Tina Varughese

Based in Calgary, Alberta, Tina Varughese tailors every presentation to the room — whether that's a keynote for 2,000 conference attendees, an intimate fireside chat, a moderated Q&A, a 1/2 day or full day hands-on workshop for a leadership team working through unconscious bias, in real time.

Rather than delivering a fixed talk, she adapts her DEI content to the specific industry, audience makeup, and outcomes each client is trying to achieve — pulling from her immigration business background, her book, and years on stage to make the material land differently for a healthcare HR team than it does for a financial services executive group. Explore her signature topics below, or reach out to discuss a fully custom session for your event. 

Workplace Culture:

Just Be(longing): Authenticity, Belonging and Connection at Work +

We’ve all felt that sinking feeling of not quite belonging. Altering ourselves to fit a certain mold for acceptance rather than being able to embrace our authenticity. When everyone is seen, heard, acknowledged authentically, intentionally, and consciously, workplaces promote a sense of belonging rather than a longing to belong. Is it easy? No. Can it be done? Yes it's a continuous journey- not a destination. Ultimately, to belong means to be seen. If we cannot change the way we look, we need to change the way we see.

Key Takeaways:

• Longing to Belong: Small Actions, Large Impact
• The Art of Authenticity: Four Strategies to Embracing Your Authentic Self
• Leading with Empathy- Encouraging Courageous
• Conversations at the workplace
• Inclusive meetings: Strategies for healthy dialogue, discussion and debate
• Gen Zen: Leadership Agility when working with a multigenerational workforce
• The impact of purposeful and intentional vulnerability at the workplace --

Resilience:

Thriving Through Uncertainty: Where Communication, Collaboration and Compassion Intersect +

In today’s rapidly changing workplace, uncertainty, change, and disruption have become constant realities. Regardless of title or position, everyone can lead through intentional actions, influence workplace culture, and strengthen connection, resilience, and adaptability at work and at home.

As organizations continue to face rising disengagement, burnout, anxiety, depression, and long-term absences from work, employees need practical tools to navigate change without becoming overwhelmed by it.

The result is greater emotional agility, renewed perspective, and a healthier and happier workforce better equipped to navigate change with confidence, intention,focus and impact.

Key Takeaways:

• Practical Resilience Strategies for Navigating Stress and Change
• Courageous Conversations: A Framework for Navigating Difficult Conversations with Empathy
• Healthy Boundaries at Work: A Key to Preventing Burnout and Improving Engagement
• Fear Forward: Building Trust Through Intentional Vulnerability in Times of Fear and Uncertainty
• The Power of Letting Go: Building Resilience Through Acceptance and Adaptability --

Team Building:

Better Together in the Changing Workplace +

Successful leaders understand today's increasingly multigenerational, multicultural and multifaceted workforce brings both opportunities and challenges if not managed effectively. To create trust, collaboration and creative work environments, inclusive leaders need to effectively communicate, understand and listen to their fellow employees. Everybody wants to be seen, wants to be heard and wants to be acknowledged. Learning how to communicate and cooperate in the workplace leads to a healthier, happier, motivating and inspiring workplace where everybody benefits.

Key Takeaways:

• Are you generationally ‘savvy’?
• Does your leadership style reflect “gen zen”?
• Play nice in the sandbox – team building through collaboration and understanding
• Empowering introverts in the workplace
• Individualistic and collectivist cultures: how values change the way we communicate
• What time is it? The difference between monochronic and polychronic cultures and why it matters to the workplace --

Leadership:

The Human Side of Unconscious Bias +

First impressions, positive or negative, are made in seven seconds or less. We all make quick assessments of others without even realizing it. We are not born with bias. Biases are formed by past situations, experiences, background and culture. Unconscious biases typically exist towards gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability (both physical and mental), and weight. Most of us will say "I see people for who they are" but do we? Unconscious biases affect and impact decision making both professionally and personally with real impact. Recognizing, managing and mitigating unconscious bias promotes diversity and inclusion. Diversity and inclusion drives innovation, increases productivity, and stimulates creativity while promoting a healthy, happy, engaging workplace culture.

Key Takeaways:

• The Neuroscience behind Unconscious Bias
• Managing and Mitigating Unconscious Bias in Recruitment, Retention and Employee Engagement
• Breaking Bias – Strategies for Gender, Maternal, Affinity and Ageism
• Sesame Street 2.0 – One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn’t belong...or does it?
• How Diversity Drives Innovation, Creativity and Productivity
• Why Creating a Culture of Inclusion affects Positivity, Profits and Purpose -- 

Inclusive Leadership: From Silos to Safety +

Creating a great organization isn't just about breaking down cultural barriers. It's about building a workplace where everyone works towards a common purpose and feels included despite title, rank or position. Successful leaders understand people do not leave jobs. People leave people. Today's successful leaders believe not only in investing in themselves, but encouraging others to grow, to learn and to develop in order to build inclusivity and trust, break down silos, foster employee engagement, encourage open lines of communication, promote creativity and create a healthy, happy and inspiring workplace.

Key Takeaways:

• Breaking down silos: How to create respectful, communicative, inclusive and collaborative teams
• Delivering constructive, influential, inclusive and solution-based feedback
• Death by meeting: Five key steps to inclusive and effective meetings
• Inclusive personal and organizational purpose: How recognizing others’ contributions gives you a stronger sense of purpose
• Negative Nellie and Nasty Ned: How to actively listen, include and empathize to change negative behaviors at work
• The importance of stress management for leaders --

Communication:

50 Shades of Beige: Communicate with the Cross-Cultural Advantage +

Successful organizations understand that being able to communicate cross-culturally in the workplace leads to enhanced productivity, performance and employee engagement. Managing diversity drives profitability, leads to innovation and promotes an inspiring workplace culture.

Key Takeaways::

• Cultural differences in communication: Indirect vs. direct speaking styles
• Individualistic and collective cultures: How values change the way we communicate
• Effective day-to-day communication when English is a second language
• Non-verbal communication: Why the “unspoken” word is the most important of all
• How global companies lose millions in revenue due to a lack of understanding of cultural differences
• How to use the VAK model of Communication (visual/audio/kinaesthetic communication styles) using the cross-cultural advantage --