Episodes
Dec. 16, 2023
David Meikle on Creative Control
How can we manage people who are doing creative work? On the one hand, letting someone do what they want feels incredibly risky. On the other hand, creativity requires a degree of freedom, experimentation and agency.
That’s a particular problem in...
Dec. 4, 2023
Vishal George on Money Mindsets
Why do we sometimes make bad decisions in relation to money and what can we do about it?
My guest, Vishal George, is a Behavioural Scientist who has recently published a book called ‘Money Mindsets: Science-Based Stories to Rewire your Money Beliefs,...
Nov. 27, 2023
Dr Jake Mazulewicz on Human Reliability
What do you think of when you hear the word 'error'? It's highly likely you'll think of it negatively as a defect. The obvious way to manage defects, particularly in safety-critical industries, is to have detailed procedures, strict compliance, and...
Nov. 20, 2023
Dr Freddie Mason on the Future of Museums
What are museums, and what purpose do they serve? As a regular museum-goer — both when I’m travelling and also at home when I need distraction or creative inspiration — I’m always intrigued, both by what they show and how they show it.
If you’ve...
Nov. 12, 2023
Katja Hoyer on Beyond The Wall
What is it like to grow up in a country that no longer exists?
That's the challenge faced by my guest Katja Hoyer. She grew up in the GDR, the German Democratic Republic. Or as most of us think of it, East Germany.
While most histories of the...
Oct. 31, 2023
David Mansfield on The Monday Revolution
What is the Monday Revolution, and why do we need it?
On this episode, I'm speaking to someone who used to run a company that grabbed a lot of my attention during my teenage and younger years. That company was Capital Radio — at the time, London's...
Oct. 21, 2023
Robert Kerbeck on making a career out of lying
How can lying earn you millions? If you’re an actor and good at impersonating people, then the answer is that you become a corporate spy.
That’s the unexpected career path followed by my guest Robert Kerbeck, whose memoir ‘Ruse: Lying the American...
Oct. 13, 2023
Dr Constance Dierickx on Meta Leadership
Why can senior leaders — usually in post as a result of experience and expertise — often make mistakes? The answer might seem counterintuitive; it’s precisely because of their experience and expertise that this can happen. How that happens and what we...
Oct. 7, 2023
Sebastian Lees on Humanizing Technology
Why is some software a real pain to use? How does it happen, and what can we do to make it not happen?
On this episode, I’m speaking with Sebastian Lees, an experienced software developer with a keen interest in making things more human-centric. We...
Oct. 1, 2023
James MacPherson and Elisa Lynch on Trickle Down Safety
What is trickle-down safety? On this episode, I’m finding out with two safety specialists who help me to explroe what it means and why it’s relevant to other fields. By safety, I mean the kind that saves people’s lives on building sites,not the cyber...
Sept. 24, 2023
David Wales on Risk Communication & Customer Service
What we can learn about customer service and being more human from the fire service?
On this episode, I’m speaking with David Wales, who used to work in the fire and rescue service and has now switched to focus on product design and customer service....
Sept. 13, 2023
Ros Atkins on The Art of Explaining
How can we be better at explaining things? On the 250th episode of the podcast, I’m joined by a very special guest who has made explaining an art form and has just published a book called ‘The Art of Explanation’.
That guest is Ros Atkins. He’s a BBC...
Sept. 10, 2023
Hannah Williams on The Art of Live Scribing
What is livescribing? On this episode, I speak to an artist with a unique creative talent. Hannah Williams is the founder of Scribble Inc. and her talent is that she can summarise presentations and discussions in beautiful pieces of art that fuse...
Sept. 7, 2023
Dr Erica Thompson on Escape from Modelland
Why are we so reliant on models, how can they lead us astray, and what can we do about it?
On this episode, I’m exploring models. Of the mathematical kind, not the fashion or toy kind. Models interest me because so much of our world is run by them....
Sept. 3, 2023
Dr Roger Miles on Money, Motivation and Music
What can music teach us about human behaviour? What impact is remote and hybrid working having on employee conduct? How might we misjudge the risks posed by AI?
If these seem like a broad range of topics that have little in common, then you’re right...
Aug. 30, 2023
Ayelet Gundar-Goshen on The Wolf Hunt
How well do we really know those who are closest to us? That’s the question that is behind ‘The Wolf Hunt’, a new novel by Israeli author Ayelet Gundar-Goshen. She's my guest on this very special episode.
In a first for the show, I’m interviewing the...
Aug. 25, 2023
Professor Bent Flyvbjerg on How Big Things Get Done
Why are major projects so often delayed and over budget? On this episode, I'm speaking to Bent Flyvbjerg, the author of 'How Big Things Get Done'.
Bent s a Danish economic geographer. He was the First BT Professor and Inaugural Chair of Major...
Aug. 17, 2023
Dr. Kelly Richmond Pope on Scams, Stories & Secrets
Why drives people to commit fraud? What turns people into whistleblowers? How does fraud impact victims? On this episode, I'm exploring the scams, stories and secrets behind fraud.
My guest is Dr. Kelly Richmond Pope. She's the Dr. Barry Jay Epstein...
Aug. 11, 2023
Bruce Rigal on Money and Motivation
How can we design incentive programmes that deliver the right outcomes and avoid the wrong ones? We're all familiar with the idea of rewards to encourage good behaviour and punishment to deter bad behaviour. Incentive programmes are common because...
Aug. 5, 2023
Neil Mullarkey on being In The Moment
How can we be more in the moment in meetings, conversations and presentations? On this episode, I'm speaking to communications expert and comedian Neil Mullarkey.
In his new book 'In The Moment', Neil explores how we can use the ideas that underpin...
July 30, 2023
Rory Sutherland, Gerald Ashley & Paul Craven at Abbey Road Part Three
What happens when you put three Behavioural Science gurus in a world-famous music studio? On this episode, we find out as my guests are Paul Craven, Rory Sutherland and Gerald Ashley, who join me for part three of a three-part series recorded at the...
July 23, 2023
Rory Sutherland, Gerald Ashley & Paul Craven at Abbey Road Part Two
Why do some people become ‘super spreaders’ for fashions and ideas? Why might an acceptance letter from a top University be worth more than a degree from the same establishment? These and many more questions are answered in this episode.
My guests...
July 14, 2023
Rory Sutherland, Gerald Ashley & Paul Craven at Abbey Road Part One
What happens when you bring three behavioural science gurus into a world-famous recording studio? Find out on three special episodes of the Human Risk podcast.
Rory Sutherland, Gerald Ashley and Paul Craven have all been on the show before (links...
July 5, 2023
Nitish Upadhyaya on Behavioural Law
How do we know that laws and rules are effective? On this episode, I'm returning to the field of Behavioural Law. It's something I've explored in previous episodes with academics (links below), but this time I'm joined by a practitioner who works in a...