Building Trust and Inspiring Action Through Better Communication

• 22 May
• 3pm BST / 9am CDT / 10am EDT

Authority or approachability – do leaders really have to choose?

Too often, senior leaders feel the pressure to project strength at the expense of connection. But what if the real power lies in being both credible and relatable?

Join Alex Bailey on the orange sofas as we explore how coaching can transform the way leaders communicate – helping them to build trust, inspire action, and connect in ways that truly resonate. Alex and her guests will share insights and experiences that challenge traditional leadership norms.

We’ll be asking the big questions facing leaders today:

• Where do communication blind spots hold leaders back?
• What sets apart leaders who are seen – and felt – as human first?
• How can we move from transactional conversations to meaningful connections?

Join us for a conversation designed to leave you thinking differently about what it means to lead and communicate in today’s world.

Roundtable virtual event

Trust & Action Through Better Communication

• Wednesday 14 May 2025
• 7pm GMT / 1pm CST / 2pm EST

Top-level leaders often struggle to balance authority with approachability. This discussion focuses on helping the C-suite communicate authentically, connect meaningfully, and build trust in ways that resonate across the organisation.

Questions we’ll cover include:

• How can coaching address communication blind spots in senior leaders?
• What are the hallmarks of a leader who connects as a human first?

Experience a Taster of Our Strengths Programme

Creating a human experience in the workplace starts with fostering a culture that celebrates and utilises the unique strengths and capabilities of each individual. Our strengths programme offers a powerful way to achieve this by helping organisations tap into what makes each person truly unique.

When we leverage our strengths, it’s like flipping on a personal power switch – we feel more alive, engaged, and enthusiastic. Unlike knowledge or skills, strengths are found in the things we love doing because they come naturally to us. These human strengths are what define our individuality, and when embraced, they enable people and teams to thrive.

These taster sessions offers a glimpse into how our workshops can help your organisation build a strengths-based culture, unlocking potential and fostering growth.

Tuesday 27 May at 3pm BST

Social Imagination Powered by AI

• 26 June
• 3pm BST / 9am CDT / 10am EDT

Can AI make us more human? It’s a question we don’t often ask, but perhaps we should.

Join Alex and her guests as they explore how AI can enhance – not replace – our ability to imagine new solutions to the world’s most complex challenges. We’ll discuss how AI and human creativity can work hand-in-hand to shape the future of problem-solving and connection.

This event is for everyone looking to rethink what’s possible. We’ll unpack:

• How AI can expand perspectives and inspire fresh thinking about societal issues
• What’s needed to keep AI grounded in human values and imagination
• How organisations can lead the way in blending technology with humanity

It’s about using AI to think bigger, challenge assumptions, and imagine new ways forward.

Pull up a seat and join the conversation that could change the way you see technology – and yourself.

Roundtable virtual event

Social Imagination Powered by AI

• Wednesday 11 June 2025
• 7pm GMT / 1pm CST / 2pm EST

AI has opened new frontiers for innovation, but its most powerful potential may lie in enhancing our ability to imagine solutions to complex social challenges. This roundtable explores how organisations can combine AI’s capabilities with human creativity to unlock new possibilities.

Questions we’ll cover include:

• How can AI be leveraged to broaden our perspectives on societal issues?
• What safeguards are needed to ensure AI supports rather than limits social imagination?

Leading Through Change: The Role of Psychological Flexibility

• 12 June
• Unispace HQ, London

Change is a constant, but how we respond to it can make all the difference. This event brings together HR leaders and workplace strategy experts for an honest, practical conversation about what it really takes to lead well through uncertainty. Hosted in partnership with Unispace, we’ll explore how psychological flexibility helps teams and individuals stay grounded, focused, and ready for whatever’s next.

At the heart of the session is our TeamFlow Conversation Mat – a tool that helps teams navigate change in a structured, meaningful way. This guided group activity creates space for real connection, reflection and insight, making it easier to have the conversations that matter most.

Register here

Whether you’re shaping culture, designing future-ready workplaces or supporting teams through transformation, this is a session to inspire fresh thinking and real connection.

Interested in creating something similar for your team? We run engaging group mat sessions for organisations of all sizes – get in touch to explore what Bailey & French could create with you.

