Mental Health in the Workplace

Peter Diaz

CEO of the Workplace Mental Health Institute

As CEO of the Workplace Mental Health Institute, Peter and his global team show organisations how to enhance performance, productivity and profitability by strengthening employee mental health, wellbeing and resilience.

Peter is a dynamic and thought provoking speaker, who has spoken on stages in the USA, Australia, Europe, and South Africa on the topics of workplace mental health, leadership, resilience and emotional intelligence.

He is also the author of ‘Mental Wealth: An Essential Guide to Workplace Mental Health’ and ‘Reclaim Your Power’.

Peter’s professional experience includes positions as a visiting fellow of the University of Wollongong, field educator for the Australian Catholic University, President of the New South Wales Association of Social Workers, and psychological injury expert for GIO and Senior Manager of Community Mental Health not for profit.

Within these fields, he is also well known for his expertise in change management, and the development of Recovery Oriented programs and workforces.

Peter has interviewed business giants like Steve Wozniak (co-founder of Apple), and Randi Zuckerberg (marketing genius behind Facebook), and has featured in numerous media publications including BBC, SBS, ABC, Business Insider, Daily Telegraph and Woman’s Day.

Peter’s mission is to revolutionise the way mental health is approached around the world, by providing cutting edge, unique, and honest education and consultancy to workplaces, that get real results – both for the business and the people in it.

Nelly Hristova

Managing Partner, InManagement Ltd.

Nelly Hristova has nearly 20 years of managerial experience. She is one of the founders of InManagement – an organizational consulting company. Specializes in the fields of strategic management, organizational design, process mapping and optimization, managing change and leadership development.

She has successfully completed many projects in these fields for companies from various industries (retail, IT, automotive, media, outsourcing, manufacturing, pharma etc.), national and multinational. Nemetscheck Bulgaria, Neopharm Bulgaria, Integrated Micro-electronics Bulgaria, Titan Zlatna Panega, Playtech, Anakatech, Draft Kings, WoerwagPharma Bulgaria are just a small part of the organizations she is working with.

Before founding InManagement, for a period of 7 years she held different strategic positions as a part of the top management team of Economedia – HR Manager, Director of Finance and Administration, Procurator, and Member of the Board of Directors. She has been responsible for the management of the daughters' companies of the media group.

Nelly holds a master’s in law from Sofia University. She studied Management and Development of the Human Capital in the School of Management - NBU, has completed several courses on Strategic Management, Leadership,

Business Communication and Corporate Finances in Cotrugli Business School (Zagreb) and holds specializations in Managing Change and Project Management. 

In the period of 2008-2013 Nelly Hristova has been a member of the Management Board of the Bulgarian Assassination for People Management (BAPM) and presently is a Chairman of the Supervisory Board and member of the HR Certification Council of the association. She is an author of many publications in the fields of organizational development and strategic management.

Slavy Stoev

Psychologist, Partner in InManagement

Slavy Stoev is a psychologist with almost 20 years of experience in supporting people and their development using the methods of cognitive-behavioural therapy, motivational interviewing, coaching, training and facilitation therapeutic groups.

He has managed and delivered many leadership and mental-health programs for companies from different business areas, and through coaching methodologies, he has helped many people reach their development goals.

He is working with both individuals, as well as teams, and has vast experience in the delivery, facilitation and effectiveness measurement of organizational training programs for leaders and employees. 
 
Slavy’s professional interests focus on the topics of burnout prevention and the development of skills across the emotional intelligence spectrum to enhance the quality of life of the people he works with. He is the host of the "Natural Intellect" (Естествен интелект) - a podcast, dedicated to these topics.

He has authored many articles, related to mental-health and leadership. Furthermore, Slavy also writes children books, aimed at early development of emotional intelligence in kids.

Mila Valkova

Senior Recruitment and Employer Branding Manager at Kaufland Bulgaria

Mila Valkova is Senior Manager "Recruitment and Employer Branding" in Kaufland Bulgaria. She is responsible for both the recruitment of staff in all company structures and the development of processes and programs for Kaufland's employer brand. Mila has over 8 years of experience in the field of human resources. Before joining the team of Kaufland Bulgaria, she developed professionally in two of the largest outsourcing companies in Bulgaria – TELUS International and Sutherland. There she has consistently held the positions of Human Resources Analyst, Talent Attraction Specialist and Senior Talent Attraction Specialist. Mila Valkova holds a Master's degree in Human Resources and a Bachelor of Political Science from the University of National and World Economy. She is fluent in German and English.

