In part 2 of this conversation with Matt Robinson, co-founder of CultureNav, Dave explores what leaders can do once they truly understand their workplace culture.

The discussion moves beyond engagement surveys and employee feedback to examine how organisations can uncover the behaviours, habits and communication patterns that really influence performance. Matt explains the approach that CultureNav take in collecting the right data, and why communication consistently appears as the biggest cultural challenge. Other common issues discussed include why so many managers are promoted without being prepared for leadership, and how small, consistent behavioural changes often achieve more than large-scale transformation programmes.

The conversation also explores the importance of accountability, coaching and transparency, showing how organisations can intentionally build cultures where people perform, grow and thrive.

Key Talking Points

• Why understanding culture goes far beyond engagement surveys.
• How CultureNav uncovers the behaviours driving organisational performance.
• Why communication is the biggest challenge in most organisations.
• The hidden cost of accidental managers.
• How micro-cultures shape team performance.
• Why fast-growing organisations must design culture intentionally.
• The role of coaching and accountability in sustaining change.
• Practical actions every leader can take to improve culture.

Every organisation has a culture, but not every organisation understands it.

How do you define a workplace culture, let alone measure it!

In this first episode of a two-part conversation, Dave is joined by brand and culture specialist Matt Robinson from CultureNav to explore why this topic has become one of the greatest competitive advantages available to modern organisations.

Drawing on decades of experience working with businesses of every size, Matt shares his journey into organisational culture, explaining why leaders often confuse measures of their culture with employee engagement stats and/or workplace perks, and why genuine culture is reflected in the decisions people make every day.

The conversation explores the red flags and warning signs, highlighting why culture isn't created through mission statements or values on a wall, but through a deeper understanding of people, a focus on collaboration, connection, and empathy and consistent leadership habits and actions.

This episode lays the foundations for Part Two, where the discussion moves into how culture can be measured and developed using data-driven insights.

Key Talking Points

• Matt's leadership journey and how he became passionate about organisational culture.
• What culture means, what it is, and what it isn’t
• Why culture is increasingly becoming a strategic advantage.
• Why values only matter when they influence everyday behaviour.
• Why organisations often misunderstand the culture they have created.
• The importance of humility and curiosity in effective leadership.
• Why evidence should replace assumptions when talking about culture.
• How leaders shape culture through everyday decisions.

Are we asking the wrong question when it comes to leading across generations?

For years, leaders have been asking, “how do we manage different generations with different needs and perspectives” or sometimes more pointedly "How do we manage Gen Z" But what if these are the wrong questions entirely.

In this thought-provoking Voices of Leadership episode, Dave is joined by Cheska Wild-Brown, who works at the intersection of early careers, social mobility and organisational development. Together they challenge many of the assumptions organisations make about younger generations and explore why the future of leadership depends on creating workplaces where every generation can learn from one another.

Rather than viewing generational differences as problems to solve, Francesca argues they should be seen as opportunities to innovate, improve and strengthen organisational performance. Through practical examples, she explains why confidence is often a product of exposure rather than personality, why organisations should hire for potential instead of polish, and how leaders can create psychologically safe environments where different perspectives are genuinely valued.

This conversation offers a refreshing perspective for leaders looking to build stronger cultures, recruit and develop talent more effectively, and create workplaces where everyone can succeed together.

Key Talking Points

• Why "How do we manage Gen Z?" is the wrong leadership question.
• Understanding the difference between capability gaps and exposure gaps.
• Why confidence is developed through opportunity, not personality.
• The importance of social mobility in accessing hidden talent.
• Hiring for potential rather than professional polish.
• How leaders can create environments where different generations learn from one another.
• The role of curiosity, reverse mentoring and psychological safety.
• Practical ways to build more inclusive, innovative and future-ready organisations.

Pressure is an unavoidable part of leadership, but when it becomes the normal way of working it begins to shape behaviour, decision-making and organisational culture in ways many leaders fail to recognise.

In this fourth episode of our Emotional Intelligence series, Rich and Dave explore the hidden cost of working in a culture of sustained pressure. They discuss why many leaders become trapped in cycles of over-functioning, how busyness is often mistaken for creating value, and why developing emotional intelligence is essential for creating high-performing teams that can thrive over the long term.

Rather than relying on urgency and pressure to drive results, they introduce a healthier alternative: creating cultures built on clarity, ownership, accountability and intentional recovery.

If you want sustainable performance, not just short-term output, this episode offers practical guidance for leading differently.

