Speaking

Let us do the talking for you

Keynote speakers, panel experts, workshop facilitators, podcast pundits, and interviewees who won’t share cringey inspirational quotes (we promise).

2 culture designers who know how to work a topic (and a room). With engaging topics, expert insights, energy-filled debates (challenge us, we dare you!). We’ll give your audience (online or offline) an event they’ll be excited to listen to, learn from and participate in.

How about it?

Our greatest hits

Short on event planning time? Pick one of our most popular topics and bring us in to shake up your away day, or shake down culture challenges at your next team meetup.

 

WTF is Purpose

For teams who hate reading, we’ve turned our most-downloaded ebook into an entertaining, lesson-packed 2-hour workshop. By the time we break for lunch, you’ll know how to create a purpose-led business too.

Good culture = Good design

Employees mumbling about poor review processes? Do people need constant clarification about "how things work around here"? You might have a (lack of) designer problem. In this 60-min talk, we’ll tell you why, and tell you how to fix it.

Leading remote teams

Why pyjama-wearing employees are the best kind of workers, and how to get the best out of your remote team. In this 2-hour talk you'll learn the 4 actions you can take today to improve your remote team leadership.

 

Bringing play and fun into work

Cyndi Lauper once said "employees just wanna have fun" and in our 60-min talk, we'll show you how leaning into fun at work can improve your team's productivity, decrease dreaded attrition rates, and improve the turnout at your next company social.

Growing your startup team

It’s easy to say, “Hire people smarter than you then get out of their way". But where do you even start? In this 90-minute workshop, we dive into what it takes to build a stellar team, including identifying your skills gaps, developing a culture that embodies your brand and finding people to make your culture thrive.

Wellbeing in the workplace

Yoga won't cut it but having a wellbeing programme for your team might. Make your team's psychological safety a priority, and you'll earn employees who love working for you. In this 75-min talk we'll explain the basics of creating a winning wellbeing programme for your team.

Our full event back catalogue

 

What we lack in fancy guitar solos, we make up for in relatable, accessible, fun-to-watch presentations. Don’t believe us? Check out all the cool events we’ve been invited to speak at.

 

 

We sound great on mics too

 

Need (non-stuffy) experts for your next podcast episode? Want a soundbite that’ll get your audience streaming for more? Mic us up!

podcast cover for 'let's play business'

Let’s Play Business

Episode 5: How The Sims can help you get the best out of your team

Listen in

Honey I Blew Up The Business

Series 2, Episode 11: Starting a purpose-led business while wanting to make money

Listen in

Not My First Guess

Designing company culture like a customer experience

Listen in

podcast cover for 'the water cooler'

The Water Cooler by NearU

Episode 10: Company culture, mental wellbeing and The Future Kind Collective

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Snippets of Genius

Series 6, Episode 8: Getting you spark back by finding what fulfils you

Listen in

Interaction’s Thrivalism

Series 5, Episode 5: Putting the Fun into Functional Culture with Alicia Grimes

Listen in

Tune in on the regular

Thanks to our pals at Virgin Startup and Hatch, we regularly feature in ongoing heart-to-hearts about culture and purpose. Here’s how you can tune in and join the conversation.

stock photo of a young man and woman laughing as they look at another young man sitting beside them who is also smiling with the logo of virgin startup overlaid at the bottom right corner

Virgin Startup

Step Up, Collective Impact + Empower 100 Programmes

Culture as a competitive advantage deep dive

Drop in to learn culture kit building tools including ikigai, values behaviour maps, culture blueprints, employee experience maps, culture ecosystem maps, and many other (excellent) service design tools we’ve created ourselves, so you can step up your company culture.

Click here to check out Virgin Startup’s next set of programmes.

stock image of 3 women smiling and talking with the logo of hatch enterprise overlaid at the bottom right corner

Hatch Enterprise

Female Founders & Incubator Accelerators

How to be a purpose driven business

Specifically in service of all female and under-represented founders, we tuck into purpose-led startup supporting topics like ikigai, purpose pyramids, purpose formulas, vision setting frameworks, prioritisation frameworks and culture blueprints, so there’s no excuse not to plug into your company purpose from day 1!

Find out more about Hatch’s programmes here.

