HRchat Podcast Most Change Fails Because Brains Hate Risk with Georgie Cooke, Lima Delta
Change doesn’t fail because people are stubborn; it fails because the rollout forgets how humans actually change. In this HRchat episode, Bill Banham sits down with Georgie Cooke, Learning and Change Strategist co-founder of Lima Delta, to unpack why so many transformations lose steam and how to design plans that stick.
From status quo bias and risk aversion to the quiet power of team norms, Georgie explains the psychology that shapes every initiative and shows how to turn insight into action.
Tune in to hear a clear breakdown of the Inspire, Train, Sustain framework and why sequence matters. Inspire builds urgency with a story that balances opportunity with the cost of staying the same. Train turns ideas into decisions through scenario-based practice and feedback that builds real capability. Sustain locks in new habits with aligned processes, incentives, communities of practice, and ongoing communication that respects the forgetting curve. We walk through a global engineering case study where leadership behavior shifted from vision on slides to norms in daily work—town halls and toolbox talks, a custom self-assessment, scenario learning, leadership labs, mentoring, and performance systems all pulling in the same direction.
Managers are the hinge that determines whether culture moves or snaps back. Georgie, a speaker at the November 12th Disrupt London summit, shares how to equip them as a distinct audience: early access, practical tools for local contexts, and clear expectations for the first 90 days.
Bill and Georgie also explore how to align company values with local realities, making the “why” personal to each team. If you’re leading HR, transformation, or people development, you’ll leave with concrete steps to diagnose resistance, tailor messages, and build environments where the right behavior is the easy behavior.
If this episode sparks ideas for your own rollout, follow along and share your biggest challenge. Subscribe for more conversations on change, leadership, and the future of work, and leave a quick review to help others find the show.
Connect with Georgie: linkedin.com/in/georgina-cooke-ld
Learn about Lima Delta: limadelta.com
Check out Lima Delta's Pathfinder workshop: limadelta.com/pathfinder
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