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On June 4th, people from across handl Group congregated at Manchester’s Voco hotel for our annual conference. Along with the usual blend of insights, updates and networking opportunities, we also decided to mix things up this year with something a little different for the afternoon.
More on that later.
But the day started, as always, with an introduction from group CEO Graham Pulford to lay out the event’s agenda. Because we’re better as a group, the theme of the day would be getting to understand each other. Something we’d revisit in the afternoon…
Finance update – a continued upward trend
First up on the stage was Ian Robins with his annual financial update. After taking a few moments to explain the issues with Liverpool FC’s spending compared to their results, Ian moved on to a more successful organisation – handl Group.
For the second year running, we’ve been recognised as one of the region’s fastest-growing companies, something borne out by the numbers for the financial year ending 2025 and our predicted figures for 2026.
With the accounts shared, Ian handed over to our next speaker.
Key takeaway: Things are going well, and with a renewed focus on cash generation they should keep going well in future.
AI – the good, the bad and the ugly
After the financial update from Ian Robins, divisional CTO Ant Eeles weighed in on one of the most pressing topics of the day. Artificial intelligence.
Despite widespread adoption of AI across the whole population, 60% of UK businesses have no meaningful AI policies or plans. Only 5% have implemented any meaningful changes. Ant’s presentation would prime group leaders on what they needed to know to start closing that policy gap.
First up – the good. Whether it’s Generative AI, Retrieval Augmented Generation or Agentic AI, the rise of AI tools presents a real opportunity for all of handl’s divisions. Rapid transcription and summarising can help boost customer service, auditing is simpler than ever, and development costs are falling thanks to easy access to AI-generated boilerplate code.
But that doesn’t mean we can rush in without any care or thought. AI systems are built to please. They’ve been known to “hallucinate,” inventing information or presenting fiction as fact. They aren’t always up to date, and – of particularly importance for our health and wellbeing and complex rehabilitation divisions – there are worries that AI can amplify systemic bias. Plus, without investment in training on AI tools, there’s always the risk of the wrong prompts creating the wrong outputs.
And finally, the ugly. AI trains itself on the data you input. Ant was keen to impress that we all need robust data protection policies and usage guidelines to stop AI tools storing and republishing potentially sensitive information.
It’s not as simple as handing everyone on the team a Claude or ChatGPT subscription. We need to look at training, usage and ownership of AI within our businesses, as well as focusing on what helps our brands stand out in a world where everyone is using AI.
The robots won’t replace us, but we need to make sure we’re using them safely, sensibly, and to their potential.
Key takeaway: When it comes to AI, always keep humans in the loop!
Adapting to the new employment law landscape
After a coffee break, Heather from our legal partners CG filled in the group’s leaders on upcoming changes to employment law.
With headline-grabbing amendments to the way unfair dismissals are handled (with unlimited compensation), changes to statutory sick pay and family rights, and new rules around flexible working, employee protections are now much stricter.
That means it’s more important than ever to put the right people in the right place at the right time. Hiring the right people, training them well, and supporting them so they’re set up for continued success means that our businesses shouldn’t fall foul of any rules around redundancies. Plus new guidelines around parental leave and bereavements mean that the law is finally catching up with some of the policies already in place around the group.
Heather was keen to explain that nothing would pose much of a risk to the way the group’s businesses operate, but we all need to make sure to bear the new rules in mind when bringing on new staff.
Key takeaway: It’s more important than ever to get hiring right.
Protecting your business from scams
The day’s final speakers, Martin and Samara from NatWest, used their time to provide some welcome reminders about the threats that scams pose to everyone – both personally and professionally.
Scams haven’t changed fundamentally since the days of the infamous “Nigerian Prince” email – it’s still malicious actors trying to get their hands on your money or data. But the tools and techniques used have become far more nuanced.
After explaining how social media and public records can be used to build profiles, Samara showed how AI had made it easier than ever to use voice cloning to run phone scams.
But – she explained – scams rely on people jumping to conclusions and acting too quickly. When we’re pressured, we make mistakes. So the best thing to do is take a breath, think, and look for any telltale giveaways.
Plus, you should always keep your passwords secure!
Key takeaway: Pause, check and protect!
handl on the town
In a change to the usual schedule of talks, lunch, talks, we split our delegates into teams for the afternoon and sent them off out into the wilds of Manchester to tackle a range of group tasks. The winning team would receive a prize, after a last-minute demand from divisional MD Sue Henry, and we saw some fantastic efforts.
We won’t name names or share any embarrassing photos, but we definitely saw our teams build some real camaraderie as they indulged in some interpretive dance, fine art recreations and jingle writing on the streets of the city centre.
From beatboxing and tongue-twisters to parkour and bee impressions, we certainly made an impression on each other – and on bewildered passers-by.
Key takeaway: If we’ll go to these lengths for a Selfridges voucher, imagine what we’d do for our clients!
Team spirit successfully boosted, we returned to the Voco for a highlight reel of everyone’s efforts, followed by the traditional post-conference networking, meal and entertainment.
Thanks to everyone who attended, and especially to our three amazing events organisers – Emily, Georgia and Jessica.
We’ll see you all next year!
