Geoff McDonald

Minds@Work Co-Founder

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Geoff McDonald 's Biography

Geoff’s background in teaching, HR, marketing, communications and sustainability is considerable. During his 25 years with Unilever (a global corporation with a turnover of £50 billion, 170,000 employees in 90 countries around the world), his experience has been truly global working across Africa, the Middle East and Turkey, Australasia and Asia, Europe and the Americas. His HR experience has spanned leadership and talent development, organization change, capability development with particular reference to marketing, and business transformation with purpose at its core. Early in his career he was responsible for graduate recruitment and development, talent, acquisitions and development across Unilever’s emerging markets. Under his leadership he developed Unilever’s global talent and leadership centre of expertise. More recently he devoted his time, energy and effort to leading ground-breaking work where the HR function has played a central role in transforming Unilever’s business model with purpose at its core. Geoff’s work today is truly global and he is a very much sought-after speaker, strategic advisor and consultant. He inspires and provokes organizations globally to put purpose and wellbeing at the centre of everything they do. His experience in Unilever, under the pupillage of Paul Polman, allows him to provide very practical insights and to speak on how to go about truly embedding PURPOSE and address the taboo associated with wellbeing (particularly mental health) within a large global multi-national organization. With this experience comes some real learning on what may or may not work. He recently had the opportunity to engage with Pope Francis on how we create a more sustainable and inclusive economy through his work with the Global Foundation. He has spoken at Cambridge, Oxford, Bologna and Warwick Universities as well as at corporate events across Australia, Japan, North America, Europe, South Africa, Turkey and Eastern Europe. Geoff is devoting a significant amount of time to consulting to organizations, helping them define and embed Purpose as a driver of growth and profitability. He is a Strategic Advisor to Boldt Partners and to RISE Global Corporate Purpose Advisory Firm in the area of Corporate Purpose and Organization Change. He also consults on how to address the stigma linked to depression and anxiety in the workplace, with a particular emphasis on raising awareness of these issues and providing some practical strategies as to how one might go about addressing this growing modern illness. He is a very active campaigner for breaking the stigma associated with Mental Health in the Corporate world and has participated in a number of BBC programmes and campaigns regarding this subject, as well as writing and producing articles for the Huffington Post, the Financial Times and HR-related journals. He previously convened a meeting at No 10 Downing Street with David Cameron and CEOs from Footsie 100 Companies to address their role and agree actions to break stigma in the corporate world. He too provided some support to the Royal Foundation (Princes William, Harry and Kate) in their mental health campaign. Geoff is a Co-Founder of the Charity ‘Minds@Work’, which has grown from 14 members to over 2000 in four years. Its purpose being to inspire and equip individuals to break the stigma of mental ill health in the organizations they work in. He was previously a Trustee of ‘Family Links’, a Charity promoting and educating parents and teachers to develop emotionally-healthy children and young adults. He was also a Trustee of the global campaign ‘It’s a Penalty’ combating the exploitation of young children around the world. He is currently an Advisor to ‘United For Global Mental Health’ and has been appointed to the Advisory Board of City Mental Health Alliance. Geoff is a Patron of the International Stress Management Association and a Member of the Prince’s Trust Youth Opportunity Taskforce with the purpose of creating change that will unlock the potential in the UK’s youth. He was also recently appointed as an Advisor to a number of small Tech Start-Ups looking at how technology can pro-actively enhance the mental health and wellbeing of individuals. Geoff is married with two girls and loves the outdoors. He is a passionate cyclist and swimmer and has completed a number of ultra-cycling and swimming events.

SPEAKING VIDEOS
PHOTOS

Let’s talk about mental health | Geoff McDonald | TEDxSittardGeleen

SPEAKER TOPICS

Culture Speakers

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Virtual Keynotes

Resilience Speakers

Sustainability Speakers

Motivational Speakers

Future of Work Speakers

Leadership Speakers

Mindfulness Speakers

Conference Speakers

Workplace Culture Speakers

Geoff McDonald Keynote Topics

The Unilever Story And How Purpose Drove Business Performance

In this keynote, our speaker Geoff McDonald shares the powerful story of how Unilever placed purpose at the heart of its business model. He explains how aligning strategy with purpose not only transformed company culture but also drove measurable growth and performance.

Through his first-hand experience, Geoff offers practical lessons for leaders seeking to embed purpose as a catalyst for sustainable success.

What Does It Take To Rediscover An Organization’s Purpose?

In this talk, Geoff McDonald explores the journey organisations must take to reconnect with their true purpose. He highlights the importance of reflection, leadership commitment, and stakeholder engagement in the rediscovery process.

Our speaker equips audiences with the tools to clarify and articulate purpose in a way that inspires employees and energises organisations.

What Does It Take To Embed And Live ‘Organization Purpose’? 

In this session, Geoff McDonald explains how purpose must go beyond words to become a lived experience within an organisation. He shares insights on integrating purpose into everyday decisions, culture, and leadership practices.

Audiences learn how to transform purpose into action, ensuring it is embraced across all levels of the organisation.

What Does That Change/Transformation Programme Look Like And Entail?

