WIT conference: the power of your networks
Join us in Edinburgh’s EICC on Friday 21 March for a really exciting panel looking at the power of your networks and how they can support your ambitions. This panel will discuss what we as an industry seek from our netowrks, and what the biggest challenges and opportunities are.
Facilitator: Synden Grieve, Program Manager, Expedia Group
Synden is a Program Manager in the Operational Excellence team at Expedia Group, where she previously worked as a Market Manager. With experience in tourism and technology through Scottish Enterprise and the Edinburgh Tourism Action Group (ETAG), she enjoys how these industries intersect. In 2022, Synden earned her MBA in Entrepreneurship, researching how female entrepreneurs in Scotland’s tech sector build networks using social capital. Her findings revealed how women leverage trust, reciprocity, and social connections to create credibility and overcome challenges. She also highlighted how these networks enable women to act as connectors and champions for one another’s success. Synden co-founded the Edinburgh Chapter of the Women’s Employee Resource Group (ERG) at Expedia in 2018 and now leads the EMEA efforts for the global ERG. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, dining out, and gardening.
Rosemary McLennan, Managing Director, Scottish PA Network
Rosemary founded the Scottish PA Network in 2010 and expanded the network to London in 2015. Rosemary grew up living in 15 countries and after starting her career in TV production working for Sky Sports and Melvyn Bragg’s South Bank Show in London she returned to Scotland. Rosemary worked in hospitality sales for many years representing brands including Fairmont and the Old Course Hotel and she covered the Scottish and North American markets.
Lesley Judge, Strategic Programmes Executive, Interface
Lesley is co-founder of the Traveltech for Scotland cluster where she built and grew a highly active community of traveltech start-ups and SME’s, driving innovative business-academic collaborations for digital transformation, including Traveltech collectives and Interface projects funded by the Scottish Inward Investment Catalyst Fund. She is experienced in delivering knowledge exchange events to highlight the benefits of digital technologies and data for industry sectors, including visitor management and cultural heritage; and has worked extensively with the private and public sector, helping businesses to grow through training, knowledge transfer, and digital skills development. Lesley sits on the Board of Women in Tourism and chairs the Visitor Management Digital Group, a sub-group of Scotland’s National Visitor Management Strategy Steering group, chaired by VisitScotland.
Read more about the full conference lineup, and book tickets HERE!