Session Overview

Boards receive financial reports, risk updates, compliance papers, and performance packs.

But how often do they receive a clear, honest picture of what it actually feels like to be one of their tenants?

That question matters more than ever.

In a post Grenfell, post Awaab Ishak environment, customer insight and tenant voice can no longer sit at the edge of the organisation. They belong much closer to the centre of governance, challenge, and decision making.

Yet too often, boards are still presented with insight that is thin, lagging, overly curated, or too detached from the lived reality behind it.

They see satisfaction scores without understanding what is driving them.

They hear about complaints without seeing the pattern beneath them.

They review strategies without knowing whether tenants would recognise their own experience in them.

In this fireside chat, Vinay Parmar will explore why customer insight should not be treated as a reporting exercise or an operational afterthought, but as one of the most powerful tools a board has to ask better questions, challenge more effectively, and make better decisions.

Drawing on three decades of frontline, executive, and boardroom experience, Vinay Parmar will bring a practical, cross sector perspective on what good insight really looks like, why organisations fall into the reporting trap, and what it takes to build a culture where customer understanding genuinely shapes action.

What the session will cover

• Why customer insight belongs in the boardroom, not just in operational reports
• The trap many organisations fall into when insight becomes reporting rather than action
• The difference between data and genuine understanding, and why organisations often confuse the two
• What good insight actually looks like at board level
• How boards can use customer insight to challenge strategy, scrutinise performance, and hold the executive to account
• How to spot the warning signs of a weak insight culture before drift turns into bigger risk

What you’ll take away:

• A clearer understanding of why customer insight is a governance issue, not just an operational one
• Sharper questions boards can ask to get beyond the surface and understand what tenants are really experiencing
• Practical ways to assess whether the insight your board receives is genuinely useful
• A fresh outside in perspective on what better looks like when tenant voice is embedded into decision making
• More confidence to challenge when the insight in front of you is thin, overly curated, or simply not good enough

About the speaker

Vinay Parmar – Keynote Speaker & Trust and Culture Expert

Vinay Parmar is one of the UK’s leading voices on trust, loyalty and customer experience. He works with organisations to help them understand how trust is built, how culture is felt, and why the smallest interactions often have the biggest impact on reputation, loyalty and long-term success.

Drawing on decades of experience, Vinay brings a practical and thought-provoking perspective on what it really takes to create organisations where people feel valued, trusted and willing to stay connected. His work helps leaders move beyond theory and think more clearly about how culture is shaped in the everyday moments that matter most.

Who should attend?

This session is ideal for:

• Board members and Chairs who want to understand their role in shaping organisational culture
• Chief Executives who want board colleagues to be better partners on culture and trust
• Governance and Company Secretary leads thinking about how culture features in board reporting
• HR and People Directors who want board-level buy-in for culture as a strategic priority
• Anyone in the sector who has sat in a board meeting and wondered why nobody is talking about what it’s actually like to be a tenant — or a member of staff