The Human Risk Podcast

What makes for a good customer experience? In two special episodes of the Human Risk podcast, I’m speaking to CX experts who provide fascinating insights into what drives how we feel about the times when companies deliver really good or really bad service. In two interviews that I’m releasing together, I’m speaking to experts in customer experience. They both have different approaches, but their w...

How can leaders make good decisions when under pressure? My guest is leadership coach Dr Carol Kauffman. She is on the faculty at Harvard, where she is the Founder of the Institute of Coaching and is the co-author of a new book called ‘ Real-Time Leadership: How to Find Your Winning Moves When the Stakes are High’. With leaders increasingly having to take decisions quickly and under heavy scrutiny...

Are you curious about how AI and automation are changing the world of human risk? Do you wonder what the future of work might look like in a world where machines and humans are increasingly interconnected? Then you won't want to miss the latest episode of the Human Risk Podcast, where we welcome a very special guest: ChatGPT, an AI language model. In this episode, we dive deep into the world of AI...

What can war and politics teach us about human risk? On this episode, I'm joined by a guest with insights into both fields. About Mike Dr Mike Martin is a former British Army officer who's a senior visiting research fellow in the Department of War Studies at King's College London, where he's interested in the evolutionary psychology of warfare and humans, internal conflict in societies and strateg...

On this special episode of the show, I’m interviewing a doctor whose photograph went viral. In 2019, Doctor Gordon Caldwell, a retired Consultant Physician and Clinical Lead with the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) had a photograph taken of himself lying next to a long line of forms. The photograph’s purpose was to highlight the amount of paperwork medical professionals need to fill in. Gordon...

My guest Marc Ross is aa senior geopolitical strategist and communications executive that helps companies and politicians get their message across. As you’ll hear on the show, Marc specializes in navigating today's interconnected business environment with geopolitical intelligence, strategic planning, economic diplomacy, and communications and has extensive experience with global Fortune 100 compa...

What can financial crime teach us about human risk? On this episode, I'm joined by Ray Blake, co-host of "The Dark Money Files," a podcast that examines how the banking system is used by organized crime and corrupt individuals to launder their ill-gotten gains. Since 2015, Ray and his co-host, Graham and Barrow, have been shedding light on the techniques used by criminals to perpetrate financial c...

What happens when we bring all of ourselves to work? That’s not something we do by choice. As my guest on this episode, Gabriella Braun, explains, we can’t leave part of ourselves at home when we go to work; we will naturally bring all that we are into the workplace. That concept explains the title of Gabriella’s book ‘All That We Are: Uncovering the Hidden Truths Behind Our Behaviour at Work’. It...

Why do people fall for misinformation, and what can we do to prevent it? On this episode, I’m speaking to Professor Sander van der Linden of Cambridge University. He’s the author of a new book called ‘Foolproof: Why We Fall for Misinformation and How to Build Immunity’. Sander is often referred to as Cambridge University’s Teacher against the Dark Arts. More formally, he’s the Professor of Social...

What do technology, behaviour and data have in common? My guest, Paul Armstrong, runs a conference called TBD and is a thought leader in how the three topics interconnect. As technology becomes smarter and more pervasive, what does that mean for human decision-making and human risk? Paul runs HERE/FORTH, an emerging technology advisory firm that works with a number of high-profile clients. As well...

How can stereotypes — particularly those relating to gender and ethnicity — drive us to draw the wrong conclusions? If I say the word American, you’re more likely to think of a white person. If I say the word Doctor, you’re more likely to think of a man. There’s a famous riddle involving a surgeon (link below) that you may have heard, which has an obvious answer that we often struggle to find. Obv...

What is Rail Activism? My guest, Jon Worth, is a proponent of Cross Border Rail within Europe. On this episode, I’m exploring why Jon thinks this is important and how he’s getting his message across. As you’ll hear, Cross Border Rail is full of Human Risk In Action. I'm also fascinated by how Jon approaches his mission with passion, commitment, and a healthy dose of humour. On the episode, you’ll...

