Jane looks back at our sixth Business Networking event at a new location - Edgbaston Golf Club
A day we look forward to each year is the Women & Golf Business Networking event. This year we headed to the Midlands and we welcomed professional businesswomen from Birmingham and surrounding area.
As always with these events we keep a close eye on the weather but we were extremely fortunate that the sun shone and made the golf clinics so much easier to manage - nice to be out on the grass for your first taste of golf.
The Business Networking event started with a welcome glass of prosecco and a Women & Golf goody bag.
A light breakfast of fruit and Danish pastries followed which enabled participants to dive straight into getting to know each other.
After a brief welcome from Kim Wild, Chairwoman at Women & Golf, she then sat with our guest speaker Julia Regis and asked her about her professional career and how she got into golf.
Our headline speaker
Julia Regis
Julia Regis started her career in the Probation Service but for the last 19 years has run her own business delivering innovative training and development initiatives particularly in the area of performance management, leadership and human resource issues.
She told us how she is passionate about working with leaders to inspire them to maximise their potential.
Introduced to golf by her late husband because, as she says, "if you can beat them, join them" she is now hooked on golf.
She explained how golf gives her the space and sense of calm when work is 90 miles an hour. It gives her a chance to put everything to one side and relax. Plus, the added and important benefit of the social side of the game.
She recently took up a postition as Senior Independent Director on the Board of England Golf but works with numerous other charities.
A Q&A followed which gave participants the opportunity to ask anything. It was good to be able to highlight the different opportunities that there are to take part in the sport. It’s not all about 18 holes. And importantly, for those who are working, the game of golf needs to be flexible in trying to bring women into the game. Modern options such as driving ranges (Topgolf) and 6-hole academy courses must be the way forward.
Once everyone had coffee and biscuits, it was time to get a golf club into everyone's hands.
An introduction to golf
Phil Lathwood, PGA Professional was on hand to guide the attendees through three basic golf skill activities - grip, putting & chipping. The attendees got to play on the chipping area and putting green and Phil had devised some fun exercises to get everyone involved.
The group was given a full golf taster session over the next hour and a half. Phil provided a relaxed and informal environment with some easy to remember takeaways.
A chance to network
Following the golf clinics, a change of seating plan for the group allowed different people to meet new people.
Philippa Pickavance, the current Lady Captain at Edgbaston Golf Club, welcomed everyone and hoped they had enjoyed the day. She hopes she will see some of them back on the golf course at some point.
It was lovely to see a variety of professions interact - lawyers, healthcare, financial services, consultancies and training. There was an enormous amount of chat and laughter!
The food throughout the day from the catering team had been fantastic. Lunch definitely did not disappoint with a delicious two-course meal.
Conclusion
It was then time to bring to a close our sixth Women & Golf Business Networking event, so that everyone could miss the traffic (it really is a busy city Birmingham).
An inspiring day, not only for our guests but also for the team at Women & Golf. These events have shown us just how important it is to reach more women in the corporate world, so that they can enjoy the many benefits that golf brings to our lives, both professionally and personally.
Here's to the next one!
Feedback
Don't just take our word for it, here is some initial feedback from attendees:
“Thank you again for today, it was a wonderful event!”
Bobby
“Thank you so much for the event. It's an amazing insight into golf.”
Rita
With thanks to Edgbaston Golf Club
Thanks to Slingsby Gin for a refreshing drink before lunch
If you would like to be involved in our next business networking event or even run your own event for the females in your workplace contact Kim Wild.
A perfect day for networking & golf!
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