Our Fearless Pioneers
Celebrating those nominated for their contribution and commitment to promoting psychological safety and eliminating fear in the workplace.
Alison Lowe OBE
Alison is the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime in West Yorkshire. She also leads nationally on Race Disparities, Equality and Human Rights as a member of the APCC. Formerly, as CEO of Touchstone, a community-based mental health charity specialising in diverse communities, she championed diversity and inclusion and demonstarted her passion and commitment to fostering psychological safety. A fearless and empathic leader who leads by example and isn’t afraid to show her personal vulnerabilities.
Q&A with Alison
Amy Edmondson
Amy’s work has had a significant impact on the understanding and development of teamwork and learning in organizations. She currently holds the position of Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at harvard Business School. Amy’s research has explored how organizations can foster an environment of psychological safety. She has published many articles and books on these subjects, including her influential book “The Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth.”
Q&A with Amy
Art Markman
Art is the Annabel Irion Worsham Centennial Professor of Psychology, HDO, and Marketing and Vice Provost for Academic Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He has written over 150 papers on topics including reasoning, decision making, and motivation. Art brings insights from cognitive science and psychological safety to a broader audience through regular blogs and radio show/podcast Two Guys on Your Head. Art is the author of several books including “Smart Thinking”, “Smart Change”, “Brain Briefs”, and “Bring Your Brain to Work”.
Q&A with Art
Brené Brown
Brene is a distinguished research professor at the University of Houston and a highly acclaimed best-selling author. Her groundbreaking work on vulnerability, courage, and shame has shed profound insights on the significance of psychological safety in the workplace. With engaging TED Talks and influential books, Brown has inspired leaders and employees to embrace vulnerability, recognizing its role in fostering authentic connections and creating environments where individuals feel safe to express their true selves.
David Zinger
David Zinger is a recognized expert in employee engagement and a highly regarded author. His work on employee well-being and connection has highlighted the essential role of psychological safety. David has encouraged leaders and organizations to prioritize creating environments where employees feel safe to voice their opinions. His relentless dedication has contributed significantly to improving workplace dynamics and employee well-being, caring and mindful approaches to experiences, work, and everyday engagement.
Q&A with David
Kim Scott
Kim is a renowned author, leadership coach, and distinguished former executive at both Google and Apple. Her influential book “Radical Candor” has played a crucial role in advancing psychological safety in the workplace. She has helped organizations cultivate a culture of radical candor, promoting open and constructive conversations that contribute to a psychologically safe environment. By embracing Kim’s principles, teams can establish stronger connections, drive collaboration, and empower individuals to reach their full potential.
Lindsay Uittenbogaard
Lindsay is founder of Mirror Mirror, an innovative platform that fosters team alignment in organisations. Lindsay’s pioneering efforts boosts individual and team performance. Her dedication to enhancing psychological safety has not only revolutionized workplace dynamics but also positively impacted employee well-being and organizational success. Her passion for empowering and aligning teams to reach their full potential has made her a leading advocate for psychological safety in modern workplaces.
Mimi Nicklin
Mimi is the author of ‘Softening The Edge,’ the Founder of the world’s first organisational empathy platform, www.EmpathyEverywhere.co, and podcast host of ‘Mimi-YouYou’ show. She is a well-known organisational coach, and a keynote speaker, contributor and advocate for the global movement to balance humanism and capitalism in our workplaces and societies. As an inclusive millennial leader, she also passionately talks about empathy as the road to equality, psychological safety and inclusion.
Q&A with Mimi
Mona Ataya
Mona is co-founder of Mumzworld, the preeminent e-commerce platform for mother and baby products in the Middle East. As a visionary leader, Ataya places great emphasis on establishing a psychologically safe work environment, encouraging her team to take risks and freely share their ideas. By fostering an inclusive culture that values authenticity, she empowers employees to unleash their full potential. Ataya’s has set an inspiring example for fostering creativity and employee well-being in the entrepreneurial landscape
Paul O’Neill
Paul was the former CEO of Alcoa, renowned for his transformative leadership and dedication to patient safety. By promoting psychological safety through a culture of open communication and trust, he empowered employees to voice concerns and ideas without fear of reprisal. This emphasis on psychological safety led to improved employee engagement, enhanced problem-solving, and a significant reduction in workplace accidents. His visionary approach revolutionized workplace dynamics and set new standards for corporate leadership.
Reshma Saujani
Reshma is founder of Girls Who Code, a nonprofit organisation that aims to close the gender gap in technology and engineering fields. While her primary focus is on empowering young girls and women, Reshma’s work indirectly promotes psychological safety in workplaces. Through her advocacy for diversity and inclusivity, Saujani contributes to creating environments where individuals from diverse backgrounds embrace risk-taking, embrace failure as a learning opportunity, and pursue their passions without fear of judgement.
Tim Clark
Timothy R. Clark is an author and consultant who has focused on fostering intrapreneurship within organisations. His work encourages employees to take on entrepreneurial roles and contribute innovative ideas without the fear of failure. By creating an environment that values and supports intrapreneurial endeavours, Clark’s approach nurtures psychological safety, allowing employees to experiment and grow professionally. He is a practicing organizational anthropologist and author of “The 4 Stages of Psychological Safety”
Wayne Clarke
Wayne is the founder of the World Class Manager platform, which has trained over 35,000 managers across 30 countries. He is passionate about the positive impact of line management on psychological safety and team performance. Wayne is a visiting lecturer at Bayes Business School and ran the advisory arm of Best Companies, producer of The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For list where he developed a passion for line management and psychological safety as key enablers to employee engagement.
Q&A with Wayne
William Khan
William is a distinguished organizational psychologist and renowned researcher, recognized for his groundbreaking work on psychological meaningfulness in the workplace. Khan popularised psychological safety in his 1990 paper “Psychological Conditions of Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work” where he defined psychological safety as the “sense of being able to show and employ self without fear of negative consequences to self-image, status, or career”
Fearless Pioneer Nominations
This is your opportunity to nominate someone who has been a strong advocate for creating just cultures where people feel safe to take risks, suggest ideas or speak up when they can see better ways of working.