In this keynote, Geoff McDonald provides a practical roadmap for organisational transformation. Drawing on his experience leading large-scale change at Unilever, he reveals what it truly takes to shift mindsets, behaviours, and systems.

Our speaker offers clear guidance on designing transformation programmes that align with purpose and deliver long-lasting impact.

The Power Of Being Able To Speak Up And Ask For Support If Suffering From Mental Ill Health

In this talk, Geoff McDonald shares the importance of creating safe spaces for employees to speak up about mental health struggles. He draws on moving personal stories to show how openness can transform workplace culture.

Our speaker provides practical advice for leaders on how to encourage conversations, reduce stigma, and build trust in their organisations.

How To Break The Stigma Of Mental Ill Health In A Workplace

In this keynote, Geoff McDonald addresses one of the greatest barriers to well-being at work: stigma. He explains how silence and fear hold people back from seeking help and how leaders can dismantle these barriers.

Our speaker inspires audiences with strategies to foster acceptance, inclusion, and compassion—making mental health a normal and supported conversation.

How To Maintain Good Mental Health As An Individual

In this session, Geoff McDonald focuses on personal well-being. He provides individuals with practical tools for maintaining mental health, managing stress, and building resilience in a fast-paced world.

Our speaker empowers audiences to take ownership of their mental well-being while encouraging balance and self-care as part of everyday life.

How To Realise A Competitive Advantage Through Mental Health And Wellbeing In A Workplace

In this talk, Geoff McDonald demonstrates how prioritising mental health can drive competitive advantage. He explains how organisations with strong well-being strategies attract talent, boost performance, and build loyalty.

Our speaker equips leaders with compelling evidence and actionable strategies to position mental health as a key driver of business success.

How To Elevate The Health Of Employees To Be A Strategic Priority At Board/Executive Level

In this keynote, Geoff McDonald explores how employee health must be recognised as a strategic priority. He makes the business case for integrating well-being into board-level discussions and executive agendas.

Our speaker shows leaders how to elevate employee health from an HR issue to a fundamental driver of organisational performance and resilience.

Geoff McDonald 's Biography

His HR experience has spanned leadership and talent development, organization change, capability development with particular reference to marketing, and business transformation with purpose at its core. Early in his career he was responsible for graduate recruitment and development, talent, acquisitions and development across Unilever’s emerging markets. Under his leadership he developed Unilever’s global talent and leadership centre of expertise. More recently he devoted his time, energy and effort to leading ground-breaking work where the HR function has played a central role in transforming Unilever’s business model with purpose at its core.

Geoff’s work today is truly global and he is a very much sought-after speaker, strategic advisor and consultant. He inspires and provokes organizations globally to put purpose and wellbeing at the centre of everything they do. His experience in Unilever, under the pupillage of Paul Polman, allows him to provide very practical insights and to speak on how to go about truly embedding PURPOSE and address the taboo associated with wellbeing (particularly mental health) within a large global multi-national organization. With this experience comes some real learning on what may or may not work. He recently had the opportunity to engage with Pope Francis on how we create a more sustainable and inclusive economy through his work with the Global Foundation.

He has spoken at Cambridge, Oxford, Bologna and Warwick Universities as well as at corporate events across Australia, Japan, North America, Europe, South Africa, Turkey and Eastern Europe.

Geoff is devoting a significant amount of time to consulting to organizations, helping them define and embed Purpose as a driver of growth and profitability.

He is a Strategic Advisor to Boldt Partners and to RISE Global Corporate Purpose Advisory Firm in the area of Corporate Purpose and Organization Change. He also consults on how to address the stigma linked to depression and anxiety in the workplace, with a particular emphasis on raising awareness of these issues and providing some practical strategies as to how one might go about addressing this growing modern illness.

He is a very active campaigner for breaking the stigma associated with Mental Health in the Corporate world and has participated in a number of BBC programmes and campaigns regarding this subject, as well as writing and producing articles for the Huffington Post, the Financial Times and HR-related journals. He previously convened a meeting at No 10 Downing Street with David Cameron and CEOs from Footsie 100 Companies to address their role and agree actions to break stigma in the corporate world. He too provided some support to the Royal Foundation (Princes William, Harry and Kate) in their mental health campaign.

Geoff is a Co-Founder of the Charity ‘Minds@Work’, which has grown from 14 members to over 2000 in four years. Its purpose being to inspire and equip individuals to break the stigma of mental ill health in the organizations they work in. He was previously a Trustee of ‘Family Links’, a Charity promoting and educating parents and teachers to develop emotionally-healthy children and young adults. He was also a Trustee of the global campaign ‘It’s a Penalty’ combating the exploitation of young children around the world. He is currently an Advisor to ‘United For Global Mental Health’ and has been appointed to the Advisory Board of City Mental Health Alliance. Geoff is a Patron of the International Stress Management Association and a Member of the Prince’s Trust Youth Opportunity Taskforce with the purpose of creating change that will unlock the potential in the UK’s youth. He was also recently appointed as an Advisor to a number of small Tech Start-Ups looking at how technology can pro-actively enhance the mental health and wellbeing of individuals.

Geoff is married with two girls and loves the outdoors. He is a passionate cyclist and swimmer and has completed a number of ultra-cycling and swimming events.