Humanising Workplaces

Joanne Lockwood is joined by Ben Afia, a language and communication specialist whose work focuses on making organisations feel more human. They explore how large organisations can become dehumanising through bureaucracy and process, and how changing internal relationships and communication can improve the experience people have with customers.

Ben shares practical insights on building a consistent tone of voice at scale without turning people into scripted “puppets”, and why capability-building in writing and communication is often overlooked. They discuss how formality and jargon can create distance, especially in moments of conflict, and how clarity, simplicity and empathy can help communications land better.

The conversation also covers cultural and contextual differences in how messages are received, including examples from customer service, and introduces approaches like appreciative inquiry and coaching-style questioning to create psychological safety and more constructive change. The episode connects employee experience, brand strategy and customer experience as mutually reinforcing parts of humanising workplaces.