By the end of the workshop, you will be able to:

• Explain how organizational hierarchies usually create feelings of psychological unsafety: it is nobody’s fault.
• Evaluate the role of leadership in driving cultural change, emphasizing why change must originate with leaders rather than junior team members.
• Demonstrate an understanding of psychological safety by illustrating how a leader fosters vulnerability loops within teams.
• Develop an emotional connection with vulnerability; far from a weakness, learn that it is an essential leadership skill.
• Apply specific behaviors to model ongoing vulnerability for the team without extra time or resources needed.
• Facilitate team participation in co-creating an environment of psychological safety.

• Learn how hierarchies work and how they relate to psychological safety
• Case studies, practice exercises

Chapter 2: What is and is not psychological safety?

• Learn about trust, safety, feeling comfortable, taking risks
• Learn about leader vulnerability
• Case studies, practice exercises

Chapter 3: Develop an increased emotional connection to vulnerability

• Challenges in your real world; reflection, opportunities
• Practice exercises: what else to do / not do

Chapter 4: Practice for leaders and their teams

• How leaders model vulnerability; other exercises to increase psychological safety
• How leaders encourage team participation in co-creating greater psychological safety.

Presentations, knowledge sharing, case studies, discussion, skill practice, improvisational games, scenario challenges and role playing. An experiential awareness of how psychological safety is different from traditional hierarchical management, without compromising seniority. Participants can subsequently repeat activities within their own team to share what they experienced and nurture higher psychological safety.

The workshop is psychologically safe. Facilitator models appropriate safety levels throughout, leading with this context. Learners absorb via observation of the class and facilitation methods, as well as by workshop activities.

Encourage authentic introspection in real time, to investigate leader’s fears, concerns, ambiguities and vulnerabilities. Encourage feedback and transparency with others in small groups and the wider cohort. None of us are invulnerable, nor should we pretend that we are.

• Leaders and Managers who want to build trust, openness, and collaboration within their teams.
• Aspiring Leaders and Supervisors preparing to take on leadership roles and keen to develop strong team cultures from the start.
• Project Managers and Team Leads responsible for driving collaboration, innovation, and cross-functional work.
• HR and Learning & Development Professionals supporting leadership development and workplace wellbeing initiatives.
• Anyone in a Leadership Pipeline who wants to foster a positive, high-performing, and psychologically safe work environment.

If you’re committed to creating a workplace where people feel safe to speak up, share ideas, and grow together, this workshop is for you.

• “This experience reminded me that, as leaders, we’re often only an inch ahead of the rest—if at all. It’s a humbling and important lesson.”
• “I’ve learned that as a manager, I should never be a gatekeeper. If my team members want to grow, they shouldn’t need to go through me—they can, and should, connect directly with senior leadership.”
• “The workshop brought a bit of that ‘magic’ back into corporate life—the spark of meaning and connection that’s often missing in the day-to-day.”
• “Even as a senior leader, I’m still learning—and I’m proud to say that openly to my team.”
• “In the corporate world, we often hide behind professional masks. Seeing a senior leader show up with honesty and authenticity was truly inspiring.”

With over 25 years’ experience as a leader, trainer, coach and mentor, Ravi Agarwal is an accomplished expert in developing individual potential and team success. He has led teams as a formal manager, ranging from small groups to large departments.

Previous workshop participants appreciate Ravi’s ability to build team competencies that align with organizational strategy, helping others achieve remarkable results in their careers. His approach is rooted in the belief that the most powerful learning happens when people connect with their own humanity. Through authentic, empathetic engagement, whether one-on-one or in groups, he creates a space where participants can reach new depths of learning and growth.

He specializes in character-centered skills that are essential for effective leadership and performance. His workshops cover topics such as the lean mindset for organizations, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, agile product development, psychological safety and meaning making. Ravi’s facilitation style is innovative and immersive; he not only teaches concepts but embodies them, allowing participants to learn by observing and engaging in real time. He distinguishes himself by only training skills that he is always trying to master, bringing an unusual authenticity to his workshops.