Why HR Gets Called the Fun Police (And Is It True?) | Diary of a CHRO Ep33
Sean Kennedy is known as the “TA Guy”, a Talent Acquisition Leader turned into a LinkedIn Content Creator for HR Related topics. However, when everyone expected serious conversations about HR issues, Sean decided to go in the opposite direction by creating fun videos about HR.
HR teams are often labeled as the “fun police”, but is that reputation fair, or just a misunderstanding?
If you’ve ever wondered whether HR is there to limit fun or actually enable a better workplace, this video will give you a fresh perspective.
👉 Like, comment, and subscribe for more insights on leadership, workplace culture, and HR!
Meet Sean Kennedy!
Why Company Culture Matters More Than Strategy | Diary of a CHRO Ep32
Janina Norton is Group Head of Culture at AXA with core priorities focused on bringing thought leadership and strategic direction on matters relating to employee listening and culture measurement, culture transformation, employee experience, and hybrid working.
A strong company culture shapes how people work together, boosts motivation, and drives long-term success.
In this conversation, we cover topics like:
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘥𝘭𝘺?
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘣𝘶𝘻𝘻𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥?
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱?
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘊𝘰-𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘙 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦?
She will also be a speaker at the People Experience Conference in Lisbon on 17 April 2026.
Meet Janina Norton!
What Makes Introverted Leaders So Powerful? | Diary of a CHRO Ep31
Niels Jansen is Head of HR at LG Benelux.
Niels is passionate about developing people and creating environments where they can thrive through “Introvert Leadership”.
Introverted leaders are often underestimated but, in reality, they bring some of the most powerful qualities to leadership.
In a world that often celebrates loud, charismatic leadership, introverts lead differently and that difference can be a major advantage.
In this video, we explore what makes introverted leaders so effective, and why organizations should rethink what great leadership really looks like:
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘲𝘶𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦
𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴
𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘦𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺’𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦
Whether you’re an introvert yourself or leading diverse teams, understanding this leadership style can change how you approach management and performance.
He will also be a speaker at the People Experience Conference in Lisbon on 17 April 2026.
Meet Niels Jansen!
The Secrets to Building a Powerful Employer Brand | Diary of a CHRO Ep30
Luís Sottomayor is the Founder and CEO of Talent Portugal, a Talent Attraction and Employer Branding platform that joins candidates, companies, and universities.
In this video, we will cover topics like:
𝘋𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘦𝘺 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘶𝘱 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘣𝘪𝘨 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘙𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘺𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘥 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬
𝘒𝘦𝘺 𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘥𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘺
𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥
Meet Luís Sottomayor!
The Leader’s Toolkit – Essential Leadership Tools for Managers | Diary of a CHRO Ep29
Dónal McConnell is the founder and creator of @LeaderTools . These are pre-baked management solutions, useful whether it’s delegating tasks or dealing with underperformance
The Leader’s Toolkit is your go-to deck of 50+ actionable leadership cards—each one a battle-tested tool you can use immediately. No theory. No fluff. Just practical solutions for the leadership challenges you face every single day.
In this video, we will show the following tools:
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘛𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘵
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘛𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘵
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘋𝘦𝘤𝘬
And address some topics regarding them like:
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘜𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘛𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘵
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘴 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘥?
𝘐𝘧 𝘢 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳 10 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦?
Meet Dónal McConnell!
Industry 5.0: How Danone Is Driving Transformation Via Strategic Upskilling | Diary of a CHRO Ep28
Beata Sawicka is the Head of Industry 5.0 Academy at Danone, leading a global initiative to empower employees to thrive in the era of human-machine collaboration.
She shares how Danone is leading operational transformation by digitally upskilling its workforce. This approach is helping factories — and the broader organization — enhance performance, drive growth, and increase flexibility, ultimately strengthening supply chain resilience and advancing toward Industry 5.0. To make this possible, Danone recognizes that upskilling, reskilling, and effective change management across the entire manufacturing community are essential.
She will also be a speaker at the People Experience Conference in Lisbon on 17 April 2026.
Meet Beata Sawicka!
Take Care of Your People, and They’ll Take Care of Your Business | Diary of a CHRO Ep27
Ricardo Costa is the Chairman of the Bernardo da Costa Group, Top 3 Most followed Portuguese person on LinkedIn, and also author of the 2024 book “Happiness is Profitable.”
In this video, Ricardo breaks down a powerful leadership principle: when you genuinely take care of your people, they naturally take care of your business. Culture drives performance. Trust builds loyalty. And strong teams create sustainable growth.
You’ll learn:
Why people-first leadership leads to long-term success
How valuing employees increases productivity and retention
The connection between company culture and profitability
Ricardo will also be one of the keynote speakers at Fórum de Líderes 2026, taking place on March 4 in Lisbon. In his session, he will explore why Leadership has become such a prominent topic in recent years and reflect on what truly matters most in great Leadership.
Meet Ricardo Costa!
Sustainable HRM leads to Increased Productivity | Diary of a CHRO Ep26
Rogier Van Hamburg is the Co-Founder of ImpactWork, a company helping organizations with the transformation to Sustainable Work.
Rogier believes that sustainable work is the key to a future-proof society. Via ImpactWork, his mission is to support companies in creating work environments that are not only productive but also people-focused and future-proof.
In this video, Rogier explains how he helps his clients with the challenges of today and tomorrow, such as labor market shortages, technological transformation, and changing employee expectations.
He also shares the “Sustainable HRM in 2025 Report” key findings, as well as inviting everyone to participate in the 2026 edition! (both links below)
Meet Rogier Van Hamburg!
Great Leadership, Financial Independence, and Retirement at 44 | Diary of a CHRO Ep25
Rita Piçarra was CFO of Microsoft Portugal before making the bold decision to retire at just 44 years old.
She gained widespread recognition for this move and later authored the book “Life Can’t Wait”, where she encourages people to reach key life milestones that enable financial independence, without having to work until a later age, while still achieving success in their careers and personal lives.
She will also be one of the keynote speakers at Fórum de Líderes 2026, taking place on March 4 in Lisbon. In her session, she will explore why Leadership has become such a prominent topic in recent years and reflect on what truly matters most in great Leadership.
Meet Rita Piçarra!
Why 30% of Employees Have a Hidden Disability, and What Leaders Miss? | Diary of a CHRO Ep24
António Vieira Santos is a Sociologist & Innovation Strategist @Atos
A LinkedIn Top Voice, Podcast Host, and Book co-author about Accessibility
He will also be a speaker at the HR Week Lisbon 2026, April 28-29.
In this Conversation, we unpack why around 30% of the workforce lives with a hidden disability, what that actually means in day-to-day work, and the critical things leaders and HR teams often miss.
Hidden disabilities don’t always look like disabilities. They can include neurodivergence, chronic illness, mental health conditions, sensory differences, and more, often invisible, often unspoken, and frequently misunderstood.
You’ll learn:
Why hidden disabilities are far more common than most leaders think
The assumptions that quietly exclude people at work
How “one-size-fits-all” leadership creates unnecessary barriers
What Leaders and Companies can do differently—starting now
This isn’t about compliance or labels. It’s about better leadership, better work design, and better outcomes for everyone.
If you lead people, manage teams, or shape workplace culture, this conversation matters.
Meet António Vieira dos Santos!