Key Talking Points

• Why sustained pressure changes behaviour and organisational culture.
• Why over-functioning leaders unintentionally become bottlenecks.
• The hidden emotional drivers behind overwork and burnout.
• Why busyness is often mistaken for effectiveness.
• The difference between pressure and accountability.
• Recognising the warning signs of unhealthy leadership cultures.
• How recovery and reflection improve long-term performance.
• Why emotional intelligence enables leaders to manage internal pressure more effectively.

You have probably heard the phrase “find your voice” but how many of us use our voice as our primary way of influencing others.

Most leaders spend years refining what they say, but far fewer invest time in how they say it. In this fascinating conversation, Dave is joined by internationally trained opera singer, vocal coach, and founder of The Voice Hub, Aidan Smith, to explore why our voice is one of the most overlooked leadership tools.

Drawing on decades of elite performance experience, Aidan explains how confidence isn't something we fake, it's something we build through self-awareness, physiology, practice and authenticity. Together they explore why breath is the foundation of confidence, why presence matters more than performance, and why the most influential leaders sound grounded rather than loud. Whether you're leading meetings, presenting to clients, or inspiring your team through change, this episode offers practical insights that can immediately improve how you communicate. We urge you to explore how to find your true leadership voice.

Key Talking Points

• Why your voice is your most important leadership instrument.
• The difference between genuine confidence and performative confidence.
• How elite performers build resilience through self-awareness.
• How breathing and physiology influence confidence under pressure.
• Practical techniques for reducing tension before important conversations.
• Why presence is created through authenticity rather than charisma.
• The relationship between confidence, humility and leadership.
• Lessons leaders can learn from opera about storytelling and emotional connection.
• How improving the way you use your voice, can improve influence, gravitas and leadership effectiveness.

Social value has become a familiar phrase in business via acronyms like ESG, CSR etc. In reality though it's often treated as a procurement requirement or another compliance exercise, a box that needs ticking.

In this Voices of Leadership episode, Dave sits down with social value champion Claire Thayers to explore a very different perspective.

Drawing on more than two decades of experience spanning marketing, branding, community development and business leadership, Claire shares how organisations can strengthen their businesses by strengthening the communities around them.

From transforming a traditional law firm through community partnerships to helping shape initiatives like Together Gloucestershire and the Social Value Ideas Factory, Claire explains why businesses thrive when they connect people, purpose and planet.

In a world of multi-generational workforces where attracting talent is a big challenge, this is a conversation about leadership, empathy, collaboration and why social value should never be an afterthought, it should be woven into the DNA of every organisation that wants to remain relevant.

Key Talking Points

• Why "doing good is good for business"
• The difference between social responsibility and social value
• How strong communities create stronger organisations
• Why values only matter when they become behaviours
• The commercial benefits of authentic social value
• A case-study lesson: Transforming a business through community engagement
• Why collaboration beats competition
• Building partnerships that create value for everyone involved
• How the “penny drops” about the importance of empathy in leadership
• Why future leaders must focus on connection as much as capability
• The role businesses can play in tackling local challenges
• Practical ways any organisation can start creating social value today

The best leaders don't avoid pressure; they learn how to respond to it in a healthy way.

Pressure reveals how well-prepared or ill-equipped leaders are for the job of leading and managing teams and organisations.

In this third episode of our Emotional Intelligence series, Rich and Dave explore why even experienced leaders can lose their calm, clarity and presence when the pressure rises. From difficult conversations and challenging meetings to presentations and conflict, leadership is rarely tested when everything is going well. It's tested most when the stakes are high.

Drawing on lessons from Navy SEAL training, motorcycle riders, Formula One drivers and Zentano's Connected Leadership model, Rich explains why leaders don't rise to the occasion under pressure. Instead, they fall back on their deepest habits and default preferences.

The conversation explores what happens psychologically when our fight, flight or freeze response takes over, why we lose access to our emotional intelligence, and how leaders can recognise the signs before those reactions begin to affect the people around them.

Rich also introduces Zentano's practical SONAR model, a simple framework that helps leaders pause, regain perspective and reconnect with their Connected Centre before responding.

If you want to lead with greater confidence, presence and influence when it matters most, this episode offers practical insights you can apply immediately.

