Upskilling & Retaining Your Leaders: How LRQA Leverages Level 7 Apprenticeships

Global Head of Employee Experience, LRQA

Naomi Armitage is a senior people leader with deep expertise in leadership, learning and development, talent acquisition and cultural transformation. As Global Head of Employee Experience at LRQA, she leads on building high-performing, inclusive teams and delivering people strategies that align with complex, values-led organisational goals.

With nearly two decades of experience across regulated, fast-moving industries, Naomi is known for her strategic mindset, collaborative leadership, and ability to deliver innovative, commercially focused learning and retention strategies that make a lasting impact. She is a passionate advocate for employee wellbeing and professional education, and brings real-world insight on how to embed meaningful development into every stage of the employee lifecycle.

Martynas Kaziunas is Vice President of Business Development at Hult International Business School, with over 20 years of experience driving growth and engagement across global markets. For the past 12 years in the education sector, Martynas has helped hundreds of organisations unlock the potential of their people—from boardroom executives to early-career talent—through world-class leadership development. A passionate advocate for the apprenticeship levy as a transformative tool for organisational growth, Martynas combines strategic vision with practical, results-driven insight to help employers align learning investments with long-term business impact.

Cheryl Nelson is Director of Client Relations at Hult International Business School and a specialist in leadership and workforce development, partnering with HR and L&D leaders to design apprenticeship programmes that deliver real results. At Hult, she helps organisations make the most of their levy funding by aligning leadership development with strategic goals—boosting capability, engagement, and organisational performance. With a career spanning senior commercial and workforce development roles, Cheryl is passionate about translating learning into measurable impact.