What do we mean when we say we trust a person or an organisation? It’s a word we use a lot that we intuitively understand. Trust plays a vital part in how we interact with others. If we trust someone, we’re more likely to engage with them. If we don’t, we might avoid engaging them or expend extra effort in keeping an eye on what they’re up to. But what makes a person or organisation trustworthy? D...

Why is it that when we really like an object, brand or activity, we say that we ‘love’ it? How can we fall in love with brands, things and experiences? I’m an Apple fanboy, I love my Peloton bike, and given the time of year, it would be remiss of me not to mention how much I really like Christmas markets in Germany. What’s happening when I feel that way? On the face of it, this doesn’t exactly mak...

How do our expectations impact our experiences? More than you might think. On this very special episode of the Human Risk podcast, I’m speaking with David Robson, author of ‘The Expectation Effect’. Joining me in that are two of my favourite podcasters, Kurt Nelson and Tim Houlihan of the Behavioral Grooves podcast. They, like me, were in London for a gathering od Behavioural Science practitioners...

How do charities and not-for-profits manage human risk? Given the risks they face and the limited budgets they have available to them, they’re often incredibly innovative when it comes to risk management and compliance. This means there are lessons for all of us in a resource-constrained environment. On this episode, I’m speaking to Sabrina Segal. She began her career as a lawyer before recognisin...

When we are successful, is it down to skill or luck? All too often, we’re inclined to believe the former of ourselves and other people with extremely negative consequences. On this episode, I’m speaking to Odessa Hamilton. She’s a doctoral researcher at University College London and a behavioural science researcher in the Inclusion Initiative of the London School of Economics that explores how we...

What skills do people need to succeed in the 21st century? On this episode, I’m speaking to Cecily Josten. I’m speaking to Cecily Josten. She’s a Fellow at the Inclusion Initiative from the London School of Economics that explores how we can use Behavioural Science to make workplaces more inclusive. Cecily’s areas of interest include the skills of the future and the future of work — how can we mea...

Why does success not always bring happiness? On this episode, I speak with Laura Gassing Otting, who, in her own words, helps leaders get unstuck. She is a best-selling author who has previously set up a recruitment agency, helping many leaders to manage their careers on their terms and to carve their own paths. As you'll hear, that means removing some limiting factors like impostor syndrome or ha...

This episode of the show is an extended version of an interview recorded for the European Compliance and Ethics Community 2022 Conference, a virtual event broadcast from Munich, Germany. The idea was to bring some local flavour to Europe’s largest Compliance and Ethics event. Since the conference was held in October in Munich, we decided we’d speak to someone who is a prominent figure involved wit...

What risks do emerging technologies like the Metaverse and Empathic AI pose? While most of us are aware of data privacy and manipulation risks, we tend to think of them in the context of known technologies like social media. What happens when the tech becomes more immersive? The answer is that areas like human rights come under threat. On this episode, I’m joined by Kate Jones, an Associate Fellow...

What does comedy have to do with cyber risk? More than you might think. My guest on this episode Ian Murphy specialises in both, using comedy to produce content that makes people more aware of cyber security risks. Ian is the founder of CyberOff, which in his words “breathes life into cyber security training”. He does that using incredibly compelling content that relies heavily on comedy. During o...

What do Magic and Alchemy have to do with human decision-making? This episode — the 200th! — is the second part of a discussion with Paul Craven and Rory Sutherland. If you missed the first episode, I recommend starting with that, as some topics flow across both halves. You'll find it here: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/rory-sutherland-paul-craven-on-alchemy-magic/ Paul began his career in Fina...

What do Alchemy and Magic have to do with human decision-making? 

On this episode, I’m joined by two Behavioural Science gurus who have both been on the show before: Rory Sutherland and Paul Craven. Rory is the author of Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense. Paul Craven is a magician and member of the prestigious Magic Circle. So that’s both bases covered! Rory is also the...

What role does Trust play in Compliance? What is Voluntary Compliance and how effective is it? This episode sees the return of the very first guest I ever had on the podcast, Professor Yuval Feldman of Bar-Ilan University in Israel. I asked Yuval to help me launch the show because his book “The Law Of Good People’ was a major influence on my human risk work. So, as we approach the 200th episode of...