Key Talking Points

• Why leaders fall back on ingrained habits when pressure increases.
• How stress narrows thinking and reduces access to emotional intelligence.
• The difference between grounded and reactive leadership.
• Practical signs that you've drifted away from your place of calm and grounded confidence, the Connected Centre.
• Using the SONAR model to regain calm, clarity and intentional choice.
• Why leadership presence is something others feel, not just see and hear.

Most organisational change doesn't fail with a dramatic announcement or a public crisis. Instead, it quietly unravels through confusion, poor communication, uncertainty and a loss of trust.

In this Voices of Leadership episode of The Connected Leadership Podcast, Dave speaks with employment lawyer Steve Conlay from BPE Solicitors. Steve shares what leaders get wrong about change, why communication matters more than strategy, and how trust can make or break organisational transformation.

Steve has spent nearly two decades helping organisations navigate restructures, mergers, acquisitions, redundancies and major organisational change. His unique perspective comes from seeing what happens when leadership communication breaks down and employees are left trying to make sense of uncertainty.

Together they explore why so many change initiatives fail, the hidden role of middle managers, what leaders often underestimate about employee reactions, and why communication is less about having all the answers and more about building trust through honesty and consistency.

Whether you're leading a team through restructuring, managing growth, integrating acquisitions, or simply trying to navigate constant change in today's workplace, this conversation offers practical lessons every leader can apply.

Key Talking Points

• Why organisational change often fails quietly rather than dramatically
• The critical gap between what leaders say and what employees hear
• Why uncertainty is often harder than bad news
• The overlooked role of line managers during change
• What mergers and acquisitions teach us about culture and trust
• How leaders can still communicate honestly without all the answers
• Why adaptability is becoming a core leadership capability
• The importance of listening during periods of uncertainty
• Building emotionally intelligent cultures that can thrive through change

In the second episode of our Emotional Intelligence series, Rich and Dave explore the mirror that most leaders look into with nothing more than a surface level glance. The mirror that is self-awareness. Drawing on coaching conversations, leadership development work, and real-world examples, they unpack why so many capable leaders struggle to see the impact they are having on others, particularly when the pressure rises.

The conversation challenges the common assumption that self-awareness is simply introspection or understanding the voice inside your head. Instead, Rich argues that genuine self-awareness is a much deeper skill involving an awareness of ourselves, the people around us, and the effect our behaviour has on the wider system.

The episode explores leadership blind spots, the way authority and pressure distort feedback, and why confidence without humility can become a barrier to learning. Rich and Dave also discuss the difference between reflective self-awareness after an event and the much harder skill of maintaining awareness in the moment when stakes are high.

Ultimately, this episode argues that self-awareness is not about becoming self-critical. It is about creating more choice, enabling leaders to respond intentionally rather than react automatically, and laying the foundation for emotional intelligence, trust, and lasting leadership effectiveness.

Key Talking Points

• Why deep self-awareness is the foundation of true emotional intelligence
• The difference between introspection and genuine self-awareness
• How authority, status and pressure create leadership blind spots
• Why feedback becomes harder to receive as leaders become more senior
• Common blind spots including certainty, control, impatience and withdrawal
• The difference between reflection after the event and awareness in the moment
• How confidence can become a barrier to learning when it lacks humility
• Practical ways leaders can create more choice under pressure

In this Voices of Leadership episode of The Connected Leadership Podcast, Dave is joined by Chris Davies for a deeply personal and thought-provoking conversation about leadership, resilience, and the human side of performance.

Chris shares his journey from a childhood shaped by team sport and strong role models to the life-changing experience of developing ME during adolescence. Forced to let go of his dream of a career in football, Chris reflects on the lessons that adversity taught him about resilience, optimism, accountability, confidence, and how to find new goals to pursue.

Drawing on his extensive experience in professional services, Chris explores why the best leaders understand people at a deeper level, why trust and listening matter more than measuring numbers, and how performance and humanity should never be treated as opposing forces.

This episode is a powerful reminder that leadership is not simply about managing metrics. It is about understanding people, creating environments where they can thrive, and helping others with a healthy balance of support and challenge.

Key Talking Points

• Why vulnerability and humility are often missing from leadership
• The leadership lessons Chris learned from team sport and coaching
• How a serious illness reshaped his identity, resilience, and outlook on life
• The role optimism and personal accountability play in overcoming adversity
• Why relationships matter more than transactions in leadership and sales
• The importance of listening deeply and understanding the individual
• Building cultures where people feel safe to speak honestly
• Why simple leadership principles often outperform complex frameworks
• The power of helping others realize their potential