TIE Unearthed

Malawi is a land-locked, least developed country. That means that many people don’t have money for electricity and don’t have access to gas or solar. So, what is the reality on the ground for the 2.8 billion people that don’t have access to clean cooking? What are the risks to the environment, the health of these people, and the economy of the country? Even with urbanization, the science and demog...

Headspace, the meditation app that’s in 190 countries, and has 70 million users, was co-founded by my friend Rich. And the story is pretty incredible. Today Rich brings to life what the tipping point was to the start of this movement. What was going on in his life before Headspace. How Rich and Andy met. And then the impact they’ve had on meditation globally. Rich shares some really great insights...

If you give customers freedom, do you lose money? What about those companies that make money but let customers down? That are miserable to work for. Make a mess of the environment. Exploit workers in distant places... How and why does that happen? And more importantly, how can a company avoid that happening in the future? As Charlie Dawson, Founder and Partner of The Foundation says during this ch...

Today I talk with one of my closest and oldest friends, Liz. We’ve known each other since we were 2. She is the Principal Landscape Architect of Public City , is super inspiring and doing some incredible things in Canada. Here, we talk about diversity and inclusion in architecture. And much of what she talks about isn’t what you would expect. We talk about how people toboggan in Winnipeg, where it...

Here I get to interview Gav Thompson from the Do Lectures Podcast. And it’s such an amazing chat. Gav almost became an actor, was keen to get into a boy band at one point, but then worked in adland, and ended up going client-side, working as a CMO for one of the UK’s largest phone networks. It was there that he realized something. Many people out there think that there are only two options in life...

I was a guest on a podcast. Not just any podcast. The DO Lectures podcast. To say it was an honour is an understatement. I love the DO Lectures . And if you don’t know about them, you must. They are amazing. David Hieatt is amazing (I highly recommend following him on LinkedIn for daily doses of inspiration). And I got to chat with Gav Thompson on the Do Lectures podcast which was a load of fun. T...

Here I speak with a former housemate, a friend who helped me get hired into my first job in advertising, an advisor to TIE since 2009, and the Chief Commercial Officer at the start of WhyBuy, the UK-based business that helps people hire quality products and thereby own less. We talk about so many things. James Welch has lived and worked in 7 countries around the world. He reflects on that experien...

Keen to know how we can defeat global challenges such as climate change, pandemics, war, poverty, migration, and extremism? Today I speak with Simon Anholt, an independent Policy advisor who has worked with Presidents, Prime Ministers, and Monarchs in 56 nations, helping them improve their economic, political, and cultural engagements with the international community. He’s a best-selling author, T...

Organizations tend to see things from the “inside out”. But the key is to see things from the “outside-in”. But just seeing things differently isn’t enough. Which is why we have developed immersive leadership experiences. Getting out of your bubble matters. TIE helps create the leaders the world truly needs now. Here I talk to Janice McNamara , TIE's International Development Trainer and Executive...

Keen to know the answer to solving any problem in the world? You'll find the answer in this episode. Today I speak with Parul, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Shaishav, an NGO in India that fights for the rights of children. They just celebrated their 26th anniversary. We learn about all of the incredible work they do. The impact of TIE, BBH, and Emma Johnston-Donne in 2017. And everything th...

Zambia, the challenges that the country is currently facing, and how this street children’s organization responded to Covid-19 are just a few of the things we talk about in this episode. Barefeet Theatre is an extraordinary organization based in Zambia. Here I speak with Grace, the Executive Director. You will be amazed at all of the incredible things they manage to do and how they truly transform...

On November 8th, Pip Hare will start her journey racing around the planet by boat. Non-stop. Solo. This is the Vendee Globe race. It’s only open to a very few sailors, and this year only 33 sailors have qualified. Pip is one of them. In the whole history of the race, only 87 sailors have finished it, and only 6 of them were women. For Pip, this has been a 29-year journey to get here. And there is...

China, Tiger Mums, rock bands and the Buddhist Calendar are just a handful of the many things Rob and I talk about on this episode. Rob is a mischief-maker and passionately believes in culture, creativity, and chaos. He’s worked with names like NIKE, Virgin, and Metallica at agencies including Cynic, Wieden+Kennedy, and R/GA and has proudly been called an “asshole” by Lars Ulrich, Richard Branson,...

When I was last in New York I met with my friend Carter Murray, Global Chief Executive Officer of FCB, one of the world’s largest global advertising agency networks. Carter oversees the agency’s 120 offices in 80 countries, so as you can imagine, Carter has a lot to say about leadership. Carter is someone that I really look up to. Not only literally, as he stands at about 6'7" tall, but also becau...

Following the fall of the Saddam regime in Iraq, the first ever treatment centre for survivors of torture and war violence was opened in 2005. The centre is called the Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights and on Friday I spoke with Salah Ahmad, the Founder. Salah is child and family therapist from Iraq, who after experiencing flight and exile himself, has made it his mission to improve access to psyc...

Brazil, the rainforest, and the environment has hit the headlines quite a bit over the past couple of years. And rightfully so. And now, with more burning of the Amazon in the North of Brazil, the rainforest is back in the headlines. It’s hard not to feel slightly paralyzed – wondering how on earth we can help. And be some sort of change in the face of all of this destruction. Today we talk to Bin...

In 2006 I was sitting in Sir John Hegarty’s office at BBH on Kingly Street in London. I had come up with the idea and business plan for TIE. But it still needed a name. I had a number of different names to choose from, but I felt stumped. But, as usual he got me back on track. Sir John Hegarty is the Creative Founder of the global Ad agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty (known as BBH) and is the world-reno...

I am SO excited to announce TIE Accelerator . For the first time EVER, professionals can get involved with TIE in order to find their inner leaders, without having to be sponsored by their companies. They can boost their personal growth. And be the CHANGE that they want to see in this world. TIE Accelerator is a community of problem solvers who accelerate positive change around the world. We’ve de...

A few years ago I found myself eating cheese and drinking wine at the Château de Touffou, the castle purchased by the advertising man David Ogilvy in 1966, and still to this day owned by the Ogilvy family after David’s death in 1999. I was asked by Jon Steel, Group Planning Director for WPP Group as well as the WPP Marketing Fellowship Director at the time, to give a presentation about TIE to a gr...

Imagine growing up and only reading stories that have absolutely nothing to do with your reality. The way the houses are. How the people look. The customs, the food, the traditions. The climate. Most children in Africa don’t have access to books that tell stories they can relate to. African children, if they have access to books at all, read about culture and life in the West, where the majority o...

In this (first-ever) episode of the TIE Unearthed Podcast I thought that I’d kick things off with the backstory of why and how this all came together.