What if your leadership decisions today could shape a more innovative and inclusive tomorrow? My new white paper, "Inclusive Leadership Trends for 2025," dives into the powerful trends that will define the next era of leadership.

Inclusive leadership isn’t a trend; it’s the future. In the race to adapt, grow, and innovate, some leaders are quietly equipping themselves with a playbook to stay ahead—and they’re not sharing. But here’s the good news: that playbook is almost in your hands.

When a student asked me why I didn’t include Kant in the Ethics, Sustainability, and Society course I teach at Kristiania University College, my answer was straightforward: It’s not relevant to their work as technology and business developers. Sacrilege? Maybe. Unnecessary? Absolutely.

Inclusive leadership is more than a trend—it’s the key for bringing together innovative teams, creative solutions, and workplaces where everyone feels they belong. But let’s face it, becoming a truly inclusive leader can sometimes feel like trying to assemble IKEA furniture without the instructions. Enter: INCLUDE.

Inclusive leadership isn’t just a buzzword—it’s the secret ingredient for thriving teams, innovative solutions, and a culture where everyone feels valued. But let’s be honest, achieving true inclusivity can feel like trying to find your way without a map. That’s about to change.

Donald Trump’s leadership style stands in stark contrast to inclusive values. With a heavy focus on loyalty, rigid hierarchy, and an “us vs. them” mindset, his approach directly conflicts with the openness, collaboration, and diverse input that inclusive leadership requires. The “top-down” control he champions often shuts down dissent and discourages diverse perspectives, creating environments where innovation and inclusivity are stifled rather than supported.

Join me and the SHE Community for an amazing event hosted with the Norwegian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (NCCC) and XPENG, to explore the ESG challenges and opportunities in Norwegian-Chinese partnerships. We’ll do a deep dive into the environmental and social dimensions of sustainability, with a focus on bridging the regulatory and cultural gaps that can make or break these cross-border collaborations. The journey to a sustainable future is never linear, and that’s why it’s critical for businesses, policymakers, and organizations to come together and tackle these complexities head-on.

2025 is bringing an opportunity I can't wait for—I'm hitting the road for a six-week speaker tour across Europe! With 15 dates already booked across seven cities in Germany, Austria, Norway, and Belgium, I’ll be sharing stories, strategies, and steps to make inclusion practical, profitable, and possible in your organization. The response has been incredible, so I’m adding more dates in February, March, and April. Want me to visit your city? Tell me where, and I'll do my best to make it!

The energy at the KosICT Tech Festival was electric. I had the privilege of delivering a keynote on Entrepreneurial Leadership: How Inclusion Can Drive Innovation at one of the most impactful tech conferences in the Balkans. Being surrounded by amazing folks, including Prime Minister Albin Kurti and Mayor of Prishtina Perparim Rama, as well as the absolutely awesome Aldo Baxhaku, Ermal Sadiku, and the ever-inspiring Sabine Singer, MBA inger, was beyond motivating. My message was clear: innovation thrives when inclusion is embedded into leadership, especially in our work as entrepreneurs.

Folks often think that inclusion and sustainability as two different things, but they are more deeply connected than we could possibly realize. Just like inclusion strives to empower marginalized voices, sustainability aims to protect our planet for future generations. These principles both advocate for equity—whether environmental or social—and ensure that the most disadvantaged groups of people are prioritized in decisionmaking. Today, I want to spotlight a few inspiring leaders who are proving that the future of business lies at this intersection.

As October rolls around, many organizations in the UK and beyond mark Black History Month with a series of events, social media campaigns, and corporate gestures. But once October ends, are these efforts truly meaningful, or just performative? Tokenism - the superficial inclusion of underrepresented groups to appear diverse without meaningful action - can turn what should be a powerful moment of recognition into a shallow marketing strategy.

