E14 - In conversation with a CEO (Luke McKeever, Thomas International)

What happens when a CEO with a psychology degree bans Friday meetings, challenges “bring your whole self to work”, and tells CPOs to get commercially dangerous? Find out in this episode, when Luke McKeever joins us for a blunt, intelligent and occasionally uncomfortable conversation about leadership, AI, and the future credibility of HR/People. We explore: Why authenticity at the top is harder than it sounds (and what integrity really looks like when you’re holding confidential change); The three drivers of human motivation (autonomy, competence and relatedness) and what they mean in practice; Why psychometric insight shouldn’t stop at hiring; The “reverse centaur” risk of AI, where humans become the compliance layer to machines; Why too many CPOs may still be struggling to hold their own at the commercial table; And what it actually takes to protect human value in an efficiency-obsessed world This is not a conversation about HR trends, it’s a conversation about power, agency, judgement and courage. If you care about the future of work, and the role HR will (or won’t) play in shaping it, this one matters. To find out more about the podcast overall, head to www.sopeople.co.uk. And you're keen to find out what Thomas International's innovative products can do for you and your organisation, you can do so at https://www.thomas.co/ Finally, you can get Luke on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-mck-thomas/