Respectfully… can we talk about NEDs unfiltered, a year on?

Powered by Beetroot Consulting, with the live launch of this month's episode of The Root Podcast, recorded with Lara Sonola and Roli Barker.

A year on from the first conversation, Lara Sonola and Roli Barker come back to governance and leadership told honestly. This Respectfully… conversation asks who leadership is actually designed for, who gets believed in the room, and what it takes to redesign governance rather than just diversify it.

So, respectfully… can we talk about it?

This is a real conversation about NEDs unfiltered, a year on. It is also about:

• who leadership is designed for
• who gets to be seen as a leader
• the myth of neutral governance
• seeing the system, not the behaviour
• process versus power
• evidence and who gets believed
• invisible labour in leadership
• saying no as leadership
• redesigning leadership, not just diversifying it

The evening begins with a podcast discussion that opens up the theme and surfaces the key tensions, questions and lived realities. Lauren Gibson and a guest discussion host then opens those ideas out with attendees, creating a wider conversation where people can reflect, respond, add texture, challenge carefully and build on what has been said.

If you want to watch the discussion, if you want a lecture, if you want to find out 'the answer', you will be disappointed. This room is being deliberately shaped for a different kind of conversation. Made for participation, for enough room, for honesty.

At the end of the evening, Lara Sonola and Roli Barker will be invited to press the big blue button and launch this month's episode of The Root Podcast live, together, in real time. Our room will choose to move the conversation out of the margins and into public space.

For board members, non-executive directors, and anyone who reads the system in a room rather than just the behaviour.

Info: Guests can arrive, grab picky bits, herbal tea or alcohol-free cocktails, and settle into the space. This opening half hour gives people time to land, connect, decompress if needed, and get a feel for the room before the main conversation begins.

Info: The main event opens with a short introduction to The Root Podcast and why Beetroot makes long-form conversations that give more room to nuance, lived experience and the things that get flattened elsewhere. We then move into this month's theme: Respectfully… can we talk about 'NEDs unfiltered, a year on'? This section includes the episode trailer, the conversation with Lara Sonola and Roli Barker, and a hosted discussion with the room exploring the realities behind the theme: who leadership is designed for, who gets to be seen as a leader, the myth of neutral governance, seeing the system, not the behaviour, process versus power, evidence and who gets believed, invisible labour in leadership, saying no as leadership, redesigning leadership, not just diversifying it. This is a hosted conversation rather than a panel.

Info: There will be some time to chat to others in the room, before the evening ends with the launch moment. Lara Sonola and Roli Barker will press the big blue button, launching this month's episode of The Root Podcast live in real time with everyone in the room.

Event venue & nearby stays

Avesta Hair Ltd, 112 Phoebe Street, Salford, United Kingdom

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.

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