Welcome

This week I was at Hazards 35 in Birmingham with my colleague Fayon Dixon. We were representing EqualEngineers and showcasing the work we do, particularly around The SAFE Leader.

We had brilliant engagement throughout the event. I brought 200 copies of my book The SAFE Leader, and every single one of them was gone by the end of it!

There’s a growing appetite across industry for a new kind of leadership, one rooted in empathy, trust, and inclusion. I’ll share a full roundup and photos in next week’s edition.

And looking ahead, next week I’m hosting an exclusive SAFE Leader workshop called “Is Your Organisation SAFE?”. We’ve had a surge of registrations these days, and I’m really excited to welcome everyone who has signed up so far. If you haven’t yet, scroll down to find out how to join.

BCECA Conference

Earlier this month, I joined a fantastic panel discussion at the BCECA Annual Conference titled: “Reimagining Diversity & Inclusion – From Intent to Impact.”

Chaired by Blair Fraser (Wood plc) and Sophie Jacobs (Wood plc), we explored some of the deeper questions around diversity in engineering:

• How do we attract and retain a truly diverse workforce?

• How do we avoid the “inclusion illusion”?

• How can we build sustainable, flexible and supportive cultures that last?

We also acknowledged the increasing tension D&I efforts face in today’s political climate and why clear, authentic, and embedded messaging is more vital than ever.

Thanks to my fellow panellists Christine McLean, Paul Mudd, and Sean McKirdy for such a powerful discussion.

AIChE Annual Meeting 2025

Earlier this week I was in Boston for the AIChE Meeting Conference, where I delivered two SAFE Leader workshops: one for the Student Conference on Sunday, and one for the Main Conference on Monday.

The student workshop was a return to my roots, using “old school” facilitation methods like our Trusted 10 exercise, which I’ve been running since I founded EqualEngineers. While The SAFE Leader workbook now integrates it more formally, going back to basics for a taster session reminded me why it still works so well.

The response from both students and professionals was phenomenal, especially engaging with 65 universities during the student careers fair! There’s a real interest across academia and industry for leadership rooted in psychological safety, emotional intelligence, and inclusion.

A personal highlight was attending the Imperial College London Department of Chemical Engineering alumni reception. I reconnected with familiar faces and reflected on the journey from moving to London at 17, to now delivering leadership training on a global stage. It’s always moving to revisit your roots and I was reminded how important those early environments of safety and support were in shaping my path.

Thank you to AIChE for hosting such a fantastic event, and to everyone I met along the way.

Is Your Organisation SAFE?

I’m running an exclusive online introduction to The SAFE Leader framework, and you’re invited! This is a chance to join me directly in a small-group workshop and explore how to embed psychological safety, trust, and inclusive leadership in your organisation.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• The four pillars of SAFE: Share, Act, Feel, Empower

• How to assess how “SAFE” your organisation truly is

• Practical strategies for fostering trust and wellbeing

• Tips for building a culture of psychological safety

• Storytelling techniques to inspire others

It’s free, but places are limited. I don’t know when I’ll run another one, so if this speaks to you, register now!

Choose your session

Resilience, Belonging and Leading with Humanity

In this episode of The SAFE Leader Podcast, I sit down with Enoch Adeyemi a truly inspiring guest who shares their journey from a strict Nigerian boarding school to becoming a community-builder and inclusion advocate in Scotland.

We talk about growing through adversity, finding strength in understanding, and how true leadership comes from being present, human, and willing to have honest conversations.

This episode is for anyone who cares about inclusion, equity, and leading from the heart.

Let’s Connect!

Please reach out and connect with me on LinkedIn if we are not already connected.

I love helping organisations where the angle I take with the work I do might help in someway have you make traction in your culture.

Feel free to get in touch here.

Stay SAFE!