Archives: Speakers

Maja Corridon is the Director of Spa and Recreation at Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers, a position she assumed in April 2024 after leaving Marriott Resort Palm Jumeirah, Dubai.
In her current role, she oversees the day-to-day operations of the 13 treatment room spa and recreation facilities, ensuring exceptional guest experiences while driving revenue and operational success. She also plays a key role in strategic planning, budget management, and staff development.
Before joining Conrad Abu Dhabi, Maja was the Director of Spa & Recreation at Marriott Resort Palm Jumeirah. Dubai, where she oversaw the spa’s operations, including gym facilities, the kids club, and pool and beach services. This role involved supervising the overall performance of these diverse areas, ensuring they aligned with the resort’s high standards, and contributing to the resort’s financial success. During her tenure at Marriott, she achieved significant milestones, including leading the pre-opening team and consistently surpassing revenue and performance targets.
She also contributed as a Marriott International EMEA Guest Experience Advisory Board Member for Abu Dhabi-based spas.
Maja brings extensive international experience, having worked in the USA, Middle East, and the Balkan Peninsula. Her journey into the spa industry began in Kuwait, where she started a small day spa that grew into a successful beauty retreat. She holds a B.A. from the College of Architecture at the University of Sarajevo and an Esthetician license from Denver, Colorado, USA.

In a career spanning 25 years in the hospitality industry, Luigi brings with him extensive experience in culinary management and a passion for delivering exceptional dining experiences.
With a dynamic background, Luigi has honed his skills alongside renowned chefs with Michelin awards, including working at Gordon Ramsay Holdings in London, where he served as Senior Chef de Partie. His leadership journey continued as Director of F&B and Culinary Operations at the Waldorf Astoria, DIFC, Dubai in 2021, and as Cluster Head Chef at Jumeirah Emirates Towers in 2013 to 2016. Notably, Luigi also held the esteemed position of Group Director of F&B at Gargash Group in 2023, overseeing a diverse portfolio of brands across the UAE and UK, including The Artisan, Weslodge Saloon, Hotel Cartagena, and Farzi.
Throughout his career, Luigi has garnered significant recognition for his culinary success, earning accolades such as The Power List ‘Executive Chef’ in Hotelier Middle East 2021, and Most Commented Executive Chef of the Year in Hotelier Middle East 2020. Additionally, he has been honored with the Culinary Excellence Award in Hospitality Middle East 2019 and named Chef of the Year in BBC Good Food Middle East 2018, among numerous other prestigious awards. With his unparalleled expertise and distinguished track record, Luigi Vespero is set to make a lasting mark as the Cluster Director of Food and Beverage Experiences at Fairmont Dubai Sheikh Zayed Road, Ajman, and Fujairah.
As a dynamic leader, Luigi is committed to fostering a culture of excellence among staff members, ensuring that every guest experience surpasses expectations. He will oversee all aspects of F&B operations, innovative revenue strategies, and crafting seasonal offerings that resonate with the community’s palate.
Luigi Vespero, with his visionary leadership and profound expertise, will play a pivotal role in propelling the hotels’ F&B department towards new horizons of culinary innovation, guest satisfaction and operational excellence. His unwavering commitment to culinary excellence, coupled with his ability to oversee various aspects of F&B operations, positions him as an invaluable asset in steering Fairmont Hotels towards continued success.

Christer Nilsson is a dynamic entrepreneur and the CEO of Replior, bringing over 30 years of leadership experience in IT, Finance, and Life Sciences. Throughout his career, he has successfully launched and managed several businesses with a strong focus on innovation and customer satisfaction. At Replior, Mr. Nilsson is committed to a transparent and honest approach, ensuring that clients’ needs are at the heart of every decision. He leads the integration of cutting-edge digital endpoints, sensor technology, and gamification strategies into clinical research solutions, aimed at reducing patient dropout and increasing compliance. Under his leadership, Replior is pioneering a more patient-centric and effective model for clinical trials.

Julia Field is a Sr. Product Manager in the Clinical Trials Division at Thermo Fisher Scientific supporting clinical labels and packaging with a focus on clinical supply technology and innovation. Julia has a background in biological sciences and has previously worked in the Biologicals and Chemicals and Bioproduction Divisions at Thermo Fisher Scientific since 2016,  as well as previous experience in clinical diagnostics and devices.

Developing and managing clinical trial budgets and timelines
Overseeing the selection and management of vendors and sites
Developing and reviewing study protocols, informed consent forms, case report forms, monitoring plans, and other essential documents
Ensuring compliance with GCP, SOPs, and regulatory requirements
Training and mentoring clinical research associates and other staff
Monitoring and reporting on the progress and quality of clinical trials
Identifying and mitigating risks that may impact clinical delivery
Liaising with internal and external stakeholders, such as sponsors, investigators, etc.

Experienced outsourcing professional with passion for clinical technology and clinical research in the oncology field.

Results-oriented, motivational strategic leader with extensive experience in developing, launching, and managing global projects. Adept at managing CMC activities from initial product development stages, supporting regulatory submissions, product launch, and ensuring stable commercial supply. Capacity for communication, collaboration, and leadership, establishing relationships with multidisciplinary teams internally and externally engaging business development partners and contract manufacturing sites for outsourced work to facilitate project goals.

Dedicated Quality Assurance Leader who excels at phase-appropriate development/redevelopment, management and strengthening of an organization’s Quality Culture to ensure a constant state of Inspection Preparedness & Readiness by:

– establishing/re-aligning a current state feedback loop which utilizes close to real-time data, Quality metrics & Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s);

– creating robust assessment and evaluation programs that builds sensitivity, accountability, transparency and awareness collaboratively to constantly reduce Cost of Quality;

– developing a strategic approach of continuous improvement to a Company’s Quality Management System Elements which remain in a state of control.

Sweep cofounder and CEO Rachel Delacour is an award-wining repeat entrepreneur with a background in finance. In 2009, she cofounded BIME Analytics, a pioneering business intelligence SaaS which was acquired by US customer service company Zendesk six years later. Rachel worked there as General Manager until she decided to use her talent to help clean the climate mess with Sweep.

Thibault Renaud’s motto in life and at work is: “Learn stuff and have fun.” He practices that by collaborating with various internal and external experts, challenging the status quo, and looking for better and new innovative ways of operating.

Thibault joined GE Healthcare in 2014 and has been promoted into different Supply Chain roles such as Sourcing and Logistic Strategy before joining Cytiva’s first working group on Sustainability in January 2020. In early 2021, Thibault’s responsibilities increased to lead a program identifying and achieving sustainability targets in our packaging, logistics, sourcing, and carbon management. He now leads the Sustainability transformation Strategy effort across Cytiva.

Thibault views his role as an enabler to help all associates and partners to understand, measure, and act on Sustainability in order to accelerate the decarbonization of the company and the industry.