Megan Reitz

Megan Reitz is a facilitator, teacher, speaker, executive coach, researcher and author dedicated to exploring and finding ways to improve the way we interact with one another in the workplace.

Her passion and curiosity centres around the quality of how we meet, see, hear, speak, learn with and encounter one another in organisational systems and how we might encourage dialogue which is more humane and which enables us, our colleagues and our society to flourish.

Working at the intersection of leadership, change, dialogue and mindfulness, she has presented her research to audiences throughout the world and she is listed on the Thinkers50 Radar of global management thinkers and on the 2019 HR Most Influential list of Thinkers.

Her recent research with John Higgins on ‘Speaking truth to Power’ – examining how perceptions of power enable and silence others – has been featured in five articles in Harvard Business Review. It is the subject of her TEDx talk and their new book, 'Speak Up: Say what needs to be said and hear what needs to be heard', with Financial Times Publishing, which was shortlisted for the CMI Management Book of the Year 2020.

With Michael Chaskalson she has been examining mindful leadership and their research has been published by Harvard Business Review (Nov, Dec 2016 and Aug 2020), featured in Forbes Magazine and their book, Mind Time: How Ten Mindful Minutes can enhance your work, health and happiness, (Harper Thorsons, 2018). She is also the author of Dialogue in Organizations; Developing Relational Leadership (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015).

As well as running her own business, she is Professor of Leadership and Dialogue at Ashridge Executive Education – part of Hult International Business School. She supervises students undertaking their PhD on the Executive Doctorate in Organisational Change and she also teaches on a wide range of open and custom programmes. Her particular interest is in action inquiry based research – research which is participatory and dedicated to initiating generative change through cycles of action, inquiry and reflection – however, Megan's own research includes a broad range of methodological approaches.

Before joining Ashridge, she was a consultant with Deloitte; surfed the dot-com boom with boo.com; and worked in strategy consulting for The Kalchas Group, now the strategic arm of Computer Science Corporation.

She was educated at Cambridge University gaining an MA in Land Economy. She received a Masters in Change Agent Skills and Strategies at Surrey University and a Masters in Research at Cranfield School of Management where she was also awarded her PhD.

She is an accredited executive coach with Ashridge and The School of Coaching and she is qualified with the British Psychological Society to deliver and feedback a range of psychometric instruments. As a mindfulness teacher, she has studied with Bangor University’s Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice and she is an Associate at Mindfulness Works with Michael Chaskalson.

She is mother to two wonderful daughters who test her regularly on my powers of mindfulness and dialogue. Her favourite pastimes are to hike in beautiful countryside with her family and to cycle through the forest at Ashridge.

Howard Behar

Howard Behar is a renowned business leader, author, speaker, and mentor who has influenced the lives of numerous men and women at all stages of their careers and at all levels and roles.

For 21 years Behar led Starbuck’s domestic business as President of North America, and he became the founding President of Starbucks International opening the very first store outside of North America in Japan, Tokyo. Following this historic opening, over the next three years he introduced the Starbucks brand across Asia and the United Kingdom. After a two-year hiatus, he returned to Starbucks as president of Starbucks North America until his retirement in January 2003. He was a director of the company from 1996 to 2008 and served as an advisor and coach at all levels.  During his tenure, he participated in the growth of the company from only 28 stores to over 15,000 stores spanning five continents.

Howard now serves on the boards of several for-profit and non-profit organizations, including Education Element, iD Tech, The School of Leadership Studies at Gonzaga University.  He is on the advisory boards of Anthos Capital, University of Washington Foundation, and a Trustee for The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation.

Howard is committed to the development and education of our future leaders and has been a longtime advocate of the Servant Leadership Model.  He is the author of two popular business books, It’s Not About The Coffee: Leadership Principles from a Life at Starbucks and The Magic Cup: A Business Parable About a Leader, a Team, and the Power of Putting People and Values First. Considered one of the finest examples of conscious capitalism, he is frequently sought by companies and leadership events to share his experiences building purpose-driven businesses and effectively engaging employees within large-scale corporations.