Karl James is not just an expert in dialogue; he has spent the last 25 years enabling it in some of the most challenging situations imaginable. What makes him unique is the extraordinary range of people he has spoken to, capturing their first-hand experiences of conversations under extreme pressure. His ‘cast’ includes a host of extraordinary individuals: cancer surgeons, astronauts, peace and hostage negotiators, army officers, and North Pole explorers, alongside ‘ordinary’ people who’ve lived through extraordinary things. Such as a pain specialist who survived a firebomb attack in his home, a Malaysian who defied her parents and her upbringing to discover the liberation of living openly as a gay woman, a Norfolk woman who educated herself in the woods after being rejected at school, and even a burglar and his victim who, through Restorative Justice, built an astonishing journey of healing together — a story later featured on BBC Radio 4.
Karl doesn’t just tell these stories; he translates the lessons from them into a clear model and a practical set of skills that help others learn how to have better, more productive conversations — wherever they work or live. Audiences come away from listening to Karl not just moved by the extraordinary audio he has captured over the years, but with skills they can immediately apply to tackle the difficult conversations they face at work and at home.
Alongside his work in dialogue, Karl is an acclaimed theatre director, with credits at the Royal Court, the Royal National Theatre, the National Theatre of Scotland, the Royal Shakespeare Company and on international stages in New York, Tokyo, Lisbon and beyond.
Karl began his career as the co-founder and Director of Trade Secrets in 1996, leading him to found The Dialogue Project in 2001, where he continues to serve as Director. Many commercial clients, including Unilever, Tesco, Google and TSB, regularly seek his expertise. From projects working in primary schools, to businesses and even creating podcasts, Karl always strives to create change by helping to utilise effective communication and better conversations to solve the hardest of challenges and generate new ideas and innovations.
Karl’s experience, passion and skill, combined with his deep understanding of how to craft and deliver a powerful story, make him a unique, funny and highly engaging speaker in the UK and abroad. In a world grappling with uncertainty, polarisation and the rise of AI, Karl reminds us of the irreplaceable value of human-to-human conversation — and equips people with the tools to have the conversations that matter most. Engaging, moving, and immediately relevant, he leaves audiences with a fresh confidence and a new appreciation of dialogue as a catalyst for change.
Karl James' official speaker topics are listed below:
- Braver Conversations - how to have the conversations that count
- Leadership – the art of enabling others through powerful conversations
- How to Listen Brilliantly - and the difference it makes
- Impact and Inspiration – the power of great speaking
- How to have Difficult Conversations – without destroying a relationship
- How to parent and communicate with Autistic children
- Why telling a great story matters – and 10 top tips to help you do it
- Why being human matters in an AI world
- Christmas Conversations - how to survive talking to your family
Official Feedback from In-Person & Virtual Events
“Karl is a brilliant blend of deep empathy, whole-self listening, wide experience, bravery in conversation, and application of huge expertise. He has a knack of transforming how people communicate by helping them see themselves and their audience (whether that be an individual, a team or a large group of people) more clearly, and he does it with great humour, and greater humanity. Conversations of all kinds are just richer, broader, and more meaningful whenever Karl is in the mix and he gets there standing shoulder to shoulder with those involved as a natural and forever welcome extension to the team. He is simply one of my go-to people.” - Tom, Managing Director, Waitrose
“Karl revolutionised my confidence, helping me to move from speaking to smaller intimate audiences to the bigger stage. Specifically helping with the build-up to an event, how to manage anxiety, confidence, clarity in narrative, how much to rehearse and prepare, building structure and confidence on the journey there and on the day itself. Karl has a talent for quickly understanding how people function and is able to hone in on what’s controllable. Cutting out the things that either don’t matter or can just be noise. It’s been a pleasure to work with him. Karl created a genuinely massive shift from where I’ve been, and I owe him a massive thank you.” - Tom, IGD
“Karl combines his deep experience of working in theatre, sound and film with real expertise and insight into effective conversations. He demonstrates his knowledge through rich, concise and often moving storytelling and cuts through with individuals, teams and much larger audiences. Karl has made a real difference to influencing how we talk and listen to each other. The result is a much more empathetic and engaging way of communication, firmly rooted in a clear recognition that we are (after all) all human beings!" - Ian, Communication Director, Tesco CE
“I’ve been lucky enough to know and work with Karl for more than 15 years – at Unilever, then Tesco and TSB. Whatever the challenge, Karl has always stepped up and delivered– which is why he has been so ever present in my career. The projects we’ve worked on together have been varied – from coaching leaders to perform at stadium conferences to supporting leaders to have braver one-to-one conversations to coaching storytelling to team communications. Karl brings the freshest of thinking and real creativity to the driest of subjects. Unshackled by the conformity of a corporate background but drawing on his experience as a performer as well as being an intense listener, he can help you dig deep for what’s really of interest to your audiences and how to articulate it in a memorable and bold way.” - George, Communication and Corporate Affairs Director, TSB
“Every interaction with Karl is a magical and incredibly moving experience! He has an extraordinary gift for always seeing the possibility in bringing people together to connect and understand themselves to spark a new kind of bravery. He does this by being an incredible and compassionate listener, with a rare ability to ask the most pertinent questions that get beneath the surface of what people actually feel and need. Karl then combines this deep insight with his wealth of creative expertise and imagination to spark memorable and brave spaces that really move people to tackle those big, challenging conversations and surface new beliefs and ideas that lead to real positive change.” - Wendy, Unilever
“Karl is an exceptional communicator. With his creative and human style, he tackles big, complex, and brave topics in an accessible, engaging and humorous way. He creates a rich dialogue through his natural curiosity and generous listening skills, making the audience feel heard and understood. Whether in an intimate setting or at a large scale event, his content is memorable, applicable and always makes an impact!” - Beth-Marie, People Director, Marks and Spencer
- 2006 - Co-founder of Ideas That Can Change the World
- 2005 - Dialogue Consultant at Unilever
- 2001 - Founder and Director of The Dialogue Project
- 1996 - Co-founder and Director of Trade Secrets
How to hire Karl James
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Karl James for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do NOT accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
