Jackie Handy

Jackie Handy is a respected keynote speaker, leadership specialist, author, and workplace culture expert who is dedicated to helping organisations build environments where people feel safe, valued and understood. As the creator of The Matter Model® and author of ‘The Matter Model: How Great Leaders Build Belonging, Strengthen Purpose and Drive Engagement at Work’, Jackie has established herself as a leading voice on belonging, engagement and human-centred leadership. With almost 30 years of experience spanning leadership, recruitment, learning and development, inclusion and workforce engagement, she combines commercial expertise with practical strategies that enable organisations to strengthen culture, improve performance and retain talented people.

Jackie's career began in leadership and executive recruitment, where she developed a deep understanding of the relationship between organisational culture, employee engagement and business performance. Working across a variety of industries gave her valuable insight into the challenges leaders face when managing teams through growth, change and uncertainty. Determined to help organisations create healthier workplaces, Jackie expanded her expertise by becoming a Certified NLP Trainer, a Myers-Briggs and Everything DiSC Practitioner, and a Certified LEGO® Serious Play® Facilitator. In 2012, she founded her own consultancy, delivering leadership development, sales training and diversity and inclusion programmes to both SMEs and global organisations. 

Throughout her career, Jackie has built an impressive reputation for transforming workplace culture through practical leadership strategies. She launched the BRAVEwork Programme, an inclusive leadership initiative accredited by the CPD Standards Office, before publishing her first book, ‘The Little Book of Belonging’, in 2020. Her expertise has been recognised by leading organisations including Google, Tesco, Merck and Amgen, while her insights have been featured by the BBC and HR Magazine. Jackie further cemented her reputation when her TEDx Talk, 'The Exclusive Nature of Inclusion', on belonging and leadership was upgraded to the main TED.com platform, allowing her message to reach a global audience.

She was also commended as Best Storyteller at the UK Speaker Awards, recognising her ability to combine compelling storytelling with practical business insight. More recently, Jackie introduced The Matter Model®, a framework that helps leaders strengthen belonging, purpose and engagement, and recently wrote a book of the same name, 'The Matter Model: How Great Leaders Build Belonging, Strengthen Purpose and Drive Engagement at Work' set to be published in September 2026, as well as her signature keynote, Culture 3.0 - Make Work Matter, which equips organisations to build resilient, high-performing teams.

Event organisers hire Jackie because she delivers practical ideas that address some of the most pressing challenges facing today's workplaces. Her keynote presentations explore leadership, workplace culture, employee engagement, belonging, inclusion, organisational change, manager development and team performance, providing audiences with clear actions they can implement immediately. Jackie has a remarkable ability to connect with people from every level of an organisation, encouraging leaders to create cultures where individuals feel they genuinely matter and understand the value of the work they do. Combining commercial credibility with warmth, humour and authenticity, Jackie leaves audiences inspired to rethink leadership, strengthen workplace relationships and create environments where both people and organisations can thrive.