About This Webinar
The traditional route to leadership, degrees, linear career paths and climbing the ladder the old-fashioned way, doesn’t always translate into real progression.

Expertise alone is rarely what moves careers forward. Knowledge may open the door, but it is trust, reputation and relationships that bring the work in. The stronger the network and the deeper the credibility, the faster opportunities appear, and the closer professionals move towards partnership and senior leadership.

Melanie Mills and Becky Glover built their way to the C-suite without following a conventional path. Their careers show that sustainable growth comes from combining commercial skill with community, mentorship and personal brand, and from taking a “pay it forward” approach that builds trusted networks and stronger teams at the same time.

Their experience reframes business development as a leadership skill. It shows how non-traditional career paths can reach executive level, how community becomes a source of opportunity and referrals, and how investing in people creates more capable, commercially effective leaders.

In a world shaped by AI, human connection is becoming more valuable, not less. The ability to build trust, create meaningful relationships and turn networks into opportunity is fast becoming a defining skill for the next generation of leaders, and a new way of thinking about how careers and businesses grow.


AGENDA:

From Expertise to Opportunity
How non-traditional career paths reach senior leadership when technical expertise is combined with trust, reputation and commercial skill, and why relationships, not just qualifications, accelerate progression.

Community as a Growth Engine
Why networks, referrals and personal brand drive new business in professional services, and how mentorship and community turn connections into sustained opportunity.

Paying It Forward as a Commercial Advantage
How supporting others builds stronger teams, develops future leaders and creates trusted networks that outperform short-term sales, especially in an AI-driven world.
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Melanie Mills
Fractional CCO, PayCaptain | Founder & CEO, Connexion Career Collective
Melanie Mills is the Founder and CEO of Connexion Career Collective and Fractional Commercial Director of Paycaptain the world’s most helpful Payroll software and financial wellbeing solution. She was formerly Chief Revenue Officer at FinTechs Caxton Payments and PayDashboard, where she played a pivotal role in scaling high-growth businesses and navigating PayDashboard’s strategic acquisition by Experian.

She is a recognised thought leader in commercial leadership and growth strategy and is a results-driven, transformational leader, Melanie has led diverse, high-performing teams across B2B and B2C environments, blending sharp commercial acumen with a deeply human approach to leadership. Her work challenges traditional models of power and performance, proving that sustainable growth comes from mindset, connection and knowing when to ask for help — not hierarchy.

With a non-linear career spanning fashion to fintech, Melanie brings a distinctive perspective to modern leadership. Her “squiggly career” and experience transitioning multiple industries fuel her commitment to championing diversity of thought, doing business differently and paying it forward for others.

This passion led to the creation of Connexion Career Collective, an ambitious community designed to connect, develop, and champion women and their allies thriving in traditionally male-dominated industries and roles. Alongside this, Melanie is a Mum to Millie, avid netballer and Fight Klub advocate.
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Becky Glover
Chief Financial Officer, Mazuma | Co-Founder, Connexion Career Collective
Becky Glover is a multi-award-winning CFO and strategic business leader known for transforming organisations with technology and commercial insight. She currently serves as Chief Financial Officer at Mazuma, where she's focused on scaling the UK's first subscription-based accountancy firm. Becky’s career spans e-commerce, software, insurance and financial services, and she is recognised for translating complexity into clarity, turning performance data into action, and aligning teams around what matters most.

Alongside her executive role, Becky is a Board Member at AAT and Vice Chair of the ACCA Financial Services Sector Panel, contributing to the future direction of the profession. She is also a speaker, advisor and Co-Founder of Connexion Career Collective, a community designed to champion ambitious women and their allies in traditionally male-dominated industries. Becky is passionate about modern leadership, building inclusive teams, and using technology to create time, focus and momentum, ultimately, helping people and businesses thrive.
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