102 Anna Koukoullis

Episode102 - Anna Koukoullis Opera Dreams of Social Impact A former aspiring international opera singer whose career took an unexpected turn due to a vocal injury, Anna shares her inspiring journey from the stages of conservatoires and international venues to finding a new calling as a social impact coach. Anna & Phil discuss: * Anna’s early aspirations and training as an international opera singer, and details about the vocal injury that ended that career. * Her transition to social impact coach and the new sense of purpose it brought. * The importance of mindset, resilience, and dealing with performance anxiety. * The role of spirituality in her singing and overall approach to life. * How her cultural heritage from Greek Cypriot and Irish backgrounds influenced her values and have shaped her passion for social justice. * The importance of authenticity and real-life experiences in building connections with others. Here’s a little more about Anna: Anna Koukoullis is a former opera singer turned Social Value expert and Performance Coach, whose journey from the stage to the corporate world underscores her commitment to uplifting others. Throughout her corporate career, she led a national, award-winning social value team dedicated to inspiring and assisting vulnerable young people and marginalised communities with employability and career support. Under her visionary leadership, the team secured over £80 million in project wins, with clients experiencing over £1 million in social return on investment and consistently rating services 9/10 for quality and impact. Motivated by her engagement with unemployed youth, Anna authored the influential industry paper "Forgotten Youth," which explores how businesses can enhance social mobility for young people in the UK. This led to her appointment to lead, coach, and champion the business's EDI team, helping to unlock and enable initiatives to improve staff well-being and attract, recruit, and retain diverse talent in construction. In 2024, Anna founded Social Impact Coach to further her mission of helping businesses deliver the 'S' in ESG. Through consultancy and one-to-one coaching, she empowers businesses to deliver social value and helps individuals reach their full potential. Beyond her consultancy, Anna is a respected author, public speaker, and adviser on social mobility, talent development, skills, and education. She collaborates with esteemed organisations such as the Chartered Institute of Building and is a proud member of the Worshipful Company of Constructors. Anna’s unwavering dedication to social mobility and inclusivity, combined with her unique blend of creativity, strategic insight, and heartfelt collaboration, continues to drive meaningful change by bringing people and ideas together to create practical and demonstrable value-add opportunities. You can connect with Anna on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-koukoullis-671a2068/ And on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/agkoukou/ and https://www.instagram.com/social_impactcoach/