Barbara Cassani Biography
Barbara Cassani is a brilliant leader with an inspirational style of management - she is in great demand around the world as a lively and engaging speaker, drawing upon her experiences in the airline sector and the Olympic 2012 bid.
Go Airline & 2012 Olympics Bid
Barbara founded the low cost airline Go and spearheaded the successful London 2012 Olympic bid. Having decided she prefers working on and in business rather than sitting on boards, she co-founded 3x + y Ventures which is pursuing hotel sector opportunities in the UK.
How The Career Panned Out
After starting her career in management consulting and after working at British Airways for ten years, Barbara founded budget airline Go in 1997. Go was started-up with a £25m investment by British Airways and was profitable in less than 3 years. Barbara then headed a £110m management buyout and a year later Go was sold to easyJet for £374m. In 2002, Barbara was named Veuve Clicquot UK Business Woman of the Year and was voted UK Entrepreneur of the Year among the readers of the Daily and Sunday Telegraphs.
In June 2003, Barbara was appointed Chairman of London's 2012 Olympic Bid, building the team from scratch and overseeing the bid winning finalist status then served as Vice Chairman from mid 2004 until the bid was won.
In 2003 Barbara wrote her best selling book, "Go – An Airline Adventure." Readers voted it the WH Smith Best Business Book in 2004.
In September 2007 Barbara became the new Chairman of the board at Vueling Airlines, a three year old airline based in Barcelona.
Barbara Cassani was appointed Executive Chairperson of Jurys Inn hotels in 2008.
For further information or to book Barbara, please call us on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Barbara Cassani Video
Barbara Cassani Speaker Showreel - Click play to watch a short sample video clip of Barbara Cassani. For more information on Barbara Cassani please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Barbara Cassani News
A selection of relevant news related to Barbara Cassani, Keynote Speakers, Business Speakers, Leadership Speakers, Sales/Customer Service and Women Speakers stories. For more information on Barbara Cassani or details as to how to book Barbara Cassani for your corporate event, please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Swim for Malaria
31st October 2005
World Swim for Malaria are organising a million person global fundraising swim
Mary Perkins Wins Director of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award
2nd November 2011
Director Magazine has awarded Dame Mary Perkins, Specsavers queen, entrepreneur, and retail keynote speaker, the Director of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award.
Entrepreneurs’ Forum Boasts Speakers Corner's Best
20th May 2011
The North East of England is the venue for the Entrepreneurs’ Forum, where a handful of Speakers Corner’s top talent take the stage to inspire business leaders and aspirational executives from all over the UK. Hamish McRae, Sarah Willingham, Tim Smit, James Timpson, James Cracknell, and Simon Calver are all on the programme, as are Kanya King, Douglas McWilliams, Karen Mattison, John Timpson and Richard Huntingford – all inspiration and charismatic public speakers.
Ted Global 2013 Takes Place in Edinburgh
11th June 2013
This year’s Ted Global conference is taking place in Edinburgh at the Edinburgh International Conference Center. Some of the world’s most accomplished speakers will take to the stage to talk about the political, economic and environmental issues that we face in today’s society.
Chris Anderson Advises on Killer Presentations
30th May 2013
TED Curator and keynote speaker, Chris Anderson, has given his advice and knowledge on how to give a killer presentation.
Self-Help Books; A Billion Dollar Industry
30th April 2013
Self-help books are increasingly popular among the British public than ever before and an increased number of us are turning to self help books in the hope that they will solve lives problems.
Sir Terry Leahy Adjusts to Life After Tesco
11th April 2013
Business speaker and former CEO of Tesco, Sir Terry Leahy stepped down from his position at Tesco in 2011 at the age of 55, he has since started working with several charities, invested in small businesses and written a book.
Noreena Hertz Finishes New Book
4th April 2013
Keynote speaker and leading futurist, Noreena Hertz has finished her most recent book, which will be published in the US and the UK in September 2013.
Will Whitehorn Appointed as Chair of Catapult Board
27th March 2013
Keynote speaker and former President of Virgin Galactic, Will Whitehorn, has been appointed as chairman of the new Transport System Catapult.
Lynne Franks Returns to PR
6th March 2013
Entrepreneur and lifestyle guru Lynne Franks is set to return to a career in PR after 19 years out of the business.
Barbara Cassani Reviews
Barbara Cassani has spoken and appeared at a number of recent corporate events. Please find some client speaker testimonials and reviews for Barbara Cassani for a number of these events and conferences. If you would like some additional information as to how to book Barbara Cassani for your corporate event, then please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Very inspirational
She delivered a refreshingly candid and good humoured presentation that captivated our audience. The Q&A session was most enjoyable and stimulated a thought-provoking debate on a wide variety of topical subjects.
Barbara encouraged delegates to dare to be different. Her honesty really stimulated debate.
Q & A with Barbara Cassani
Barbara Cassani answered some probing questions for Speakers Corner. For speaking secrets revealed - read on! To book Barbara Cassani for your event, please contact one of the Speakers Corner booking agents on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or info@speakerscorner.co.uk
Speakers Corner: Can you remember your first speaking engagement?
Barbara Cassani: Not really. I have been speaking to large groups since I was in large sales force management in the 1980s. I began outside speaking when I started-up the airline, Go. In fact the first ever Christmas party at Go was funded by an external speaking engagement.
Speakers Corner: What was the last event you spoke at?
Barbara Cassani: A large industry body conference for management of colleges, a small dinner for senior executives and a FTSE 25 company’s talented young executive programme.
Speakers Corner: Which event has been your favourite and why?
Barbara Cassani: I enjoyed the 100 or so speeches that I did as Chairman/Vice-Chairman of the London 2012 Olympic Bid because I was speaking to build support and understanding across the country of the benefits of hosting the Games.
Speakers Corner: What annoys you most professionally?
Barbara Cassani: I don’t like leaders who talk a good game but then never do much. Taking decisive action takes bravery that is sadly lacking in many boardrooms today.
Speakers Corner: Do you have any riders or special requirements?
Barbara Cassani: None whatsoever.
Speakers Corner: Why should an organiser hire you to speak at their event?
Barbara Cassani: I draw from my professional experience to talk about leadership, innovation and the practicalities of taking risks and managing people to make things happen. My aim is to use humour to convey serious ideas and to inspire every person listening to my speech to leave and try something different when he/she returns to the office.
For further information or to book Barbara Cassani, call us on +44 (0)20 7607 7070 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk
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