I’m thrilled to finally announce the launch of the 2025 Inclusive Leadership Tour! After months of planning, and thanks in large part to the amazing promotional support of Miguel Heinonen, MBA and Whitefriar , the marketing advice of Oksana Koriakova at Impero , , the phenomenal training on running a speaker business of Michael Arnot and Marty Wilson CSP at MainStage Speaker Business Academy and the support from the amazing team at Inclusive Creation , Anne Igeltjørn , Regont Arnori , Sumita Kunashakaran and Bridget Price, I'm gearing up to hit the road and bring dynamic, hands-on keynotes and workshops to cities across Europe. This tour is all about transforming inclusion promises into real, actionable practices—and I so excited to share it.

Artificial intelligence can be like a rowdy toddler—smart but unpredictable, especially when it comes to fairness. While it holds incredible potential, it’s not immune to bias, often reflecting prejudices buried deep in the data and the people who create it. Recently, I was featured in a news article by Forskning where we explored how we can prevent AI from serving up answers with built-in biases. Tackling this issue isn't just about ethics—it's also good business. Ensuring AI is inclusive opens doors for better products, a broader customer base, and, ultimately, higher profits.

Today I got to meet with Tanjil Ahmed Ruhullah FCILT BSc (Hons) LLB (Lond.) and Asif Iqbal, at Interport Maritime Ltd. It honestly felt like a masterclass in inclusive leadership. They are both dynamic leaders who absolutely embody the ethos of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Tanjil shared how Interport, a company launched in 2021, is rapidly growing and Asif showcased his vision for shaping the future of corporate leadership in Bangladesh through a culture of trust, mentorship, and inclusivity.

The reality is that bringing up Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) can feel uneasy at best, especially when you're not the one holding all the power. Often, the people facing exclusion are the ones expected to speak up, and that can feel incredibly intimidating. But here’s the truth: you don’t need all the power to make an impact. I created the Confidently Inclusive workshop, inspired by the outstanding work of Nadia Mastantuono, Fiona Onochie, and Tamara Dancheva at GSMA, to give folks the tools to confidently guide DEI conversations. My 11-step methodology helps you hit your audience where it matters—in the head, the heart, and the hands—so you can turn challenging talks into opportunities for real change.

It’s a story I've heard from so many women in leadership: If you’re too assertive, you’re labeled cold or aggressive, and if you’re too nurturing, you’re cast as the office "mom." This Catch-22 puts women leaders, especially women of color, in a constant battle to balance warmth and authority. Meanwhile, their male counterparts don’t face the same dilemma. In fact, men are often rewarded for behaviors that penalize women—empathy makes them seem approachable and beloved, while being cold is seen as a sign of strength and drive.

Lidia Best , CPACC dropped into my DMs recently to give me a nudge, and not the kind I could brush off. She pointed out that my dynamic captions, which I’ve been so proud of, weren’t accessible for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities. Dynamic captions are animated, often moving text that highlights specific parts of speech or visually syncs with the tone of the video. They’re flashy and engaging, often used by content creators to add a bit of flair. But here’s the catch: unlike static captions, which provide straightforward, consistent text at the bottom of the screen, dynamic captions can be difficult to follow for those who rely on captions for accessibility. My first reaction? Defensiveness. I mean, I knew about the accessibility issues, but I loved those captions. They’re flashy, fun, and let me play in the same league as younger creators with huge followings. They felt like a badge of pride—a sign that I was keeping up with the times.

Last week, I caught up with an a couple of long-time colleagues, John Smith and Randy Louden, two people I’ve known since the earliest days of my career at Citi! Our conversation revolved around the massive organizational changes large multinational companies often face. We discussed the immense challenge of putting into practice new solutions to tough problems and doing so without alienating anyone and ensuring everyone feels they belong in the new version of the company. This got me thinking about how inclusive leadership is not just a buzzword—it’s the key to successfully driving large-scale change.

During the pandemic, a university leader faced a tough decision: how to bring researchers back to their offices while balancing the unique challenges posed by remote work. Aware of research showing that women, particularly those in heterosexual couples, were shouldering the brunt of childcare and domestic labor, he proposed prioritizing young women researchers' return to the office. The response was mixed—appreciation from the women and anger from older men who felt slighted.

If there's one thing I never want to be called, it's "boring." I'd rather have my students—and yes, even my audience—leave feeling challenged than walk away with nothing but apathy. This isn't about shock value; it's about impact. And in leadership, the stakes are even higher.