Ep 228: Dr Meg Hooper – Culture, Collaboration and Leading People Through Change.

In this episode of the Arete Podcast, Richard Triggs sits down with Dr Meg Hooper, organisational psychologist and founder of Carousel Consulting, to explore workplace culture, collaboration and what it takes to lead people successfully through change. Meg has a PhD in organisational psychology and works with organisations navigating structural, technical and cultural transformation. She explains why meaningful change requires more than a new strategy, system or set of values. It requires clear behaviours, supportive environments and leaders who understand how people actually experience change. The conversation explores why purpose alone is not enough to sustain a healthy organisation, particularly within the not-for-profit sector, and how even positive qualities such as care and commitment can become “overdone strengths”. Richard and Meg also discuss her Collaboration Maturity Model, known as CM2, which helps organisations understand why collaboration cannot rely solely on individual goodwill. Incentives, leadership behaviour, systems and organisational structures must all support the way people are expected to work together. They also examine psychosocial risk, the responsibility organisations have to create psychologically healthy workplaces, and the accidental change managers who are often expected to lead their teams through disruption without any formal preparation. Beyond her consulting work, Meg shares the story of founding Circus Ipswich, which has grown from eight young participants into an inclusive community of more than 60 enrolments. Through circus, she is helping young people build confidence, take safe risks, experience belonging and realise their potential. This is a wide-ranging conversation about change, leadership, culture, community and the environments people need to thrive.