Lucy KellawayFormer Financial Times Columnist, Education Reformer and Expert on Corporate Culture

Lucy Kellaway is a renowned journalist and educator who spent three decades at the Financial Times, where she served as an Associate Editor and the celebrated management columnist. Throughout her prestigious tenure on Fleet Street, she acted as energy correspondent, Brussels correspondent, and a contributor to the Lex Column. Her satirical weekly columns became essential reading for their sharp deconstruction of corporate jargon and management fads, earning her multiple accolades including Columnist of the Year at the British Press Awards and the Wincott Young Financial Journalist Award. In a high-profile career shift, she co-founded Now Teach, a social enterprise designed to recruit experienced professionals from the private sector into secondary school teaching. Her transition from the boardroom to the classroom was chronicled in her 2021 book, Re-educated, which explores the realities of professional reinvention. As an author, she is also known for creating the satirical character Martin Lukes in the novel Who Moved My Blackberry?, a work that remains a definitive parody of modern executive behaviour. Beyond her writing and teaching, she is a pioneer in examining new business trends, having notably explored the concept of sweatworking to test how shared physical exertion can build professional bonds. Today, she remains a contributing writer for the Financial Times. Audiences book her for her unparalleled ability to dissect office dynamics and leadership with a blend of dry wit and deep structural expertise. On stage, Lucy Kellaway is best known for talks on Leadership and Strategy. Audiences leave with a clear, practical view of the subject rather than a generic overview — every keynote is shaped around the brief and the room. Their work resonates with leaders across Education and Media & Broadcasting, where the themes translate directly into team decisions, customer experience and growth strategy. Lucy Kellaway is regularly booked for Business Speaker and After Dinner Speaker, adapting tone, length and format to suit the event — from a 20-minute opener to a full conference keynote with Q&A. Based in UK, Lucy Kellaway travels internationally for engagements. To check availability or request a tailored brief for your event, send an enquiry and we'll come back with fees, dates and a short summary of how Lucy Kellaway would approach your audience.