Getting ready for ALTC 2026

Croeso i Gaerdydd! Welcome to Cardiff!

It’s not long before ALT’s Annual Conference 2026, and this year the event is coming to Cardiff – and I am very excited to be speaking at the conference for the first time since 2023 when I stepped down as CEO of ALT.

I am looking forward to the opportunity to share my work and get feedback from peers, and the workshop I am leading is called “Leadership Capabilities for the Future of Education”.

Below is a quick preview of what’s in store, and the session takes place on Wednesday, 21st October at 12:10. Looking forward to seeing you there 🙂

Workshop Preview

Inspired by the conference theme “Digital Ecosystems for Lifelong Learning”, this workshop offers a reflective and practical approach to developing digital leadership capabilities for managers and leaders.

Digital capabilities are not only relevant for learning, teaching and research, but also for the way we work and lead more generally as in Higher Education and other sectors the way we work continues to become more flexible, blended and hybrid. 

Leaders at all levels play a crucial role when it comes to translating the affordances of flexible, lifelong learning in organisations from strategic aim to lived reality. This workshop offers dedicated time to deepen your practice and pick up fresh inspiration for developing as a leader. 

Workshop outcomes

• Develop greater awareness of and reflective approaches to your leadership practice;
• Learn about practical leadership approaches to digital wellbeing;
• Explore resources for individuals and teams to reclaim the pace of digital productivity.

Workshop agenda

• Introduction and context (5 min): Quick introduction to help situate the workshop in the wider context of digital leadership and in relation to the conference theme. 
• Part 1: Leading hybrid, remote and flexible teams (15 min): participants will be guided through a reflective exercise to gain insight into their current practice and its impacts. 
• Part 2: Practical leadership approaches to digital wellbeing (15 min): anchored in digital capability frameworks, work together on translating digital wellbeing theory into practice and discuss how you could apply this in your own context to foster physical, mental and social wellbeing at work. 
• Part 3: Reclaim the pace of digital productivity (15 min): explore practical approaches to managing digital noise and notifications, and to lessen digital overwhelm using best practice examples (and worst-case experiences, too). 
• Closing reflections (10 min): participants will undertake a brief reflective exercise individually and share their closing thoughts in response to reflective prompts. 

Free printed resources will be provided to use on the day and digital versions will be available to take away. This is an interactive session, so be ready to take part in group activities and discussions. All group activities can be undertaken in a solo capacity if preferred.

Who should attend: This is a masterclass workshop designed for emerging and established leaders and anyone interested in developing their leadership capabilities. 

References

• Global Trends Towards Flexible, Hybrid Working and its Impact for Digital Leadership in Higher Education, A report by Maren Deepwell. Commissioned by the N-TUTORR National Digital Leadership Network, 2025; 
• CIPD. (2023). Flexible and hybrid working practices in 2023. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
• Digital Leadership Skills for the New Era in Education, Dr Lynne Taylerson, Digital Learning Institute, 16 April 2024;
• Leading Virtual Teams – Field Notes from a CEO by Dr Maren Deepwell, was published in 2022 as an open access publication by the Association for Learning Technology, UK. 
• Digital Learning in Higher Education – COVID-19 and beyond University of Wolverhampton, June 2022. 
• UNESCO. (2024). What you need to know about UNESCO’s new AI competency frameworks for students and teachers. UNESCO.