Founder & Occupational Psychologist
Hi, I'm Kat
For over 20 years, I have helped organisations assess, develop and promote leaders at every level. I have spent my career understanding what great leadership looks like.
But when I stepped into a significant leadership role myself, I discovered something all the theory in the world had not prepared me for. A few months after returning from my second maternity leave, I was promoted two levels overnight to cover a senior leader on emergency leave.
I did what so many new leaders do. I relied on the things that had always made me successful. I stepped in when things got difficult. I tried to keep everyone happy. I worked longer and longer hours to carry everything. Individually, those were strengths. In leadership, I overplayed them.
I knew the theory. I knew I needed to delegate and set boundaries. But knowing and doing are very different things when your diary is overflowing and you are trying not to let anyone see you struggle.
Leadership is not just a new title. It is a deeply personal, psychological transition.
Kat Maynard
Occupational Psychologist & Founder
20+ Years Experience
Occupational psychologist working with global talent management consultancies and boutique leadership firms.
Assessment & Development
Assessed leaders for promotion, built competency frameworks, and led development centres across diverse industries.
Lived Leadership Transition
Promoted two levels overnight to lead a merged team through major organisational change, learning what theory never teaches.
Kat Maynard
Occupational Psychologist & Founder
That experience changed how I see leadership
Why did leadership feel so hard when I had spent my entire career in leadership development?
Stepping into leadership asks you to let go of the identity that got you here.
Your career success was built on being good at something: delivering results, solving problems, being reliable. Then you become a leader, and your impact is no longer about what you can do yourself. It is about creating clarity, confidence and momentum through other people. That can feel deeply uncomfortable when nobody has explained that it is a fundamentally different job.
The safe space I wish I had
The Leader Hub exists so women have a place to say, "I am finding this hard," without worrying it means they are not capable.
A different way to grow as a leader
You do not need to become louder, tougher or more like somebody else.
Care + boundaries
You can lead with care and still set clear boundaries.
Support + accountability
You can support your people and still hold them accountable.
Ambition + sustainability
You can be ambitious without sacrificing yourself.