George Brashnarov

CEO of Nemetschek Bulgaria

Starting off back in the 90s as an experienced construction engineer specialized in computer science and programming, George Brashnarov has since become one of the leading local examples of entrepreneurship and forward thinking.
As CEO and majority owner of the leading multinational software company Nemetschek Bulgaria, George Brashnarov has worked for decades to modernize and elevate the employer-employee relationship to a new level.
Led by the belief that cutting edge companies should adopt a "people first" approach, George has set a positive example of how to enhance team effectiveness and optimize business processes by providing various support services to employees. Just as a small example, Nemetschek Bulgaria has a well-established Personal Development Program including courses, classes and trainings; its employees have access to professional psychotherapy and individual coaching with a high degree of individualized attention, tailored to their needs.
Creating the right kind of working environment is crucial but providing continuous help is even more important to guarantee everyone's well-being, asserts George.
Apart from a founding member and longtime chairman of the board of Bulgarian Association of Software Companies (BASSCOM), George is also serving as a Chairman of the European Software Institute - Center Eastern Europe (ESI CEE) and Vice President of the European Digital SME Alliance in Brussels. Since 1998 he has been the General Manager of Nemetschek Ltd Bulgaria, primarily owned by Nemetschek AG, Munich, but currently operating as an independent software solution provider for the global market after MBO, led by him in 2002.

Elena Colmenero

Regional People & Culture Head EU, Philip Morris International

Elena Colmenero is a professional with almost 20 years of experience in the field of human resources. In line with her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the Autonomus University of Madrid, she started her career path as training and development specialist in a leading financial service company. In the spring of 2009 Elena joined Philip Morris in her home country Spain on the position of Manager Human Recourses Business Partner. With focus on the development, the fulfillment and the motivation of the company’s employees, Elena managed to grow in the internal structure and became an invaluable part of Philip Morris International's transformation force dedicated to achieving a smoke-free future. In the beginning of 2018 Elena became Regional People & Culture Head for Europe, located in the headquarters of the company in Lausanne, Switzerland.
 

Adam Frantzis

General Manager of Zlatna Panega AD

Adam Frantzis is the General Manager of Zlatna Panega AD, a subsidiary of Titan Cement International. A seasoned cement professional has spent his professional career working for various industries in several countries around the globe.He started his career as a civil engineer, working in USA and in Italy for an engineering consultancy firms.  He moved to computer and IT industry in Sales and Business development, led an internet and online service when internet was at its first steps and joined Titan Cement in the beginning of the millennium. Since then he had several assignments for Titan in various countries such as Egypt, Serbia, Albania and Bulgaria moving through various functions in the organization.  He likes to challenge the way things are done, to accept new challenges and to learn new things and to get out of his comfort zone, to implement changes; he stands firm to his values and cares for the people working around him.  Parallel to his work, he contributed to various organizations and associations. To mention only a few, he founded Corporate Social Responsibility Network in Albania, which he served as a President, Vice president of Hellenic Business Association and a member of the Board of Foreign Investment Council in Albania, as member and as President of the Board of Bulgarian Cement Association, a member of CEMbureau (the European Cement Association) and others.He holds a diploma in Civil Engineering from National Technical University of Athens and a MSc from Carnegie Mellon University in USA. His wife and his two sons are his support, his comfort and a fixed point of reference in his life.

Sirma Penkova

Journalist, Capital Weekly

Zornitsa Stoilova

Editorial director, The Recursive

Zornitsa is an editorial director at The Recursive, an online media, focused on emerging tech and startup ecosystems in SouthEast Europe (SEE). 
Prior to that she has 13 years of experience as reporter and editor at Capital. 
Zornitsa is also keen in podcasting. Currently she’s producing The Recursive Podcast, which tells inspiring stories about leadership and innovation from different corners of SouthEast Europe. Before that she produced and hosted the weekly podcast The Voice of Capital.