Fred Cook’s career proves success doesn’t require a straight line. Now Chairman Emeritus of global PR agency Golin, Fred has spent 35+ years advising world-famous brands – Amazon, McDonald’s, Disney – and visionary CEOs like Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs.

But his journey began far from the boardroom. Fred’s early resumé includes being a pool hustler, cabin boy and chauffeur for drunks. He describes his life as a “series of experiments” and in this episode, he shares what they taught him.

Fred explains how to stand out in a crowded job market, the evolving role of internal communication, and why the best comms pros are brilliant relationship builders. He also shares insights from his role as Director of the USC Center for Public Relations and his book Improvise: Unconventional Career Advice from an Unlikely CEO.

This is a conversation about courage, curiosity and embracing the unexpected.

Share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. Thank you for listening.

Inspiration is everywhere when you stay curious. That’s the thread running through this episode of The Internal Comms Podcast, where Katie Macaulay welcomes communication, creativity and leadership consultant Beth Collier. The author of the brilliant Substack newsletter Curious Minds, Beth takes Katie on a journey from her early days working in Hollywood to her role today as a respected comms pro.

Digging into the origin stories of some of life’s everyday items has helped keep Beth curious across the years, and the tales can be astounding. Did you know, for example, that duct tape was invented to save lives?

Not only do Beth and Katie explore these unlikely stories of creativity, they unpack the imposter syndrome phenomenon, which Beth suggests is a complete myth, and dive into how you can strengthen your curiosity muscles to get ahead.

A treasure trove of unique inspiration top tips on how to stay curious, this is one for all the curious comms pros out there.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

What does it mean to be a credible leader? And just how important is that credibility to your team? In this episode of The Internal Comms Podcast, host Katie Macaulay welcomes back leadership and internal communication expert Jenni Field to unpack all this and more.

Jenni is the author of Nobody Believes You: Become a Leader People Will Follow, and former president of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations. She is also the host of the Redefining Communications podcast and an international leadership coach. She’s recognised as a leading influencer in the way leaders and organisations communicate with their teams.

In this episode, Katie and Jenni dig into the leadership research that forms the basis of Jenni’s latest book. They discuss what it means to be truly credible, and why that matters, and delve into the eight practices Jenni has identified that make a truly effective leader.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

In this episode of The Internal Comms Podcast, host Katie Macaulay welcomes Jeremy Connell-Waite, Global Communications Designer for IBM, an acclaimed speechwriter and storyteller, and a performance coach for senior executives.

In this fascinating conversation, which will challenge everything you thought you knew about storytelling, Jeremy guides Katie through the concept of storytelling design – the process of drawing speeches and stories, not writing them. It’s an approach that seeks to connect on every level from the get-go.

Jeremy dives into what storytelling really is, what sets the true greats apart and how internal comms pros can change the world in 1,000 seconds (about the length of time you take for your morning coffee break). As you’ll see in our featured links, there’s stacks of inspiration to draw from, as Jeremy unpacks the genius of everyone from Aaron Sorkin to Obama’s former speechwriter, Terry Szuplat.

This is a tale of how storytelling is harder skill than you think.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

We’re back for season 13 of The Internal Comms Podcast and to kick things off, host Katie Macaulay is joined by Eduvie Martin. Eduvie is Group Communications and Engagement Manager at British American Tobacco, President of the IABC’s UK and Ireland Chapter and Executive Director of Marketing and Communications at Comic Republic – a creative media company changing the narrative on African storytelling.

In this insightful episode, Eduvie opens up about her route into communications and the challenges of communicating in the tobacco industry. She discusses her roles with the IABC and Comic Republic and how each experience builds on her expertise in unique ways. And she offers a fresh perspective on work and life, the value of intentionality and why comms pros should prioritise planning over predicting.

Tune in for valuable advice on forging your own path, building resilience, the power of community and always staying true to who you are.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

We’re back for season 13 of The Internal Comms Podcast and to kick things off, host Katie Macaulay is joined by Eduvie Martin. Eduvie is Group Communications and Engagement Manager at British American Tobacco, President of the IABC’s UK and Ireland Chapter and Executive Director of Marketing and Communications at Comic Republic – a creative media company changing the narrative on African storytelling.

In this insightful episode, Eduvie opens up about her route into communications and the challenges of communicating in the tobacco industry. She discusses her roles with the IABC and Comic Republic and how each experience builds on her expertise in unique ways. And she offers a fresh perspective on work and life, the value of intentionality and why comms pros should prioritise planning over predicting.

Tune in for valuable advice on forging your own path, building resilience, the power of community and always staying true to who you are.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

In this episode, we mark a big milestone with a gift-wrapped edition of the Internal Comms Podcast.

It’s six years since the show launched and, in this Christmas special, host Katie Macaulay shares some of her favourite moments.

From Professor William Kahn’s take on the meaning of engagement, to Seth Godin on creating the right conditions for people to change their attitude, via the Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Pfizer, Sally Susman, on transforming “the reputation of the company alongside the development of the COVID vaccine”, you'll discover some great insight into the ever-changing world of IC from some of the professions’ top names.

This episode marks a wrap for season 12. Share your favourite moments using #TheICPodcast on LinkedIn and tune back in early 2025 as we kick off season 13.

This week on The Internal Comms Podcast, host Katie Macaulay is joined by a very special guest – AB's creative director, Joel O’Connor. Joel has been with AB for well over a decade, and has seen our agency and the wider internal comms space change beyond recognition.

In this rare look behind the curtains of a communications agency, the episode explores Joel’s creative process, his ideal brief, his hopes for internal comms and a look back at life growing up as a young creative in Liverpool in the ‘80s.

Tune in to unpick how to keep bringing creativity to internal comms in a world where employees' time and attention are at a premium. Hear how to ensure internal comms doesn't fade into what Joel calls 'the hum of the fridge'. And there’s fantastic insight into sharpening your creative edge (hint: get outside!) and how to get the very best from your brand and visual identity guidelines.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

This week on The Internal Comms Podcast, host Katie Macaulay is joined by co-founder of Local Wisdom, tech expert and comms leader Pinaki Kathiari. With his rare passion for both the sciences and the arts, Pinaki has built a company that advises organisations large and small on how to launch and scale their comms platforms.

Internal comms technology has often been late to the party. But as Pinaki shares with Katie, we’re in a very exciting, pivotal time for comms tech. In this episode, they discuss the questions we should be asking of IT leaders, how technology has evolved in the IC space and what makes an effective channel suite. Also, listen out for Pinaki’s IC team maturity model and an insightful exchange about why it feels wrong to be human at work.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.

We all deserve the opportunity to thrive at work. We deserve equal opportunity. We deserve to feel valued and included. That’s what diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is all about and as polarising as it may have become, it’s here to stay.

In this episode of The Internal Comms Podcast, DEI educator, author and comms leader Kim Clark joins Katie Macaulay to discuss how internal communicators and business leaders can play their part in creating more equitable, fair businesses. Her book, The Conscious Communicator: The Fine Art of Not Saying Stupid Shit, offers a refreshing view of DEI in the workplace.

From approaching change with leaders who may not be so receptive to the idea of DEI, to tackling unconscious bias by ‘calling in’ with our colleagues, there are many ways we as communicators can help build the organisations of tomorrow.

As always, share your thoughts on this or any other episode of The Internal Comms Podcast using the hashtag #TheICPodcast. And thanks for listening.