In this episode I'm joined by Richard Reis, entrepreneur and founder of Spark, an AI dating site where real people form real relationships with AI bots. Yes it feels slightly uncomfortable, right? In 2024 Richard set out to experiment with AI and aimed to start a new company every 2 weeks, totalling 25 start ups across the year. But he stopped at number five: Spark. We dig into the ethics of AI dating, what problems it's solving for people and what the future holds for both Spark and AI more broadly. Enjoy!

Thrive

Richard Reis

In this episode I’m joined by Jodie Cook - founder of Coachvox - AI for coaches. Jodie is not your average entrepreneur. She’s a powerlifter, a digital nomad, and a passionate writer. We explore the intersection of human and tech, and look towards the future particularly through the lens of AI. Jodie is engaging and enigmatic and this episode captures all of that and more. Enjoy.

Thrive

Jodie Cook

In this episode I’m joined by Marina Gerner, award-winning journalist and author of the acclaimed book ‘The Vagina Business’. Marina has a clear passion for shifting the status quo when it comes to the narrative surrounding FemTech, and her book broadly explores the future of female health. We unpick why FemTech has historically been an underfunded area, and uncover what the future might hold in this field. Enjoy.

The Vagina Business

Thrive

If you’re interested in why the future of work is human, then this episode is for you. I’m joined by Perry Timms, Founder & Chief Energy Officer, and number 1 most influential HR thinker of 2023. In 2024 Perry was was given the Lifetime Achievement Award from WorldBlu for service to self-managed and democratic, freedom-centred work. We cover why purpose-led work is so important, and what the future has in store at the crossroads of HR & L&D. Enjoy!

Thrive

Perry Timms

In this episode I’m joined by James Swift, Head of Talent Development at Leyton, an international consulting firm. James is the type of learning leader we all aspire to be: focused on human-centric organisational performance and consistently showcasing impact through his innovative application of AI. James has developed a model to help people put this into practise themselves, which is focused on organisational performance, what your people need to do, what technology underpins this, the infrastructures in place to support it, and the data or information needed to inform your stakeholders. Otherwise known as the ‘Swift model’. As James says:  People are your greatest cost and therefore need to be your greatest asset. We talk about all this and more. Enjoy.

James Swift

Thrive

In this episode I’m joined by Radhika Dutt, author of Radical Product Thinking and co-creator of the radical product thinking framework which is a free downloadable toolkit which helps organisations systematically build world-changing products. We talk about the intersection of product and learning, and how learning teams could always do well to think like product developers. Enjoy.

Radical product

Thrive

In this episode I’m joined by Craig Hamill who has been in the L&D industry for over 20 years and has been in both vendor side and in-house roles. We cover what’s going on in the industry right now, but also dive deeper into what can be a taboo subject for some people and organisations: male mental health. Craig is a great advocate of talking, building connections and sharing, and we talk about the benefits each of these can bring. Enjoy.

Craig Hamill

Thrive

In this episode I’m joined by award-winning social justice activist and a seasoned leader in diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism - Hannah Litt. Hannah’s purpose-driven journey has been fuelled by a commitment to creating positive change, and Hannah now helps guide organisations to create cultures that value and celebrate diversity, unity, and collective healing. As a South Asian, Muslim woman from the East African diaspora with ADHD, OCD, and hidden disabilities, Hannah combines lived experiences with strategic knowledge in people-led functions and employee experience. We explore Hannah’s journey and hopes for the future in this episode. Enjoy.

Hannah Litt

Thrive

In this episode I’m joined by Dean Jackson, Director of Global People & Culture (Digital Experience) at Coca-Cola Europacific. Dean has built a career in digital workplace technology, with a focus on people and culture. With a huge depth of experience and enthusiasm for people experience, Dean is a really forward-thinking leader, and recognises the nuances of the range of audiences he serves in his role. Myth busting. Desire for change. Culture creation. We cover it all. Enjoy.

Dean Jackson

Thrive

In this episode I’m joined by Margie Meacham, otherwise known as “the brain lady”. Margie effectively bridges the gaps between neuroscience, AI and instructional design to help people think more holistically about how and why they are designing learning. We cover all of that in this episode, and look at what the future might hold for learning experience design. Enjoy.

Margie Meacham

Thrive