August 31, 2026 – STRONG Michael Ramsey and Empathy Leadership Doug Noll

Michael Ramsey – Co-founder and Co-CEO of Strong Pilates You know, fitness is fantastic, um, and it’s a feel good thing to be involved with, but these things need to make money. Michael Ramsey is a fitness entrepreneur and the Co-Founder and CEO of STRONG Pilates, a global fitness franchise that combines reformer Pilates with strength, conditioning, and cardiovascular training. Founded in Melbourne in 2019 with business partner Mark Armstrong, STRONG Pilates delivers a high intensity, low impact workout using its distinctive Rowformer and Bikeformer machines. Under Michael’s leadership, the company has grown to more than 120 studios across 14 countries, establishing STRONG as one of the fastest growing Pilates concepts in the world. Michael began his career as a personal trainer before moving into marketing and fitness business ownership. Prior to launching STRONG Pilates, he and Armstrong built and operated six F45 franchises, including a Port Melbourne location that became one of the brand’s leading studios. Drawing on his experience in personal training, brand strategy, digital marketing, and franchise operations, Michael helped build STRONG Pilates for international expansion from its earliest stages. His approach centers on creating a distinctive customer experience, maintaining a strong brand identity, and continually improving the company’s training methods and technology. Michael holds a Master of Commerce with a focus on marketing from RMIT University. His entrepreneurial achievements have earned repeated recognition from the Melbourne Young Entrepreneur Awards, including awards in the Fitness category and the 2025 Trailblazer Award. Beyond building STRONG Pilates, he has supported mental health awareness through Gotcha4Life and has served as a legacy ambassador for Lululemon. Through his leadership, Michael is working to make STRONG Pilates a global leader in innovative, accessible, and results focused fitness. Doug Noll – Owner of Noll Associates and Author of Empathy Leadership: The Powerful Skill That Drives Winning Results It’s the closest way you can connect with another human being. It’s the fastest way to create safety and trust. With another human being because you’re listening them into existence. You’re hearing them for the 1st time. And for many people, it’s the 1st time they have ever been heard at this level. Doug Noll, JD, MA, is the owner of Noll Associates, an award-winning mediator, author, trainer, and expert in conflict resolution and de-escalation. Before becoming a full-time mediator and peacemaker, Doug spent 22 years as a civil and commercial trial lawyer. Today, his work focuses on helping leaders and organizations understand the emotional dynamics behind conflict, improve communication, restore trust, and make better decisions under pressure. Doug is an Adjunct Professor at Pepperdine University’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, where his teaching has included decision making in conflict and the psychology of conflict communication. He is also a Distinguished Fellow of the International Academy of Mediators, an organization of highly experienced commercial mediators from around the world. His professional recognition has included California Lawyer Attorney of the Year and Best Lawyers in America Lawyer of the Year honors. Doug is the co-founder of Prison of Peace, a program launched to teach incarcerated people serving lengthy sentences the skills of emotional awareness, deep listening, de-escalation, problem solving, and mediation. Participants are trained to become peer mediators and help resolve conflicts within prison communities. Doug has used lessons from this work to develop methods for addressing emotionally charged situations in businesses, leadership teams, families, and other high-stakes environments. He is the author of several books on conflict, communication, and emotional competency, including De-Escalate: How to Calm an Angry Person in 90 Seconds or Less, which received a Book Excellence Award. His newest book, Empathy Leadership: The Powerful Skill That Drives Winning Results, will be published by Atria Books/Beyond Words on September 8, 2026. Grounded in neuroscience, psychology, and real-world experience, the book examines how leaders can use skills such as affect labeling, emotional recognition, and reflective listening to reduce defensiveness, navigate conflict, build trust, and improve performance. Through his mediation practice, teaching, writing, and leadership training, Doug has spent more than two decades studying what happens when emotions overwhelm rational decision making. His work argues that empathy is not simply a personality trait or a soft leadership skill, but a practical skill that can be learned and applied when conversations, relationships, and organizational outcomes are under pressure.