See us in action

 

Rave reviews

  • #micdrop moments EVERY TIME!

    Nat brings in the stats, the practical tools and frameworks, the fun, and the #micdrop moments EVERY TIME! She manages to pull and keep people into the conversation very naturally. Whether it's the buzzing chat or a Q&A at the end, her sessions generate a lot of food for thought and healthy debate between everyone in the room.

    Anamaria Dorgo, Head of Community at Butter

  • Off the chart hosting skills

    “Teaming up with Alicia for the Designer’s Mindset People Builders workshop was a game-changer for us. The event generated over 75 new community members and the event ratings were 5/5 across the board! Alicia’s hosting skills are off the charts – she brings this amazing blend of warmth, enthusiasm, and expert knowledge and experience to the table. She brings a wealth of examples, insights and interactivity to her sessions and no question fazes her – she handles them all with ease. Working alongside Alicia was an absolute pleasure, and I’m eagerly looking forward to working together again soon! Alicia is truly a star in her field!”


    Carmen Amador Barreiro, Oyster

  • A goldmine of purpose-driven insights

    “Natalie's hosting skills are unmatched. The Virgin StartUp events she hosts are a goldmine of purpose-driven insights. She's a master at creating a relaxed and supportive energy that gets people talking and fostering straight-up connections. Having worked closely with Nat, I trust her implicitly at doing a great job. She excels in curating dynamic events and nurturing tight-knit startup communities. If you're in pursuit of purpose-driven discussions and entrepreneurial energy, she's your ultimate choice—no second thoughts required.”

    Alice Mulrooney, Events Executive at Virgin StartUp

  • Calm, clear and thoughtful

    Alicia joined our panel “How to become an impact brand” where we discussed some pretty hard hitting questions that brands are facing with consumerism on the rise. Alicia took such a calm, clear and thoughtful approach to the event. She challenges ideas in a way that provokes conversation and growth, not defensiveness. Her view point is so fundamental when so many of us come from a position of “execution”; Alicia is asking the really important “why?” questions first; with kindness and humour intertwined. I’d LOVE to do more panels with Alicia, in fact, shall we arrange one?”

    Nicola Telford, Founder of Impact Marketing Club

  • Something really special.

    The energy you bring as a duo for hosting a workshop is something really special. You're both very charismatic and it's quite obvious that you're passionate about what you do, and work great together! You really helped the team to take a look at their current ways of living and how it interacts with their ways of working to improve both and how to recognise where some problems may arise from.

    Diana Muizniece, EA + Office Manager at Trint

  • Natural, relaxed and open style.

    We invited Nat to speak at our International Women's Day conference on the theme of 'Embrace Equity'. Nat's planning call approach meant that she created a presentation that struck the notes that were relevant to the audience by having understanding of who she was addressing. This can only happen through good, open communication and deep expert knowledge, and Nat didn't disappoint. Her natural, relaxed and open style was a treat.

    Charlotte Barker, CEO at Institute of Designers Ireland

  • Wish it was 6 hours long

    Many of the founders who attended Nat’s session said they wished it could have been six hours long because they felt they got so much value from it. (Nat) really set a high benchmark for the programme, making it hard for other experts to beat…!

    Nat has joined multiple incubator programmes now where she has supported founders ranging from early stage through to later stage and scaling founders. Each time, Nat was able to adapt her presentation, really honing in her skills and focusing on the needs of the cohort. Nat has been a pleasure to work with and I will continue working with her and The Future Kind Collective!

    Brenda Kola, Incubator Programme Manager at Hatch Enterprise

  • Friendly, welcoming, dynamic and effective.

    Having worked with Natalie on a number of entrepreneurship programmes at Imperial College, I've found her to be a fantastic facilitator, offering dynamic and effective workshops whilst being a pleasure to work with. This ensured we were closely aligned and well prepared on all sessions. Natalie framed the concept of team culture and values really well, getting our teams to think about why it's important and how it fits into their wider business strategy. All workshops have included a practical element which when mixed with background to frame the exercises, leads to some really positive outcomes for attendees. They've also been run in a manner which is friendly and welcoming, ensuring teams that are of varied development stages can take actions away from their session. I look forward to including her in future programmes!

    Euan Bell, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Manager at Imperial Enterprise Lab

 

Watch us in action