Roundtable virtual event

The Psychology of Motivation in Times of Change

• Wednesday 16 July 2025
• 7pm BST / 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT

Most motivation strategies fail because they treat people like machines – reward, punish, repeat. But humans aren’t machines, and change disrupts motivation in complex ways.

We’ll explore:

• The psychology of motivation – why traditional tactics fail in changing environments
• How to create cultures where people feel energised, not just obligated
• What actually sustains motivation over time

Change doesn’t have to drain motivation – it can fuel it. When people feel ownership, mastery, and connection, performance follows.

Roundtable virtual event

Why Meaning at Work Is Evolving (And How to Keep Up)

• Wednesday 13 August 2025
• 7pm BST / 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT

We hear it all the time: People need purpose to be engaged at work. But here’s the truth: People need different things at different times.

In a world of constant change, organisations must stop trying to manufacture purpose and start focusing on what truly drives engagement.

• Why “purpose” alone isn’t enough – and what actually makes work meaningful
• How autonomy, mastery, and belonging create lasting engagement
• How leaders can help people find meaning in change, rather than fear it

Purpose isn’t a job title – it’s how people experience their work daily.

Roundtable virtual event

Innovation AND Execution: Making Change Happen Without Losing Focus

• Wednesday 10 September 2025
• 7pm BST / 1pm CDT / 2pm EDT

Organisations don’t suffer from a lack of ideas – they suffer from a lack of follow-through. Too often, leaders are told to pick a lane: drive innovation or deliver results. But the best organisations do both.

In this roundtable, we’ll explore how top companies are balancing creativity with clarity, and turning big ideas into business impact.

We’ll cover:

• Why innovation needs structure, not chaos
• How to create focus without stifling creativity
• The leadership mindset shift from “either/or” to “and/also”

This is a conversation for leaders who want to think big and deliver – and bring their people with them.

Women Leaders Live Roundtable: Leadership Challenges in 2025

Leadership today is full of complexity – navigating change, making decisions with limited certainty, and balancing growing demands. But beyond the usual challenges, there are deeper questions we don’t always ask.

• How do we build confidence early in our careers?
• Is imposter syndrome really self-doubt, or a reaction to the subtle cues we receive from others?
• Do we need role models, or is a strong support network more valuable?

Join Alex Bailey and a panel of women leaders for an open, thought-provoking conversation on what it really takes to lead with clarity and conviction. We’ll explore the realities of leadership today, challenge common assumptions, and share practical insights to help leaders at every level find their voice, trust their intuition, and make an impact.

Expect honest reflections, fresh perspectives, and ideas you can apply straight away. Let’s rethink what great leadership looks like – together.

World Sustainable Procurement Day 2025

Alex recently spoke at World Sustainable Procurement Day on March 20-21, 2025, a global event dedicated to advancing sustainable sourcing practices. This annual gathering celebrates progress, shares key learnings, and equips procurement professionals worldwide with the insights and tools to embed sustainability into decision-making. Alex brought a unique perspective on human-centred leadership, exploring how procurement can drive both commercial success and long-term positive impact for people and the planet.

Leadership Mindsets Unleashed: The Hidden Power of Workplace Influencers

How to Spot and Develop Your Workplace Influencers

Not all leaders have titles. Some of the most impactful people in your organisation shape culture and drive behaviours through trust, connection, and influence – not authority. But how do you spot these influencers, and more importantly, how do you nurture their mindset to help them thrive?

Watch Alex and special guest Jean Gomes as they settle into our iconic orange sofas for a thought-provoking discussion on how workplace influencers contribute to transformation.

Influence isn’t just about hierarchy; it’s about impact. In a world where informal networks often rival formal structures, recognising these influencers and empowering them with the right mindset could be the key to driving sustainable cultural change.

Key topics explored were:

• What are the tell-tale signs of a workplace influencer with the right mindset?
• How can you develop their mindset to amplify their impact and sustain momentum?

The Human-Technical Balance in Skills-Based Organisations

We talk a lot about skills these days – building them, measuring them, mapping them. But when did human skills become an afterthought?

In our rush to adopt skills-based strategies, are we sidelining the very qualities that make us human? Authenticity, collaboration, adaptability – the glue that holds high-performing teams together. So how do we keep them central when technical know-how takes the spotlight?

