Why I Wrote Workplace Rewired

There are already some brilliant books on leadership, culture, and managing people. I have read many of them throughout my career, and more than a few have shaped how I think, how I lead, and how I challenge organisations to do better. This book is not an attempt to compete with that body of work. It is my contribution to the conversation.

I wrote Workplace Rewired because, after nearly three decades of working with leaders, teams, and businesses of all shapes and sizes, I kept seeing the same pattern repeat itself. Good organisations wanted to do right by their people, but often defaulted to outdated systems, cautious thinking, and a version of “good enough” that slowly chipped away at trust. Poorer organisations did even worse. They hid behind policy, confused process with leadership, and seemed genuinely surprised when talented people disengaged or walked away.

What has always fascinated me is not simply what people do at work. It is why they stay. Why they leave. Why one workplace seems able to unlock energy, loyalty, and growth, while another drains all three from even the most capable people. Those questions matter more than ever.

I started writing this book because I was seeing too many good people being broken by poor leadership, and too many leaders becoming paralysed by indecision. I was also seeing the opposite. I was seeing that, when an organisation truly commits to building a culture of belonging, clarity, trust, and purpose, the impact can be extraordinary. Morale improves. Performance improves. Retention improves. The workplace becomes stronger because the people inside it feel stronger.

That gap between good and bad is where this book sits.

It is not a book about HR for HR’s sake. It is not a manual of forms, policies, and procedural correctness. It is about people strategy. That distinction matters. HR processes have a place, of course they do. But process on its own does not make people stay. Compliance on its own does not create belonging. A perfectly drafted policy does not build trust unless leadership behaviour gives it life. The organisations that understand this are the ones that begin to move ahead.

Workplace Rewired exists because I believe we need a different conversation about people at work. One that is more honest. More strategic. More commercial. More human. One that recognises that culture is not an afterthought and people are not a line on an operational dashboard. They are the business.

This blog is the start of that conversation in public.

Over the coming weeks, I will be unpacking the themes behind the book and challenging some of the assumptions that still dominate leadership thinking. My aim is simple: to help leaders, managers, and business owners think differently about what kind of workplace they are building, and whether it is somewhere talented people would genuinely choose.

Because in the end, that is the real test.