Mark Hammond

Invulnerability impacts every aspect of organisations – their individuals, teams, culture. And with changing times, comes the need for change in our responses, our actions, and our interactions.
In this talk, we explore the insidious nature of invulnerability and how it stifles creativity, trust, communication, connection, effectiveness, diversity, inclusion, innovation wellbeing, and organisational culture.
This talk seeks to challenge invulnerability as the status quo, to enable a new experience that defines our individual accountability and in doing so shapes our lives at work and enables purpose and value to ensure a sustainable future.

It does so by drawing on both established and emerging research in the areas of business psychology, coaching psychology, and positive organisational psychology, specifically because of the interdependency of the fields, the realities, the outcomes, and the themes outlined above.
In contrast, having established the detrimental impact of invulnerability on individuals, teams and organisations, this discussion seeks to examine the interdependent impact of vulnerability as the common denominator in successful organisations and how it enables values, purpose, sustainability, and commercial ambition.
Building on this we investigate how the role of leadership needs to transform to respond to the fast paced and ever evolving complexity that is being experienced throughout the organisational landscape and subsequent socioeconomic realities.
Leaders can no longer disregard or overlook the role of purpose for their teams and the wider organisation whilst prioritising commercial ambition. What has emerged is that purpose, sustainability, and commercial ambition are a delicate balance, and we explore these interdependencies.
Similarly, leadership can no longer overlook the due importance that individuals are now placing on familial values, work-life balance, and wellbeing - amongst others - in their decision to stay with or leave a company. The Great Resignation we are experiencing, signals this. Open, uncomfortable vulnerable conversations are needed. Vulnerable conversations are non-negotiable. These realities cannot be swept under the carpet. In an employees market and where the tides are changing, these conversations must be entered into - no matter how vulnerable.
We explore how those organisations that are keeping attrition at bay, that attract and keep talent, are those that are willing to embrace vulnerability in all its forms.
Supporting this, this talk will share original research on the psychological impact of Covid 19 on individuals in the workplace and explore its links to psychological wellbeing, vulnerability, and performance.
Taking inspiration from the seamless working of a Hive, our approach integrates evidenced-based theory and practice of topics including psychological safety, trust, vulnerability, collaboration, motivation, engagement, agility, resilience, diversity, cognitive flexibility, and performance psychology. In essence, we link a transformation in how teams think, feel, react, and work to growth through Innovation.