On Thursday 21st November, K2 held the second of this year’s two North East Mobility Forums, at the Royal Station Hotel in Newcastle.
Attended by GM & HR professionals based in the region, the North-East Mobility Forum (NEMF) is a bi-annual event that offers community members an opportunity for networking, open discussion and knowledge sharing.
In the first session of the day, Helen Squibb, from K2’s Global Mobility Advisory Team, led a discussion session on Global Mobility & Talent Management, which explored the benefits of aligning the GM & talent agendas for businesses, as well as how offering some insight into how to put this principle into practice.
Following a short coffee break, Davyd Fisher, Specialist Services Director from Grant Thornton, provided attendees with a Global Mobility & Employment Tax Update, covering topics including Non-domicile regime with respect to Expats, National Insurance Contributions, and National Minimum Wage.
Next up was Global Mobility Operations Analyst for Sage, Sophie Sutherland, who took attendees through a recent Expat Technology Transformation Project and shared learnings from the process of transitioning to a new technology platform for enhanced performance and efficiency.
After lunch, Helen was joined by K2’s Group Managing Director, Jo Wakeham, to present 35 Years a Madness; a segment during which the pair spoke about their careers in the Global Mobility industry, and reflected on the mobility landscape during that time.
On having the opportunity to attend the most recent NEMF, Jo says:
“This was my first time at one of the NEMF events, despite having heard a lot about them, from both our own teams and clients, over the years.
Whilst we had some newcomers (myself included), many of those present had attended multiple times, with some attendees having put in an appearance at over 10 of these events!
It was clear that there were longstanding relationships within the group, and it was great to see how the forum provided a vehicle for reconnection, as well as offering the opportunity to meet new industry peers and build relationships that extend well beyond the forums.”
Jo continues:
“The mix of newcomers and NEMF veterans, along with the diverse range of companies and industries represented, meant a broad range of perspectives, experience and insights, which informed much thoughtful discussion throughout the day.
An excellent day all round, despite the bitter Newcastle weather – thank you to all those who attended, despite busy schedules – and look forward to seeing you again next year!”
The presentation section of the event closed with An update from the K2 Foundation, given by K2’s Executive Business Director & Co-Owner, Richard Rutledge. As part of this update, Richard also shared his recent experience of taking on Ride Across Britain to raise money for the Foundation.
The event concluded with a relaxed drinks reception, enabling attendees to socialise and debrief on the day’s activities.
UK Client Development Manager, Huw Thomas, who hosted the event, comments on the success of the autumn NEMF:
“This was another fantastic forum, and our best attended yet! It’s always great to see a room packed with both familiar and new faces.
Thank you to all of our brilliant speakers for bringing their energy and expertise, and to all who helped drive our discussions forward with their questions and comments.
It’s wonderful seeing how the NEMF continues to grow and evolve – it’s a network of hugely talented Global Mobility professionals, and we are passionate about ensuring that the region has a platform for them to learn and grow their networks.
We’re going to have to start looking at bigger rooms for the next event in the spring!”
