WIT conference: leadership in a changing world
In the next few weeks we’ll be introducing you to the various speakers and panelists who are taking part in the 2025 Women in Tourism conference. The agenda focuses on a range of topical discussions, and you’ll have the opportunity to ask them questions throughout the day.
PANEL DISCUSSION: Leadership in a changing world
With a founding principle of supporting women into positions of leadership across Scottish tourism, we’re delighted to have two fantastic panelists lined up for our ‘leadership in a changing world’. This panel discussion will look at a range of topics, and you’ll also have the opportunity to pose questions to Shona, Cat and Elise.
Facilitator: Elise MacDonald, Lux Events
Elise is incredibly lucky to run Lux Events with her close friend and partner in crime, Joanne Lynn. Together they have built a strong and dynamic all-female agency that specialises in creating interesting, attention grabbing and memorable events. They are a full service agency, offering comms and marketing for events, as well as a high level of expertise and knowledge across tech and digital. Lux is the events and membership partner for The Marketing Society in Scotland, delivering over 30 events annually. They work with a wide range of corporates, with strong interests in the food, drink and creative sectors and specialise in helping to curate and build programmes and content for clients, delivering around 70 events per year.
Panelist: Cat Leaver, VisitScotland
An award-winning strategic leader with experience across the private and public sectors, Cat was appointed Director of Strategy and Competitive Intelligence in November 2024. She had previously led departments across VisitScotland, ranging from user experience (UX) and front-end development to content, creative, PR, and global marketing campaigns.
Before joining the organisation, Cat was the inaugural Director of Brand Scotland, where she led a cross-agency initiative to enhance Scotland’s global profile. She also spent more than seven years in the digital agency world, leading teams in London, Manchester, and Glasgow, and serving a diverse global client base.
Cat is an ambassador for the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice and has held non-executive board positions, as well as advisory board roles with City Nation Place and The Marketing Society of Scotland. She was also one of the leadership team who led TEDxGlasgow delivering major events to audiences of 2,500 and achieving over 10M views of their talks online.
Panelist: Shona McCarthy, Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society
Shona joined the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society as Chief Executive 8 years ago and has championed the Edinburgh Fringe as the world’s leading performing arts festival and expo, founded on principles of open access and freedom of expression. From 2011-14 she was Chief Executive of the Culture Company, leading on Derry – Londonderry’s transformational year as UK City of Culture. Prior to that she was Director of the British Council Northern Ireland. She headed up Imagine Belfast to deliver Belfast’s bid to be European Capital of Culture. She spent many years as Chief Executive of Cinemagic Film Festival for young people, Belfast; the Foyle Film Festival; and was Head of Exhibition at the Northern Ireland Film Council.
Shona has over 30 years’ experience working in senior leadership positions and was awarded a prestigious Eisenhower Fellowship for Innovation in 2014, making her part of a global network of leaders and influencers, and a NESTA cultural leadership award which took her to work with the Seagull Foundation for the Arts in Calcutta India in 2007. She is an Honorary Fellow of Surrey University. A visiting Professor at Napier University and an Honorary Fellow of the Marketing Society of Scotland.
Find out more about the full agenda, and book your tickets for the conference here!
