In this episode of the HR Strategy in the Hot Seat, Anwen Bottois (your host) is joined by Paula Brockwell (the Employee Experience Project).

Join us in unlocking the secret to transforming your company’s performance by redefining what culture (and culture work) truly means, going beyond just happy employees.

You’ll discover why a focus on strategic behaviour and performance drivers is the missing piece in many organisations’ success stories. If you're an HR leader tired of chasing fleeting engagement metrics and ready to create a culture that actually powers results, this episode is your game changer.

Paula Brockwell, an occupational psychologist and founder of the Employee Experience Project, reveals how organisations can shift from superficial employee happiness to cultivating the right environment for sustained high performance. She explains why culture is about much more than just feeling good, it’s about enabling teams to show up in the ways that directly impact business success.

You’ll learn how to steer conversations with your executive team toward strategic behaviour, how to design cultures in line with your unique context, and why the idea of “creating happiness” can sometimes hold companies back.

We break down concrete frameworks, like Paula’s driver model, which predicts 62% of observed behaviour within an organisation based on environmental cues. She shares actionable tactics for HR leaders to redefine their culture conversations, from understanding the real drivers of behaviour to managing the psychological contract effectively.

Discover how leaders can shift from a comfort zone of mediocrity to a stretch zone that fosters growth, accountability, and true organisational agility.

Struggling with resistance from leadership or feeling boxed in by outdated ideas? Paula’s insights empower HR professionals to influence beyond their traditional remit, encouraging proactive, performance-driven cultural strategies. Ignoring these principles risks stagnation, but embracing them opens the door to a resilient, high-performing workplace that aligns business goals with a healthy, sustainable employee experience.

This episode is perfect for HR leaders, executives, and culture champions eager to go beyond surface-level engagement. This episode offers the tools to make culture a strategic lever for real results. If you want your organisation to thrive in a complex world, understanding and applying these insights will position you as a true driver of performance, a critical component of any successful HR Strategy.

Find Paula on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulabrockwell/

The EX Project website here: https://theexproject.com/

The Paper Mentioned: Harness Your Culture for Performance: https://share.google/gYh51VHVVu7bWMyWr

Find Anwen on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anwen-bottois-leadership-coach/

Welcome to the HR Strategy in the Hot Seat Podcast!

In this first episode, I'm joined by Tom Emery for Hex Development and we are diving into a critical factor of success for HR Leaders, the mindset they bring and lead with. How HR Leaders show up influences how they organisation responds to them and how they best influence for maximum impact.

Tom Emery, from Hex Development is a seasoned HR leader and consultant, and he shares his insights on the critical role of mindset in HR strategy. He emphasises the importance of viewing HR as an integral part of business strategy, the need for HR leaders to embrace their agency, and the power of curiosity and incremental influence.

We discusses the shift from a service-oriented mindset to one focused on impact and innovation, and the necessity of learning from mistakes to foster a culture of growth. The conversation concludes with actionable takeaways for HR leaders to enhance their effectiveness and influence within organisations.

You can find Tom Emery and Hex Development on LinkedIn. Here's the website.

Thank you for joining the HR Strategy in the Hot Seat Podcast! I'm your host, Anwen Bottois, and my business is Purple Sky Consulting. I'm an HR Strategy and Leadership Coach and I specialise in Leadership Promotions. I love working with leaders and I really am enjoying working with HR Leaders to develop as strategic leaders.