Redundancy done right

The session will be in two parts, handling redundancies - best practice, hints and tips including looking after the survivors and how to manage outplacement support.

There will be signposting to useful CIPD resources and other reputable resources.

It will be led by Laura Mathews and Suzanne Penny, two committee members who specialise in these areas.

Suzanne Penny is the founder of Empowered Space, a Gloucestershire-based people development company specialising in career transition, leadership training and coaching. With over 20 year’s experience in outplacement, recruitment, and L&D, Suzanne has supported thousands of individuals through redundancy and career transitions while working as a coach for large outplacement companies.

As a firm believer that change brings opportunity, Suzanne launched her business to offer a more people centred approach to career development. She empowers people to take control of their careers and provide support and guidance to successfully navigate transitions. Additionally, Suzanne works with leaders and teams to enhance collaboration, improve communication, adopt a growth mindset, and thrive in today’s ever-evolving work environment.

With over 26 years of experience in HR, Laura Mathews is not your typical HR consultant. A Chartered Fellow of the CIPD and Co-Chair of the CIPD Branch in Gloucestershire committee, she has spent her career challenging traditional HR norms, proving that people should come before policies—and not the other way around. Having held senior HR leadership roles, including as an HR Director for a multi-million-pound student accommodation start-up, Laura has built and shaped company cultures where people don’t just work—they thrive.

Her expertise spans employee relations, leadership development, compliance, and culture transformation, but what truly sets her apart is her straight-talking, no-nonsense approach. Whether helping businesses navigate complex employment law changes, aligning HR strategy with company goals, or fostering diverse and inclusive workplaces, Laura is fearless in rethinking HR for the modern world.

Now, as the founder of epocHRebel, Laura is on a mission to redefine HR—making it more human, practical, and impactful.

Please note:

1. Webinar joining instructions will be sent to you again 1 day before the event, with a further reminder 20 minutes prior to the event starting.
2. The session may be recorded and shared with people afterwards. Please bear this in mind and have your camera off if you do not wish for your image to be shared.
3. The chat function will be used for participants to engage with the webinar, so just be mindful of the login name you use and ensure you are happy for other people to see this.
4. For security reasons, it is requested that participants join the live session 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time and with the same name as registered on Eventbrite - not doing so may cause a delay or non-admittance to the event.
5. This event may include an external speaker who has prepared their own presentation. Any views or opinions expressed by the speaker are their own and do not reflect those of the CIPD.
6. Please note that refunds for CIPD Non-Member tickets will only be available until 7 days prior to the event, any cancelled tickets after this will not receive a refund.
7. If you require any reasonable adjustments to enhance your experience, please get in contact with us by responding to this email and we will do our best to accommodate.