Interact WA

Last week, we facilitated a Practice LAB with the team at WesCEF, exploring what happens when values, vision, and purpose move beyond the posters on the wall… and into real conversations.

One thing that stood out is that most people know the values.
Far fewer have had the opportunity to actually practise communicating them in difficult, messy, real-world situations.

Organisations often invest heavily in defining values and strategy, but much less in helping people rehearse how those values and strategies sound and feel in everyday leadership conversations.

Kudos to the Wesfarmers Chemicals, Energy & Fertilisers team for embracing the practice with such openness, honesty, and courage. 👏

"Is this really a priority right now?”
“Do you want it done properly or just fast?”
“Have you actually looked at our workload?”

Some “questions” leaders get from their team… aren’t really questions.
They’re frustration… in disguise.

Because saying:

👉 “I’m overwhelmed”
👉 “This doesn’t feel realistic”
👉 “I’m not on board with this”

…can feel risky.

So it comes out as a question instead.
But here’s the catch. Those questions trigger an automatic response in many leaders to:

→ explain
→ justify
→ defend

And suddenly the conversation shifts away from what actually matters. And leaders end up solving the wrong problem.

In our Leadership LABS with our trained roleplayers, we help leaders practice something different: responding to the energy, not just the question.

“You sound a bit frustrated.”
“It feels like there’s more behind that. What’s going on?”
“What’s prompting that question?”

It slows things down.
Gets the real issue on the table.
And makes the conversation a whole lot easier.

Because you can answer the question…
…and still completely miss the point.

There was a different kind of education happening inside Fiona Stanley Hospital today.

More than 50 Serco leaders stepped out of the auditorium…and into real conversations.

As part of their Leadership Forum, we ran five different Practice LABS.

No slides.
No theory.
Just practice.

Each group stepped into a moment every leader recognises:

– Giving feedback that actually lands
– Managing performance
– Influencing stakeholders
– Thinking on your feet
– Leading when emotions run high

At first, there’s always a bit of hesitation. Careful wording. Playing it safe.

But then something shifts.

People realise this isn’t about getting it right the first time.
It’s a space to try, adjust… and try again.

Because leadership isn’t built by knowing what to say. It’s built by practising saying it. Especially when it’s uncomfortable.

And that’s the part we often skip.
We expect leaders to perform in high-stakes conversations… without ever giving them a safe space to rehearse.

Huge respect to the Serco leaders who leaned in, took risks, and did the work today 👏

A question I keep coming back to:

👉 Where in your organisation are leaders expected to get it right… without ever getting to practice first?