You’re a high performing leader who refuses to compromise your soul for profit.

…and you’re searching for others who put people at the core of making lasting change

Next session: Friday 1st May

10AM NZDT / 8AM Sydney / 3PM Pacific

FREE Live on Zoom (registration required)

Register

“For my whole adult life I’ve been searching for evidence that I was not alone in thinking that large-scale business could be led through a connection to people and place”
Josh
New York City

The pressures around productivity and profit are real: If you don’t make the numbers, you don’t get the budget for the initiatives that really matter.

Balancing performance by the metrics and still being a decent human can feel like a fool’s errand at times.

But what if, instead of:

Constantly feeling like the alien in the room with wild, “unrealistic” ideals
Spending money on consultants to write fancy (expensive) reports that lend credibility to the ideas that you already know will work
Meeting performance goals as best you can by either taking a personal hit on your bonus, or making choices you’re not proud of
Making “hard choices” because your colleagues call that “good business acumen" while the most vulnerable in your organization bear the brunt of cost reduction, and
Trading emotional cost and your spirit to help the company reach its goals…

You could be in-community with like minded leaders across different industries, who share your perspective, offer support, and help hammer out the strategies for systemic, sustainable change that meets the numbers but without sacrificing your moral code?

this is what I’m passionate about

Hi, I’m danelle (it’s like “Danielle” but no “i”),

I’ve been leading and supporting transformation programs in multi-thousand seat global corporate organizations for 20 years.

In that time, I’ve learned the reality is that we must do this in community if we want to be successful.

We’re sold this myth of “the lone hero.” (I too love a good Clint Eastwood spaghetti Western). It started with Carlyle’s “Great Man” theory of leadership in 1841 and it’s the culture of celebrity CEOs and tech bros we see today that shapes this vision that we have of being able to somehow singlehandedly turn things around - and that’s just *BULLSHIT*.

After years in organizations with both “M”s and “B”s in front of the “-illions” I can say with absolute certainty that it takes a village.

The myth of individual achievement keeps us chronically isolated, stressed out, and impotent - ensuring that the systems we are trying to act on remain ultimately stable and intact, at great personal cost to the individuals involved.

Transformation is about activism and collective action within a population that doesn't want to change.

My passion is bringing together the game-changers to support each other across organizations, countries and industries so that we can be more effective in our individual workplaces, because we have the collective intelligence of a community with us, who are dedicated to building a better world.

You can read my CV for more

I want to invite you to Conversations in Leadership — First Fridays, every month.

Think of this as that informal chat you call in at a coffee shop with a trusted colleague - whether it’s checking your own perspective, exploring a new idea or brainstorming how to tackle a hurdle you’ve bumped into.

On the first Friday of each month, I’ll open space for conversation around specific themes and challenges our community wants to explore.

You are welcome to bring your questions, challenges and ideas for discussion - the intention is that attendees guide the discussion so we can stay focused on value to those in the (virtual) room. If you’d like to send questions ahead of time, or share anonymously, please email me!

❉ Calls are hosted on Zoom

You’ll need to register each month to attend. We meet at 10am NZT on the first Friday of each month. Sessions are not currently recorded.

❉ Join from where you are

You are welcome to join from the office, from a co-working space or cafe, cameras on or cameras off. If you want to share that’s great, and if you want to just hang out and listen in, that's welcomed too.

❉ Attendance is free

It costs only your time and attention to attend.

Hearing others’ stories and the connection that comes from realizing shared experience can be profound

It can validate those deep secrets or scared truths we are yet to admit to ourselves, the things we think might set us apart or sever our relationship in community. Instead, sharing stories brings us closer together and shapes our relationships with self and others.

Sonya Renee Taylor asks us to consider what leadership looks like when we start from a place of a regulated nervous system, rather than activism from a place of chronic stress and exhaustion.

Community gatherings that help us to feel seen, validated and where we can share collective wisdom, help support us to stay anchored in the change without the personal sacrifice and burnout.

If you’re ready to find your tribe, you’re in the right place :)