Leading with Accountability and Care: Culture, Trust and Team Performance with Kate Lawson

What does it take to build a people-first culture in fast-moving startups and scale-ups without losing accountability, clarity or care?In this episode of the Leaders Who Coach™ Podcast, Sehaam Cyrene speaks with Kate Lawson, Founder and Director of Thrive Partnership, about what it really takes to build strong people and culture foundations in growing businesses.Kate shares insights from over 20 years working across people and culture, HR operations and executive support, including helping one insurtech scale-up grow from 4 people to more than 80 across the UK, US and Latin America. This conversation explores how leaders can create psychological safety, support performance, and lead with fairness and transparency while navigating the pressure, pace and messiness of growth.Together, they explore:• Why all businesses are people businesses• Why looking after your people is essential to business success• How startups and scale-ups can put the right people foundations in place early• What leaders often overlook about people and culture when moving fast• Why psychological safety and accountability need to go hand in hand• How regular check-ins and honest conversations build trust• The importance of fairness, transparency and early conversations• Why line managers need more support than many organisations realise• How leaders can protect their own wellbeing during difficult people situations • The role of community, physical wellbeing and boundaries in sustainable leadership • Kate’s journey from corporate roles into founding Thrive PartnershipThis is a thoughtful and practical conversation about leadership, culture, wellbeing and creating environments where people can speak up, grow and perform at their best. If this episode resonates with you, you can connect with Kate here: 👉 Kate Lawson on LinkedIn🎧 Listen & Follow Sehaam:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sehaam/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SehaamCyreneInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/sehaam.cyrene/TikTok: https://tiktok.com/leaderswhocoach📲 Download the Leaders Who Coach™ App and complete the Foundation Module free.00:00 – Introduction01:13 – Meet Kate Lawson04:16 – Why people come first11:52 – The realities of startup and scale-up growth16:40 – What leaders struggle with most22:34 – Scaling from 4 to 80 people30:15 – Psychological safety and accountability40:29 – Coaching, performance and leadership check-ins41:59 – Protecting your wellbeing as a leader53:03 – Kate’s biggest growth moment