been actively involved since its foundation.  She is an active member of the Law Society’s Technology Committee.  In 2020 she was awarded a Corporate Leader of the Year award at the Irish Women’s award, the first lawyer to win such an award.

Guy Setford, CEO, Setfords Solicitors, England
Guy is co-CEO of Setfords Solicitors, an innovative, multi-award winning, consultant-model law firm. He founded the firm in 2006 and set out to deliver a new way of working for lawyers that combines flexibility and freedom. Coupled with an industry-leading support team, this model allows lawyers to manage their own time and deliver a superior service to their clients. Setfords is now a market-leading platform law firm with lawyers working remotely in almost every county in the UK.

Nick Bloy, Founder, Wellbeing Republic, England
Nick is a former Lawyer and HR Business Partner with a Masters in Chemistry. He founded Wellbeing Republic in January 2016 to help shift the conversation and focus from ill-being to well-being and peak performance. He works with several leading law firms and other professional services firms in the UK and internationally, as a coach, keynote speaker, facilitator and business strategist, to help people and organisations to unleash their true potential to thrive.

Tara Doyle, Partner, Matheson, Dublin  
Tara Doyle, Partner, Matheson. Tara Doyle is a partner and head of the Asset Management and Investment Funds Department at Matheson. She practises Irish financial services law and advises many of the world’s leading financial institutions, investment banks, asset management companies, broker-dealers and corporations carrying on business in Ireland or through Irish vehicles. Tara has extensive experience in advising a wide range of domestic and international clients on the structuring, establishment, marketing and sale of financing and investment vehicles and products in Ireland and other jurisdictions. In particular she specialises in advising on the legal and regulatory issues surrounding the establishment of private and public investment funds, the structuring, offer and sale of investment instruments and investment products, the provision of investment advice and other financial services and the public issuance of equity and debt securities. Tara has spoken at a number of international financial services conferences, including the IFIA seminars in Milan, Frankfurt, New York, Boston, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore and has contributed articles to financial services and investment industry journals. Tara is a member of the Council of Irish Funds, the representative body for the Irish funds industry.

Stephen Bowcott, CEO John Sisk and Son, Dublin
Steve is the CEO of John Sisk and Son, the largest constructor in Ireland with a revenue of 1.5 billion and also operates in the UK and Europe, over 10,000 people work with the Company on a daily basis. He has been the CEO at Sisk for five years and prior to that was the COO of a FTSE 200 construction company in the UK. He has had mental health and well-being on his business agenda for over 20 years and believes both contribute to being a caring and sustainable employer. Sisk have undertaken several mental health programs over the last five years and they currently integrate the ‘ I am here’ program  with employee assistance regarding health, a calendar of well -being activities and awareness training for all staff on Health, Safety and wellbeing. The core values of Sisk are Care, Excellence and Integrity. The John Sisk value of Care is not allowed to be compromised by financial or stakeholder demands. Steve believes mental health and well-being are now the biggest issues in the construction industry, as safety has become part of normal business.
He has already witnessed 4 recessions in the industry, during his career, and has seen the impact that uncertainty has on Mental health. Steve is a passionate supporter of the Wales rugby team.

Antoinette Moriarty, Psychotherapist & Law School Psychological Services Manager,Law Society of Ireland, Dublin 
Antoinette combines her understanding of optimum human performance, gained through her training as a Psychotherapist in London and Dublin with over 20 years’ experience designing and leading professional and executive development for lawyers and other executive leaders. In addition to her private Psychotherapy and Executive Coaching practice (www.professionaltherapy.ie), Antoinette manages the Law Society of Ireland’s Counselling Service and teaches a new element of professional legal education entitled ‘Shrink Me – Psychology of a Lawyer’.

Blindboy – author, mental health activist, musician. 
Blindboy is a bestselling author of fiction, who has written two collections of short stories. He has over a decade of experience writing for television, having made shows for BBC, ITV, Channel 4, MTV and RTE. He is also a songwriter, musician and producer with his group the Rubberbandits, who have amassed over 100 million YouTube views and have toured the world as a theatre act. The Blindboy podcast is the creative summation of all these experiences. He reads from his book and he speaks with a guest – it is not an interview but rather an intimate chat which seeks to replicate a private conversation in a public space through the language of theatre. Notable past guests are Spike Lee, Bernadette Devlin and authors Kevin Barry and Roddy Doyle. Blindboy is also an academic, having completed a master’s degree in 2015 in creative practice and the social environment. He draws upon this to democratise topics such as art, psychology, politics, science and music, offering unique and humorous insights into issues which are perceived to be complex. Mental health is a frequent topic on the Blindboy podcast. Blindboy is a long-time mental health activist and has always used his platform to speak about his own struggles with anxiety and depression. He uses the podcast to investigate theories of psychotherapy such as CBT and Transactional analysis, and how to apply them in a simple way to our own lives.

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