Truth, Lies and Work
Truth, Lies & Work is the UK's #1 Management Podcast.Brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, this award-winning podcast is where behavioural science meets workplace culture. Hosted by Chartered Occupational Psychologist Leanne Elliott and business owner Al Elliott, the show has reached #2 in the UK Business Podcast Charts and consistently ranks as a Top 10 trending business podcast globally.With a unique blend of evidence-based insight and lived experience, Leanne and Al simplify the science of people and culture to help leaders attract, engage, and retain great talent.Episodes drop twice a week. Tuesdays feature a global people and culture news...
10
"This Is and Will Always Be the Best Place I've Ever Worked", with Gemme & Xav from Studio Xag
<p>What happens when two art students fall in love, start freelancing together, and accidentally build one of the UK's happiest creative brand agencies?</p> <p>In this episode of Truth, Lies & Work, we're joined by Gemma Ruse and Xavier Shariff, the husband-and-wife co-founders of Studio Zag, a 60-person agency that designs and builds experiential installations for brands all over the world.</p> STUDIO XAG: https://studioxag.com/ Gemma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gemma-ruse-646979a Xavier: https://www.linkedin.com/in/xavier-sheriff-49091132 Ellie Glason PR: https://ellieglasonpr.com/ <p>They met at 20 in a house share at Central Saint...
Is flexible work actually fair? PLUS! Corporate politics, motivating Gen X and the truth about learning styles
<p>Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work — the podcast where behavioural science meets real working life.</p> <p>This week, we’re asking a simple question with uncomfortable answers: who really gets flexibility, who’s trusted around AI, and what psychology myths are still shaping work decisions?</p> <p><br></p> <p>🔥 Stories covered</p> <p>1. Who actually gets flexible work — and why</p> <p>Leanne introduces a new term this week: i-deals — short for idiosyncratic deals. These are personalised, one-to-one flexibility arrangements negotiated privately between employees and managers.</p> <p><br></p> <p>📄 Research source:<br>https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/ep...
Why Truth is Funny: 7x Emmy Winner Beth Sherman on Building Trust at Work
<p>What do late-night comedy writers know about trust, influence, and human connection that most business leaders don’t?</p> <p>In this episode of Truth, Lies & Work, we’re joined by Beth Sherman — a seven-time Emmy-winning comedy writer who spent three decades in Hollywood writers’ rooms before taking what she learned into the world of business.</p> <p>Beth has written for The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Ellen, the Screen Actors Guild Awards, and the Oscars. Today, she works with leaders, sales teams, and organisations who want to build trust quickly, communicate with con...
Does complaining at work rewire your brain? PLUS! Gen Z growth hunting, wellbeing perks and how to manifest success
<p>Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work, the podcast where behavioural science meets workplace culture.</p> <p>This week we’re exploring what employees and leaders are really looking for at work right now — and how it’s shaping leadership behaviour, burnout, employee wellbeing, and workplace culture.</p> <p><br></p> <p>🔥 Stories covered</p> <p><br></p> <p>Why are Gen Z leaving jobs so quickly?</p> <p>According to a Fast Company article by Jeff LeBlanc, Gen Z workers aren’t job-hopping out of disloyalty. They’re growth hunting.</p> <p>The research shows:</p> <p>Nearly half of Gen Z plan...
How to build a business bigger than you, with Dustin Hillis
<p>Most founders pride themselves on being “high-capacity”.<br> The person who can sell, operate, strategise, and firefight all at once.</p> <p>But there’s a point where that strength quietly becomes the problem.</p> <p>In this episode, Al and Leanne are joined by Dustin Hillis, a serial entrepreneur and executive coach who has led businesses from early-stage chaos through to $100m-plus scale, and is now building again at a much bigger level.</p> <p>Dustin’s core message is simple, but uncomfortable:<br>what gets you to your first milestone will not get you to the next one.</p>...
Is Blue Monday actually real? PLUS! Autistic Barbie, career pivots and the science of 'wintering' - This Week in Work, 13th January 2026
<p>January blues are back — but is Blue Monday actually real?<br> In this episode of Truth, Lies & Work, we explore wintering, career pivots, and what behavioural science really says about mood, motivation and burnout at work during January.</p> <p>If the start of the year feels heavy, flat or strangely exhausting, you’re not alone. Instead of pushing harder, this week we ask a different question: what if slowing down is the smarter response?</p> <p><br></p> <p>🔥 Stories Covered</p> <p>Word of the Week: Wintering<br> We unpack the idea of wintering, coined by author Katheri...
Are We in a Hope Crisis at Work? With Matt Poepsel, PhD
<p>This week on Truth, Lies & Work, Al and Leanne sit down with Dr Matt Poepsel, Marine veteran, author and the self-proclaimed Godfather of Talent Optimization at The Predictive Index. In a world shaped by burnout, uncertainty and rapid AI disruption, Matt argues that many organisations are facing a “hope crisis” – and it is quietly draining performance, motivation and leadership effectiveness.</p> <p><br></p> <p>What We Cover</p> <p>Matt explains why hope is not fluffy positivity but a measurable psychological skill linked directly to job performance, resilience and team culture. Drawing on Snyder’s Hope Theory, he shows ho...
How to Measure Culture Like a Business Metric - Great Mondays Radio X Truth, Lies and Work
<p>This week, we're sharing a special feed drop from Great Mondays Radio! Our very own Chartered Occupational Psychologist, Leanne Elliott, takes the guest chair as host Josh Levine (Work Futurist, author, and culture consultant) interviews her on creating amazing workplaces.</p> <p>In this candid conversation, Leanne and Josh dismantle the myths around company culture and redefine it as a strategic, business-critical system rooted in behavioral science. If you're tired of treating culture as a "nice-to-have" or a collection of perks, this episode is a must-listen for business leaders, managers, and HR professionals.</p> <p><br></p> <p>🧠 What We...
Expert Predictions for 2026 (Part 2): Hybrid work, unionisation and more of the same?
<p>Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work. This is part two of our Predictions 2026 series, where we ask leaders, researchers and thinkers what they believe is coming our way next year. If part one was warm and reflective, part two brings the heat!</p> <p><br></p> <p>🧠 What We Cover: The Big Predictions for 2026</p> <p>Hybrid Will Fracture Before It Settles – Professors Ina Purvanova & Alanah Mitchell</p> <p>The authors of The New Workplace predict deeper relational fractures across hybrid teams. As employees split across offices, homes and third spaces, meaningful connection weakens and culture becomes harder to susta...
Expert Predictions for 2026 (Part 1): Ethical AI, text chat and the death of the resumecha
<p>Welcome back to a very special edition of Truth, Lies & Work, the award-winning podcast where behavioural science meets workplace culture, brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network. This episode features Part 1 of our annual Predictions for 2026. </p> <p>Join Leanne and Al as they speak to top experts who share their contrasting views on how AI, leadership, identity, and productivity are about to fundamentally shift the world of work.</p> <p><br></p> <p>🔮 Your Panel of Experts: Prediction Headlines</p> <p>Phill Agnew (The Nudge Podcast): AI Must "Show Its Working" & the Rise of Text Speak. Find Out...
