John Amaechi OBE – First & Only British NBA Player

Keynote Speaker on Inclusive and Transformational Leadership
Best-Selling New York Times Author of ‘Man in the Middle – my life in and out of bounds’
Named by HR Magazine as one of ‘HR’s Most Influential Thinkers’

John Amaechi OBE is a best-selling New York Times author and the CEO of an organizational psychology and consultancy firm.

John Amaechi is a respected organisational psychologist, a New York Times best-selling author and CEO of APS Ltd, a strategic consultancy that works across Europe, Asia and North America.

John was recently named to 2019’s list of the most influential thinkers in HR that includes Simon Sinek, Amy Cuddy and Patrick Lencioni.

John partners with organisations to help leaders deliver on the promise of authentic, transformational leadership.

He focuses on improving performance through an evidence-based practice: solving seemingly intractable people problems and creating thriving workplaces in the face of inevitable challenges and disruption.

John coaches individuals and consults with organisations to improve communication, leadership and teaming and enhance culture as a way to grow, improve and achieve goals.

His psychological insight helps people understand the barriers to high performance and overcome them.

He understands motivation and personal development and the roots of success that enables these traits to flourish. He also considers the nature of competition, the importance of cognitive diversity in organisational achievement, and aligning personal and business values and ethics.

John’s experience is unique – he created a masterplan for his own radical, personal transformation from an overweight British schoolboy to the first British NBA (National Basketball Association, USA) star to psychologist – and his experience and approach appeals to people from all walks of life.

He is an engaging speaker on transformational leadership and performance psychology and was named by HR Magazine as one of HR’s Most Influential Thinkers.

He is Executive Coach and CEO of APS where he leads a team of psychologists, behavioural scientists and experienced business strategists to design and deliver evidence-based advisory interventions for clients.

Their services enhance leaders, their teams, organizational culture, and organisational performance.
Organisations approach APS to understand complex ‘people challenges’ through advisory services driven by analytics, motivational presentations workshops and masterclasses, executive coaching and digital learning – delivered virtually or face-to-face.

John is a Non-Executive Director of a £2.4 bn healthcare organization and a board advisor for several FTSE organisations in the financial, legal and professional services, technology, publishing, engineering and retail sectors.

Amaechi was awarded an OBE in the 2011 Birthday Honours for services to sport and the voluntary sector.

John is a Research Fellow at the University of East London and his research focuses primarily on effective and inclusive leadership, building high-performing teams and organizational design that maximises productivity and human thriving in readiness for the future world of work.

He is a Chartered Scientist, a Chartered Fellow of the CIPD and an elected Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health.

Prior to working as a psychologist, John had an accomplished career as a professional basketball player, winning 18 caps for England.

He is the first British basketball player to have a career in the NBA.

His memoir, ‘Man in the Middle: My Life in and Out of Bounds‘, was a New York Times bestseller and tells his story from awkward, overweight child to successful NBA star.