Shola Kaye

To increase inclusion and engagement (Suitable for all employees and delegates)

Creating a workplace where everyone feels that they belong is more important than ever before, but how can you build supportive, cohesive environments within your organisation? This is a high-impact, inspiring keynote that offers the tools and the inspiration to become a more compassionate and effective leader, manager, or individual contributor. It may be modified for senior leaders, management, and whole-company keynotes. We’ll look at the important themes of curiosity, courage and being a catalyst and you’ll understand the vital components of empathy, how to be compassionate while avoiding burnout, and why skills like emotional intelligence are in high demand.

What will the audience learn?

• Explore the value of active listening and reasons why we may be reluctant to practice curiosity and courage
• Understand the different types of empathy
• Find out what impact empathy and listening have on diversity, inclusion, engagement, retention, innovation, and happiness at work
• Discuss how we might practice empathy in the virtual workplace
• Spend time reflecting on our own levels of empathy and potential areas for self-improvement
• Walk away with a simple three-step framework for being empathetic in nearly every situation

Are you wondering why there has been so much interest in the topic of psychological safety?

During this interactive keynote, we explore the vital role of psychological safety in fostering an inclusive environment that values open, authentic communication. We’ll discuss the importance of embracing vulnerability, trust, and empathy in your daily interactions, enabling your team to unlock its full potential through collaborative ways of working.

What will the audience learn?

• Understand the key elements of psychological safety and their impact on team performance
• Explore the relationship between psychological safety and emotional intelligence
• Discover strategies to create a culture of inclusive communication that values and supports diverse perspectives
• Recognise the role of empathetic leadership in fostering psychological safety
• Learn practical techniques for building trust and promoting vulnerability within teams
• Understand that cultural factors also play a role in the creation of psychologically safe environments

Equip your leaders with the skills and knowledge to combat bias and foster belonging

Today’s leaders need an expanded repertoire of skills and know-how to ensure staff are engaged, happy and productive. In this highly impactful program, leaders are given the skill set to flourish in today’s complex work environments, managing ever more diverse and demanding teams.

What will the audience learn?

• Explore the 6 key traits of an inclusive leader and their related behaviours
• Review key data that support the value of compassionate leadership skills in today’s work environments
• Discover what it takes to create an environment of psychological safety
• Explore inclusive communication best practices to ensure everyone feels encouraged to speak up and make a contribution
• Discuss a number of behavioural nudges that help us bypass bias and create an atmosphere of innovation and belonging
• Review important cultural factors that all managers must consider when they lead diverse, multigenerational, international or intercultural teams

Give your leaders and their teams the inspiration, know-how and tools to create a culture of openness and collaboration

During this high-energy, interactive keynote we explore the power of transparency, psychological safety and positive reinforcement to create a culture where everyone feels equipped, encouraged and able to share their views and ideas. The result of a speak up culture? A high performing, innovative, respectful workplace in which people can be who they are and express themselves without fear of retribution, rejection or ridicule.

What will the audience learn?

• Look at some models and strategies that support a speak up culture
• Review what happens when it’s not safe to express ourselves authentically, resulting in behaviours such as covering, groupthink and code-switching
• Navigate ways to create team safety and an environment of collaboration so that colleagues feel comfortable sharing their views
• Explore cultural factors that influence the way in which communication is delivered and received
• Discover tools and communication frameworks that help everyone express themselves respectfully, regardless of personality type and cultural identity
• Look at the role of encouragement and support when inviting people to open up

Develop the skills to support and co-create your colleagues’ success (Session is suitable for all employees, not just managers)

At work and in our personal lives, delivering effective feedback is a valuable skill. Delivered in the right way, feedback can be empowering, inspiring and can drive an individual, and their team, towards fantastic success. However, delivered in the wrong way, feedback can be divisive, demotivating, and destructive. And when we avoid giving feedback to spare someone’s feelings, the eventual outcome can be just as damaging.

So what’s your intention as a manager? Is it to break or build? To crush or to co-create? Do you restrict your feedback to the obligatory once or twice a year, or do you feedback continuously, increasing the motivation and confidence of your team members?

What will the audience learn?

• Understand the importance of providing ongoing, tailored, empathetic developmental feedback
• Explore the repercussions of poor feedback styles such as The Drive-by, The Comparison, The Public Humiliation, and The Wrecking Ball
• Discover the four elements required to create psychological safety so that your feedback is well-received
• Take away an effective strategy for delivering feedback as an individual contributor
• Learn three different feedback frameworks and the pros and cons of each keynote or workshop

Walk away with the tools and perspectives needed to navigate and transform resistance into a constructive force for organisational progress

This dynamic and insightful keynote adopts an international perspective, and is designed for DEI, HR, and Talent Management professionals, and groups grappling with resistance in organisational change efforts. The session offers a blend of academic research, real-world case studies, and cultural insights. We explore the various forms of resistance encountered in organisations, understand the best strategies to counteract them, and learn how to foster an environment conducive to open communication and inclusive change.

What will the audience learn?

• Gain an in-depth understanding of the three main types of resistance encountered in DEI initiatives, informed by current research
• Learn effective strategies to counter each type of resistance, drawing from a variety of real-life case studies
• Explore some cultural factors that can make us reluctant to push for change, and discover how to empower individuals to take action in ways that align with their personal and cultural backgrounds
• Learn how to apply practical communication tools and approaches that will help you immediately foster a more inclusive and equitable work environment

Participants will leave feeling reinvigorated, inspired, and equipped with
empowering frameworks and proven approaches for working with resistance.

Practical inspiration, helping you create a culture of belonging

This empowering keynote delivers practical frameworks and moving stories. You’ll walk away with the understanding that everyone can be an ally, whatever your situation. We’ll explore the importance of taking action – however limited – rather than feeling that you don’t have the power to make a difference. Discover a source of renewed vitality and enthusiasm for the important work of creating an inclusive
workplace.

What will the audience learn?

• Explore the power of curiosity and calling-in
• Understand the importance of being an ally and calling out bias
• Navigate the 7 dimensions of allyship and understand the various roles needed to create a sustainable DEI movement
• Uncover the value of compassion for the self, and for others.
• We can’t pour from an empty cup; discover why and how to cultivate a ‘gain’ mindset, instead of living in the ‘gap’
• Learn strategies for replenishing your energy and avoiding burnout, especially when you’re hyper empathetic