Watch Alex and special guest Sukhvinder Pabial, L&D Delivery and Ops Lead at Marks and Spencer, as they tackle these questions head-on.

Leaders face a challenge – balancing the push for technical expertise with the need to nurture human connection and resilience. This isn’t just about trends; it’s about future-proofing our workplaces.

• Can human skills really be measured in the same way as technical ones?

• What’s working right now to embed these skills at every level of the organisation?

Wellbeing and Human Sustainability

For 20 years, kids have learned at school to reuse, recycle, and save the world, only to enter workplaces where ESG/CSR targets are detached from human experience, focusing instead on regulatory demands, missing the importance of human survival on the planet. We’ve taught new generations to care about our world but disempowered them at work, creating feelings of organisational betrayal.

Since 2015, UK organisations have focused on wellbeing due to rising mental health issues, introducing initiatives like physical health benefits and resilience workshops. However, global crises have outpaced these efforts.

We must recognise that our impact on the world is damaging our wellbeing and shift our priorities for the future of work. Join Chris, Kirsten, and Alex for a candid discussion on leading wellbeing culture in organisations, exploring trends, challenges, the 2024 focus decline, and the urgent actions needed to prioritise wellbeing.

What does it mean to be human?
Anticipating and Shaping Tomorrow

In Part Two of our ‘Human Series’, Alex and her guests dissect the profound question of what it means to be human in today’s world. They explore how the four key aspects of human leadership – Authenticity, Inclusivity, Role modelling, and Human connectors can steer us toward a more sustainable and resilient future.

Now, we extend this understanding to our place on the planet amidst a climate emergency. Inspired by Martin Seligman’s work, particularly his book ‘Homo Prospectus,’ we see the importance of humans’ ability to look ahead and imagine future possibilities.

Watch as we delve into how collective imagination and prospection can drive us forward. Discover how we can, together shape the future, protect our planet, and pioneer a new understanding of human potential and resilience.

Propelling Humanity Forward: The Key to Collective Imagination

In Part Three of our ‘Human Series’, Alex and Chris Yates (Senior Vice President, Head of Talent at Equinix, and author) chat about what collective and social imagination is, and the effect it can have on us as humans in a world navigating the dawn of AI. Could this key mode of human prospecting propel us further than AI ever could?

Here are just a few questions they discussed during the event:

• Has collective imagination and prospecting been what’s driven our evolution all along?
• How can this understanding improve our individual and social functioning?
• Is this our step forward and upwards from AI?

Planet at the Core:
Redefining People Strategies for Sustainability

In Part Four of our ‘Human Series’, Alex and Kerri took a deep dive into the concept of a “Human Planet” – a perspective that goes beyond “world” or “globe” to highlight our connection to space, nature, and the urgency of the climate emergency. This thought-provoking session explored why organisations often overlook this vital perspective when redefining people strategies for sustainability.

Key questions were at the heart of the discussion:

• Are humans uniquely equipped to solve this self-induced problem?
• Is collective imagination key to addressing our planetary crisis?

The session emphasised the importance of creating a “human planet” mindset that unites us all, equipping people with the tools and confidence to contribute meaningfully while fostering psychological safety to encourage bold, impactful actions.

If you missed it, stay tuned for highlights and insights that will inspire you to rethink your strategies for a sustainable future.

Shiny Happy People Podcast

Alex appeared on the Shiny Happy People podcast for a discussion about Humanising Work with Vinay Kumar.

In this business podcast that is all about people, Vinay Kumar – interviews leaders, thinkers, strategists, and doers to reveal actionable insights, first-hand experiences, smart strategies, brilliant tips and lesser-known best practices on a range of subjects in business leadership and people management, from innovation, DEI, facilitation, technology, future of the workforce and sustainability to evolution of leadership, storytelling, negotiation, digital learning, mental wellbeing, the art of staying positive and even water wars!

2024 Showreel

Here’s a glimpse into the incredible conversations and collaborations we’ve had in 2024. From thought-provoking live events with inspiring guests to impactful partnerships with leading organisations, it highlights the work we’ve been doing to humanise the world of work. Watch now and see how we’re helping people and teams thrive.