From being a corporate HR executive to empowering leadership consultant, Kate Walker has positioned herself as an expert in workplace transformation. Read this interview, wherein she shares her thoughts on building effective communication, helping managers, and fostering inclusive workplace cultures.
Your corporate exit in 2021 marked a significant transition. What motivated you to leave your senior-level corporate Human Resources roles and establish Kate Walker Consulting?
My transition out of a corporate career was due to a culmination of many things including a desire for greater time freedom, location freedom, flexibility in how I help my clients, and the opportunity to generate greater income.
I wanted to niche my vast HR experience toward helping leaders navigate their complex, high level workplace and employee issues.
Although important, I’m not as interested in HR policy projects. I’m passionate about teaching managers how to implement ninja-level skills. Employees are quitting and outing bad managers every day on social media. Managers need help, and I want to help them.
In your consulting work, you focus on helping leaders build powerhouse skills that impact company culture and the bottom line. Can you share some key strategies you advocate for enhancing leadership and team dynamics?
70% of organizational programs fail and the most likely cause is often a lack of communication. I have witnessed many points of failure in organizations due to poor communication planning, skill, and tactics.
Providing our teams clear, concise, and frequent communication cannot be underrated. Much of my consulting is in support of helping leaders foster stronger skills toward communicating their vision, mission, delivering feedback, navigating difficult conversations which all point toward elevating employee performance and engagement.
Your book, ‘A Candid Conversation’ combines memoir and a guide to reflection and empowerment. What inspired you to write this book, and what key lessons do you hope readers take away from it?
I’ve experienced many transitional and transformational situations both personally and professionally. I couldn’t seem to find the right book or resource to provide me guidance or comfort while navigating personal challenges.
After years of reflection, I wondered if I could find the courage to share my own stories and experiences by writing a book in service to helping others who might be looking for a resource. I began reviewing my journals and developing some of that material into what became the book. I published the book from a place of service, appreciation of life’s journey, and the beauty of looking forward.
Key lessons that I’d like readers to take away from the book are:
- Big decisions are scary and take courage but can lead you to more fulfilling places.
- People will show you who they are, and we should believe them the first time.
- Key tips and advice about my career trajectory including how I left corporate and launched a business.
What advice would you give to aspiring leaders on fostering a positive and inclusive workplace culture?
Active listening is critical. My advice is to maintain ongoing authentic dialog with team members and ask open ended questions. I encourage leaders to schedule employee brainstorming or ideation sessions because these interactions foster creativity and collaboration among team members, leading to innovative ideas and solutions. This can help people feel heard and included.
Brainstorming provides an environment for everyone to contribute their perspectives and expertise, ultimately helping to improve decision-making, problem-solving, and ensuring many voices are heard. Creating space for employees to feel seen and heard can help promote greater inclusiveness within an organization.
What is your vision going forward for Kate Walker Consulting? What are you most excited about?
My vision is to help companies improve their workplace culture. Managers urgently need help; they need a roadmap. I’m excited about providing game-changing tools for managers.
I’ve developed a curriculum (New Manager Academy) to help companies modernize and improve how managers engage with and coach employees. It’s about coaching leaders in a new and actionable way. New Manager Academy is both a digital on-demand program plus regular LIVE group hot seat coaching that’s designed for positive interactive conversation and transformation.
The curriculum is intended for smaller companies (50-300) who would greatly benefit from training built upon a foundation of global-company best practices shared by an HR expert. I’m excited to help managers accelerate and quantum leap.
