Lee Houghton didn’t think he would win.

He didn’t hype it up.
He didn’t tell many people.
He protected himself from disappointment.

And then he was crowned National Coach of the Year.

In this episode, Lee shares:

• The self-doubt behind the nomination

• The psychology of protecting ourselves from failure

• What the award really meant to him

• Why he believes “better is always different”

• And how leaders can move from instruction to true coaching

We explore:

• The power of silence

• Why “why” questions can be dangerous

• How to create genuine human connection

• Why leaders should speak last

• And how to build high-performing teams through connection and curiosity

It’s thoughtful.
It’s emotional.
It’s practical.

And we discover he used to DJ in a monkey costume.....listen for the name alone !

Leadership… but human.

Join me and the rest of the Get Out of Wrap TV gang as we talk about the big questions in the contact centre and CX world. On this episode we talked about what agents are saying their work lives are like in our industry. This is born out of my work with Calabrio on producing the Voice of the Agent research at the end of 2025.

AI is moving fast. Faster than most organisations and people can emotionally keep up with.

In this special episode of Get Out of Wrap TV, I’m joined by Kathryn Simmons Porter, founder of Flourish, to explore what she calls “The Trust Paradox” – the growing tension between rapid AI adoption and the human emotions it triggers inside contact centres.

We talk openly about:

• Why AI isn’t replacing people – but changing them

• The emotional responses agents experience when AI is introduced known as AI grief

• Why trust, transparency and purpose matter more than ever

• How emotional intelligence (EQ) is becoming a core business capability, not a “soft skill”

• The real cost of absenteeism, disengagement and poorly handled AI rollouts

• Why leaders must focus on people readiness, not just tech readiness

Kathryn brings nearly 30 years of contact centre experience and a deep understanding of emotional intelligence, blending practical insight with real-world examples including how AI has personally impacted her own family.

If you’re responsible for CX, EX, contact centre strategy or AI transformation, this conversation will challenge how you think about success in the age of automation.

🎧 Listen now and join the conversation.

In this episode of Get Out of Wrap, I’m joined by the brilliant Shameem Smillie – CX leader, writer, speaker, one of the founding members of Women in CX, and Senior GTM Specialist for EMEA at Amazon.

Shameem’s journey is anything but conventional. From leaving school with no qualifications, to serving 13 years in the British Army, to becoming one of the most respected voices in customer experience and contact centres, this is a conversation about resilience, representation, courage, and doing the work.

We talk openly about:

• What the military taught her about leadership, teamwork, and accountability

• Why contact centres are the beating heart of organisations

• The reality of representation, allyship, and advocating for others

• Why AI shouldn’t scare us and how it can genuinely help agents and leaders

• The importance of culture, candour, and speaking truth in organisations

This episode is honest, funny, powerful, and deeply human.
If you care about leadership, CX, people, and progress then this one’s for you.

This is a milestone episode of Get Out of Wrap – and a meaningful one.

For episode 250, I’m joined by Niki Ignatiou and Julia Rosell Jackson from ActionAid, an international charity working alongside women, girls and communities to tackle injustice at its roots.

In this conversation we explore:

• How ActionAid works differently by putting communities in the lead

• Why adolescent girls are often invisible – and how they’re changing that

• Real examples of girls influencing policy, education and social norms

• The role of women’s movements in humanitarian crises and conflict

• Why lasting change doesn’t come from systems imposed on people

This episode is about justice, dignity, resilience – and listening to the people closest to the problem.

If you care about leadership, humanity and impact, this one’s worth your time.

You can support Action Aid at https://www.actionaid.org.uk/get-involved

You can also donate for my London Marathon run raising money for Action Aid at

https://www.justgiving.com/page/runwithmart?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL

I sat down with my good friend Sham Aziz to talk about something that feels uncomfortable but necessary.

- Flags on lampposts.
- Protests outside hotels.
- Intimidation & Fear dressed up as patriotism.

But this wasn’t a political conversation, it was a human one.

Sham spoke about growing up British and Muslim, being “othered”, parenting through uncertainty, and finding strength in faith without needing to preach.

We talked about intention vs impact.

About how silence can feel like complicity.

And about why contact centres of all places quietly get inclusion right.

If you’ve felt uneasy but unsure how to articulate it…
If you believe we have more in common than we admit…
If you still think conversation matters…

I’d really encourage you to listen and I hope it's a hopeful episode, I certainly felt hope after chatting with Sham.

A bit of a different episode this week, this time it was me as the guest and the host was Rob Wilkinson of CX Today and all round awesome human.

In this CX Today interview, I explain why the role of Team Leader is so demanding, why burnout is often invisible, and what organisations can do right now to better support their team leaders.

This episode covers:

• The reality of becoming a team leader with little or no preparation

• Why team leaders say yes to everything — and the cost of that

• Coaching, prioritisation, emotional intelligence and workload

• The power of peer support and shared experience

• Real success stories from the community

• Practical advice for contact-centre leaders heading into 2026

And of course I talk about the founding of The Team Leader Community which I founded in February 2023.

This Christmas special episode of Get Out of Wrap is a moment to pause, reflect, and reconnect.

I bring together voices from across the contact centre and CX community to look back on 2025, share honest views on AI, leadership and frontline reality, and talk openly about what really matters heading into 2026.

You’ll hear:

• Real reflections on a tough but meaningful year

• Insightful perspectives on AI, quality, fraud, and customer expectations

• Why people, not technology, remain the beating heart of contact centres

• Festive fun, community interaction, and a live quiz

• Messages of solidarity, hope, and gratitude from across the industry

This episode isn’t about predictions for the sake of it — it’s about learning, humanity, and recognising the people who keep the industry moving.

A perfect end-of-year listen for anyone who believes contact centres are about more than KPIs.