The highly esteemed Women of the Year Luncheon and Awards (WOTY) has strengthened its board with the appointment of nationally acclaimed, award-winning women’s mentor and inspiring business leader, Wendy Dean as Director.
One of the most prestigious and long running awards initiative, WOTY is now in its 41st year and represents a celebration of achievement, promoting positive female role models who provide inspiration across all areas of society and the business community.
Key business influencer, Wendy will join fellow board members Zalena Vandrewala (Chair), Emma Elston MBE, Fleur Sexton DL, Sharon Redrobe OBE, as well as WOTY President, Writer and well-known Actress Sally Lindsey in presiding over this year’s event taking place on Friday 13 October 2023 at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole.
Wendy is curator of the widely recognised ‘Why Women Don’t Play Golf’ programme, which helps aspiring female leaders to break the glass ceiling placed over them, the programme is based on Wendy’s experience as a female business leader who was invited to corporate golf days but declined due to her own self-limiting beliefs and ‘imposter syndrome’.
Wendy speaks widely on this topic, and how she overcame these challenges in the workplace, and how she now works to help others break down these boundaries placed on their careers.
She has enjoyed a career delivering impactful culture change programmes across diverse business for over 20 years. As HR Director for FedEx in 2000, the development of “Delivering Peace of Mind” transformed the business in readiness for acquisition in 2006. This culminated in Wendy becoming Personnel Today – HR Director of the Year.
Following the same success, Wendy moved to Steelite International in 2008 becoming Group HR Director and delivering another culture programme in a traditional manufacturing environment that had gone through significant depression since the 1980’s. Wendy introduced “Stepping up to the Plate” in 2009 as a programme of change which created training opportunities for everyone, from employees being able to learn how to read and write, through to a new business foundation degree with Staffordshire University which was open to all employees regardless of level within the organisation. Her passion is to improve links between education and industry and to ensure that business requirements are communicated to education to ensure young people are fit for purpose.
Ready to leave the corporate world, in 2015 set up her own business, Strategi Solutions Group. With culture change at the heart, Wendy saw an opportunity to align three core business streams: People, Marketing and Creative. All working simultaneously to help businesses thrive through change, using her wealth of experience to support every step of this journey. Wendy was the winner of Inspiring Workplaces Inspiring Leader 2022, Strategi was a finalist at the Engage Awards 2022, winners of Best SME HR and Marketing 2021, National Business Awards, Personnel Today Awards and the Staffordshire Chamber Awards to name a few!
Zalena Vandrewala, WOTY Chair and Director comments:
“Wendy’s support for WOTY has been immense over the years, so much so that previous to this, Wendy was presented with the honoury title of WOTY Ambassador, earlier this year.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled that Wendy will now become even more involved in the organisation and is joining us as a director. Wendy’s unique leadership, insight and mentoring skills will add incredible value to our guiding objective – to inspire women to make their dreams become a reality. Welcome to the Board Wendy!”
As well as the main honour, WOTY Business Woman of the Year 2023, two other major awards will be presented in October – ‘Women of Achievement’, in celebration of a much deserving group of individuals or team, and ‘Woman with Edge’, sponsored by leading law firm Freeths LLP, and celebrating the women coming through the ranks and ‘the ones to watch’.
